1/72 Messerschmitt Bf109G-6
This little Airfix kit was a Christmas present, and the camouflage intrigued me enough to finish it, even though the kit is not a notable one. But it was well worth it for the lessons it taught me in the mottling effects I can do with an airbrush if I reduce the air pressure.
I initially looked for other decals since the googley eyes looked kind of silly. But it turns out it's a significant aircraft, flown by Oberfeldwebel Alfred Surau, 9./JG3 out of Bas Worishofen, Germany. Surau achieved 41 aerial victories on the Eastern Front in five months beginning February 28, 1943. III./JG 3 was transferred to Germany for home defense in August 1943, and over the next five months shot down 31 American planes, mostly bombers, with the loss of only two pilots. One was Surau, shot down by a B-17 on October 14 after notching his 46th kill on the same flight. Surau bailed out, but was seriously injured, and died the same day in the hospital at Wertheim.
Indeed! Lowering air compressor pressure is THE KEY to airbrushing success. I never go over 15psi with mine and if you look at my models, they're all painted with a pre-Jurassic era Paasche-H. 15psi does it.
Your work with the airbrush takes what I agree with you is not a "notable" kit and resulted in a notable model.
"Liked"
Well said Tom.
Tom, thanks very much - that’s very helpful advice. I’m about to try some USN tricolor schemes, and getting the demarcations right is something I have struggled with.
Excellent result indeed, Michael!
Amazing result, Michael @mcsmith1964
The mottling, as well as entire paint work, came out very nice, especially in 1/72 this is a challenge.
Great work. If it's the old Airfix kit of the 109G I'm thinking of, then you've lifted it to an entirely new "plane" as it were!
I think it must be - the “cockpit” consists only of a seat, which is why I included the pilot and did closed canopy. I usually like to model the canopy open, but there was zero detail here - not even a flat plate for the instrument panel. Which was fine - this wasn’t a kit I would have chosen, and it let me focus on learning how to do mottling and using some Luftwaffe colors I hadn’t before.
I think it looks great! That camouflage scheme is quite challenging and you did a great job @mcsmith1964!
The 1/72 Airfix ME109 may well have been the second kit I ever built 65 years ago, but I don’t think it looked anything like this.
Having done one at around the same time, I'm sure it didn't look like this, since airbrushes were a dream beyond measure to those of us pipsqueaks who even knew they existed. 🙂
Good looking 109!