Before the Battle of Britain

[Pen-Pusher]

With most of the painting complete, I've applied the sticky things and applied a couple of coats of matt (Vallejo) varnish. Now at least I can hold the da***d thing while I tackle the small detail....

[Pen-Pusher]

Reconstructed engine with new exhaust stubs and supports.

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Finally....

[bridlufc]

Are you going to display this at the club meeting? Looking forward to see it if you are.

Bridlufc

[Pen-Pusher]

Back to my long neglected 'Before the Battle of Britain' series of builds. The Me.109 in all its guises has always been a favourite of mine but in truth, there are too many models in 1/72 - let alone all the other scales to be able to list their pluses and minuses here but for this build I've chosen the Academy 1/72 Me.109-E3/4. Not a kit brimming-over with extras but it does have nice surface detail including a reasonable cockpit and alternative prop-hubs (nose cannon - v - no cannon) and glazing. Decals are for one aircraft but more on these later...

I am always suspicious that Academy kits of this era are 'cloned' from other manufacturers but their plastic is good quality and they usually turn out to be a pleasure to build... we'll see?

[Pen-Pusher]

Nice cockpit detail albeit the parts (not a very clear photo - sorry) are quite fiddly...

[Pen-Pusher]

Dry fit of major components before painting...

[Wizzel]

I do quite like Academy kits - and Heller too.  They are my favourite lower price brands as they have sufficient details and quality to make a lovely kit with not too much effort required.  As for the incestuous relationship between ownership of moulds, rights to releases and all that nonsense, I really don't know how some of you keep up with it all.  I'm just happy to find the time to glue a few bits together regardless of the ancestry.

I do like the 109 so I'll keep an eye on this.  It's going to be good I know that much!

[Pen-Pusher]

Late last night (Can't blame worries about wrist bands this time) and with sleep eluding, I did a bit more on this. A small amount of cockpit detail and slap the major components together. My first problems were the support struts below the tail planes but finally managed to get some reasonable fit. U/C legs and covers went in like a dream..... Oh what did I say? (Yawn) I need my bed.

[Pen-Pusher]

More or less complete, a couple of thin coats of acrylic to get the painting started...

[Pen-Pusher]

Gunther Rall's first Me.109 had a lower demarkation line than most, extending beneath the cockpit sill line. This a/c crashed on landing (another pilot) during the first week of the Battle of Britain and never fired a shot in anger. Rall went on to become one of Germany's greatest aces.

[Pen-Pusher]

There is some lingering doubt in my mind as to the number of this a/c. In the only B+W photo of the wreck you can clearly see the three and what could possibly be a one(?) - either that, it's a panel crease or something casting a shadow. Gunther favoured number 13 as his 'lucky number' and it was certainly carried (Black 13) on other a/c's including his much publicised Me.109 G2 which he flew in 1941/42. If he were superstitious then in all likelihood his first 'mount' would also carry that number - so be it.

[Pen-Pusher]

Another stage in the pre-Battle of Britain project completed with this Academy 1/72 Me.109. For a kit that's been around for quite some time I'm impressed with the overall fit and found it possible to build relatively free from problems. - Question is, which one next....?

[Wizzel]

Dornier 17E/F.  Breathe some life into the old Airfix kit.