Me 163 nostalgia trip

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The Me 163 was a model that I’d wanted to build for some time – not least to finish off the ‘list’ in the Airfix Magazine Guide to German Fighters of WW2, and out of a fit of nostalgia I decided to buy the blister-packed 1977 moulding at a not unreasonable price. For an old mould, it’s actually not a bad model. There were one or two fit issues (but nothing that a bit of filler couldn’t put right) when it came to adding the wings, and a bit of scratch-building helped with the cockpit. I found it strange that whilst there was a well detailed instrument panel, the cockpit sidewalls were completely empty, so I added the fuel tanks where they’re supposed to go, and also a scratchbuilt gunsight was put in (which required a bit of filing out of the canopy). The pilot came from a totally different kit; I gave him an oxygen mask using a tiny blob of filler, and though not strictly accurate, he filled the seat quite well and was strapped in using painted masking tape strips. The thickness of the canopy covers a multitude of sins! Other changes or additions involved drilling out the cannon apertures at the wing roots and adding a more in-scale pitot tube (the kit one was rather girder-like). The model was finally brush painted (as is usual for me) using the Vallejo Luftwaffe Late-War set; because it’s such a small model, there wasn’t much painting to do anyway! The kit decals were very badly yellowed and fell apart when I tried soaking them in very lukewarm water, so some spares were sorted from a variety of sources, though I had to buy some 1/144 scale Balken Kreuz decals. I’ve added a few pictures which illustrate some of the build features to which I’ve referred, and the final picture is a little diorama including some appropriately painted groundcrew (from the Airfix Luftwaffe Personnel set) and in the background, a ME262 – which gives an idea of the very diminutive size of the Me 163.

[Ratch]

Please submit your posts containing images just once. I've had to dispose of three duplicate posts.

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Please submit your posts containing images just once. I've had to dispose of three duplicate posts.

Sorry! When I pressed the black button, nothing happened - it usually lets you know that the post has been sent for approval...

[Ratch]

As I have wrote before - it looks like nothing is happening, but it is. Trust the system, we're not on here 24/7 to approve images the moment they're posted.

Cheers

[Ratch]

My take

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My take

 

 

 

 

Interesting idea to have it in RAF experimental 'livery'. I don't suppose you know who got the short straw to test fly it? 'Winkle' Brown perhaps?

[Ratch]

Yes Winkle Brown flew it from RAF Wittering in 1946.

If you don't quote the picture, your reply appears immediately and please type outside the 'quote box' as it looked like I have written your reply.

[Harold D.]

Yes Winkle Brown flew it from RAF Wittering in 1946.

 

 

The exact machine he flew is still in existence and can be found at the National (Scottish) Museum of Flight just outside of Edinburgh, for those that are interested.

[Kenneth ONeill]

Scottish Museum of Flight, East Fortune aerodrome, about 0.8 miles off the B1347, and not on/near a bus route that I can find.

[inkpen]

recall my being quite excited by this kit on release. and sure today there are better, but obviously for me they lack the 'nostalgia factor'.

and these older kits, this one being released in the early 1970s as I recall, are quite robust and assemble fairly well with scope for basic improvements such as cockpit enhancement and external pitot/aerial replacement/addition with good old stretched sprue.

those were the days.....