Search the Community

Hello everyone! Here is my latest kit which has been almost three months in the making. It's Anigrand Craftswork's resin 1:144 Focke-Wulf Fw 200C-4/U2. It represents CE+IC (0138), of the Fliegerstaffel des Führers (F.d.F.), on the Eastern front, in late 1942. The Fliegerstaffel des Führers was a small fleet of transport aircraft for German government officials and high ranking command officers. It was established in the mid-1930s mostly with Ju 52s and later used Fw 200s and at least one Ju 290. Hitler, Himmler and Karl Dönitz each had a personal Fw 200. In fact, Hitler, was the first head of state in the world to have an official personal aircraft. The F.d.F. was not part of the Luftwaffe and was manned mostly by SS personnel as well as some from DHL Lufthansa. The Fw 200C-4/U2 was one of a small number of armed high-speed transport versions made specially for the F.d.F. CE+IC (0138) wasn't assigned to anyone in particular and was more of a backup plane but was indeed used as the only full photo and a profile I found says it was in the Ukraine in 1943. It entered service with the F.d.F. in spring 1942 and later in the war it was transferred to the Luftwaffe and was shot down in 1945. I was disappointed when Anigrand released this kit as I was hoping for the maritime variant. The kit had options to make this unique sub-variant or Hitler's personal machine (the V3). Roden has released a kit of the latter which I decided to get so I went ahead and built this variant. This resin kit measured out quite well with 1:144 SAMI plans that I have except for the wing root being too long (which I ignored) and the shape of the wingtips which I easily corrected with some sanding. There were several things that needed correcting or adding though: The tailwheel was moulded retracted and too far back. I scratchbuilt one from spares and made the bay in the correct position. The underfuselage gondola, although correctly shorter than the standard one used in maritime variants, was still too long and lacked depth. I cut off the second quarter and joined the resulting front and rear sections and blended them together, trying to get the underside with the right slope. I cut off the rear turret and reattached it aligned by the top, filling the resulting gap with CA glue (almost the same opaqueness). The engines where completely plain, with no exhausts and tubes and no dip of the nacelle behind them. I scraped a dip and added all the missing details including making the cutouts that the cowling flaps had. The guns were way too thick so I cut off the barrels and later replaced them with new ones from stretched sprue. I added some missing aerials or probes also from stretched sprue as well as an air scoop on the top starboard side. The main radio mast was moved forward as per photos as it differed from standard variants. I also added the missing forward retraction arms of the undercarriage. Wingtip lights were added from blobs of Kristal Klear. The kit was fully painted and varnished by brush. Despite some suggestions of painting it RLM72/73, I went for RLM70/71 on the top surfaces since this was not a maritime machine but a VIP transport and per RLM regulations would have gone with the latter. If anyone knows otherwise for certain, I would be glad to hear it out of curiosity since I won't be changing the kit! I am very pleased with the extra work I put into the kit as it improved the end result considerably and was also a learning experience as I came up with solutions to some of the problems. It's not one of the machines that scourged the Atlantic but I am pleased I went ahead with this unique variant and with how it came out. I really should have built one before since it's a beautiful design. Thanks for looking and all comments are welcome. Miguel

Hello everyone! Here is another small kit I managed to finish last month. It's Anigrand Craftswork's resin 1:144 Heinkel He 176 V1 which I built together with the Horten H XIIIa which I have posted before. The Heinkel He 176 was the world's first rocket-powered aircraft using liquid fuel. Previous aircraft had used solid fuels. It was built as a private venture by Heinkel and first flew successfully on 20 June 1939. When demonstrated to the RLM, little interest was shown and further flying was banned due to the dangers of rocket propulsion. The ban was lifted a couple of times but was made definite in September. The prototype ended up in a museum in Berlin where it was destroyed by Allied bombing in 1943 or 1944 (sources differ on the date). This kit was another of the bonus kits of the Anigrand Fw 200 Condor. I was hoping for a quick build but due to some extra work I put in to it and some problems with the painting it took a little longer. I opened up the incorrect bulkhead between the cockpit and the nose, corrected rear taper of the wings which was wrong (the tips were too wide), replaced the overly thick nose wheel struts with new ones from stretched sprue, made proper tailwheel bay doors, and added the underwing handling bars and the wing probe from stretched sprue. I also opened up the exhaust pipe and thinned the main u/c legs a bit. The kit was fully painted and varnished by brush. Thanks for looking and all comments are welcome. Miguel

Here is my latest kit, finished this past weekend after just over 2 months. It's Anigrand Craftswork's 1:144 Blohm & Voss Bv 222 V7 Wiking. This was the seventh prototype but the first of the C-series with diesel-powered Jumo 207C inline engines. It's first flight was on 1 April, 1943 and it was scuttled by its crew at the end of the war. This resin kit was built mostly OOB. I opened up the porthole-type windows which were represented as panel lines and filled them with Kristal Klear. I strengthened the join at the wing roots making a spar through the fuselage in front of the tab and using screws as rods behind. I also added some details in the cockpit, correcting the seats and making the steering wheels, although little can be seen! Other details added were the wingtip lights (Kristal Klear drops) and the radio wires (stretched sprue). The base/cradle was made from bits and rods of wood I had. The kit was fully painted and varnished with brush. Thanks for looking and, as usual, all comments are welcome. Miguel

Here is another Luft 46 project I built back in 2014. It's a Blohm und Voss P.209.02 forward swept wing fighter project by Anigrand Craftswork in 1:144 and in resin. I added some belts in the cockpit, thinned the undercarriage bay doors as much as possible and split them according to references as opposed to what Anigrand seemed to propose. The kit was fully painted and varnished by brush. Thanks for looking Miguel

Here is my 1:144 scale Anigrand Craftswork resin Blohm & Voss P.215 which I built back in 2014. This was an unbuilt German WWII nightfighter project. I added details to the cockpit as this was meant to be a three-seater and the kit only came with two. Apart from scratchbuilding a third seat, I added belts, headrests, a stick for the pilot and some boxes in the rear section. I also thinned the undercarriage doors and added gun barrels from metal rod. The kit was fully painted with brush and only the Vallejo Satin varnish was airbrushed. This scheme came about as a way of fixing a scheme I wasn't happy with but since it's Luft'46, I can just about get away with it! Thanks for looking Miguel

Here is my Anigrand Craftswork 1:144 resin Kawasaki Ki-108 "Randy" I built back in 2011. It represents one of the prototypes at the Rikugun Koku Shinsa Bu (Army Air Testing Centre), Gifu Factory area, 1944. It's one of the bonus kits of the Kawasaki Ki-91 bomber set. Only four prototypes of this aircraft were built and flown, the second pair being of the improved Kai variant with greater span and length. According to what little references I could find, this kit seems to be a little in between both variants but closer to the first pair. This was a particularly troubled build. Some parts were poorly moulded and the fit was quite bad. All of the parts had an 'orange peel' surface so I had to sand them all smooth first. I added the top radio mast (from a Sweet Zero) and the wing pitot tube (stretched sprue). I thinned the main wheel doors as much as I could. The kit was fully painted with brush except for the matt varnish which was airbrushed. I used White Ensign Models Kawasaki Army Green for the top surfaces and Vallejo Light Blue Grey (RLM76) for the undersides. This kit had the decals missing so I sourced them from other sheets. Since it was a prototype, I kept weathering to a minimum. Thanks for looking Miguel

Hi all I hope you’re all keeping well? I thought I’d show you the latest model that has been keeping me amused through lockdown. It’s the Anigrand Craftworks 1/72nd scale Martin 130 Flying Boat. As usual with Anigrand kits it was not an easy build. Paints were from Xtracolor. Best regards to all, Rob

Hello! Here is my Douglas XB-42 Mixmaster prototype bomber resin kit in 1:144 by Anigrand Craftswork which I built after the XB-43 (posted last week) back in 2017. It represents 43-50224, the first prototype which had it's first flight on 6 May 1944. Some minor corrections had to be made and due to damage of the parts, One of the canopies was missing so i had to source one from my spares box and sand it to shape. The kits was fully painted and varnished by brush. Thank you for looking and all comments are welcome Miguel

Hello! Here is my Douglas XB-43 Jetmaster prototype jet bomber resin kit in 1:144 by Anigrand Craftswork. It represents 44-61508, the first prototype, at Muroc Army Air Base, USA, on its first flight on 17 May, 1946. Some minor corrections had to be made and due to damage of the parts, I had to replace the exhaust rings with parts from my spares box. The decals allowed for making the prototype at different moments of its life. I went for the first flight. The wing walkway lines were missing but I didn't have the heart to paint them on. The kits was fully painted and varnished by brush. Thank you for looking and all comments are welcome Miguel

Hello! Here is my Anigrand Craftswork 1:144 Junkers EF.130 medium jet bomber project which I built back in 2008. It is in fictitious markings of 1./KG6 of the Luftwaffe. This kit was one of the bonus kits with the Horten Ho.XVIII kit, and it was my first all-resin kit build. Apart from the work in cleaning up the parts and getting them to fit, I added a couple of details to the cockpit and thinned the undercarriage doors considerably. The scheme was inspired on a real one I found on a Ju 188 of 1./KG6. The kit was mostly painted by brush with some varnish applied by airbrush. Thanks for looking Miguel

Hello! Here is my Anigrand Craftswork 1:144 Messerschmitt Me 264 V1 which I built in 2012. It represents RE+EN, the first prototype, at Lechfeld and Memmingen, Germany, in April-July 1944. This resin kit was built mostly OOB just adding the radio mast, wing probe and retraction arms for the main u/c doors. Despite the weight I had put in the forward fuselage, it still ended up a tail-sitter so I glued a rod of clear sprue to the underside to have it sit on its wheels. The kit was completely brush-painted with only the matt varnish being applied by airbrush. Weathering was kept minimal as this was a prototype but since I had modelled its final configuration, the noticeable exhaust plumes had to be dry-brushed on. Thank you for looking and, as always, comments are welcome Miguel

Here is Anigrand Craftswork's 1:144 resin kit of the Junkers EF.132 bomber project which I built in 2002. Markings are for a fictitious KG200 machine in the Luftwaffe. It was built mostly OOB with only the guns being replaced by thinner items. The undercarriage doors were thinned. It was all painted by brush except for the matt varnish which was applied with airbrush. Thanks for looking and all comments are welcome Miguel

This is my Tupolev Tu-128 "Fiddler B" Red 01, unit unknown, of the IA-PVO, Russia, USSR, which I built in 2012. It's a 1:144 resin bonus kit of the Tu-22K Blinder-B boxing (one hell of a bonus kit!). Built mostly OOB, correcting the position of the main undercarriage legs and putting the doors as they should be as opposed to what was suggested in the minimal instructions. I added various aerials and lumps from stretched sprue and scrap plastic as well as missing u/c retraction arms or struts. The kit was completely painted and varnished by brush. Thanks for looking and all comments welcome Miguel