Mikester

I'm trying to replicate the heavy paint chipping seen on the canopy of "Red 1". Laying down Mr. Color Aluminum over a base of Mr. Surfacer 1500, I applied Mr. Masking Sol on top of the aluminum mimicking the chipping pattern seen on the real thing. RLM 82 was applied over the top of that when the masking liquid was dry. The problem I'm having is when I removed the Mr. Masking Sol it's taking large areas of the surrounding (unmasked) paint with it, completely ruining the pattern that I tried to re-create. Any suggestions here?

Really looks good, Doug!

Just superb, my friend! You really nailed this one, brought all the elements together beautifully!

Daaaaammmnnnn, son! That's some nice work!

because sometimes 1/24 just isn't big enough! http://tieba.baidu.com/p/2804573205 Trumpeter also announces 1/32: Bf109G-6 (late), G-10, and K-4 for 2014.

From IPMS Deutschland: http://www.ipmsdeutschland.de/Flugzeuge/Wiegmann/Rev_Bf109G-10_Erla_32/Rev_Bf109G-10_Erla.html

I don't even bother anymore! GB's and other stuff usually over-ride any plans I make. Would like to get some armor and a diorama or two in though.

Yup.

Better late than never, I reckon! Looks great, Mike!

Glad to see you took the "Mike Witous" approach and bought every single piece of A/M available!

1:32 Bf 109G Seatbelts (for Revell kit) Eduard Catalogue # 32792 and 32794 Available directly from Eduard, MSRP $14.95 (32972) and $9.95 (32974) Eduard 32792 Bf 109G seatbelts FABRIC After-market seatbelts have become just about mandatory for aircraft modellers, particularly large scale modellers. Some people prefer the resin seats with the belts molded in place but I've never been skilled enough with a paint brush to get satisfactory results. Photo-etch is the other option and Eduard has always been involved in this segment, initially giving us photo-etch seatbelts, then pre-painted PE seatbelts and finally fabric belts combined with PE which we'll kick off this review with. The belts are provided on a small sheet printed in a beige or "dirty white" color, which is a good representative of the color of belts typically found in the Bf 109G-6. Some late war aircraft were equipped with green colored seatbelts but I can't recall ever seeing them on a G-6 but your mileage may vary. This set features laser cut fabric seatbelts. In my opinion these are the most realistic looking seatbelts on the market. After all what better to simulate fabric with than actual fabric? If you've never worked these before I will caution you that they are more time consuming to put together than standard PE seatbelts. As you can see by the instructions some threading and weaving is required, a good magnifying lamp, tweezers and a steady hand will be helpful for routing the fabric parts through the PE buckles. Hey, maybe you can talk the girlfriend or wife into doing for you though! Let me know how that goes for you, seriously. Once completed though they really look impressive and are exceptionally easy to pose realistically since they flex just like their real life counterparts. Although these will look good as is, I find that a light wash helps bring out the detail and really gives them some visual pop that really brings them to life. Another thing I love about these is the serial numbers and data tag printed on the belts, we've come a long ways since the old days of a couple of strips of masking tape on the seat! Eduard 32794 Bf 109G seatbelts If you prefer the traditional style of PE belts that go together with a few dabs of super glue Eduard has you covered as well. These belts go together easier than the fabric ones but can be more difficult to pose realistically because metal just doesn't flex like fabric. They still look good when installed though and will definitely be a big upgrade over the molded on belts that Revell saddles us with on their Gustav. So what do we think? Whichever set you choose will be a big upgrade over what's in the kit so you really can't go wrong either way. My personal preference are the fabric belts and if you choose that route I don't think you'll regret it despite the extra work associated with them. Although these belts are marketed for the Revell Bf 109G-6 there's no reason you can't use them with other kits, parts is parts! Highly Recommended Mike O. Review copies courtesy of Eduard.

1:32 Bf 109G-6 Wheels (for Revell kit) Eduard "Brassin" Catalogue # 632 018 Available directly from Eduard, MSRP $14.95 (US) New from Eduard is a set of main wheels for the Revell 1/32 Bf 109G-6. The kit supplied wheels are actually quite good but usually there's room for improvement and resin really lends itself well to these types of parts. Eduard has elected to go with the more or less "prototypical" wheel for the G-6 (as well as many G-4's and the G-14), the stamped hub with ribs along the outer edge of the wheel and treaded tire. Note that there were differences in the hub cap, the G-6 below uses the commonly seen hexagonal cover while Eduard hub portrays the open style. Casting on the parts is razor sharp, the detail on the rear wheel hub in particular is really well done. The tires are equally impressive with the "Continental" and "660x160" (the manufacturer and tire size) represented in raised detail. The only drawback I see is the pour sprue extends roughly 1/3 of the circumference of the tire which will entail some clean up but certainly no big deal to anyone with any experience working with this media. If you're new to this type of media please heed the precautions for working with resin parts, during sanding or any process that creates dust by all means use a respirator. The dust created by polyurethane resin is nasty stuff and not good for the lungs. So what do we think? The wheels are exceptionally well done, detail is crisp and sharp. Although these are marketed for the Revell Gustav I don't see any reason they can't be used to upgrade the Hasegawa or Trumpeter Gustavs as well with minimal modification. Highly Recommended Mike O. Review copy courtesy of Eduard.

1:32 Bf 109G-6 Cockpit (for Revell kit) Eduard "Brassin" Catalogue # 632 022 Available at most online retailers, $49.95 (US) MSRP In the USA, we have an old saying "In life, only two things are certain, death and taxes". I think it appropriate to amend this to "only three things are certain, death, taxes and when a new Bf 109 kit is released a flood of aftermarket will follow!". Revell introduced their new Bf 109G-6 (early and late) last year and the typically prolific Eduard has not let us down in providing a host of add-ons. The flagship of their releases to date is their Brassin cockpit set. For the most part the Revell Bf 109G-6 cockpit is nicely done, the biggest detractors being an inaccurate control stick and "gimmicky" molded in seat belts on the seat bucket and back rest. Of course there is a large amount of after-market available for the Hasegawa Gustav but this is the first cockpit set specifically designed for the Revell kit. Before we proceed let's deal with the pink elephant in the room, the price. At an MSRP of nearly $50 this set is not cheap, nearly twice the price of the kit itself! Typically I only purchase items like this on sale though, I picked this up for 50% off at Squadron's last "Black Friday" sale. Purchasing from the US is not always easy for all of us though so let's take a look and what we have and you can determine if this set is worth your hard earned sheckles. Before we go too far a few words on real life cockpits are appropriate. The Bf 109G-6 was produced by three different factories and the aircraft itself was constantly being upgraded. When it comes to 109's the only thing we can say is "standard" is "non-standardization". Therefore the best someone can do with a set like this is give a good composite of what the cockpit should look like. If you delve deep enough you'll be able to find subtle and some sometimes not so subtle differences. Here's a couple of pics of the real thing just for reference: Upon opening the box, which contains a good amount of foam padding (always appreciated with resin parts) we're presented with four zip-loc bags. Three containing resin parts and a fourth with two photo-tech sheets, one standard and one pre-painted. The resin is crisply cast with no flash whatsoever, quality looks absolutely superb. The rear deck and seat rest have some added detail not present in the kit parts, particularly the control boxes on the starboard side and of course the seat back is (gratefully) lacking the molded in belts. The seat bucket detail is exceptional with delicately cast rivet detail and seat belt attachment points. The firewall also features nicely done rivet detail. The starboard sidewall contains junction boxes and wiring that were omitted by Revell. The oxygen regulator and hose are also an upgrade over the kit being more detailed and crisply cast. You'll note the fuel line is molded in here as opposed the separate clear part that is provided with the kit. The port sidewall has the chain for the flap actuators molded on and as with the starboard side contains some additional detail on the forward portion of the part. As with the kit both styles of gun breech covers are provided. The MG 151 cover here features finely wrought weld beads, really a nice touch. Eduard has provided two options for the instrument panel. The first is a standard resin replacement for the kit part, which decals for the instrument faces would be used. The detail on this is amazing and Eduard has also included the lower auxillary control panel present on some aircraft. The second IP is intended for use with the pre-painted photo etch parts. Some of the miscellaneous parts here including the gun sight and the control stick. These are both welcome additions since both of the kit parts were lacking in this area. The KG-13A control stick is beautifully rendered, in my opinion this is the best rendition I've ever seen of this part. The color PE sheet contains a set of pre-painted seat belts and instrument panel details. Eduard seems to have refined their process for their pre-painted parts, the instrument detail appears to be sharper than previous offerings and should look great once assembled. My only gripe with the pre-painted stuff is that typically the RLM 66 on the IP is a different shade than my Mr. Color RLM 66. I've found with some careful application of Mr. Masking Sol I can paint the outer section to match the rest of the cockpit, here's one I did for a Fw 190D-9 just for reference: The other sheet of PE contains other various parts for the cockpit. Typically I mix and match parts like this with what's in the kit depending on how fiddly and delicate the PE is. So what do we think? Eduard has a packed a lot into this set. It's a definite upgrade over the kit cockpit in just about every aspect. Obviously the price will put some people off but if you decide to spend the money I don't think you'll be disappointed with what's in the box. The detail supplied with the kit cockpit is certainly adequate but I think the kit will really shine with this set. Highly Recommended! Mike O. Review copy courtesy of my wallet.

Started off the year with a Hasegawa Bf 109G-14 that was originally done for "Foreign Colors" GB at that other (now defunct) website that some people are incapable of uttering! Next up was the biggest model I've ever built, Dragon's Bf 110D. Great kit built for the Arrow Wolf Messerschmitt GB. Not being content with just one build for the Messerschmitt GB I decided to add a Hasegawa G-14/AS to the mix. And yet another Messerschmitt! Are you sensing a trend here? The new Revell G-6 done for our "109 Build Off/Review". And last,the venerable Tamiya 1/35 Panther "A", which sat on 95% complete on the Shelf of Doom for over a year. Finally got motivated to finish her up.

Outstanding, Dave!

I'd like to wish all of you and yours a happy and prosperous New Year! Thank you for a great year of modelling at LSM, the contributions that you make here are truly appreciated and are helping us become one of the premier modelling forums on the internet. We've got some great stuff in store for 2014, so stayed tuned and keep spreading the word!

Great looking build, Ben!

I love this one!

You are a God among insects! Seriously though, great work!

Well after a lot of on again off again work I finally finished this one. Fully aware that this is a 40 year old kit with tons of inaccuracies it was a good learning experience for me and a lot of fun. Modifications: RB metal barrel Metal tow hooks Various pieces from Verlinden Panther upgrade set Sealed off lower hull areas with sheet plastic Scratch built Jerry can rack Zimmerit applied with wide tip soldering iron Fenders and rear stowage boxes re-worked with lead foil Bison decals Weathering was done using mostly old school techniques, oil wash and dry brushing, AK Interactive Rust Streaks and Flory Washes were also used.

Looking good, Rick! I've got this one in the stash and hoping to get to it next year.

Gorgeous, that first picture looks like real aircraft!

So are you planning on a Ju 88 Mistel to mount this baby on?

I need this!

Johann, Haven't heard anything new in awhile on this, any updates for us?