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Hi-ho Nicko... As you know, I'm more of a Jagdwaffe guy rather than Kampfgeschwader, but I'll take a stab at it. I believe that the first photo shows a pre-BoB aircraft, perhaps only fresh from delivery and maybe even from the earlier period of operations over the North Sea. There certainly has been no attempt to tone down the visibility of the upper Balkankreuz. Lack of badge, introduced in April 1940 also points to this time frame, if it is indeed a "6N" code - there are no other unit markings present. Heinkel built H6's in the "GN+_ _" Stamkennzeichen batch, so this may also be a possibility. Perhaps overpainted, it seems Heinkel sent them out with white codes... http://www.worldwarphotos.info/gallery/germany/aircrafts-2/heinkel_he111/heinkel-he-111-planes-on-assembly-line-in-factory/ Early C-stand, but hard to tell about the glazing... More on this and colours soon. Second photo... Based in France, although pre- Night Blitz 1940. Most likely "6N+DK", and possibly the fuselage and tail D in red, although maybe yellow for 2./Kgr100?... http://ktsorens.tihlde.org/flyvrak/lagodal.html Possibly only white outlines to the Wing "D"s. Field of the badge appears much lighter than the Staffel colour. Spinner tips may be overpainted... http://www.worldwarphotos.info/wp-content/gallery/germany/aircrafts/heinkel_he111/Heinkel_He111_France_1940.jpg Third... My tip is Vannes France later in 1941, having arrived August 1940 via Luneberg Saxony in May 1940. Appears to be at least two different machines in Neil's blog, or at least in two different time frames, as the "I" is visible in your photo but overpainted in another on the blog. Exhaust combination is very unusual, but deliberate as indicated by the patterns caused by the efflux. Note the difference in the fuselage "I" as compared to both the spinner colour and the field of the badge. Colours... It appears that the early H2 and H3 machines operated by KGr100 in Norway were extensively repainted. Note both the lighter underside and darker topside colours applied to this crashed example as dictated by the area within the wing root... http://www.airliners.net/photo/Germany---Air/Heinkel-He-111H-2/0659892/L/&sid=d0bdd5151ed04a33a935abdf67b9d7b6 Also note the glazing at the front of the C-stand. Normal colours for He111 would be 65/70/71 but it appears that some artistic licence can be applied depending on your interpretation of location and time-frame. Hope all that helps some, and hasn't made things worse! S

Your explanation is easily understood, and quite correct as well. The wing bulge modifications on the Barracuda set are unnecessary, and wrong. Logically it makes sense that the bulge should be higher at the inboard part of the bulge, however this fails to take into account the fact that the side of the tire is curved and is actually falling away from the wing's upper surface at it's closest point inboard. Perhaps it was modified in this way by Barracuda, simply so that the replacement part is 10% different from the original to avoid copyright issues? Secondly, both the Revell original part and the Barracuda replacement incorrectly depict the underside area of the bulge, showing the area as a reinforced riveted plate with the bulge on a separate panel underneath. This actual piece was a single stamped part, which inserted from underneath and up into a kidney-shaped hole cut into the top of the wing, and was riveted from underneath into place. The results of this can be clearly seen in the Mushroom Publications photo shown above. A more accurate 1/32nd scale depiction of this area is shown in this effort by RB Productions... http://www.radubstore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_68&products_id=195&zenid=e12224d9cfb4c4187c5e157fa951e918 S

Ooh, just lovely Ralph. So very different to see a '109 in the British camoflage scheme. Will we be seeing her in the flesh at QMHE in a month's time? S

Um... let's just say Mike... If Revell had put GUN PODS in their kit, I'm sure this wouldn't have happened. S

Great build and paintwork there Mike... But when you see it, you'll kick yourself!

One more for Me410...

Not an invoice as such... There were 5 emails sent during the transaction. I pre-ordered the He-219 kit last year and received confirmation of the order first. Then I added some special sets to the order after they were announced, and these were confirmed in the second email with an itemised list without shipping added. Then, when the kit was almost ready, another email was received asking for payment and included link to the Volks site that I believe you're dealing with now. Then I went through the ordering process and gave the credit card details, and at this point received a confirmation that payment would be deducted from the card when ready to ship, along with the complete itemised list plus shipping and a small handling fee. I then got another email almost a month later when shipping began, confirming that my card had been charged. Finally, another email was received after the box was sent, along with shipping details and tracking number. So that was the process for a pre-ordered kit. It may be different for kits already in stock or Paypal transactions though. And it''s the Obon Festival too, so things may work a little slower over there until Mid-august. S

That's OK Mate... I logged in and went through the process as if ordering. But I usually pay via Credit Card so I wasn't sure about their Paypal procedures. Perhaps Jim or someone else might shed some light soon? S

Hey Rog... After step 2 and it takes you from the Volks site into the Paypal screen, where you're being asked to put in your Paypal account details, on the left hand side does it say "You'll be able to see your order details before you pay" ? S

Thanks Bevan, That's quite alright. I was just banned from another site today, so it's good to know there are still Modelling sites where information is valued. S

Many thanks also, To the Netherlands Royal family and the Authorities in Eindhoven, for the respect and dedication shown as they accepted the first of the victims into their care. These poor people may have been Australians or any of the nationalities involved, and the Dutch have received them all as if their own. S

Bevan, Very early F2 variants exhibited unshrouded exhausts on the port side under the intake, and small button formation lights on the wingtips instead of the larger clear covers of all subsequent Bf109 variants. With a few exceptions, all F2's used the slimmer oil cooler and smaller compressor intake - these were often carried over into the early F4 production. The exceptions may only be due to replacement parts from F4 machines being utilised. There were 5 factories producing the F2 (AGO, Arado, Erla, Messerschmitt and WNF), only Erla and WNF continued on to the F4. If anything, it is more common to see the smaller parts on early F4 machines. As a general rule, F2's show squared wheel well outer edges, and F4's have round wheel wells. Also a general indicator of an F2 is the small intake beside the starter crank hole on the starboard cowl, although not always the case as some WNF built F4's show this feature as well as the small oil cooler... for the F4 this inlet for generator cooling was moved to inside the engine-mounted compressor intake ring - so a lack of the small starboard intake always means that it's an F4. The only other sure way to tell is the fuel filler triange under the cockpit on the port side... C3/100 octane for the DB601N engined F2, and B4/87 octane for the DB601E powered F4 and F4/Z. The unshrouded port side exhaust part is also included in all Hasegawa boxings. S

You're a handy man to know Dave... The original ST31 Hasegawa boxing is the only version that contains the larger compressor intake and lower oil cooler parts. Every other version contains the parts to complete an F2 variant, including the external tail stiffeners and the small starboard cowling starter motor cooling intake. However, the ST31 is the only boxing still generally available, as all of the others were considered limited editions. To make an F2 from the ST31 box, you will need sprue M for the port fuselage, sprue F for the small compressor intake, and sprue D for the smaller oil cooler parts. These are all thoughtfully contained on the one tree. The clear windscreen options are on different differently numbered sprues for the various boxes, however the ST31 box already contains all the options necessary for the F2 variant. S

The Trumpeter G10 kit would probably be an easier choice for removing the lower bumps, as the lower cowl is a separate piece. However, it seems to lack the small wing bulges from the limited sprue shots available. The Hasegawa G10 kit includes both wing bulges, and also both sets of propeller blades, depending on the particular airframe you're choosing to model. More information on the cowling differences between variants can be found on this thread from TOCH Forum: http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showpost.php?p=88505&postcount=24 S

Remembering of course, that the Trumpeter G10 should have the same detail differences as the Hasegawa G10 kits, namely the lower cowl bumps for the later DB605D engine that was not yet in service at the introduction of the G6/AS. S

Not without a lot of work Erik... Basically everything on the fuselage forward of the windscreen is subtly different on the Erla machines. The Hasegawa kit is a better starting point, but even this needs some hatches re-scribed and a different lower cowl without bulges for the G6/AS. Perhaps Revell will favour us with their interpretation of this variant soon. Steve.

No such photographs in the public domain to my knowledge Nick... Nor even of the W.Nr.15915 with the red tulip marked nose. However, we do know that JG50 utilised both the wing mounted cannons and the W.Gr.21 mortars at various stages of their brief operational period in 1943, so it's highly likely that Graf had them fitted at some point. S

It's actually the complete opposite Rog... The original incarnation of this Hasegawa Fw190 kit dates from the mid 1980's, about '86 IIRC. It used many of the sprues from their older 190A kit, with a new fuselage added along with the extra detail parts you have noted. Up until this point, the only other 1/32nd scale Dora kit was the older Revell kit. Although the older plastic parts had raised rivet detail that was at odds with the newer subtle fuselage details, it was perhaps still the better option available to get to a Dora at that time. There have been three different versions of this kit, all of them before the new-tool Dora kit that Hasegawa released in 2003. So although perhaps crude by today's standards, the white metal and p/e details included with these kits were quality items at the time, that many modellers considered well worth the premium prices these kits attracted. Steve.

It's funny you should mention this Matt... I actually did most of the work compiling the Hasegawa Fw190 A and D lists, including adding the majority of the photos from my own stash. Also funny is that another Member here, by his own admission, was given a kit as a reward for his work on that database, whereas Your's Truly was told to leave that site... on three separate occasions no less. But back to the topic... I echo the others' comments about the new-tool Hasegawa Fw190's. Some modellers have a little trouble with the join of the lower cowling to the fuselage, but I believe this is less so with the A-5/A-6 kits of the range. Otherwise, they build into solid replicas with hardly any fit problems to mention. S

Mike, The only photo known to me is inconclusive. http://www.jg300.de/mysteries.html If I had to make a guess, I would say Erla G-10 for a couple of reasons. The shape of the upper cowl at the rear and the position of the gun trough seems typical for Erla, and the hole over the luggage compartment has the more open and rounded curve at the top. Furthermore, JG300 received a lot of the Erla G-10's. The detail and colour of the Wappen and the choice of green for the tactical number seem highly speculative, although granted that the Eagle Editions people have much wider access to those who could confirm these specifics. HTH, Steve.

Not seeing it here Ralph... On either Google Chrome or IE10, nor on Samsung Android either. IP is Telstra, and Android is Virgin (through Optus) so there's a good spread there, although I haven't tried FireFox. Maybe when Europe wakes up later, you may be able to get some answers then? Cheers, Steve.

Aw... Guess this was yesterday as you're our side of the date line. But hope you had a great day anyhow Mike. Cheers, Steve.

The short answer is "no" Nick, Not without major surgery. The Hasegawa G-14/AS boxing will get you closer, but still needs modification to the rear spine, under-cowl bulges and some minor re-scribing. If you're not in a hurry, the better option may be to wait for Revell to release a dedicated version from their G-6 moulds. S

Just lovely Mike, A wonderful fresh interpretation of an oft seen subject. Great work! Steve.

Ooh, do tell! I think Nick may have let the cat out of the bag elsewhere... Another group review perhaps? I would have liked to get in on the ground floor of that one, as I'm still not sure I'm at the point where I want to part with my own cash for one just yet. Are you in need of some intel, or do you have it in hand? S