Hello, I have been tragically stuck in a Luftwaffe mood for quite some time now. I don't foresee an end anytime soon. While I have been waiting for a Hasegawa FW 190 A-5 that I bought on E-bay to arrive, I decided to yank this guy out of the stash and give it a whirl. Besides, I haven't done an "Emil" in eons
I've heard good things about this kit. I did build the Tamiya E-4 a few years ago so I'm curious to see how this one measures up. In the box, this one looks fantastic. Being a huge fan of the "Emil", I can't wait to dive in.
I started with the cockpit. Its very nice and the kit comes with photoetch to dress it up. I did however start off with some confusion. I was under the impression that early 109 cockpits were done in RLM 02 and RLM 66 wasn't used in the pit until the E-4 variant. For some reason, the photo etch instrument panels and such were done in something that resembles RLM 66. I couldn't find a definitive answer one way or the other, and the detail on the PE instrument panel was fantastic, so I just went with the RLM 66. I do generally try for accuracy, but I don't let it ruin my day if I don't "get it right". We'll just say they made a mistake at Bayerische Flugzeugwerke and used the wrong paint on this plane. Anyways, I painted it XF-1 Flat Black then concocted my own RLM 66 with XF-63 German Grey and a touch of XF-66 Light Grey. Once I sprayed the cockpit, I added the various photoetch which really brought the area alive. The color of the photoetch and RLM 66 paint is a bit off, but I'm hoping it will look ok once it it all tucked into the fuselage. It was all sprayed with Testor's Gloss clearcoat, given a black/brown Detailer wash, then given a Testor's dull coat. Everything then got a light drybrushing of Model Master Silver to simulate wear.
I also assembled the lower chin intake, painted it with Gunze RLM 02, then added it to the starboard fuselage.
A test fit to the fuselage. I don't foresee any issues. I hope to get the engine and cowl gun area completed soon.
I haven't decided on a scheme yet, but it will definitely be a Battle of Britain machine though. It is after all my favorite era to model. I'm leaning towards Priller's machine but we'll see what's out there.
Joe