He-219 Uhu, by Tamiya in 1/48
When I got back into modeling, I had been out for a long time and was amazed at what detail could be attained with resin. So of course I took a very good model the Tamiya He-219 Owl, and try and make it better. I used the Aires resin kit. I have since learned that Aires Resin is often times beautiful, but often times nearly impossible to get to fit. Welcome to my first venture into resin! In the end I had to sand the resin down to the point where you could almost see through it AND do the same thing to the plastic of the model in order to get the cockpit to assemble and actually get the model to glue together. In the end I loved the resultant cockpit detail, and was generally pleased with the model. I was very happy with the paint scheme.
The kit itself is really stellar, and goes together flawlessly once you step away from the self inflicted agony of resin. The cockpit tub is made of a diecast piece of metal and supplies plenty of counterweight to keep this bird nose down. Oh, I didn't get to use it with the resin, oops. Oh well enjoy what is really a great kit.
Looks great Walt. I've heard a lot of bad about Aires but they do make good looking parts
Tamiya’s Owl really is a stellar kit just like you said and you’ve done a stellar job with it. The wood planks are an additionally nice touch. Bravo!
I did two He-219s - one out of the box with that nice metal weight as part of the cockpit design, and one with the Aires cockpit, which was just as damn difficult as you recount, and I had to put a ton of weight behind the cockpit, unfortunately close to the main gear, to make it nose sit. Of the two, I vastly appreciated the OOB build and quite frankly that was my last foray to overpriced Aires c r a p. The world's best looking c r a p, but that's the word that applies. They obviously never road test their products by actually using them.
Still and all, you did a very creditable job here Walt, I like the result a lot.
It was an epic battle, I kept sanding and fitting, sanding more fitting, more sanding then more fitting, a little more sanding...wait am I supposed to be able to read the directions through the parts? Well almost anyways. I have visited Aires again and have had better luck...I wait for reviews now, I will never buy another Aires with reading what possible torture it may inflict upon me first.
Thanks, though, I am generally happy with the end results. I think creditable is a good description.
The whole idea with buying a really good kit is to let it be as it is 😉
Nice Uhu!
Thanks, and Very true, sometimes we just need to remind ourselves of that when we get the kit.
This is a great job, Walt.
The cockpit might have given you a lot of trouble, but it looks absolutely stunning.
Resins usually -but not always- offer greater detail than most styrene efforts, but, more often than not, require a lot (towards frustrating at times) work.
I refrain from buying those lovely looking ("in-the-box") resin yummies, building OOB and sometimes adding scratchbuild details from styrene pieces.
This is a lovely model and I will use it as reference upon building my same 1/48 Tamiya and the gorgeous 1/32 Revell.
Love the paint scheme. I think I will be going OOB for the cockpit?.
A fantastic result, Walt.
The cockpit is really something to be proud off.
A very nice build on a nice surface as well.
Nicely done Walt your struggle with the cockpit was well worth the effort.
Beautiful rendition, bravo!
Well done Owl.
Agreed with the sentiments on Aires cockpits. I've built a fair number of stuff with Aires cockpits and by my estimate the vast majority of their cockpits I've used require a lot of work with lots of swearing and muttering "I paid extra for the aggravation!?!?!" What would upset me more was after all that effort when I closed up the fuselage not much of my work could be seen. Unless it is a really big open cockpit or a plane I'm a fan of, I usually just get an upgraded seat.
I have pretty much resigned myself to spending my time detailing stuff you can see, and not worrying about the interior of bomber that gets closed up. Ignore the B-17 I am building over in the Work in Progress - Aviation Group 😉
A beauty! The cockpit turned out fantastic. One of my favorite German birds - I'm planning on a 1/72 version soon...