Search the Community

OK this is a sort of second build or more like a KUTA finish it will you build. I had made a start on this one in the last Bf.109 STGB but as usual things got away from me and I never actually got a chance to finish her…so maybe this time. I have barely started her, the wings are sort of done but that’s it, so it should make the < 25% rule. Here is the link to what has been done on her already. As mentioned in my other build, the scheme of this aircraft is of that flown by 1936 Olympic Pentathlon Gold medal winner Hptm. Gotthard Handrick in the Spanish Civil War Interestingly there appear to be 2 variations of this aircraft he flew. One the actual aircraft he flew in Spain and became an ace in, which was a Bf.109-B2 (top aircraft). And the other scheme which is thought to be the one he toured Germany in for propaganda use (bottom aircraft), which was actually turned out to be a Bf.109-D1. I’ll be doing the first one. Well one way or another I’ll get to finish either this one or “Dolfo’s” E3…….. plus I won’t mention the pair of “Hartmann” 1/48th Bf-109G’s I’m building for another project as well!

Luftwaffe Pre-WWII Aircraft Acrylic Colours (AK11715) AK Interactive This is another boxing of AK Interactive’s third generation acrylics, aiming for excellent coverage, what they describe as awesome grip, and a promise of no clogging of your airbrush if you use one. They’re also great for use with a paint brush undiluted, but they should be diluted with water or their own thinners if using with an airbrush, which I’ve successfully tested with my usual vague “semi-skimmed milk thickness” goal for the thinned paint, and using Ultimate Thinners as my thinners of choice. Each pot arrives in a 17ml dropper bottle with sharp contours at the shoulder and a cruciform profile to the white screw-top cap, which is also knurled near the bottom to improve grip further. The labels wrap around the body of the bottle giving general information about the new range, plus its name and product code near the top, with a bar code along one short edge. Overall, it’s a nice look, but that’s not why we’re here. This is a smaller set that arrives in a rectangular box with a square base, with four bottles filling the box, obviating the need for a length of foam to prevent them from rattling about. The design of the packaging is simple and based on an overall white theme, with a slightly retro font on the front that is a little garish. The usual orange AK logo with the negative silhouette of an AK-47 in the centre is prominently displayed, as well as the Air Series logo that refers to the fact that this is an aviation set, not an airbrush specific set. The 3G Acrylics brand logo is also present, with the product code above and the strapline “Scale Reduction Factor” below. This refers to scale colour, which can be a divisive theme, although I’m personally OK with that. Essentially, it refers to the perceived lightening of a colour applied to a scale model, as if seeing it through “scale air”, or aerial perspective, which reduces the saturation of any colour over distance, a well-known technique used in art, especially to depict the effects of distance in scenery and other distant objects. Some folks may not subscribe to it however, and that’s ok too. For example, would the “scale reduction factor” be the same for a 1:72 and a 1:24 aircraft? Would the difference be visible? Those are questions you’ll need to find answers for yourself, as I’m certainly not going to try and tell you how to paint your model. This set includes the following colours: AK11814 RLM61 AK11815 RLM62 AK11816 RLM63 AK11817 RLM65 (1938) These paints are just as easy to apply by airbrush or paint brush, and once dry they are very tough as acrylics go, especially if you key the surface beforehand with a buffing-type sanding stick. A primed and buffed surface is slightly ahead in terms of adhesion, but not by much so it’s good news all round whether you’re a modeller that primes religiously or not. In addition to airbrushing well without clogging, the paint goes on well with a paintbrush, needing one or sometimes two coats depending on the colour, and brushing out well with very little in the way of brush marks if you use a broad filbert brush. I’m not a natural brush-painter, and was really pleasantly surprised at how well the paint went down despite my lack of experience. Conclusion I like these paints and their bottles are practical and attractive, although I’m not massively keen on the fonts used on the box artwork, but that’s just my personal taste. This set gives you the shades you’ll need to complete the interiors of your WWII US aircraft, and once you add some white and black for colour modulation, they’ll be very useful for the modeller. The recently reviewed RAF Coastal Command & RN FAA includes a black and a white bottle, if that’s convenient or appealing – this is Britmodeller after all. There’s a whole range of these colours available both individually and in sets for aircraft, AFV and other modelling genres, some that we’ve now reviewed, and the rest we’ll be getting to soon. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

I seem to have had a bit of a Condor Legion theme running recently, what with the Hs 123 and the Ju 87 so here is the last of the three I have been working on. It's the Academy Bf 109D of 3./J88 as flown by Werner Molders. I've heard that the kit has some accuracy issues but it looks like a 109 to me and fit together rather well. The only exception being the canopy which was a bit undersized and the framing is wrong but I was able to partially hide this by opening it up. I repositioned the rudder and other control surfaces to add a bit of life but left the slats closed as I had a number of photo's of 109s in Spain parked with these shut. Seat belts and brake lines were added, engine exhausts were also replaced with aluminium tubing and a new etched radiator completed the front end. It doesn't really show in the photo's but I gave it a light weathering to reflect a relatively short time in action. All in all it was a nice easy build which I enjoyed and I hope you do too. The next one will be something different with four engines and contra rotating props... Cheers,

Thanks to a reminder from @JOCKNEY I have started my (first ever?) Heller kit. I think I bought this at a BDAC show a couple of years ago; it was a bargain anyway. It’s the early 109, I’ll do it in the box art scheme. I’ve prepared the parts and done some priming, I’ll post a few pics before long. Cheers Will

Hello everybody...Fresh out of the Heller group build. It is the 1/72 Bf.109B/C kit #236 and is done as a 109D flown by Hauptmann Werner Möelders. The only aftermarket used were the AML Decals due to the originals being no good. Please feel free to ask questions, post comments, or visit the build thread. Dennis

I will be building this for the Spanish Civil War/Small wars builds that didn't make it. https://www.scalemates.com/kits/italeri-114-junkers-ju86d1--193463 It was a gift from my Brother in law last Crimbo, and has been quietly waiting patiently for its turn.

Hello Everyone... Id like to present my Italeri 1/72 Ju-86D. It was a gift from my Brother in law Christmas 2018, and it was built in the year long “They also Serve” group build. I built it as aircraft 26*1 and Its actually a very pleasant kit to build. I would say for molds supposedly made in 1970 they are holding up remarkably well. With almost no flash and or molding issue’s. The only real issue is the 1970 style instruction sheet, took a bit of guessing to get interior bulkheads in the right spots. Before I drag on forever I will present this now. And a few period style photos. Here is a Link to the WIP. Questions, comments, and or thoughts please feel free to post. Dennis

This is the reveal of my Eduard 1/32 Messerschmitt bf 109 D using the Alley Cat Conversion. A tricky build in places but overall very enjoyable. I have linked my full video build for this one below if you’d like a more detailed look at the build. I used Kora Decals for the Prop blades, not totally accurate as they should be slightly different but a good attempt, I also added an Eduard etch set and Quickboost gunsight as well as the Conversion kit.

Hi all, would anyone have any reference material for the Opel Blitz being used in the SCW, would these have been painted in the early three tone camouflage or the generic field grey/green? Also the kit I'm planning on using would be: https://www.scalemates.com/kits/181439-icm-35401-typ-2-5-32-1-5to I know they were used quite widely by the Condor Legion but information is a little scarce

Pz.Kpfw.I Ausf.A Spanish Foreign Legion, Granadella 1938. This vehicle is ‘214’ from the Spanish Foreign Legion Tank Brigade, 2nd Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Platoon. This machine was based in Grandella in the province of Alicante in 1938. The Panzer 1 was a very light armoured and under gunned tank even for the 1930’s, it was best suited to a role of infantry support as it was inadequate against other tanks. Dragon’s Pz.Kpfw.I Ausf.A is a great little kit, I found no fit issues and enjoyed the simplicity of the build, the etch exhaust shrouds are supplied in the box as well as the option to open all of the vision slits. Individual tracks are supplied in the form of Magic Tracks which are already cleaned and separated from the sprue. There is also a boxing with a full interior included. The three tone camouflage was mixed with Tamiya acrylics to eye as the references for these early colours are a little vague. I used decals from Star Decals and masked the air recognition markings on the roof with MR Paint black & white.

The ICM kit is of the E-3 variant and is very well detailed kit, the cockpit in particular is full and impressive. Overall fit is superb and I encountered no problems. The one down side is the canopy which falls well short of modern standards, I replaced mine with a vacform one from Rob Taurus. The markings in the kit are not for the Spanish versions and I have used a set from Blue Star decals which I was kindly given by a member at my local IPMS club (South Somerset), I did use the stencils supplied with the kit. I also used Mr Paint for the first time with RLM 63, the paint was brilliant as most people are finding now but the colour is so similar to rlm 02 it’s hard to see the difference (which makes it quite accurate!). Gunze paints were used for the rlm 02, 70 & 65. I built this one as part of my IPMS SIG (special interest group) which I have started for the Spanish Civil War, have a look (and please join if it's of interest): Spanish Civil War SIG Had a bit of competition success locally as well which I was both surprised an chuffed! Thanks Jason

A cracking little kit from Airfix, the kit has been enhanced by using the Eduard etch metal detail set but most of it is in the cockpit and can only be seen by removing the middle section so I would recommend the kit highly straight from the box. Scale: 1/72 Manufacturer: Airfix Type: JU87-B1 Stuka, Condor Legion, Spain 1938 Extras: Eduard etched set, Aml camouflage masks Paints: Mr Hobby, rlm 65, rlm70, rlm 71, tamiya xf1, xf85, xf69, Tamiya flat clear, Revell aqua flat white Thanks for looking Jason

Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-3, 6-123 of the 3.J/88 flown by Hans Schmoller-Haldy in Spain 1938. A wonderful kit, I decided to add it to a base and sourced a couple of figures from Hecker & Goros. I had a few problems with this one, all my own making the kit is superb. I tried to be clever on the bonnet and chose to only leave the front bit off which got me in a pickle and I forgot to add a couple of panels around the exhaust. I also had a bit of silvering which is creeping into my modelling all of a sudden! Oh and the aerial has pulled down a bit so I may re-do that at some point, rushed this one a little for a show. Eduard Dual Combo Legion Condor Extras: OOB Paints: MRP RLM 65, 63, 02, white & black. Gunze RLM 04, 70 Figures from Hecker & Goros Spanish Civil War pilots

Hello! Here is my finished SM.79 Sparviero. The construction took half a year, actually I was tired at the end. As usual the Italeri's painting guide was false, and the camo. does not match on the two only shots what I've found about the 28-11, however are taken from the same side. So my camo are 'something like that'. I had the chanse to paint it to the 2 tona camo, but I didnt liked it. The flash light may show the colors lighter than these actually are. And here it is: And finaly, You can read the project in this topic. In some words, I can say, this is a good kit, and gives a satisfiing result OOB too, but be careful with the aerials wich beeings are depending on series, and with the painting.