The Minor Gustavs: Bf 109Gs in Smaller Air Force Service

[Marklo]

Looking good

 

I did finally finish the rework on black 4

way ahead on the KP/AZ kit it’s pretty crude but generally the right shape and a good result can be achieved.

 

couldn’t resist showing my Yugoslavians.

 

I’ll stop hijacking your thread now  

 

Edited June 7, 2022 by Marklo

[ModelingEdmontonian]

There is actually lots to do on the Diana... first blue on the relevant spots, oh, and the exhaust stacks attached.

 

 

Then gunmetal on the upper cowl MGs, red on the fuselage, wings, and stabilizers, and black on the (DF?) loop. This all took awhile, but was surprisingly enjoyable.

 

 

Eduard would have me apply some eye-straining amount of red underneath the wings, too, but I drew the line there. I'll have better photos of some of this soon, for now a coat of Pledge is drying to seal it all in. Once dry, I think it will be ready for decals.

[ModelingEdmontonian]

Ok, decaling has begun! Not the highest quality decals, but they are going on just fine. Hopefully the Microsol takes care of the carrier film so evident in this photo...

 

[ModelingEdmontonian]

I've been busy moving and such so progress has been slow, but my goodness there are a lot of decals to apply! Getting there, but still many more to go...

 

[ModelingEdmontonian]

Got back to the Diana (Kovozavody Prostejov Avia S-199) last night. Decaling all done, but still working on some of them here and there (they are very strange decals--the roundels for example are inconsistently thick, with blue the thickest and white the thinnest). Anyway, I went ahead and attached the UC, drop tank, prop, and fixed the MGs in place.

 

 

Once I'm satisfied with the decals, I'll apply a matt coat and then work on the canopy mask. I'm dreading that... 🙄

Edited July 26, 2022 by ModelingEdmontonian

[ModelingEdmontonian]

I did a little weathering/panel lining on the Czechoslovakia Diana (Kovozavody Prostejov Avia S-199) and then sprayed the matt coat.

 

 

I have pulled the masking off the canopy and actually all is better than I feared, but I haven't photographed it yet to share. I'll touch the canopy up and paint on some navigation lights and a bit of silver on the light on the rudder (I don't know what that light is called?) before calling her done. Have to say, it's been lots of work, but I'm pretty happy with how she's turning out. By the way, without any good evidence, opted for yellow spinner in the end (as KP's instructions call for), and happy I did because I love the colour contrast with the green!

[ModelingEdmontonian]

Lights are painted, so now just need to get to the canopy. I sprayed the camo with a rattle can, so need to find a dark green that I can brush that will be a close match... this is me testing four out on spare sprue.

 

Edited August 2, 2022 by ModelingEdmontonian

[ModelingEdmontonian]

With the canopy touched up, I was able to install the pitot tube and whatever that long thing is dangling from the port wing... and so, she's done!

 

 

Pretty nifty little kit, all told, despite the few quibbles I would have. Here she is by her Minor Gustav sister from Romania (Hobby Boss Bf 109G-6 converted to Ga-6):

 

[opus999]

That came out really well. 

[Johnson]

Very nice!

[Jochen Barett]

9 hours ago, ModelingEdmontonian said:

With the canopy touched up, I was able to install the pitot tube and whatever that long thing is dangling from the port wing... and so, she's done!

+++

 

I've heard people say it is an antenna (for the transmitter part) for the FuG 16 zy.

 

The FuG 16 zy provided "regular" speaking (send) and listening (receive, the long wire antenna) function, plus direction finding via the ring antenna plus it would transmit a siginal to a ground station allowong the ground station to measure the distance of the fighter so the fighter can be guided towards other aircraft.

 

More than you ever dared to ask about the FuG 16 zy (around 5:40 the explanation for the different antennae - or should I say "antennas"?):

 

Do invest 15 minutes of your life to watch and listen!

 

 

 

and found here http://www.noding.com/la8ak/29b.htm

 

[ModelingEdmontonian]

With Romania Ga-6 (Hobby Boss) and Czechoslovakia S-199 (KP) complete, I returned to my two original Minor Gustavs subjects, Finland and Slovakia (both Airfix G-6). This is where I had left them six months ago:

 

 

I have a better idea now of where I want to go with these and what spare parts I might use from other kits to improve on the Airfix look. In both cases, the ugly ETC rack had to go. Here is what it looks like:

 

 

So those were cut/filed/sanded away on both models.

 

 

For Slovakia, I replaced it with the AZ rack, and I will mount a drop tank on it. I also decided to put the Airfix rocket tubes on Slovakia, although I have no evidence these were ever carried by Slovakian G-6. I like the idea of including the rockets on one of my Gustavs, and this seems to be the one to do it, since my understanding is the rockets were used against bomber formations and I know my Slovakia Gustav fought American bombers.

 

 

I also installed AZ's air intake instead of the horrific Airfix piece.

 

 

For Finland, there won't be anything under the wings (I filled the slots months ago), and I used the extra ETC rack from Hobby Boss. In teaching me about ETC racks @SafetyDad pointed out how miserable the Hobby Boss version is, which is true. But, the shape is generally right and I now intend to model Finland with UC up, and I think the slot will serve perfectly as a place to mount her on a stand. In other words, instead of a drop tank, Finland will have a stand.

 

 

Finland had the trop filter on the air intake, so I am using the Airfix piece without the trop filter, and then attaching the AZ trop filter piece.

 

 

I will also be using spare rear wheels for these, and in the case of Slovakia a spare DF loop and UC (all from AZ).

[SafetyDad]

13 hours ago, ModelingEdmontonian said:

 

In other words, instead of a drop tank, Finland will have a stand.

 

 

Very sensible! And necessary

 

 

SD

 

BTW, have you decided on your Slovakian markings? 

[ModelingEdmontonian]

8 hours ago, SafetyDad said:

have you decided on your Slovakian markings? 

Yup, white 2 from the AZ box top:

 

Edited October 4, 2022 by ModelingEdmontonian

[ModelingEdmontonian]

Well, no one can accuse me of working too fast, can they? I have Finland (Airfix G-6) all ready for primer, but I won't be spraying it until I have a day that isn't -25 C (granted, only -19 C, -25 C with wind chill). Anyway, may as well have Slovakia (also Airfix G-6) ready to go too so I can be more efficient if the weather ever warms up to, say, -5 C or something. For Slovakia, as noted above, I want to model the rocket launchers, so assembling and affixing them was an outstanding job. As with everything about the Airfix kit, the rocket launchers are very toy-like, despite requiring assembly of four pieces each (five if you include the rocket itself), but I can forgive this because I think the look is still "passable" and I really like the idea of having my Gustavs sporting a variety of load-outs as well as a variety of markings. Here is Slovakia with rocket launchers installed (rocket may or may not get added later, but these are on now as I will be painting them the same colour as the underside, whereas rockets will have different colour if included).

 

 

Final step before primer was the DF loop, borrowed from the AZ G-6 kit. It went on perfectly.

 

 

Here are Finland and Slovakia and Slovakia's UC doors and drop tank (which are actually also AZ G-6 "loaner" parts) all ready to go outside for primer. Finland's UC doors are just dry fit for now which is why they look so loose.

 

[TallBlondJohn]

On 03/10/2022 at 18:44, ModelingEdmontonian said:

Finland had the trop filter on the air intake, so I am using the Airfix piece without the trop filter, and then attaching the AZ trop filter piece.

 

Ah yes, Finland, that famous tropical country, home to vast herds of wildebeest and crocodiles.

 

Or perhaps they were midges?

 

[ModelingEdmontonian]

10 minutes ago, TallBlondJohn said:

Ah yes, Finland, that famous tropical country, home to vast herds of wildebeest and crocodiles.

I wondered how trop filters on Finnish Gustavs came to be too! I thought Airfix screwed up until I checked photos.

[Troy Smith]

1 hour ago, TallBlondJohn said:

Finland, that famous tropical country

 

1 hour ago, ModelingEdmontonian said:

I wondered how trop filters on Finnish Gustavs came to be too

Finland has very warm dry summers.  Airfields got dusty, which is why I presume they were not removed.   VVS units in the region had Soviet made dust filters on their Hurricanes. 

 

[ModelingEdmontonian]

-8 C this afternoon, so may as well get some primer sprayed! These Airfix Gustavs won't win any awards, but they took their primer well (always unsure in these weather conditions), and I think we are ready to start painting! Both Finland and Slovakia will get RLM 2 wheel wells and RLM 76 undersides, so as far as that goes they'll continue progressing together.

 

Edited December 13, 2022 by ModelingEdmontonian

[Johnson]

12 hours ago, ModelingEdmontonian said:

-8 C this afternoon

And I thought it was chilly here! 

 

They look good!

[ModelingEdmontonian]

I've started with some gun metal in the interiors of the air intakes, radiators, etc. of Finland and Slovakia (both Airfix G-6s). Then started on the wheel wells with RLM-2 (Tamiya XF-22).

 

[ModelingEdmontonian]

I decided I'll include the rocket stubs in Slovakia's tubes. Bad picture, but here they are getting some green paint.

 

[ModelingEdmontonian]

Lower camo has begun, RLM 76 (Tamiya XF-23). I've also been working on the UC and a pilot for Finland. 

 

[opus999]

Nice to see this progressing!  I didn't know that 109's had an option for rocket launchers, but I should've suspected.  That's going to look pretty neat.

[ModelingEdmontonian]

6 hours ago, opus999 said:

Nice to see this progressing!  I didn't know that 109's had an option for rocket launchers, but I should've suspected.  That's going to look pretty neat.

Thanks @opus999. What couldn't the 109 do!? I don't get the impression they carried the rocket launchers often, nor do I get the sense that the rocket armament was especially effective other than in very particular circumstances (i.e., attacking bomber formations), but others around here have forgotten more about 109s than I will ever know so I won't state any of the above confidently! I have found no evidence the Slovak Gustavs carried these, so modeling Slovakia with rocket launchers is definitely driven by factors other than a desire for historical accuracy!