1/48 ICM Ju 88A-4, Stab. II/KG 77, Heinrich Paepcke, Sicily, October 1942 (Complete)
This is the first of a series of projects related to the Siege of Malta in 1942. The subject is Heinrich Paepcke's Ju 88A-4, which sports a unique camo scheme of sand and light blue over the standard 65/70/71 splinter pattern. Hauptmann Paepcke lost his life when his Ju 88 collided with a Spitfire over Malta on October 17, 1942.
I used the ICM kit along with the Eduard interior and exterior upgrade kits, Eduard wheels and decals from AIMS. The single photo I was able to find of the plane suggested that Paepcke's Ju-88 was in pretty good shape, so only light weathering was applied.
As for the ICM kit, the fit was excellent, with no major issues. However, there were quite a few missing panel lines and sink marks that needed to be addressed.
The Eduard detail kits and wheel upgrade were nice for the cockpit, engine and landing gear.
The surface detail is fairly sparse so I decided to use the rivet wheel and add rivets to all external surfaces. The effect is subtle but I think it turned out OK.
My main challenge with this kit was the canopy. It was molded very poorly -- there was a major distortion problem on across the top and sides and the framing sections are shaped thick and wide with poor definition. Not crisp. It took quite a bit of sanding, polishing, and extra paint work to get them to an acceptable level. If I had to do it again, I'd probably sand the canopy smooth and use decal strips for the framing.
I used Mr. Color lacquer paints for all the main camo. I used RLM 78 and 79 for the blue and sand on the upper surfaces.
The decals were printed by Cartograf and went down very nicely.
Weathering was kept light, using Tamiya black/brown mix on selected panel lines and colored pencils for chips and scratches. I also applied a typical Ju 88 exhaust staining pattern.
Overall, I'm pleased with how it turned out, but it was a little more work than I expected. Thanks for looking. Comments and critiques are more than welcome.
