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Helmut Lent's Messerschmitt 110G 1/32 (Dragon + LSCM + more) DONE!


elger

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I like to focus on British aircraft that were lost over the North of The Netherlands, for example my Wellington project http://www.britmodel...topic=234915334 . For my next subject I've chosen "the other side". I'm going to try to build night fighter ace Helmut Lent's Messerschmitt 110G that he flew as the commander of IV/NJG1

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Apart from being responsible for many of the crashes of British aircraft around the area where I live, it's also strange for me to realize that for a long time, Lent was stationed at an airbase just outside Leeuwarden, the town where work as a teacher. The airbase is still there, and my classes are frequently interrupted by Dutch Air force F-16s taking off and landing.

I've been interested in building a large scale 110G for a long time. I had the Revell 110G kit in my stash for years.

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I had also been gathering some after market items for it, including Eduard's detail set and MDC's beautiful DB605 engine. However, the Revell kit is really bad and has issues that are beyond my capabilities of fixing. So I threw the Revell kit out, and got myself Dragon's 110 D/E night fighter kit.

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To convert it from D/E to G specification, I also acquired LSCM's 110G-4 conversion set.

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This is going to be my main approach. I'm going to use as much from the Dragon kit as possible. The right engine is going to be exposed (replacing the Dragon DB601 with MDC's DB605) and the left engine is going to be replaced by the LSCM's resin item.

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The LCSM set is rather expensive, but it's crude at best. The interior pieces can hardly be used because of poor molding, and the engines are very basic. For one thing, they are missing the characteristic triangular instrument windows. They're also missing bits and bumps such as the little intake hatches.

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I added the windows by drilling holes in the corners, and then using a file to connect them. I primed the engine I'm using to see if there are any surface issues (there are). I'm still trying to figure out a way to add the semi-round intake hatches.

Work is busy, but hopefully I'll have some time to work on this during the weekends over the next few months.

Thanks for looking, and comments and feedback are welcome as always.

Edited by elger
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I wasn't happy with how the resin nacelle was fitting, so I decided to take a fairly radical step. I cut it along the indicated lines and replaced the area marked with black with the kit C/D/E items. I checked my references to be sure, but I think these panels are similar enough to be used for the G version. In any case, having replaced these sections and having reconfigured the top rear cover and the lower rear cover it fits much better.

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I think the parts would have worked better if they had been offered in sections. However, to LSCM's credit, the nacelles do capture the shape quite well, especially the radiator which looks so terrible on the ancient Revell kit.

I also assembled the main parts of the landing gear.

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The next steps will include filling and sanding of the nacelle, and then maybe some painting. Woohoo! :-)

Comments & feedback is welcome, as usual. Thanks for looking!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Some progress, although it's slow. I started with the engine nacelle and wheelbays because I knew that if I started with the cockpit the thought of having to deal with the rest the project might stall. It's like I'm eating my veggies first :-)

Anyway on to the pictures.

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After visiting the Deutsche Technik Museum in Berlin and seeing the 110F they have in their collection up close I decided that I did definitely want the little inlet at the front of the engine. I ended up transplanting the part from the D/E/F parts from the kit, adjusting it slightly to fit the resin. Now the entire mid section is made up from kit parts. I also added some bulges on the radiator housing and other inlets that the model should have. A lot of sanding was necessary, but in the end, I thought the result was acceptable.

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I then proceded to install the gauges and inspection windows on either side of the nacelle. I used the Eduard parts from their exterior set, and simply reversed the Dragon kit parts so that the lenses face inward, instead of into the holes.

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The wheelbays are next. I added some Eduard PE and painted the parts with Vallejo RLM 02. The two cylinders on either part were painted yellow according to Eduard's instructions for their 1/48G kit. I don't know what these things are, and yellow livens the place up a bit.

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Final picture: the wheelbays installed. I've now glued the wings together too, gambling on the idea that I can install the landing gear after completion (it's possible in theory).

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Thanks for looking, and comments & feedback is always welcome.

Edited by elger
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Some great work there!

I believe the "yellow cylinders" are fuel filters.

They are clear glass but appear yellow because of the fuel inside.

Keep up the good work!

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

Christmas break so finally time to do some work.

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I painted the firewall.

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And I finished the undercarriage.

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I hope to get the wings done before my work starts again after next week.

Thanks for looking!

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  • 1 month later...

I finally started work on the cockpit. I thought I was clever by starting with my least favourite part of a build (the landing gear) and the most difficult thing (the resin engine replacement parts) but that turned out to be so much work it's a little difficult to stay motivated. I was quite happy with the cockpit though.

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Most of the LSCM parts are completely useless. The replacement sidewalls and floor are so poorly molded I have discarded them. I'm using the Dragon parts as a basis, and since I'm building an early G much of it will be appropriate anyway.

I'm also using some parts from the 1/32 Eduard 110G set for the Revell kit that I still had from 10 years ago. The irony is that Eduard's 1/48 110G pretty much only allows you to build a very late G. They seem to have based much of their 1/48 kit on the Hendon example. This aircraft features a very late and according to some fairly rare gunner/radar operator seat. Since the Hendon aircraft was also equipped with Schrage Musik, it features a narrow ammunition box for the rear machine gun. However, early Gs had a thinner, rectangular box. Ironically, the 1/32 detail set from the early 1990s for the Revell kit includes the accurate early type seat, and the early ammunition box. The LSCM resin is also for a very late 110G with the late type seat and square box.

I made a new bulkhead out of stock styrene and added the old Eduard ammunition box. I'm still going to add a bag for discarded shells.

What's also noteworthy about the LSCM set as well as the 1/48 Eduard 110G kit is that they have you believe that the MG151s fitted to later 110s are air-operated like the MG FF. However, they are electrical so there is no use for the air bottles that the LSCM conversion set (and the 1/48 110G kit) provide. I haven't fitted them yet, but I still had 2 MG151s from Jerry Rutman's 110 detail set back from 10 years ago when I first thought of this project.

The ammunition boxes are from LSCM. I cut them from the floor part and will add them to the Dragon floor. They left box is sort of roundish on the bottom but hopefully that won't be too visible once everything has been installed.

I've also added oxygen hoses for the gunner and the radar operator. I used styrene, spare disks from the spare parts box and a bit of electrical wire insulation for the hose.

The pilot seat is a 109E seat from the sadly defunct Meteor Productions. I also acquired that 10 years ago and it seemed a waste not to see if I could use it and so far it seems to fit perfectly.

The left console for the pilot is the Dragon part to which I'll be adding throttle levers from the Eduard 110C Zoom set. The right console was removed from the LSCM floor.

The only truly impressive part from the whole LSCM set is the instruments panel. I am going to use the Dragon gun sight, but other than that this is a real gem.

For the rudder panels (not fitted yet) I'll also use the Eduard parts from the old 110G detail set.

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I also removed the wiring on the right hand side panel and made new wires out of stretched sprue. I'm not adding any wires to the right panel though - there seems to be a panel covering the wires and I don't see why there would be wires running on top of that. Although the 110G at Hendon has a lot of exposed wires, and most kits and detail sets also show a lot of exposed wiring in the rear cockpit, however, I'm inclined to think that they would be covered on most, especially early, aircraft. Or does anyone have evidence to the contrary that those wires were exposed?

Anyway, thanks for looking and any thoughts, comments, suggestions are as always welcome!

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  • 1 month later...

Finished painting the cockpit. Used Vallejo acrylics.

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I ended up replacing the pilot chair with the kit item and the kit seat belts, and I also used the FuG 16 radio and FuG 212 radar box from the Eduard 110G detail set.

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thanks for looking!

Edited by elger
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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

plodding along. some paint:

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Primed with Tamiya grey primer. Initally planned on using Vallejo Air RLM 74/75/76 but the 74 and 75 were way too dark. Fed up with my airbrush clogging constantly, I switched back to Tamiya mixes, which I thinned with alcohol. After a coat of future, I painted on the markings. I used Miracle Masks for the first time and they worked brilliantly.

The kill marks were custum designed by Pip Moss.

After all the markings and decals were on, they were sealed with another coat of future. I used oil paints for the panel lines, and then did a bit of post-shading. Finally it received a coat of Vallejo Satin.

Thanks for looking :)

Edited by elger
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it's coming together!

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stuff still to be added:

- the entire starboard engine
- port propeller
- some cockpit instruments
- canopy
- rear machine gun
- antler antenna on the nose
- various antennae
- radio antenna
- exhaust pipes
- external fuel tanks

... that's about it?

Edited by elger
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Wonderful job you're making of that reasonably poor conversion set. I noted the spinners have round holes in them.... are you going to change them to the correct shape (same as 109F/G etc)?

Also does this machine have a 110C/D/E style canopy or does the conversion come with the later style of 'greenhouse'?

Great stuff, look forward to seeing the final stages come together..

Matt

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The spinners from LSCM indeed have round holes. I thought I could live with it at first, but then I decided that I couldn't so I went ahead and got a 109 spinner from EagleCals. I simply sanded off the cannon stub.

The conversion set comes with a vaccum formed rear canopy. Mine had been damaged in the box with a little dent. Also, the mid-rear section didn't fit very well at all, so I ended up modifying the kit rear part for that. I did use the rear section of the LSCM part.

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Glad you're coping.... :) . I looked at this conversion as it was being put together and thought it'd be good, I now suspect it'd be as easy/difficult to scratch build the new parts...

Look forward to progress.

Matt

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elger

The scheme you are finishing your model in, is Lent's day-fighter. The aircraft he used at night was devoid of all the kill markings and such, in case he was forced down in unfriendly territory.

The a/c was all over RLM76 with a light mottle of RLM 75. No radar was fitted.

His night-fighter was again painted the same scheme, codes were G9+MD, all in black. The radar fit was both Lichtenstein BC and SN2 and the 20mm 'schrage muzic' fit was at 82 degrees.

For full details, see IPMS magazine 1/2003.

W

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