Axis Aces Sep 2006 - Jun 2007

Okay here are a few pics of Hartmann's late G-6 in October 1944 (Romania).  I added the fuel tank because I really like the look.  I'm sure there are other historical inaccuracies...oh well.  I still need to add some wire, other than that it is just about complete:

Thanks again, everyone, for the wealth of knowledge I've received from these forums! 

Aloha,

Chris 

Thanks guys!  This build was truly a learning experience (which build isn't?!)  I can't wait to join more group builds!

Mucker, thanks for the support, brother.   No matter what you say, I'm still a rookie.

Scott, thanks for letting me join the build last minute...I owe you a beer! 

Aloha,

Chris 

Hey guys, I did some touch up work in my interior, and fixed the issues I pointed out the other day.  The rest of the oxygen system has been painted blue, I fixed up the overpainting I did with the yellow and did some silver dry brushing to simulate just a little bit of wear and tear.

Now I just need my seatbelts to arrive so I can install them, however I can still move forward and get the fuselage halves glued together, and get some work done on the wings.

Scott...looking very nice. Regarding the seat belts, as Tom Petty says "the waiting is the hardest part". I struggle in the "patience" category, so I can't really to you to be patient! But hang in there!

Here are a few updates for my Osterman Bf109F. Nice and shiny after the future application. I re-shot the camo on the side several times after overspray from both colors kept making it necessary to re-do the previous shoot! Doh!

Anyways, I pulled out my old Badger Sotar 20/20 for the smaller camo. I haven't used this one much (this will change!), but I am very impressed with the fine lines it can shoot. Since the nozzle is so small, I had luck keeping the paint thinned slightly more than normal. Any (hee hee...ALL) flaws in the paint job cannot be attributed to the airbrush. By the way I say these things at 60% off on one of the sites (Air Brush Depot or Dick Blick's art supply). A nice little present for yourself if you need an airbrush this time of year. 

This was supposed to be a "weekend kit" about three weekends ago. I guess the rules are different for those of us with kids!

Looking good Mucker! Mottling is one of the hardest things to do, and yours look great!

How did you like masking that canopy?  LOL  That's the part I used to hate the most, but now I'm starting to get the hang of it.  Did you spray that yellow band?  Looks great!

Thanks, Scott. I'm "pleased" with the end result of the mottling on this one, but I'm no "Natural"!. For my next mottling job I will again try to remember the rookie rules of 1. Lower the PSI, 2. Airbrush closer to the subject. They're true, ya know (as I found out multiple times over the weekend).

The canopy! I think I mentioned I'm not patient. I HATE masking canopies but didn't want to take the route of waiting for the mail. We'll see how straight I was once the tape gets removed. Fortunately it's a small canopy and more or less "square".

Yellow band is sprayed, mainly because it fits within the natural panel lines, so I knew I could mask it off and have straight lines as the end result. A trusty decal stood ready as backup.

Hopefully I can add some more decals tonight.

mucker wrote:

Thanks, Scott. I'm "pleased" with the end result of the mottling on this one, but I'm no "Natural"!. For my next mottling job I will again try to remember the rookie rules of 1. Lower the PSI, 2. Airbrush closer to the subject. They're true, ya know (as I found out multiple times over the weekend).

Ditto!  I redid the mottling on my FW109A8 several times and I'm still less than thrilled by the results.  You're absolutely right on the tricks to spraying mottling. 

Very nice work on the mottle.  I haven't mastered the psi/paint to thinner ratio/distance from the airbrush to the surface yet, so I cheat and use an index card with a hole cut in it.  Your's looks great.

And I agree with you regarding the kids/modeling time ratio.  Would'nt give up family life for anything, but it does cut into modeling time.......ahh, there's always retirement....

Awesome looking cockpit, Scott!!  And mucker...your mottling looks fantastic!  You guys have inspired me to buy 3 more Hasegawa 1/48 Bf109s (2 G-6s and 1 G-14).  I'm really loving this kit!  Thanks for the inspiration.........now can I send the bill to you too?!   J/K

Aloha,

Chris

mokulele wrote:

Awesome looking cockpit, Scott!!  And mucker...your mottling looks fantastic!  You guys have inspired me to buy 3 more Hasegawa 1/48 Bf109s (2 G-6s and 1 G-14).  I'm really loving this kit!  Thanks for the inspiration.........now can I send the bill to you too?!   J/K Aloha, Chris

Chris:

If you're into German aircraft (I'm in a little bit of a Luftwaffe theme these days) check out Eduard's new Fw-190's. THey get GREAT reviews and seem to come with a nice selection of interesting markings. Just a thought. If you've already got the Hasegawa kits, I look forward to seeing those, too.

As for the Bill, I believe the GB originator pays for the kits...isn't that right Scott?

...Scott?

mucker wrote:

As for the Bill, I believe the GB originator pays for the kits...isn't that right Scott? ...Scott?

heh heh heh  like I don't have enough problems trying to support my model addiction....

It seems like most of us are pretty obsessive/compulsive when it comes to this hobby.  I read a new book, or see someone post their work and it gets me very interested in that subject.  Explains why I have such a HUGE stash of unbuilt kits, but I've really got some momentum going lately and am actually finishing builds. 

I'm in Las Vegas this week for work, so unfortunately all modelling work has stopped.  I hope to make some more progress this weekend. 

Thanks for the advice on the Eduard Fw190 (or should I say warning), mucker.  I already have that one in my collection.   I've looked it over and it looks like it's gonna be a fun build! It seems that I too have caught the Luftwaffe 'bug'.

Like Scott, my interest builds momentum quickly.  As I was visiting a Reno hobby shop just yesterday, I  looked through their decal stash and found some that I liked.  Unfortunately for my bank account, I promptly ordered the kits and other accessories to go with these decals.  If it weren't for work and this message board, I think I'd be CA glued to my workbench.

Aloha,

Chris 

I'm guessing my unbuilit "stash" is still light at around 25 airplane kits...how do you guys fare?

A bit more progress...the decal stage, which is always a favorite because the plane starts to get its individual character. On the down side the pics always look a liitle poor because of the high gloss. These are freshly laid decals and will get some future as a top coat before I go to bed tonight.

I'm getting anxious!

Mucker, your 109 looks great!  You all are really doing somenice work.  I'm anxious to get back home and get the assembly line moving.

Which hobby store did you go to Mokulele?  I always go to High Sierra as they have a great stock, nice clean store and Tom always orders things for me and gives me great personalized service.  I swing by there at least once a week. 

High Sierra was the place, Scott.  That was my first time there and loved it!  That will be my regular stop everytime I'm in Reno from now on.

welcome home, Scott. Hopefully model building is in the forecast for the weekend.

I'll put the finishing touches on my 109 tonight and hoepfull post some pics. The antenna has traditionally been my nemesis, so hopefully things will change with this build.

Well, cetainly there's been some busy builders here Although I'm slower, I'm still making some significant progress. The cockpit is finaly finished and the wings glued on. I have a bit of minor sanding left to do, and glue on the horizontal stabs and elevators. This is like doing two kits at once. Now just need to get some work done on the other two I have had on the go for a while I test fit the engine, and it does fit Now onto the fun part- painting the thing!

Cheers!

Looking great, Drew...definately going to be chock full of details.

Now for my good news...my Bf.109F done as Mex-Hellmuth Osterman is complete! This was a fun one, and in a large part becuase of the great group of guys in this GB. I've enjoyed this one!

I used Model Masters RLM 76 for the underside color and Color of Eagles RLM 74 and 75 for the top coat. Decals are Super Scale...some of the decals ripped a little easily, so I had a difficult time getting them together. It's OOB, with virtually no details in the cockpit to show off, so I closed the canopy.

My next one will be a Fw190D-11, and I'm seeing if there are markings for any of the Aces. Hopefully I can continue on with you guys with one more build, if I haven't worn out my welcome.

 Without further adieu, here are the pics. For some reason there are not that crisp. I'll try again later, but I'm excited to get these posted!

Thanks for looking!

Oh... and one more post, before we head out to my wife's company Christmas party....

I've updated the first page to show Mokulele and Muckers status as completed, with a hyper-link that goes straight to the page with the completed photos. 

Wow, Drew...you'll be able to start that thing up when you're done! Can't wait to see this one done!

Mucker... that looks awesome!!  I too have been contemplating another Bf for this GB.  Either another Hartmann G-6 or Marseille F-4.  Just have to ask the boss man if I can build more than one also.  Speaking of the boss...

Hey Scott, hope you had fun at the party.  Thanks for linking the completed builds.  Can't wait to see more updates in this thread.  This is one exciting GB! 

Aloha,

Chris 

Wow, we had a great time at the party!  It's amazing what tequila shots will do to liven everyone up

Feel free to build as many as you would like, just let me know what else you're gonna build and I'll add it to the list.