ME-262: Reich Defender II 10/09-7/10

Thanks everyone for your very kind comments, I'm really glad you like it so far, I just need to leave it alone and not tinker whilst I get the rest of it done.

Vetteman, nice to see your progress, very good so far. I hope you dont have to much hassle with filler etc. Have you decided on the camo yet?

I use Gunze Aqueous acrylics, really excellent paint and it hasnt given me any problems, any faults are always down to me. This is my third build using an airbrush and I think I'm finally getting to grips with thinning the paint to keep it quite smooth, also I flat coat with Vallejo Matt from a rattle can and I think that stuff is amazing, it seems to self level which always helps. I keep thinking I should find one I can spray through the Airbrush but..... Nahhh, if it aint broke dont fix it!

Cheers...

Vetteman, good start to you build and I can see that you have your work cut out for you. Think I have one of those in my stash also. good luck with the wing shims

Mike, great looking finish on the striped 262. That is a cool looking camo job and your work on the finish is superb, very well weathered and blended together. Great job.

Steve

Sidure sorry I have taken so long to comment on your build. At first I wasnt sure I liked it, however over the last few days it has grown on me and my hat is off to you for a fine build. I really like the way you did the cutaway and the overall effect is really nice. Very well done. The red out line draws your eye to the detail inside the aircraft as I think it was ment to and the other side draws your eye to the whole aircraft.

Spike190 Suhweeeettttt paint job !! love the camo and how smooth the paint went on. Did you use acrylics ? If so how did you get ride of the grainy look.

Ok guys I told you last week I had offically started my build. So here are a few pictures of what I have done so far. Oh and yes I am a very slow builder.

First the box art this is an old Monogram Kit

Next the front and back of the cockpit tub. This went together well I think.

Now for the Fuse a shot from the side, this old kit needs lots of putty there are some really bad fit issues as you can see on the nose. I am using Bondo Glazing putty because of the amount of putty needed, it just seems to work better than Squadron or Testers Putty, and for me sands better too.

I did dry fit the wings this morning and found I will have to shim them at the wingroot to close up a huge gap there. The wing itself doesnt look like it will need any filler at all and the engine nauticles look like they will be a very good fit. As always thanks for looking and all comments are welcomed.

Great work spike. Paint job is excellent.

Bravo, Spike, that finish is exceptional! Smooth as a baby's bottom. Hat's off to you.

Mike- I like that one a lot, well done!  I think the colors and the camo scheme look spot-on my friend.

Mike,

That is one incredible finish on that bird - great job

-Fred

Mike-you've done an outstanding job on the finish.  I had never considered painting that camo scheme, but seeing yours has made me reconsider.  Great build!

Good morning everyone,

Thought I would post a few pictures for you. I'm pretty much finished on this bit and I'm now going to get started on the landing gear, I wont be doing anything other than try to paint them nicely.

Just a few little touch ups needed. What do you think guy's, are the colours ok, weathering?

All comments welcome.

Cheers...

Steve, Ilike the red border, reminds me of those cut away books we always seemed to have in the school library.

Karl

Thanks for all the feedback and comments on the cutaway. I like the effect and I think I got it from some of the old books I have showing interior detail in cutaway drawings. This build was going to be something totally different for me so it was all or nothing. Hope to post final pics in the next day or so. Thanks guys for the comments

Steve

Hi Steve, I like what you've done with the red border, I thought at first it was a little bright but now I've come back to it I've changed my mind. It reminds me of the cutaway drawings in the books I used to read when I was a young chap. You've done a very tidy job anyway .

Finished putting the decals on last night so hope to spray some Klear (Future) tonight.

Cheers...

WOW! excellent work on the cut-away view. I like the classic red outline as it draws attencion to the interior work. Oh and for sure outline the engine in red as well. I would position the car and figures on the opposite side and even divide the diorama in half with the clear side on a information plate and the painted one in a airfield scene. Kind of like a 2 in 1 diorama. Regardless your skills show well in this build(s)

Steve- Sorry for the late reply, but I would tend to agree with Mike on this one.  I think the red outline is a bit bold for the effect, and either no outline or a more subtle one at least as Mo and Dirk suggested would look better.  Otherwise, I really like this one!

There is some great work going on here guys. I made some more progress on Delaney my night fighter. I will try and post them soon.

Steve, magnificent work on the see through 262. Not that it matters much but I go back and forth about the red outline of the fuselage. I thing in the end I would have to go with Mobious and his idea of a gray outline. Either way it is a stunning build.

Hey Steve, I like the idea of what you've done, IMO, a neutral color outline, something perhaps like a Panzer Grey would be my choice of colour. It would act as a shadow line between the painted surface and the cutaway, done with a thinner line if possible.  Just my 2 pfennig.

Spike, the mown lawn camo looks great. Very nice work. Looking forward to updates.

Thanks for the feedback and your opinions Mike, I really appreciate it and your honesty on the subject. I did go back and forth on it a bit and in the end decided to go for it. With it being a visible side it was not going to be as a real plane in a dio etc so I went for the cut out look. Thanks again for the comment

Steve

Hi Steve -- overall a fantastic build with an incredible finish, but I have to say that the red outline is something I really wouldn't have done. It draws the eye instantly away from the wealth of fantastic detail that is accurately reproduced and anchors it to a line that has no part in the reality of the aircraft, it's as if the red line has become the most important detail because it leaps out and grabs the attention. And -- sorry to say this -- at first glance it puts me in the mind of a clown's mouth... I'm really sorry to be negative, but it feels you've gone in a direction that detracts from the genuine beauty of the rest of the job.

Sure, the transparent skin is not part of the reality either, but as a transparency it's a structure that's supposed to not be seen, in other words do anything but attract the eye, while revealing the interior. But if this is the effect you intended, to delineate the transparent area, then it's carefully done and it's what you were after, and if you're happy with the result, that's what counts... But it sounds like you're a bit uncertain, and my earnest advice is not to outline the engine transparencies the same way. This is all an aesthetic issue, of course, and that means it's entirely down to personal preferences, and the above is purely my oppinion from the artistic standpoint.

Cheers, Mike/TB379

Looking good Mike. The more I see it the more I like it. Cant wait to see it finished.

I am almost finished with my build, just a few touch ups to do. I also picked up the Tamiya Citron staff car and it comes with very nice ICM figures so I am set for future dioramas. Here she is for now.

The car only took 45 mins so far and its almost done, same with about 4 of the figures. What do you guys think of the red outline and should I do the same to the engine area. All comments welcome

Steve

Mike, looking nice mate.

Just get the mower on that silvering.

Karl

Thanks for the comments fellas. I sorted the silvering, attacked it with a pin and more micro sol, job done!

Your right Mucker I'm on the home stretch now but I'm trying to keep the 'rush monster' at bay, in fact I need to get the under carriage started once the main painting, weathering etc is done.

Frank I found that book on amazon and made a note on it.

Cheers...

Looking geat. Spike. I had the same silvering issue with the walkway decals, but another round of Microsol took care of it. You're rounding third and on the way home with this build!

Mike- That is looking SWEEEEET!  Very nice work.

Recently, I picked up two books written by ME-262 pilots; Stormbird by Hermann Buchner, and Luftwaffe Eagle by Walter Schuck.  I am about halfway through "Stormbird", a very good read!  I have always enjoyed WWII aviation history written by the people who were actually there, but they can be difficult to find- especially by Axis powers pilots.  Just thought I would mention them if anyone else is looking for a good read.

Very nice Mike.  I've considered the "yard" camo scheme-you made it look great-much better than the drawing on the Tamiya box.

Steve, top job on your semi clear build, I love the way you masked it in order to show all that detail but still show off a great paint job. It's looking fantastic. 

A few pics of my stripy lawn 262, I've got a little bit of silvering on one of the wing walk lines but I will fix that, Decals are going on slowly but surely. Frank, thanks for the washing liquid tip, I will give that a go next time and hopefully get a smoother finish.

I picture of the under side.

Hope to get more done today.

Cheers....

Hey Sidure, A very striking cutaway look. I like it. Great job on the overall camo too.

Steve, your clear Schwalbe looks stunning.

Really liking the visible engine and fuel tank.

Karl

Steve, the smooth paint job coupled with the clear see-through "cutaway" really give deminsion and depth to this bird! Tremendous display of talent on your 262! I really  like how you've masked off only the areas you want to be seen.

Great looking buid, Steve .  Put the two of ours together and we'd have a completely invisible plane, LOL.

I wish Trumpeter had included a clear gun cowling like on the kit you built - it's much more visually interesting.

To answer your questions, yes it does sit fairly tall.  If you look at the engines, there are hand/foot holds for the pilot and crew, so they can get up there.  Like a boarding ladder, but not, LOL.  And the canopy has (at least on the reference pictures I have) a wire and tension spring set-up to keep the canopy from flopping over and breaking off.  If you go back to my pictures, you can see the scratchbuild of the system that I made.

-Fred

Steve Excellent job on the clear parts showing the interior of the 262! A few photos I seen from WWII shows the 262 sitting tall as well. The front landing gear strut looks to be almost 5 feet tall includeing the wheel. The origional tail draggers sat at a steep angle makeing taxing around the areodome very difficult. The front strut helped only to introduce a new hazard of being under engineered and prone to breakage on landing.