It
is the old Monogram-Revell Me-109 G10 (with ERLA cockpit).
The
kit is very simple (and cheap) and the only problem I discovered is that the kit
has to many strait lines so I cut of slats, flaps, lower coolant flaps and the
control surfaces of the rudder. It was a tricky work but it paid of and I am
satisfied with the result. It looks like a Me-109 to me.
My
idea was to relay on scratch build and not to buy any Detail Sets. Since it was
a inexpensive kit I also tried a lot of new techniques: (for me) the use of
Future for a gloss coat, post shading, oil washes, and smoke stains made with
the airbrush.
I
started out with the instrument panel witch was painted grey. White spots where
applied where the gauges should be, a layer of Future sealed them and finally a
black chalk paint was applied over them. This paint was scratched with a needle
to simulate the indicators.
The
cockpit interior was painted gray, chalk wash and several dry brushings with
light gray and silver where applied in order to give a realistic look. The
entire cockpit cried out
for detailing so I inserted some wires to simulate cables and scratch build a
box from Plasticard.
I
finished the cockpit interior with seat belts from paper scotch and thin wire
(painted with a silver pen).
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The
exhaust pipes where drilled out and painted (hard job) since there is a mix of
rust, smoke stains, and bare metal – especially in the area exposed to the
flow of air. The exhaust pipes where glued on their place and covered with
Colour Stop (from Revell), to protect them from the body painting.
The
slats and flaps where glued on the wing (white glue) in order to be painted. Everything
was
arranged in the appropriate position afterwards.
I chose a classic camo: RLM 76
with RLM 81 – RLM 82 and spots of RLM 02. The colours where toned down with
aprox. 10% of white to simulate sun effect.
The
rest of the build was pretty straightforward: I primed the model, painted the
yellow cowling and then I applied the light blue (RLM 76) on the whole fuselage.
The panel lines where airbrushed with a toned up colour (again 10%).
For
the spots I made 3 paper masks, one for each colour and I used the airbrush to
apply them one after another. Upper fuselage camo and the wings followed. Even
here I used masks (soft method) as I wanted to obtain a smooth blending of
colours.
Everything was followed by a
gloss coat of Future (unfortunately not enough gloss). Decals where applied with
Solva Set and Solva Sol and everything was sealed with another coat of Future.
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A diluted
oil wash was applied on the entire surface, a little toned up for the upper
side. The oil stains, typical for Me – 109, where made with a black oil wash
and wiped out in the direction of the airflow.
Several
dry brushes where applied with different colours, in order to raise up the
details. Last one was with bare metal, to simulate some chipped paint. But I
wanted an aircraft that looks worn, not a ruin (too much chipped paint)
Since the
external fuel tank it newer and les used as the whole aircraft, it was painted
in toned up colour and the weathering was done more subtle as the rest of the
aircraft.
Finally a
little glamour was added, through the installation of antenna and signalling
lights. The
lights were painted in silver then in clear red/green and finally coated with
Future.
I did
work for 5 months (I know - I am slow), but as I said before I am happy with the
result.
Hope you
did enjoy the photos.
HAPPY
MODELING !
Christian
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