2015 Messerschmitt Bf 109 Group Build

Thanks for all the input everyone.  I'm probably do some type of mix.  I'll shoot the engine then post pics.  We'll see how it turns out by committee.

Just an idea about the engine. How about mixing some prussian blue, with black? I've used this for tires in the past, though with more prussian blue than would go into an engine. It is a very interesting mix giving an ever so subtle blueish tint. I would imagine it would go with NATO black very well.

Howdy all!  I've been a lurker on this GB for a few days now.  I have even gone ordered the 1/32 Revell Bf-109G-6.  I am not going to officially join this build for the simple fact that I have too many other projects going on right now; however, I will be following along and watching these birds come together.  I have never built a the 109 before in any scale.  I have always liked this aircraft.  Once I get it and get started I may ask some questions.

Thanks Doug. I don't plan to do to much wear and tear on mine, but would like a little.

I have also found a range of colours on those engines. But they look like museum pieces and so the question is have they been repainted. I think I am going to go with a semi gloss NATO type black.

Moose... Well, Whatcha waiting for brother??? LOL  Jump on in!

Bish, What I do is give the engine a good base coat of the Black, allow to dry then "Dry Brush" aluminum or yes , steel will work too, onto the bolt heads and other wear areas (pretty much the whole engine) to simulate scratches, wear, and chipping. Works real well.

Flyerduke... Maybe try this... If all you have is flat black, do the base coat in flat black, then put a few drops of 66 or a lighter gray in with some isopropol rubbing alcohol (acrylic paint of course) and spray mist coat on the flat black and allow to dry, repeat as needed to get the desired look. I use a hair drier to speed up the process as alcohol dries super fast to begin with. Only a few drops at a time , about a 95 to 5 mix, being 95% alcohol to 5%pigment. Rubbing alcohol has a very nice dulling effect on paints and I use it almost every time as a top fading coat even over (or mixed with) the dull coat. Just a thought, hope it helps.

Greg my friend ...anytime!

By the by, I tried to look up the DB info again and found every thing from RLM02 to Dead Flat Black. I will continue to search.

Doug

Interesting idea about the Aluminium. AK have brought out some metal oil paints, I might try one of those. Would the engine have been Aluminium or Steel.

Doug, that engine looks smashing. Great tip re base black of some sort then dry brush some aluminum. Thanks for that, is very timely and a great tip indeed.

Modelcrazy, that's an interesting looking kit/scheme. Looking forward to watching this one for sure.

Wow nice work Spartan. Love the detail work.  Rigid, your engine is looking great.

These builds are inspiring me to finish my Bf 110G-4 and get working on my Bf 109D.

Keep up the great work everyone.

I just did a google search and found an article on here from a coupe of years ago. There is a couple of Humbrol paints mentioned that look promising, 32 and 182. Someone also mentioned Anthracite, I have the Xtracolor one for that but I don't think its quite dark enough. I think I will get one of each Humbrol colour and try those.

Sorry.  Let's put my response in the right spot.

I don't have Tamiya NATO black, but I do have Testors flat rubber.  Unfortunately, it has a brown tint to it.  The Vallejo RLM 66 I have is pretty dark, but I don't think it's quite dark enough.  I don't know.  Maybe I can play around and figure something out.  I all else fails, I'll just pick up some NATO black when I'm in town. 

Bish

flyerduke

Doug - Excellent looking engine.  I'm currently assembling mine.  What color did you use to paint it?  The kit I'm building calls for Metal Black.  I have a MM Gun Metal, but it looks more blue than black. Is there a RLM color that can be used?  Thanks Craig.

Clemens - Your twin build looks great.

I am trying to decide what colour to use on my engine as well. I have done some searches but can't find any info on a good colour to use. I was thinking of a semi gloss black, but looking at pics I don't think a pure black looks right. I do want to use an enamel otherwise I might go for Tamiya NATO black. I am thinking of trying a black with a very small amount of white. My instructions don't give any info on painting, even though its an engine kit.

Bish

flyerduke

Doug - Excellent looking engine.  I'm currently assembling mine.  What color did you use to paint it?  The kit I'm building calls for Metal Black.  I have a MM Gun Metal, but it looks more blue than black. Is there a RLM color that can be used?  Thanks Craig.

Clemens - Your twin build looks great.

I don't have Tamiya NATO black, but I do have Testors flat rubber.  Unfortunately, it has a brown tint to it.  The Vallejo RLM 66 I have is pretty dark, but I don't think it's quite dark enough.  I don't know.  Maybe I can play around and figure something out.  I all else fails, I'll just pick up some NATO black when I'm in town. 

I am trying to decide what colour to use on my engine as well. I have done some searches but can't find any info on a good colour to use. I was thinking of a semi gloss black, but looking at pics I don't think a pure black looks right. I do want to use an enamel otherwise I might go for Tamiya NATO black. I am thinking of trying a black with a very small amount of white. My instructions don't give any info on painting, even though its an engine kit.

Thanks Doug, that's handy to know. I might see if I can find an enamel equivalent.

Morning Bish... Yes the color I used was NATO Black XF69. I had read somewhere while researching the engine the actual color that DB used and I believe that the NATO Black was the nearest match.

Joe, (Lawdog) Thank you and I always look forward to seeing your work! There are so many talented builders listed here... Gonna be a good one guys!

Doug

mustang1989

I know Bish. Hey it's 24th scale.............oh man !!!!!  It's the wrong scale! It shouldhave been 1/72nd scale! lol 

24th you say, interesting. I have a Stuka in that scale. MMMM, I smell a target.

I know Bish. Hey it's 24th scale.............oh man !!!!!  It's the wrong scale! It shouldhave been 1/72nd scale! lol 

Engine well? Are you talking about the firewall and inside of the engine panels?

flyerduke

Doug - Excellent looking engine.  I'm currently assembling mine.  What color did you use to paint it?  The kit I'm building calls for Metal Black.  I have a MM Gun Metal, but it looks more blue than black. Is there a RLM color that can be used?  Thanks Craig.

Clemens - Your twin build looks great.

I am trying to decide what colour to use on my engine as well. I have done some searches but can't find any info on a good colour to use. I was thinking of a semi gloss black, but looking at pics I don't think a pure black looks right. I do want to use an enamel otherwise I might go for Tamiya NATO black. I am thinking of trying a black with a very small amount of white. My instructions don't give any info on painting, even though its an engine kit.

I thought I would drop in and check out the progress.  There's so great work already.  Doug, that engine is sweet.  The serial number is a nice touch.  SS, I'm glad some of those tricks are working for you. Your cockpit looks great so far.  Mustang, I love that Challenger.  I built the same kit about 30 years ago.  I hope yo jump in here soon.  Cruising for G-2 decals soon....

Joe

Doug, wow, lovely work on the engine.

Clemens, nice start there, looks like your going to be busy.

But whats this, a car in a 109 GB, what ever next. Looks nice though, but could do with some mottling.

I remember you posting this modelcrazy! This..............is just too cool!!! Never knew they existed until now!

Here's my offering,

The 1/48 Academy Israeli Avia S-199 (Israeli Knife). A Czech-built copy of the Bf 109G with 1,320 hp Junkers Jumo 211F powerplant and propeller used in the He 111.

The IAF 101 Squadron was the only Israeli squadron to use the Avia. the 101 was the first Israeli Air Force squadron formed on May 20, 1948, six days after Israel declared its independence. The types nickname was Sakin, Hebrew for 'knife' however The Czech nickname for this airplane was "Mezek", the word for mule, due to its stubbornness.
Twenty five aircraft were obtained and all but two were eventually delivered. They proved unreliable and performed poorly in combat. One Avia pilot remarked "she tried to kill us on every take off and landing." The Daimler-Benz DB 605 engine allowed for a central cannon mount which was not possible with the Junkers Jumo 211, and so the S-199 used a version of the Luftwaffe's modification kit, which consisted of a pair of MG 151 cannons in pods, one beneath each wing. This further impinged on the aircraft's performance. Also the gun synchronizer for the cowl-mounted MG 131 machine guns, which did not work as it was meant to, lead to a few Israeli pilots to shoot off their own propellers. Besides weight and low power, the S-199's Jumo engine had another drawback. The huge prop created much torque, and pilots needed full right rudder to compensate. With no way to adjust rudder trim, pilots had to constantly fight the airplane while it was on the ground.
However in spite of these drawbacks they were able to score victories over its opponents, including the Spitfire.

This particular kit represents #121, flown by Ezer Weizman during the 1948 war of independence.

You guys are too kind... Thank you,

Craig, I forget what the Tamiya XF color # is and I'm away from my bench, But I found what works amazingly well on Luftwaffe aircraft (works on the tires too) is the NATO Black. Its not as deep as XF1 Flat Black, but much deeper then German Gray. Then just dry brush some aluminum to simulate chips and wear and you have a pretty convincing looking engine.

Raven... The serial # are Woodland Scenic dry transfers from the train section of the local Hobby Shop. They come on a sheet of various sizes from like 3/32 to 5/16 I believe and also in various fonts and colors. I use dry transfers as often as possible and prefer them over decals when I can make them work.

Doug

Doug. Very nicely done

Clemons great progress

Doug - Excellent looking engine.  I'm currently assembling mine.  What color did you use to paint it?  The kit I'm building calls for Metal Black.  I have a MM Gun Metal, but it looks more blue than black. Is there a RLM color that can be used?  Thanks Craig.

Clemens - Your twin build looks great.

AWESOME!!!

Really nicely done, Doug. Loving the serial numbers.

OK... Man, I'm lagging here... truly amazed with the work thus far, I knew this would be another killer GB...That being said... Pictures!

Engine done... I know it will never be seen once cowling is in place, so why did I do it... Why not, I enjoy doing them and who knows, maybe some archeologist will unearth it in a thousand years and I want to make a good showing! LOLOL!!! Yeah , RIGHT. Any way, on to the office! Take care all...

Doug

Joe... Where da wings???

Clemens, you are off to a smashing start. And thank you for not disappointing me with just one. :)

Cockpit is looking very good. I tried to mimic Lawdog's Joe's method on my build in progress, not quite up to Joe standards but I am pleased with it.

Joe, that's quite a project you've gotten yourself into, there. Looking good.

That challenger so reminds me of the real 71 Cuda I owned when I was a teen

Clemens, I see you've opened a Messerschmitt franchise too! (How did the final schwarm of FWs go???) Amazing work, my friend, as ever!

Mustang -- I do love the Challenger! I've not done a car kit since I was a kid, but one day ... maybe!

I'm hoping to tie up my last two 2014 projects today, and get into the new year this coming week, so I'm aiming to prepaint elements of the -D and -E-4 in tandem. I'll let you know how it goes...

The E-4 has some tricky challenges despite being rated a Skill Level 1 kit -- the small parts are wickedly fine and experience shows that getting them off the sprue intact, let alone cleaning them up, will be a PITA. I think I'll write to QuickBoost and suggest they make resin replacements... And I had to shake my head a little while ago when looking at the kit, because despite this being a 1:72, Airfix's decal instrument panel appears to be 1:48! (No, no conventional details supplied either.)

M/TB379