Johnson Posted June 3, 2021 Share Posted June 3, 2021 I've wanted to build Bf 109 G-2, W.Nr 10639 - Black 6 since I read Russ Snadden's book in 1993. Naturally I'm re-reading it again ! Captured by the Australians in 1942 (yes, I agree it should be in 'the Land Down Under') and generally test flown, displayed and mistreated by the RAF until Russ Snadden and his team took it in hand in 1972 and restored it. If you want to know more about the fascinating back story, read: I'm lucky to be old enough (?) to have seen it flying in 1997 at Duxford, (Flying Legends in July I think, I didn't write the date on the photo packet); (diorama idea?) I also count myself lucky not to have been there on Sunday October 12th 1997 when it last flew! So, to work! Another FineMolds offering, which should make life easy; Sprues, and some add ons; The fuselage will need some tiny alterations as Black 6 was built as a G-2 from an F-3 fuselage. More aftermarket, AND the all important Dave's Decals; (Oops, included the Yahu i/p and Rob Taurus canopy again). Hope to make a start this weekend. Cheers, 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vppelt68 Posted June 3, 2021 Share Posted June 3, 2021 That´s a lot of seat belts for a single seat fighter . I know, I have the last three to go from my set. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franky boy Posted June 3, 2021 Share Posted June 3, 2021 Nice choice of subject. Im also just about old enough to remember seeing black 6 fly, what a pleasure it was. I’ve just ordered a copy of the book to. James 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted June 3, 2021 Author Share Posted June 3, 2021 Couldn't wait till the weekend... And I made a start on the kit as well ! Cheers! 5 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retired Bob Posted June 3, 2021 Share Posted June 3, 2021 A nice looking kit Charlie and all the AM will make it look amazing, this another one to watch. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael louey Posted June 4, 2021 Share Posted June 4, 2021 Hi Johnson, Can I assume you're building Black 6 in her original Luftwaffe markings or restored finish? If so you will have a much easier job than dealing with her 'captured RAAF' scheme. I built Black 6 a few years back but the notes in the post are likely not needed unless you're building the RAAF markings. Whichever scheme you choose, good luck! Cheers Michael 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wayne 0 Posted June 4, 2021 Share Posted June 4, 2021 (edited) Looking forward to seeing this happen. I have had the book since its release and remember being delighted that a 109 was in the air. I however was not delighted with my attempt at a Fine Molds 109F-2. I had canopy fit issues (possibly my fault), but it has some of my best paint. i h ave lost interest in finishing it. It teeters on the edge of the bin. I am sure you can make it live up to its reputation. Edited June 4, 2021 by wayne 0 auto correct 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted June 4, 2021 Author Share Posted June 4, 2021 5 hours ago, Michael louey said: Can I assume you're building Black 6 in her original Luftwaffe markings or restored finish? If so you will have a much easier job than dealing with her 'captured RAAF' scheme. I built Black 6 a few years back but the notes in the post are likely not needed unless you're building the RAAF markings. Hi Michael, I'm planning on modelling Black 6 in her original Luftwaffe markings as found by 3 Sqn RAAF in 1942. But I have another FineMolds G-2 that I'm hoping to make as 'Black 6' when flown by Sqn Ldr Bobby Gibbes of 3 Sqn in the 'In The Wrong Hands' Group Build being organised by @TonyOD, when it happens... I've got your excellent build bookmarked and have the H-Models 'Captured Bf 109s in the RAF' decals which look a little better than the Dave's Decals representation of the RAAF applied markings. Cheers, 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted June 4, 2021 Author Share Posted June 4, 2021 52 minutes ago, wayne 0 said: I had canopy fit issues Hi Wayne, thanks for your post, I'll watch out when I get to the canopy that I intend to complicate by having it open. I may have to incorporate, or use, the Rob Taurus canopy. 54 minutes ago, wayne 0 said: i h ave lost interest in finishing it. It teeters on the edge of the bin. No! Don't do it! Keep it in a box and get it out at a future date, I'm sure it will be worth saving! All the best, 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted June 5, 2021 Share Posted June 5, 2021 A worthy subject choice Charlie not only as part of the 109 story but also due to its own individual history. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted June 15, 2021 Author Share Posted June 15, 2021 A long time since I posted anything but I have been working a bit each day. There's just too much to do in the summer. The cockpit really is quite minimal; Compare this to the AZ Bf 109 G-2 that John @John Masters is building! I think FineMolds wanted you to buy their 'Detail Up' option, a PE aftermarket add-on sets to enhance the cockpit, but they seem to be unobtainable these days. I have added some oxygen kit detail to the starboard cockpit wall to jazz it up a bit, but don't look too hard, it's neither very accurate nor to scale; The cockpit is painted with Xtracolor RLM 66 and my usual ham-fisted attempt to show some wear. Sorry about the (very nice) Yahu i/p that's rather hanging down, I just put the cockpit tub in there with blue-tac and didn't notice it had drooped when I took the pic. FineMold 109s are renowned for their great engineering and fantastic fit. And it's true, the fuselage, wings and empennage all went together very well; (No, I wont forget to leave a seam along the fuselage spine and bottom!) The engine and oil cooler (I think that's what it is) cowlings fitted perfectly. I may display them open to show off the engine detail But there is a mysterious gap at the wing root. Maybe I did something wrong? I can't see how, it was have the gap or the wing/fuselage join was going to suffer. I'd like to have an open canopy, so the next to do is to try to cut the canopy up... without destroying it in the process. Thanks for looking, back soon. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted June 15, 2021 Author Share Posted June 15, 2021 Slicing up the canopy went OK... mostly. Two new 10A Swann Morton blades later and it's in three parts. But a bit of stress damage* at the front, cutting through that thickness of brittle plastic takes its toll. The fit of the canopy wasn't perfect either, the canopy is a tiny bit narrow at the front. So, as I'd bought one, I tried cutting out, and cutting up, the Rob Taurus canopy; Another 10A Swann Morton blade and it's also in three parts; The Rob Taurus front part is a better fit than the FineMolds windscreen. And it's clearer and thinner than the FM canopy. At first I couldn't figure out what the 3 little blobs on the black plastic part were for. They're the vents! Very nice. * Not just the canopy either! Cheers, 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted June 17, 2021 Share Posted June 17, 2021 Nice work Charlie. You've added enough extra detail in the cockpit to justify using your opened Rob Taurus canopy. Sorry to see all those fit issues though I'm sure you'll sort them without too much bother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted June 17, 2021 Author Share Posted June 17, 2021 6 hours ago, Col. said: Nice work Charlie. You've added enough extra detail in the cockpit to justify using your opened Rob Taurus canopy. Sorry to see all those fit issues though I'm sure you'll sort them without too much bother. Thanks for the kind words Col. The fit issues really weren't too bad. As you say, they can be easily sorted. Just a bit surprised after all the good things I'd read about FM kits. But it might have been me, who knows? Cheers, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted July 3, 2021 Author Share Posted July 3, 2021 Despite all the distractions of summer I have been making a bit of progress... The Fine Molds Revi C / 12D gunsight is probably one of the reasons FM Bf 109 kits are considered so good; The canopy was masked... And painted RLM 66... Which brings me up to yesterday when I wasn't having one of my brighter days . Daughter #1 was coming round to give her car it's biennial clean at midday and at 11.25 (precisely) I thought 'I've just got time to give the Bf 109 a coat of primer... ' Out with the Mr Surfacer, mask, gloves, airbrush etc and on with the primer. Seems very grainy? In my haste I'd grabbed the Mr Surfacer 500 not the 1500!!! . Pah! I now know that it is possible to remove an entire coat of Mr Surfacer primer (before the daughter arrived with her grimy car), but it's not recommended. The remnants are still around the canopy where I deemed Mr Color thinner used to remove the primer would be too risky. Today, at a more relaxed pace, things went better; I've given up on primer, I don't think it's needed and I'm sick of the house smelling of Mr Color Leveling Thinner. So white paint on the fuselage, wingtips and spinner and RLM 02 on the landing gear, wheel wells and insides of the engine cowlings. Really looking forward to getting some RLM 78 & 79 but it'll need a couple of days to harden before I can mask the white so maybe time to look at another 109 kit? Cheers, 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted July 4, 2021 Share Posted July 4, 2021 Tidy progress Charlie and yes that gunsight is a tiny piece of wonderfulness 18 hours ago, Johnson said: ...it'll need a couple of days to harden before I can mask the white so maybe time to look at another 109 kit? I like the sound of this plan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted July 5, 2021 Author Share Posted July 5, 2021 Yellow on the nose... Now I can get on with the main colours; RLM 78 Hellblau and RLM 79 Sandgelb. And I have a choice! For years I've been an Xtracolor fan. They work well for me and no messing with a gloss coat. But recently I've been trying the Sovereign Hobbies Colour Coats enamels which were spot on for my recent Spitfire Mk.1a. I've got both colours in both paints, so which to use? Xtracolor or Colour Coats? I don't want to start a Luftwaffe colour debate, this ain't the place and I'm not qualified. But I did recently acquire the Hikoki Lufwaffe colour chart, so a comparison was in order; The photo was taken outside on a cloudy day. Colour Coats are at the top. The Hikoki colours are closer to the Colour Coats, but slightly darker. And I have my own photographic evidence, for what it's worth, but it does agree with the colour photo on the front of the book 'Black 6' and the photos on the web - Bf 109G-2/trop Photo Essay by David "Falcon" Weiss. In his book Black 6 on the restoration of the plane, Russ Snadden refers to using 'paint mixed with reference to original paint chips'. The photos and images on the web agree with the Sovereign Hobbies paint. So Colour Coats it is 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col. Posted July 5, 2021 Share Posted July 5, 2021 Knowing the lengths Jamie goes to produce accurate paint it doesn't surprise me at all when the Colourcoats prove a good match to reference material 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterB Posted July 5, 2021 Share Posted July 5, 2021 Hi Charlie, According to some sources there were two versions on RLM79, one darker than the other! Of course there is also the suggestion that early on they used borrowed Italian paint, but that seems to be going out of favour these days. In any case, either make would seem close enough to me. Cheers Pete 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Boak Posted July 5, 2021 Share Posted July 5, 2021 The Italian paint suggestion was made by Ken Merrick in the 1970s (or perhaps slightly earlier) to describe the initial lighter colours. He didn't attempt to suggest which of the four Gallo Memeticos had been used, and the Italians didn't have a light blue, but this didn't stop the idea being widely adopted, not everyone realising that it was only a theory, and a bit shaky at that. 30 years later Merrick discovered original German documentation for the earlier version of 78 and 79, and included samples in his work for Classic. So if by "some sources" you mean "original documentation" you are spot on. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted July 13, 2021 Author Share Posted July 13, 2021 Hi Folks, Been chipping away at this. Got the paint on, pleased with the results. The engine cowlings are just placed for now and will hopefully be a better fit, but I may finish it with the cowlings open, we'll see. It will need a coat of gloss for the decals. Experiments with Klear weren't very promising so I'll probably use Alclad Aqua Gloss. I should never have glued the aileron counter balances on so early. Both got knocked off during the painting and the carpet monster got one of them. My method for masking the individual bars of canopy is complicated and long-winded. Mask, then a coat of RLM 66 followed by RLM 79. Hopefully it will look OK. FineMolds provide a nice drop tank. The real Black 6 sports one as it sits in the RAF museum, but whether it had one in the desert I'm unsure, it didn't have one as found. I'd have thought they might have needed them for the ferry flight from Germany? Back soon, hopefully with some decals! 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterB Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 (edited) Hi Charlie, Coming along nicely. I have fitted a tank to my desert/Tripoli G-2 but I am leaving it off both of my "Russian Theatre" ones, as I have seen very few pics of them in use - with the JG5 machine it seems they were fitted when on convoy escort duty, and probably for ferry flights as well I guess. Pete Edited July 14, 2021 by PeterB 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carts Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 Looks great, love the desert colour schemes. Your colours look "Bob on" 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnson Posted July 14, 2021 Author Share Posted July 14, 2021 2 hours ago, Carts said: Your colours look "Bob on" Thanks Carts, I was pleased with how the masking (thin Blue Tack sausages and paper - I meant to take photos but in the heat of the painting forgot!) and the airbrushing went, but any credit for the colour must go to @Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies and his team. Cheers, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael louey Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 Nice progress Charlie, The paint job looks really nice and the colour matches are very good. Shame about the mass balances - they are prime candidates for getting lost so I was really happy when Quickboost produced a set of them. https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/QB72561?result-token=DVvTI I've read some modellers scratching these but I personally think getting these right is a bit beyond my capabilities. Cheers Michael 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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