Hello Everyone,
my name is Ardi, I’ve been a regular visitor of ARC for quite sometime now,
and I must say that it is the most resourceful and informative site I’ve ever
been in. It’s the best, second to none. I’m a novice modeler and also this
is my first submission to ARC so bear with me .
The kit was
made straight from the box, no cockpit resins nor photo etched items.
This is the first Academy kit I’ve ever bought, so far the kit’s quality is
quite satisfactory except for the decals, it was a
bit thick (at least for my taste) and prone to fogging. Paints used were:
Tamiya’s XF-23 (Light Blue), XF-54 (Dark Sea Gray), XF-58 (Olive Green), X-8
(Lemon Yellow) and RLM02 Graugrün.
Cockpit detailing
was done using the usual overall black wash with silver drybrushing topped off
with individual detailing of each flight instrument. The fuselage halves went
together well, with little amount of putty and sanding required.
Same can also be said in wing–fuselage joining. Only a small gap
visible in the wing root, easily rectified with the
cotton bud-acetone gap-filling method.
Painting: After
masking the canopy, painting the wheel well with RLM02 Graugrün and masking it
with the ever-useful Maskol (that gooey pinkish substance), I painted the whole
thing Light Blue while checking for any surface defects.
Click on
images below to see larger images
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The
Messerschmitt Bf-109 is a remarkable piece of German machinery. Unlike its
counterpart, the British Spitfire, the 109 has an advanced fuel injection system
which allows it to perform negative G pushover (That’s when you push your
stick forward to put your plane into a dive) without failing its engine. Where
in the Spitfire you must perform a half roll (i.e. inverted flight) before
pulling it into a dive. (Unless you’d like to lose your opponent behind
you in a spiral dive and performing it deadstick in order to conserve fuel
)
These are the photos
of the plane as it went through the process of camo painting and decal
application. Note the distinct yellow identification markings common to most
Luftwaffe aircraft (Tamiya’s X-8 Lemon Yellow). This is probably why British
WW2 Fighter Pilots refer to these 109’s as “Yellownose Bastards”.
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images below to see larger images
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Then the model was
given a generous amount of Gloss Lacquer overcoat. Also the panel lines were
highlighted with a wash of thinned Burnt Sienna. And this may sound odd but
I’ve never been able to successfully create wires from heated & stretched
sprue, so I used hair for the antenna wire instead. I always like my models
clean so I held the weathering to a minimum. (In fact, as you may notice
there’s no weathering at all).
So dear friends, I
hope you enjoy this article as much as I do writing it. I’m a novice modeler
and still learning so critics and suggestions are highly appreciated. My special
Thanks to Mr. Steve Bamford and his staff at ARC, William-Daniel-Tri-Kiki
and also my fellow First Officers in Garuda. Fly Safe. And thank you Dian for
the long, black hair .
Ardi
Click on
images below to see larger images
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