1/72 Airfix Luftwaffe WW2 bombers

[Mark4700]

At the start of the year I decided to build these two in a side by side build. As the colour schemes were the same I thought they would be a nice quick build. Wrong. I’ve thankfully managed to finish them in the last week during lockdown. 
 

Both kits are Airfix 1/72 scale and are now quite long in the tooth. The mouldings have raised panel lines and all the control surfaces are able to be moved, so if built straight out of the box looked quite toy like. Worst of all were the clear parts, hardly any indication as to where the framework goes, totally smooth and poorly fitting. I rescribed the panel lines on both models and removed the toy like hinges of the control surfaces. The Heinkel was also missing wheel bays for the undercarriage, so I cut them out. 
 

Both kits were airbrushed using Vellejo model air paints. I managed to get some photos outside this morning. Despite not really enjoying the builds, I’m fairly pleased with the results. 

 

 

First the He111

And the Ju88

I also built up the fairings around the gun mounts at the rear of the canopy as the kit only provides two holes.  

 

[noelh]

That's interesting. I didn't actually realise the difference in size between the HeIII and Ju88. 

 

I've never actually built it a HeIII. But I should really. Back in August 1940 a HeIII bombed my Great Uncle's house although it seems they were aiming for a railway viaduct nearby. They missed the viaduct, worse than that they were bombing the wrong country. He lived in County Wexford in Ireland. 

My Great Grandmother described it as a 'big black bird' which is an apt description of the HeIII. 

You've done a great job on two iconic Luftwaffe bombers. 

 

 

[Roger Newsome]

Taking into account what you started with they are very impressive indeed, good work! 👍

Roger. 

[jhutchi]

18 minutes ago, noelh said:

That's interesting. I didn't actually realise the difference in size between the HeIII and Ju88. 

Me neither. 

 

Great builds

[Retired Bob]

I built both of these kits in the 1960s when they were fairly new.  You have done a fine job with these old kits. 

[RMCS]

Brilliant 

[dogsbody]

Wow! I just had a flashback to the late 60's, when I built those two kits. As I was just getting into kit-building at that time, mine looked nothing like yours. Yours are great.

 

 

 

Chris

[Romeo Alpha Yankee]

You've done a fine job there Mark, did you have to deal with that lovely light blue plastic on either of these models? I remember a light blue He 111 on my shelf foe some years as a lad.

[IanC]

Great 'memory lane' builds. The Ju 88 wins the medal, I think..

[Mig88]

Well done! You've done a great job with both kits. It's nice to see lovely jobs like these on old kits.

I built the Airfix He 111 a long time ago and I did have the Ju 88 in my stash but sold it when Italeri's kit came out. I clearly recall the lack of framing on the Ju 88's canopy!

 

Miguel

[Mark4700]

13 hours ago, noelh said:

That's interesting. I didn't actually realise the difference in size between the HeIII and Ju88. 

 

I've never actually built it a HeIII. But I should really. Back in August 1940 a HeIII bombed my Great Uncle's house although it seems they were aiming for a railway viaduct nearby. They missed the viaduct, worse than that they were bombing the wrong country. He lived in County Wexford in Ireland. 

My Great Grandmother described it as a 'big black bird' which is an apt description of the HeIII. 

You've done a great job on two iconic Luftwaffe bombers. 

 

 

Yes, it surprised me how much bigger the He111 is. A lot of it is down to the wing. The wing area is huge compared to the Ju88. And I can definitely see how your Great Grandmother would describe it as a big black bird. The wings are very bird like. 
 

13 hours ago, Roger Newsome said:

Taking into account what you started with they are very impressive indeed, good work! 👍

Roger. 

Thank you Roger. 
 

12 hours ago, jhutchi said:

Me neither. 

 

Great builds

Thank you. 
 

12 hours ago, Retired Bob said:

I built both of these kits in the 1960s when they were fairly new.  You have done a fine job with these old kits. 

Thanks Bob. I also like building the older kits from time to time. These were a bit of a pain though. Glad to get them finished. 
 

12 hours ago, RMCS said:

Brilliant 

Thank you. 
 

9 hours ago, dogsbody said:

Wow! I just had a flashback to the late 60's, when I built those two kits. As I was just getting into kit-building at that time, mine looked nothing like yours. Yours are great.

 

 

 

Chris

Thanks dogsbody. I love seeing pics on here of kits I’ve built in the past. I recall building a He111 for my brother when I was about 8, but that was before I painted them and we used them as toys. 
 

 

[Mark4700]

4 hours ago, Romeo Alpha Yankee said:

You've done a fine job there Mark, did you have to deal with that lovely light blue plastic on either of these models? I remember a light blue He 111 on my shelf foe some years as a lad.

Thank you. No blue plastic on these, they are the reboxed versions, thankfully with new decals, but the old moulds were used. 

 

3 hours ago, IanC said:

Great 'memory lane' builds. The Ju 88 wins the medal, I think..

Thanks. I’d agree, the Ju88 edges it for me too. 

 

2 hours ago, Mig88 said:

Well done! You've done a great job with both kits. It's nice to see lovely jobs like these on old kits.

I built the Airfix He 111 a long time ago and I did have the Ju 88 in my stash but sold it when Italeri's kit came out. I clearly recall the lack of framing on the Ju 88's canopy!

 

Miguel

Thanks for your comments Miguel. I did my framework on the Ju88 using photographs, technical drawings and best guess. You can see some of the line guides from the moulds which were way off. Glad they’re finished though.