Hasegawa Bf109G-2, Finnish Air Force, corrections/modifications required?

[Zack]

Hi,
Would anyone be able to direct me to information on what corrections/modifications would be required for either of the kit suggested aircraft?

MT-212, yellow 2 July 1943

MT-213, white 3 May 1944

MT-225, yellow5 April 1944
The decal sheet is long gone, the box has been traveling with me for 9 years now, so I am not really limited to any of the 3 above but currently I am leaning towards MT-213, Lt. E. Riihikallio.

Would be most grateful for your advice and direction on this subject!

Thank you and have a really good day!

Zack
 

[Ingo Ritz]

Hasegawa has made two kits of Finnish early Bf 109Gs in 1/48 and 1/32 scales.    Both kits would really benefit from aftermarket prop spinners, available from several different manufacturers.  There is a ton of other after aftermarket items available for these kits, but the basic kits build well and both kits will give you a pretty good representation of a G-2 straight out of the box.

[Zack]

Hello Ingo, 

Thank you for your respons!

Mine is the 1/32.

Prop spinner - note taken! 

 

How about panel lines, spent hours on the engine cowling already...??? 

 

Very Best regards

Zack

[vppelt68]

Hi. Thank you for your interest in the Mersu. Finnish G-2:s were very much off-the-shelf models. Only the MT-221 was an original G-2/trop but the external difference is minimal (remembering that the sandfilter does not define a trop-model). There was some variety in wings, though, several later delivery G-2:s were factory repaired aircraft which had a later model replacement wing with bulges for bigger main gear wheels. All Finnish G-2:s had the original wheels, though. MT:s -212 and -213 were of the original delivery batch from spring -43 and had the unbulged wings. Of -225 I couldn't find a pic from up and behind to check that.

V-P

[Ingo Ritz]

Hasegawa molded the kit fuselage and wing to allow it to be built as an early G series and a G-6.  Depending on the version some of the engraved detail needs to be filled, Hasegawa denotes this in the instructions.  The G-2 kit provides an insert for the top of the cowling which results in a obvious join line.  Although this corresponds to a real panel line on the aircraft that is, in reality, almost imperceptible.  Consequently I recommend filling it.

 

On the real aircraft the rear fuselage was made from panels of different sizes and Hasegawa got this detail correct.

 

One of the kits cooling scoops on the forward fuselage is slightly misplaced.  They should be inline with one another but are staggered on the kit. 

 

The kits fuselage is a few mm too short, the missing few mm are forward of the cockpit and behind the engine cowl.  I would not bother to correct it as the error is not noticeable unless the kit is compared directly to scale plans.

Edited October 21, 2021 by Ingo Ritz

[Zack]

Hi, 

Thank you for taking your time and your guidance 👍🍻

Very much appreciated and I will now get started on this longtime traveller 🏁

The kit has been travelling with me over 3 continents Since 2014.

@Ingo Ritz, I just downloaded the instructions again and you are right of course, Hasegawa are quite precise and have at least two variants covered. 

 

@vppelt68, 

Thank you for sharing the info on the wings, guess this means I should be using the optional bulges on the uppger wings for the lager wheels. 

And a Quick question for you:

Does "Mersu" refer to the MB engine or is it short for Mercenary? 

 

Thank you! 

 

Stay safe & sane and TGIF🍻

Zack

 

 

 

Edited October 22, 2021 by Zack
Spelling like a kratta

[vppelt68]

Way back nearly a hundred years ago, Mercedes cars got a short nick name "Mersu" better suited to us Finnish speakers, as our language is not rich with words containing letters C, D and Z (and F, Q, W and Z). When Messerschmitt airplanes became famous, the short name was already there to be deployed again. I found the idea of a relation to word "mercenary" quite fascinating . V-P