"GERMAN ARROWS" - OFFICIAL DO-335 GB

MA

Cool idea to store the small bottles. I store my paints in drawers in a small metal cabinet that the wife got me at Ikea. This little cabinet keeps everything organized and out of sight.

Not much to photograph for now since I started assembling the cockpit and getting things ready for paint. It's been a while that I haven't built a Tamiya kit and forgot how nice everything fits and how sharp the details are. I was also looking over the CMK and Quickboost resin parts and started cleaning the flash off from some of them.

Thanks Rigid.  Junkie posted a pic in response to your comment on Testor's enamel in the little square bottles.  I don't have any 12 centers, but I got a couple of other price points here:

Amazing work there! Very nice...

Thanks Guys,

Yes PJ, that is the Tamiya 1/48.  The panel is the unpainted Eduard set, after I tried to use the kit decal. I coudnt get it to lay down, so I just scraped and sanded and started over with the PE.  I've got the True Details weighted tires and the Ultracast exhausts.  I'm not opening her up as I haven't seen pix that way at Pax River.  

One last pic of the office assembly before I insert into the fuse.  If you look close, you can see that I plumbed all of the instruments with super thin copper wire, and then I bundled it and routed it through the bottom of the interior firewall.

You are doing some awesome work there, Marty!

MAgather

Sorry dude but the color chip just looks black in my screen but it's interesting about the color uses on this late bird. Please elaborate on the color scheme when you can as I'm about to start mine very soon.  I found this link with some good info: www.clubhyper.com/.../do335camomu_1.htm

You are doing one hell of a job on the landing gear, and the seat and instrument panel look fantastic. Are you doing a Tamiya 1/48? For my build I have the following resin sets: Quickboost rear engine, CMK front engine, exhaust pipes and engine panel, CMK rear top fuel tank. I will be opening up this Dornier to expose all the guts.

Here is a shot of my landing gear in process.  Near as I can tell, the nose gear has no exposed hydraulic plumbing, but in walk around of the restored 240102, I can see a steering piston down on the nose wheel, so I'm working on adding something along those lines.  I have added brake lines on the main gear.

Thanks Junkie, I didn't know that about the 'S'. I haven't built Luft aircraft in forever, and haven't really done any research since back in the day.

And since I didn't get any takers on guessing on my black and white photo above, I guess I'll have to give you some help.

I'm building W. Nr. 240102 aka VG+PH. This is the only surviving airframe, and was rebuilt by Dornier. But all sources indicate that although they repainted it as specified w/ RLM 81 and 82, the original dark paint was not RLM 81.

Contemporaneous photos show very little contrast between the colors, to the point that you can't make out the camo patterns.  

More on this topic with sources and citations, when I start painting, but that picture was a test to see how Testors MM 82 and 83 would compare.  Look close and you will see a rough splinter pattern.

MAgather

Thanks. The Dragon kit brings pe seat belts and a few other things. I really don't see the need for additional pe since they are very well detailed. I actually picked these up on Ebay a while back. I have seen them at vendor's tables at shows too. By the way, my 'S' model pictured was merely a towed glider trainer to teach the novice Komet pilot how to land.

Very very nice on the 163,Junkie, no doubt. Are the belts part of the kit? I

Yea, I'm probably going to have to prowl Evil Bay in search of a Komet.  One of my LHS's has a Salamander in stock, I should buy it now just to make sure. I had a 25 year period where I wan't bullding the German stuff, it represented all that was wrong in the world to me.

That said, I've always loved the technology, and now that  can bring this stuff home and paint it like it is all american what an opportunity. 

Ebay has several. Here's my Dragon 1/48 Habicht that I did about 4 years back

Yeah, it's too bad, I really like Humbrol, and the line is pretty sketchy at the LHS that carries them. I still biuy them from time to time as I want to support the company.

The worst is Testors MM acrylics.  1-2 years and they are shot.  I have had some luck feeding them Testors acrylic thinner when I see them on the down side, but it's kind of a pet peeve.  I buy a specific color, and I'm not going to use it very frequently:  I want it to last for 5 years.  I might build something else that needs that color.  

Anybody got good things to say about shelf life for acrylics?  Maybe Ill take this to another forum as it is severely OT.

Sorry Clemens!

MAgather

Yes I have noticed that. It either gets extremely gritty or develops a thick film and it's time for the trash. They only lasted 30+ years  while I've noticed the new paints, specially the small Testors bottles go bad pretty quick.

Yo Junkie,

I've been impressed with the old Humbrol stuff, but I had an issue you may want to be aware of.  everything stirred up OK and I got a nice finish off of my paints, but it was pretty much a one shot deal.  The pigments and carrier seemed to clump up and become unusable after my first use.  I mixed it all up and it was fine for airbrushing, next time to do touch ups (admittedly a significant amount of time after the original spray job) it was all funky and unusable.

Your mileage may carry.

Clemens,

In all seriousness I was looking for a 1/48 163 recently, and i'm not sure there are a whole lot of options.  I'll be scouring the intarwebs to find whatever I need to join you.  Radial, rocket or jet.  Any thoughts on in-line FW....

Just suggesting - lots of cool Doras and everything after......

SchattenSpartan

I was thinking about hosting similar group builds in the future:

They would run for 6 months each and have one particular late-war german aircraft as the theme:

How about the Me 163 for the next one and the He 162 for the one ofter that?

Have them both from Dragon in my stash.

Thanks Mustang. Doing the 190 GB was a blast, great bunch of youngsters.  

MAgather

I also have those Humbrol tins from the 70's, many are still good. I painted the prop for my FW190D-13 that I just completed for the for the 190 GB with Humbrol RLM70.

Clemens....

Sure, pick the late-war aircraft that I have to go out and buy!  But count me in, as I've decided on a new theme.  I'm building a bunch of war prize aircraft.

That stock for the spinners is .28 mm x 2.0 mm (or here in the US .010 x .080) Evergreen strip styrene. Here is a link to their catalog.   www.evergreenscalemodels.com/index.htm

A better shot of the nose spinner on the radiator assembly and cowl

And oh yeah, that would be the office there in the middle.  Note that I've dropped the right arm rest.  

I was thinking about hosting similar group builds in the future:

They would run for 6 months each and have one particular late-war german aircraft as the theme:

How about the Me 163 for the next one and the He 162 for the one ofter that?

Looking good, Marty! I really like the idea of using plastic strips to make the cutouts smaller. May I ask what thickness that plac sheet has?

Spinners and more spinners.  As I mentioned above, I was getting my prop assemblies together for paint, and while test fitting I decided that the prop openings in the spinners were way out of scale. Because I measured them? No, because they looked NASTY. Knowing Tamiya, they are perfectly correct, but to my eye they look way off. My model, MY way.

So I pondered for a bit, and decided on a quick and easy fix.  I took .010 x .080 styrene strip, cut some appropriate lengths and formed it around a mandrel for a bit - no fancy hot water or anything, just used my fingers to form an arc around an appropriately sized tube .

I then slathered on the glue and stuck the strip into the openings. The natural springiness of the plastic filled the openings just fine, and the deed was done.

Spinners with untrimmed stock glued in:

plastickjunkie

SSpartan

I have the Tamiya 1/48 Do335B-2 heavily Armed Version with some resin goodies that I have been itching to build so request permission to come aboard.

 

OK, gents.  I'm going to show you my Testors square bottle collection, and make you all jealous. And true story:  The RLM 70 Schwartzgrun for my props and spinners on my Arrow is Humbrol that I bought in the mid 70's.  I stirred it up this weekend before I realized I didn't like my spinners..... but that is my next post.  

Speaking of paint, Anybody guess what this is?  And no, it's not a Rorsach test. And yes, it is VERY relevant in this GB.

SchattenSpartan

If you want to reduce the amount of models in your stash a bit more, I have a radial engine GB planned for June or July 2014...

Cool, sounds like a plan.

Rrider

We are not getting older, just getting wiser!

PJ...WOW... now I do feel old! LOL I remember using those little Testor bottles, with those useless little Testor brushes (the little plastic handles) snitching a little gas from the lawn mower to clean them with, and if you forgot and left them in the gas too long the handles would melt! LOL...

Doug

If you want to reduce the amount of models in your stash a bit more, I have a radial engine GB planned for June or July 2014...

SchattenSpartan

Permission granted.

It's great to have you in here as well, PJ! Are you trying to participate in every GB I host?

 

Thanks for having me here SSpartan. Seems like a great way to lower the stash count but I don't want to overcommit on GBs so this one will be it for a while. 

Permission granted.

It's great to have you in here as well, PJ! Are you trying to participate in every GB I host?

Rigidrider

Stop it, stop it! Your making me feel old! (lol) When I started buying those tiny bottles of testors enamel paints as a kid they were .12cents.

Doug

I still have a couple of Testors bottles from a loooong time ago, marked at .19 cents and they are still good. Those were the days! 

SSpartan

I have the Tamiya 1/48 Do335B-2 heavily Armed Version with some resin goodies that I have been itching to build so request permission to come aboard.