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1:48 Eduard Bf109 E-4 Here are some photos of my recently completed Bf109 E-4. As the kit comes with quite a detailed representation of the DB601 engine I thought it would be nice to display it and not fit the cowling panels. As you probably all know the kit is a pleasure to build with no issues I can recall. The only additions being photo etch seat belts, some plumbing to the engine and landing gear and 1.0mm aluminium tubing for the m/c gun barrels. Decals are from the kit and went on without any problems. Paints are Gunze Aqueous and Tamiya acrylics. As an aside, has anybody any experience of the 1:48 ICM Bf109F kits? I would be interested to read any comments. Thanks for looking, Bob.

I am not the best photographer and while I have a set of microfilters, I have quite mastered them. Thanks to Chris (Fatcawthorne) for the oxygen cylinder, not that one can see it in the photos. ​Paint: Mr Hobby Acrylics Flat: Model Master Airbrush: Grex TG3 and TG5 Washes: Mig and AK Masks: Topnotch Mask and Bases Aerial: EZ-Line Not forgetting: Good old Future Build Type: OOB Comments and suggestions welcome

This is the Airfix new tool 109E-4 in 72nd scale. Exhaust are a resin product from Quickboost, along with machined brass guns from Master. No swastikas were provided on the decal sheet, so only stencils and wing crosses were used. Remainder of the markings were from other sources, plus some home made decals for the JG 26 emblem (gothic 'S' on white shield). regards, Jack

Going to try and get this one in, hopeful the few blemishes on this kit wouldn't gobble up too much time. Should have researched before pulling the trigger. Being their newer tool, first problem are the IP decals which are too big. Easy fix though, just trim them after application. After some research, the above was confirmed by others. The next blemish to discover was the wing root detail was missing on the starboard fuselage, but beautifully rendered on the port half section. Last one isn't that much of a problem (usual to putty and sand this area anyways), but the engraved panel lines on both fuselages just trail off to nothingness: regards, Jack

The fair and the brave and the good must die. -- Lord Huron, "The World Ender" And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?” -- Revelations 13:4 (ESV) "Captain [Helmut] Wick gave the impression that fighting the British Air Force was an extremely simple matter...the flier declared that the present quality of British pilots was 'laughable'." -- "NAZI FLYER LAUGHS AT BRITISH AIRMEN", New York Times, October 13, 1940 'Summon up your reserves of courage, be a spearman now and a warrior brave. There is no escape from me, and soon Athene will bring you down with my spear. Now pay the price for all my grief, for all my friends you’ve slaughtered with your blade.' -- The Iliad, Book XXII For the Axis side of my builds, I'm going to start out with two Bf109Es -- an ICM 109E-4 to be built as Wn. 1082/Yellow 4 of Oberleutnant Helmut Rau, Staffelkapitan of III/JG3's machine, and an Airfix 109E-4 to be built as Yellow 2 of III/JG2, the machine of Staffelkapitan Helmut Wick in August of 1940. Our own Enz Matrix has written an excellent capsule bio of Rau, published here on FalkeEins' blog; suffice it to say that in Yellow 4, Rau ran afoul of Ronald "Ras" Berry, who wrote: "As I had no oxygen, I had to leave the squadron at 22,000 feet and waited below in the sun for straggling enemy aircraft. After patrolling for 30 minutes, I saw a Me109 proceeding very fast. To overhaul him I had to press the emergency boost - indicated speed - 345. I caught the enemy aircraft off Shoeburyness. I opened fire at close range and fired all my ammunition until the enemy aircraft streamed with smoke and pancaked on the mud at Shoeburyness." Adorned with an eye-catching serpent, Rau's aircraft was salvaged for public display, somewhat the worse for wear: Helmut Wick is rather more famous than Rau, being at the end of the Battle, the Luftwaffe's top-scoring ace, with fifty-six claims. He died shortly after its conclusion, drowning in the Channel after being shot down by Flight Lieutenant John Dundas (himself killed moments later), the brother of Hugh "Cocky" Dundas, who would go on to later distinction. I will not be building the aircraft Wick met his fate in, as it falls outside of the scope of this GB, but rather the aircraft he was flying in August: As you can see, both Wick and Rau's aircraft show heavy use of the field-expedient camouflage adopted by the Luftwaffe as the Battle intensified. I had wished to also do an aircraft with the earlier 70/71 scheme and high demarcation, but I only have two 109Es and converting a 109E-1 seemed like a bit of a bother.