Ju 87 Stuka GB

Yes, fine work mikey, like the camo and markings. Somehow Stuka's look cooler w/crew.....for that matter, I think dive bombers as a whole.  

Thanks for the comments guys. Still have fiddly bits, canopy and much fine tuning with paint touch up, weathering etc. I'm with you on the Italian markings Nathan. I also love the camouflage they did,along with their own planes like the Macchi's etc. The camo would be challenging but looks so cool I may have to build one someday......

OK, finally got the cockpit done except for putting everything in its place.  So far, I think using PE is easier than I thought, and I've still managed to lose one piece.  And after getting the kit out, I realized why I only spent $2 on it at a show since a few pieces are missing.  Luckily, I'll be able to scratchbuild those out of sheet styrene so I'm not worried.  Joe, thanks again for the radios and overturn panel...you're a lifesaver.

I'm glad I took pictures because I noticed the lever on the right was not centered, and neither were the foot pedals, which I just corrected.

No problem Jim! I'm glad to see that its all working out so far! : )

Nice start bob, that's a good job on the IP.

Good evening

I just came across this awesome GB and I wondered if you could use some extra bomb-load by an Italeri B-2 Stuka in 1/48 warming up the engine in the stash.

The intention is to built a Luftwaffe machine which wreaked havoc on the allied soldiers, shipping and Cretan civilians for a month, prior to and during the battle of Crete on May 1941 (Operation Merkur) and operating from the newly occupied airfield close to the Greek city of Argos, which was my father's birthplace.

Some years ago, while in Crete for vacation and visits to the German & Allied cemeteries I had the chance to listen to a lovely elderly villager, narrating her childhood memories of Stuka bombings (she actually used the word 'Stuka'). I was thinking that maybe,  back then, a couple of hours before her terrors materialized, my ancestors might have been watching these ugly birds take off roaring from the nearby airfield and heading south.

The kit will be (hopefully) built as a Stab III/StG.77 machine, out of the box (Italeri has enough goodies in the box already).

If I am not too late to join, I wish to make it as an historical tribute coinciding  with this month's Battle of Crete anniversary.

Looking forward to that! Love a good Italeri kit!

Doug

Thanks for the kind words everyone.  The next step is to take a section of sprue to replace the prop shaft that seems to be missing from the box.  It'll probably be the easiest scratchbuilding I've ever done.  

Git after it dude! Looking forward to seeing what you do with the rest of this kit Jim!! So far it's looking awesome!!

Zvezda, your not to late at all. And a great tribute. I went on holyday to Crete back in 2007. It was some feeling to be in the German cemetery looking down on Malmedy airfield imaging all the carnage that went on there. I also followed the road round to the dried river bed where the first gliders landed, unfortunately I have lost all the photo's.

Welcome aboard.

Aww Bish you can't do that! lol . It's like a joke without a punchline! I was gonna ask for pics too.....

Tell me about it. In fact I have lost a lot of my digital pics. I had some issues a few months back and lost most of my pics from the Falkland's, Afghan and elsewhere, and they are not exactly places I can just pop to and get some more. Not to mention most of my progress pics from the last 6 years. The only one I have left are those on PB.

Ouch!!!!!!!!!!!! I back everything I've got up for just that reason. I have around 250 GB of music that I have backed up in 3 places. lol

Well, I was in the process od doing that. I had transferred it to an external hard drive to re set my laptop. When it came to putting stuff back on the PC, it did a couple of things and then stopped. I sent the hard drive off but the info couldn't be retrieved. Not impressed.

That sucks Bish, I've been through that a couple of times.  Like mustang, I now keep things backed up in multiple locations...backups for backups.  Same thing for all the videos and so forth I use in my classroom.

Well, it's time to crack open the Stuka kit, can't wait!

Hi everyone.

Tonight the box was opened and all cockpit components were cut-off their sprues, cleaned and are ready for painting.I think this kit is excellent and I am eager to get to serious construction business.

Nothing worth of a photo, when there is some progress I will post some.

Bish, it's always a pity loosing photos.I think I have a couple of interesting ones from the Maleme airfield & Tavronitis river bank area. If you wish I can post them here.

Zvezda1980

it's always a pity loosing photos

After looking over the rather sparse office in this Revellogram kit, I think I'm going to break from tradition and put the figures in it (which should be fun since I haven't painted figures for a loooong time). 

I know how you feel there Reasoned except I haven't painted figures since I wa s12 and that's pretty much where my figure painting skills are today. LOL

Well, we live and learn and we have the memories at least, for now.

Zvezda, if you could post those pics when you have a minute that would be great. At some point I was planning on doing a dio with one of the German DFS 230 gliders that came down in that river bed in 1940. It was really something to be able to stand on the new bridge but still see the old one and the place where the battle really started.

And look forward to seeing the Stuka pics.

Well the field applied camo has been underway since the weekend. We're getting there one splotch of 79 at a time----one per day at a time.............

Here's what I've got so far:

Looking good joe. I totally misunderstood before. When I said about being brave with RLM 76, I was thinking of a wave pattern scheme, not sure why on an early 87. I think I must be getting my Junkers mixed up. Now I realise what your doing. I have a D-3 I would like to do similar with which I might add to the GB if time allows.

Thanks Bish. No worries on the confusion. I live half of my life these days in that state. lol

The trick for me to remember now is that this is a field applied camo so the 76 will have to be painted on first on the bottom and lower part of the fuselage and the german crosses (I forget the real word that supposed to be used there) will have to not have any 79 underneath them. Meaning the 79 is to be appled AROUND those areas where the crosses are and over the existing 76 thats visible on the sides of the fuselage. There..............I think that makes sense! lol

Sorry to hear you lost that, Bish. That's the problem with digital. It's a lot more accessible, but it's also a lot more fragile. I had an employee lose the entire contents of my office laptop once because he didn't bother to check that the backup actually worked before he wiped my hard drive clean to deal with viruses. Years of accumulated data were lost forever. That was a decade ago and the absence of some of the info still hinders me.

Mustang I feel you for that Korean era photo, I have also lost some sentimentally valuable stuff by mother's "Welcome dear, look how neatly I have cleaned up your room"-type of whirlwind

Bish I also had (still have) a very similar ambition on making a large 1/72 diorama with DFS gliders, crashed Ju-52's and Emils, Hurricane carcasses, etc scattered on the airfield next by the shoreline.

I had made a web and literature research and came up with some nice photos before, during and after the Battle, aerial photos of the area from 1941 and nowadays, battle maps, etc.

I will sort out and post any useful material in the evening. I will post it here if it is OK.

I am glad to share the same modelling inspiration from the dramatic historical events of that battle.I suppose you have also read A. Beevor's book, which is great and very accurate.

That sound like a nice idea dio Zvezda. I have managed to get hold of one DFS 230 glider with which I want to do an Eben Emael dio and I have a Ju 52 with Crete markings that I plan on showing the para's getting on board before heading out. I just need another DFS 230 now, but they are not easy to get. There are some really good images ot there, the airfield looked a real mess after the battle with wrecked aircraft all over the place. But after standing on that hill you can see how vulnerable they were. Ye, I have Beevers book and a couple of others on the battle, I can't recall which now, I will have to check.

Barrett, my other half lost all her business stuff for the last year and that is bad enough. We live and learn I guess.

Joe, ye I know what you mean. I do often wonder with the field applied paint, especially white wash, if they re applied the markings or just went around them because they do usually look nice and neat.

And I think the word your looking for is balkenkreuz. Ain't I clever. (actually, I had to check that)

Late hours and with some good old Nazareth playing at the background, cockpit and engine pieces were partially sub-assembled and are ready for painting. Photos will be posted next time, along with the painted results.

''But after standing on that hill you can see how vulnerable they were''

Standing there one understands why there are so many memorial plates on the ground and also wonders how did the allies lose the island solely because of the loss of Maleme.