Alright fellow groupies, I'm calling her done. I'll eventually be replacing the windscreen and canopy when they arrive from Hasegawa. At which time I'll also install an antenna wire. Other than that, what you see is what you get. Most of you know, this was an old kit (mid 80s?) with tons of fit issues, and strange accuracy discrepancies. For instance, the instrument panel is a perfect match to the real thing but the cockpit and seat are completely wrong. Fuselage gun options were both precisely detailed but neither would fit under their prospective hood without major structural adjustments, as the guns lined up perfectly with the cowl slots.
I went with the A5 variant, doing my best to depict the last plane flown by Luftwaffe Ace Wilhelm Ferdinand "Wutz" Galland of JG26. Few clear photos exist and artist renderings differ wildly so my paint scheme uses a little from each source.
A little history....... Wutz completed operational training with Ergänzungsgruppe/JG 26 and reported to II./JG 26 on 27 June 1941. JG 26 was under command of his brother Adolf Galland (104 victories, RK-Br). His younger brother Paul Galland (17 victories, killed in action 31 October 1942) was also serving with the unit. Assigned to 6./JG 26, “Wutz” scored his first victory on 23 July 1941, shooting down a RAF Spitfire. On 5 May 1942, Galland was appointed Staffelkapitän of 5./JG 26. He had eight victories to his credit. On 2 June, he claimed two Spitfires shot down over the Somme Estuary to record his ninth and 10th victories. Galland recorded his 20th victory on 4 December when he shot down another Spitfire near Boulogne. His score had risen to 21 by the end of 1942. Galland was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of II./JG 26 on 3 January 1943. On 28 January, Galland received the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold for 24 victories. He recorded his 30th victory on 15 February, when he shot down a Spitfire near Ramsgate. Galland was awarded the Ritterkreuz on 18 May 1943 for 35 victories. On 14 July, Galland entered combat with USAAF P-47 fighters escorting B-17 four-engine bombers raiding Villacoublay. He calimed two of the fighters shot down to record his 49th and 50th victories. On 17 August 1943, at 16:52, three Staffeln from II./JG 26 took off from Lille-Nord, under the command of Major Galland, to intercept a formation of USAAF four-engine bombers on their return course from a bombing raid on Schweinfurt. Over Lutych, the unit encountered a formation of 150 to 200 bombers, escorted by nearly 200 escort fighters. II./JG 26 bounced the bombers but were, in turn, attacked by a unit of P-47 fighters from the 56th Fighter Group, USAAF. Their fire crippled “Wutz” Galland's FW 190 A-5 (W.Nr. 530 125) <<+- which crashed at high speed near Liegne, 5 km west of Maastricht. The impact left a large crater in the ground from which it was impossible to remove all the wreckage. Some sources suggest that “Wutz” Galland was shot down by the American ace Walker “Bud” Mahurin (24.25 confirmed, 4 probable and 2 damaged victories) of the 56th Fighter Group, USAAF.
“Wutz” Galland was credited with 54 aerial victories in 186 missions. All his victories were recorded over the Western Front and included seven four-engine bombers and 37 Spitfires.
As evident in my WIP pics and gripes, I'm a rattle can user and along with that I use some rather unorthodox ways for weathering and detailing. Aside from some Tamiya powders, artist acrylic washes and enamel dry-brushing, most surface detail visible on the finished model was achieved by first applying black and grey primers under my finish coats, then sanding to varying levels to reveal rivets and lines in whichever of those colors I choose. Being a rather frugal guy (or cheapskate) I tend to make my add-ons or improvements. (The supercharger intakes are pieces of Bic pens. Wing guns are aluminum tubing with heatshrink insulation). And, as for colors (see pic below), I think I got pretty close to the true colors by using nothing more than well chosen shades of cheap primers and some Rustoleum Painters Touch Satins. (oooops, forgot to include Future polish in pic)
Please feel free to reply or message me with any comments, critiques or questions you may have or simply refer back to my earlier WIP posts for details.
It's been a real treat participating in this Group Build with all you guys. I've gained an immeasurable amount of knowledge and have enjoyed seeing these awesome builds come together, not to mention just getting to know one another. I look forward to seeing you all around in the forums and will undoubtedly be in future GBs with you.