Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 So now I've got the Blenheim finished, I thought I could just get this one finished before the end of October. I plan to build it out of the box, and use the decals for KG 55, as I liked the graffiti on the tail. In the box it looks good, with a lot of cockpit detail, full bomb module detail (better than the much more expensive Hasegawa kit), but no bombs to put in them. Undercarriage and bays look good, but for a change the tyres aren't flattened. The surface detail is nicely restrained, and all control surfaces are separate, including the flaps which can be built lowered./media/tinymce_upload/4c20f234e2f7a783b28eea752bcd99bb.jpgThe kit and reference I will be using I've made a start tonight and pretty quickly got the first 5 stages done, which involved cockpit fitting out. All went together fine, and a test fit of the fuselage halves showed no problems. I gave the main interior two coats of RLM 02 and the cockpit two of RLM 66 (or in this case Humbrol 67 Panzer Grey). After some detail painting and weathering I'll button it up./media/tinymce_upload/4931ebbf299043f46210b4f0941cb906.jpgThe port centre section with bulkheads, floor and sidewall insert fitted/media/tinymce_upload/0272053a3b6734d1b0d2c6dd53cded97.jpgThe two halves nearly ready to go together Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted September 21, 2015 Author Share Posted September 21, 2015 I've now completing the internal painting (except the cockpit), and joined the fuselage, using a couple of clamps and not having any problems. I then built up the wing underside centre section, which is a one piece molding onto which are fixed both the two piece bomb bay modules and the five (yes five!) piece undercarraige bays. The fit of the bays is a bit sloppy, so it is important to get these right, or else you will end up with wonky undercarraige legs./media/tinymce_upload/d1cc0aca7a9b9b3c9365b35373c017d6.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/813e483fe68cdb1d86309bfe0682a678.jpgThe internal parts of the fuselage and wheel wells were painted RLM 02 and dry brushed in Humbrol grey 64.The centre section was then fitted to the fuselage from below. The fit was really tight around the bomb modules, but with a bit of wiggling all fitted well./media/tinymce_upload/5a13aa48e498a584b427994d7aadf0d0.jpgTo finish off for the evening I started putting the cockpit parts together, but haven't started painting them yet. The detail on the parts is very nice for a 1/72 kit./media/tinymce_upload/418a9e1c07d00f7ba390bb9f3bf17d7c.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted September 22, 2015 Author Share Posted September 22, 2015 Things are advancing nicely with not to many problems. The cockpit is painted and installed, with straps from painted Tamiya tape. I thinkit looks okay in this scale./media/tinymce_upload/942d2509421e45df7a7ca9c372173015.jpgYou can see here a nasty gap in the front of the Port wing, this will take some careful filling to preserve the surface detail.Anyway, I managed to get the wings and horizontal tailplanes on. The tail is designed so that it interlocks at the correct angle, and the elevators are designed to move if you are careful with the glue. I'm going to cement mine into position though./media/tinymce_upload/6dff91d2340a070a3cc863dd00123dc4.jpgWing control surfaces to go on next and filling and sanding down the seams, which aren't to bad actually, apart from that port wing root. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad Paul B Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 Looking good PMM. Nice to see this going together as I have just received mine (thanks to flying hours). The lack of Ordnance is disappointing - 8 SC250 bombs shouldn't be too much to ask (the Valiant Kit has 21 thousand pounders as well as the Blue Danube so it can be done). I assume the CAD exists at Airfix to go on the Stuka and maybe Do17 or Ju88. This is something which needs addressing. Also only 3 crew (out of 5). I intend to do mine on a bomb run, so bay doors open and bomb aimer lying ready (need to find a suitable figure for this and gunners).Looking forward to seeing the next stages.Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted September 28, 2015 Author Share Posted September 28, 2015 Hi Paul, I think the reason no bombs are included is that because of the thickness of the bomb cell parts it would mean that the bombs would have to be modelled undersize to fit. If Airfix did this they would probably get more of us moaning about out of scale bombs than about no bombs at all. I did try fitting some left over bombs from the Do 17 and they are far to big.I think they are in a loss loss situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad Paul B Posted October 3, 2015 Share Posted October 3, 2015 Thanks for the advice about bomb fit. I was about to order a pack of SC250s so I will look for something smaller (and possibly cheaper) for the payload. I have found the Valiant miniatures German Paratroops with separate arms and legs which combined with other pilot parts should see me through for the Bomb aimer and gunners.This looks like a really nice kit and I am looking forward to getting started. Good luck with the build and I will keep an eye out for your progress.Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted October 5, 2015 Author Share Posted October 5, 2015 Sorry for the delay since my last post, but I've made some little progress now, all the seems are filled and rubbed down, and the control surfaces have been added, all slightly offset for a bit of life. The gap at the port forward wing root was filled by laying down a strip of Tamiya tape each side of the gap, pushing in the filler with my craft knife, then removing the tape to reveal a thin line of filler that took seconds to rub down when dry, and didn't ruin the surface detail. The engines were also assembled with no trouble and fitted to the wings.I then started on the glazing, and things started to go downhill a bit! Firstly I started with the fuselage side windows, the ones at the front that will be painted over. These were to big for their openings so I sanded down their edges slightly until they went in. Unfortunately they then stood very proud of the surface, so they were heavily sanded down until they were nearly level with the surface.Next came the under fuselage gun position. This is a completely clear part, even though only the small windows are actually clear. This was a little to wide for the fuselage, but I thought it would look alright under a coat of paint. As you can see from the photo, it wasn't!/media/tinymce_upload/10c93a371a628457fff216454a0e6dd9.jpgIn the photo you can also see the green filler used to blend in the underwing, and the flaps fitted in the lowered position.To fix the problem I carefully (VERY CAREFULLY) sanded down the edges so as not to damage the windows, which were right at the edge of the part. The plastic was then polished back to clarity using one of my wife's old nail buffers. Anyway that's it for now. I'll post some more images soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted October 11, 2015 Author Share Posted October 11, 2015 Well, hello again.Since I've been away, I've finished the construction of the main airframe, and started painting. The cockpit glazing went on with no problems at all. I've also started on some of the small parts, which you can see below./media/tinymce_upload/4a7bcdc35ad0a391c47b2f0a300d5f20.jpgThe decals have also gone onto these bits, including the white wall around the tailwheel, which looks pretty cool actually!Here's the airframe, I've filled some small gaps with white wood glue and put the first coat of RLM 65 blue on the underside./media/tinymce_upload/1a76efedf62edaf518f7482919327062.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/e47ae8d87fd9537619a843a4bc866a15.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/c0baef1719ff2da231e4b8e06bc38278.jpgI shall post again when the main three camouflage colours are completed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted October 21, 2015 Author Share Posted October 21, 2015 Back again,I've been painting my Heinkel. This has all been by hand, using a number 3 brush, with a number 0 for the canopy frames. I started with the underside blue, which is a Revell acrylic, then masked this and put on 3 coats of heavily thinned Humbrol RLM 71. This was then masked and the Humbrol 70 added. It took about 5 times longer to actually mask the splinter pattern than to actually paint it! All those little strips of Tamiya tape can really get on your nerves. I shall post again when the masking is taken off and touch ups done./media/tinymce_upload/2a64f3692eda0eaaf185cdd24a11f5af.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/06c79377a9e6794f3487bc4b5404fb46.jpgI'm not sure about the shade of the RLM 71, it looks a little to dark and doesn't contrast with the RLM 70 enough for me.when I put on the green paint there were a few small lumps. I used the brush to get rid of most of these, any left over will go with a light sanding.Bye for nowPMM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted October 21, 2015 Author Share Posted October 21, 2015 Finished painting the main colours, masking removed and touch ups done, a few coats of gloss and it'll be ready for the decals./media/tinymce_upload/ccec3341c73e665a56bd0dc2a6a9d67f.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/c4caed31fb3cd88d6aed91673ca60660.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/97cc56510158d035e53eedc486e71d30.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted October 26, 2015 Author Share Posted October 26, 2015 Now I've got most of the decalling done. On the way I had a few mishaps, some my own, some not.The first problem was myown. I have 2 bottles of Humbrol product which are both the same size, shape, similar lables and both contain clear liquid. One is Humbrol Clear, the other Acrylic thinner. Guess which one I painted over my model because I wasn't paying attention? Luckily it didn't lift the paint, and when it was dry I washed any residue off.Before decalling I gave the airframe 2 coats of Humbrol Clear, leaving them overnight to cure. When I got the Heinkel out after the second coat I noticed a bloom on the surface, which did not look good. I think it might have been because I put the varnish on to thickly, or it might have been the acrylic thinner. This was given a rub down and a polish, then another thin coat, and luckily it looked alright. As I was putting the second coat of varnish on, one of the propellers decided to drop off. With the engine bay sealed and painted there was no way of getting the pin out, without major damage, so now I have an engine that rattles and a stationary propeller glued in place.The decals went on without problem, and have minimal carrier film, so less chance of silvering. there is a wide selection of stencils as well, so many in fact that there are even 4 for each wheel. As I applied ever 5-10 decals, I sealed them in with a touch of Clear, being careful not to touch them until the area was dry. That way none of the markings came off on my fingers. One possible mistake I noticed with the decals for the KG55 aircraft was the unit badges of a Griffon. I think that they should be facing forward on both sides, but they both face the same way, meaning that on the starboard side it is facing aft (see the photos). Finally the tail cross came from an aftermarket sheet, as it was not supplied for obvious reasons.Next step is applying the last few stencils, then a panel wash, add some small parts and a couple of coats of matt varnish./media/tinymce_upload/b0ec18af122850c5a5e3103105fcc215.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/25adc5bcfe62162a6d9d0c84bf252c2d.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/e4aeebdfdb424ff3bd655a1358d7e084.jpgSorry, the quality of these photos isn't great, a bit to dark, I'll try better next time./media/tinymce_upload/b37e46423faa8b3d472d7281c51fbb80.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/ea99018801782d48e81834d8295577aa.jpgClose up of the tail markings. I think it refers to ex-PM Chamblin's umbrella, or the British fighter umbrella, being unable to protect British shipping or London from bombing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad Paul B Posted October 26, 2015 Share Posted October 26, 2015 Looking good. I agree that the contrast between RLM70 and 71 doesn't look too high (my son has just used them on an old 262 model and they are hard to resolve, though the larger blocks here seem to help. They look like they match the colour images of the 111s used to film 'The Battle of Britain' back in 1969; these were surplus Spanish built planes so not sure how accurate the colour matching was (there are colour pics in Francis Crosby's 'Bombers of the world - including on the cover of the combined fighter and bomber edition). I guess humbrol have studied the original colours - though I always think they look a bit dark at this scale though do match the full sized version.My own is coming on nicely - upper surfaces primed. I will post a few pics for to compare notes once I have installed the gunner in the Gondola. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted October 27, 2015 Author Share Posted October 27, 2015 Getting close to finishing now, I might even meet the end of October deadline!Tonight I added a dark grey panel line wash to the underside, but didn't both with the topside, as it wouldn't contrast enough with the dark green. The wash had the added effect of making the underside look realistically grubby when wiped off. All undercarriage and doors were added, as were a few aerials and mass balance on the rudder, using mostly superglue as surfaces were painted. Tomorrow I'll matt varnish it./media/tinymce_upload/426ab039f25fadb34df44e19ff6a89d2.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/5d9a3d7ecc5365e983f213edc6c1cbff.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/8c62745648b82e54044affd0c5e98968.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Mediocre Modeller Posted October 29, 2015 Author Share Posted October 29, 2015 Finally finished my Heinkel with 2 days to spare. It's been a really enjoyable build, with no major issues. The only fit problems I had were fitting the fuselage windows, they were to big and to thick, so had to be sanded down to fit at all.here are a few pictures of the finished artical./media/tinymce_upload/e2b84c563b2c79e31e10fb196a4f4c82.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/618bb7584a57b5f7f902b453666e247b.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/1818350d6933b685d9a16b396ffcac7c.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/47d0b25c068c5b2b4342918d6c0f601c.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/286e72a5e9f038f68647490a4d0b591f.jpgTo finish off here are the 3 main German bombers of the Luftwaffe in 1940 together, you can see that the Heinkel is considerably larger than the others/media/tinymce_upload/dd13ce5f78d13d9782f1a2149ff54e26.jpgThey are from left to right; Airfix Do17Z, Airfix He111P and Zvezda Ju88A-5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim_vincent Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 Looks great, PMM! I will refer to this thread if I ever think I've got the space to build and display one of these, especially with the issues with the glazing that you've found and fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad Paul B Posted December 24, 2015 Share Posted December 24, 2015 Well, my own build of this plane is now finished. Main issues were the nose glazing which shifted as the clearfix was setting so I got some stepping which I didn't spot until later and the crew for which I found an alternative solution. I also found that the Revell Schwartzgrun was almost identical to the Humbrol Dunkelgrun so used black (the shop was out of 241 when I went there.Examples below.Cockpit with prone bomb aimer (Valiant German Paratrooper - LMG operator./media/tinymce_upload/865bafbce828bbdf5c329684aba9d3a6.JPGThis looked better in the flesh. Maybe it is time to start painting facial details the way I hav been for 25 mm figures for years. The Valiant figures are quite tall and chunky so the aimer had amputations at the knee to fit. Still, this show up well through the glazing.Gondola Gunner/media/tinymce_upload/1e100ae334677db77e0a945093474ba7.JPGAnother paratrooper from the same box. The fit here was cramped and to get him in position close to the gun required more leg removal. This does not show up so well once assembled but I wanted the look of an aircraft in action.Top View/media/tinymce_upload/0b1e46a54479f95ee991c0c8ef663527.JPGThe glazing is clearly visible (I used Eduard paint masks) and the pilot can be seen through the top hatch. The top gunner is another Valiant paratrooper, a mix of kneeling trooper with legs removed, with the arms of an LMG firer. Some shaving was required to fit his elbows in the cupola but the overall effect was pretty good. The wireless aerial was ordinary black cotton (I have found shearing elastic looks too thick but is better toget the tension right).Achtung London/media/tinymce_upload/b34b2d38447e893954b767c1453f0136.JPGThe lack of stores was a disappointment. The bomb racks have walls too thick to fit scale bombs in. Being vertical racked bombs will look less impressive. I added PJ 'Luftwaffe weapons. The release sequence was researched and from the rear. The noses look like they drop quickly so 1 were the SC250 bombs flattening out. They ended up higher than planned as I had to drill a hole for the line to go in, raising them by a couple of mm. 2 are SC100s just clearing the racks. 3 and 4 are just the tails of 1000 lb bombs from the Valiant kit to give the appearance of bombs waiting to fall. A bit of Me109 canopy held the horizontal bombs apart and facing forward (it broke when masking for my son and I had to get a replacement). The Hurricane positioning for a run is my son's.Rear 3 quarter/media/tinymce_upload/eb6cc6faf669d7df4bb08424d5914858.JPGA nice view of the top gunner and falling bombs. These didn't quite come out as well as intended but show the crispness of the decals.Underside/media/tinymce_upload/be90a263f3cbc0bbcf4d6deddc1f8d92.JPGI added a black wash to try and bring out the panel lines. The exhaust staining is black weathering powder. The remaining bombs can be seen in the racks. Not a precise match but adequate for my purposes.Starboard Front 3 quarter/media/tinymce_upload/4ed5fcdccc1b1222b38b231011507b66.JPGHere is where the investment in the masks really paid off. The Bomb aimer's head shows up nicely through the glazing. This really is the effect I was after.Finally from above the front/media/tinymce_upload/6c4e4fc67127a28fa185fa3e03d71349.JPGA nice view of the bomb aimer. Overall I was really pleased with this build. Ceiling mounting is due to a lack of space. The children love seeing them there. This was a lovely model which a few tweaks could become truly great. The crew could do with more animation and the stores issue addressed. The butt joints on the glazing are tricky. I took a lot of care over positioning and taped them in place but got a slight step - so even more care is needed. Other thn that I highly recommend this kit but suggest more research on crewing as my improvisations were not perfect.Thanks to PMM for starting this thread - he was able to give some really useful advice as I was a few weeks behind in my build.Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rael Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 WOW! Don't see models built to this standard everyday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad Paul B Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Thanks Rael. The quality of the tooling is incredibly helpful. This kit was a delight to build (bar a couple of minor niggles as mentioned). Overall it took about 2 months so taking it slowly helps a lot. I am still getting the hang of plastic after a long layoff.There are some better examples on this site (Check out Drewe Manton's work - Several spectacular Lightnings and Harriers). I have found a lot of useful tips on the forum and following PMM's build helped me immensely when it came to adding the extras. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rael Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 Thanks Rael. The quality of the tooling is incredibly helpful. This kit was a delight to build (bar a couple of minor niggles as mentioned). Overall it took about 2 months so taking it slowly helps a lot. I am still getting the hang of plastic after a long layoff.There are some better examples on this site (Check out Drewe Manton's work - Several spectacular Lightnings and Harriers). I have found a lot of useful tips on the forum and following PMM's build helped me immensely when it came to adding the extras.I'll think about buying this kit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave c1707821098 Posted March 23, 2016 Share Posted March 23, 2016 PMM i noticed the same with the humbrol colours here too, i made an eduard bf110 and there was nowhere near enough contrast....i'd painted it up thinking the colours would dry differently but there you go lesson learnt!ion the end i just dirtied it up a bit with some washes as i cbb to strip it back down! looking good though the kit looks great for a "basic" 1.72 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the F-111C dude Posted April 17, 2016 Share Posted April 17, 2016 wow! that looks realy cool Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinosaurus egypticus rex Posted October 31, 2016 Share Posted October 31, 2016 Holy cow! How did you paint the glass metal frames, Bob? It's always been quite a headache for me. Splendid model btw :) . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidJC Posted October 31, 2016 Share Posted October 31, 2016 Certainly great looking work that's for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad Paul B Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 Holy cow! How did you paint the glass metal frames, Bob? It's always been quite a headache for me. Splendid model btw :) .Not bob. However for complex glazing like the He-111 I have taken to using the Eduard pre-cut masks. Tamiya tape and a sharp scalpel also works but I have broken cockpit transparencies this way (a Bf-109 for my son). However on intricate arrays of small panels I would favour the die-cut masks which are easy to fit and give a very clean edge. Tey are not overly expensive (£5 to 7 but possibly increasing due to stirling depreciation).I will definitely be going this route when I come to do the Victor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castlekeeper Posted October 4, 2018 Share Posted October 4, 2018 Bob - that's a great build of a plane & a FINE presentation of it too! Underside is what I'm after on mine as it looks so real. I just started glazed parts of my P-2 & will post some pix as time allows. I'm going to remedy that lack of color contrast - stay tuned.Airfix - those fuesalage windows need to be re-visited. The "window" parts measure .265" X .180" which is almost the exact same size as the openings (+/- .001") and their corner radii are too small to fit into the pockets. Otherwise it's the best 1/72 HE-111 model ever! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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