Hi everyone,

This is the first half of a duo build WIP between me and Erik Gjørup (@airbum) of the new(est) 1/48 kit of the Messerschmitt bf.109 E-1, from Wingsy Kits.

Our goal is to provide two different perspectives about the building experience of this kit, since it claimed by some to be the benchmark of the Emil versions of the 109 in this scale, surpassing all competition.
Also our goal is also to build the model in a BlitzKrieg manner, meaning intensly and fast.

My first impressions upon opening the box were good, in fact I was highly impressed by the petit nature of the riveting applied throughout the fuselage and wings. The rivets look much more “in scale” than those made by Eduard for instance.
After cutting some pieces I went checking the fit of parts- after reading a couple of online builds of this kit, including the one Tom Cleaver posted recently, all mention a very good fit.
And indeed the kit just falls together with ease. Almost Tamyia style!

To me this is not a limited run kit, it’s totally a modern injection moulded plastic model. The sprue gates are adequate in number and thickness per part, so the cleaning is pretty much normal routine, and the only thing I find a bit over engineered is the use of PE for numerous parts that can (could) be made in plastic just as such. Au contraire, the PE seat bealts look too big and lack finesse.
Finally there are two pieces that look misplaced when compared to the fine detail and mounding presented in the remaining parts, the pilot’s seat and the propellers. Both are poorly made, the propellers more suited for late 109 models (the G for instance) and the seat rather sluggish.
Here’s the kit piece compared to the Ultrascale resin seat I’m using

Here’s how it goes after a few hours work

The instructions have you using RLM 66 for the cockpit, something I disagree entirely, even more when building a machine that was made sometime in 1938/39, so I’m painting it in RLM 02.
The IP was painted and then an oil wash. After all dry I applied the decal supplied in the box and it settled down nicely using MicroSet and half an hour exposed at the sun

As you can see there’s very little putty use so far, just a few spots of Mr Surfacer 500 in specific locations.
The rudder needed some putty and a strip of thinned plastic to add a bit of length on the upper part. The gap between the rudder and the tail surface was quite conspicuous, probably my fault

That’s all for now, next update will have the completed cockpit and the explanation for the title of this WIP
Over to Erik now!

What an awesome start on this Emil, Pedro @holzhamer
My favorite version of the 109.
The seat and intrument panels are superb.
Looking forward to this build.

@holzhamer: interestingly enough, the "109 experten" discovered (to their surprise) that the seatbelts the kit provides are actually accurate for the 109E-1 - it doesn't use the belts coming out through the hole in the back of the seat like the late E models. Photos that Lynn Ritger found show the belts coming up over the top of the seat, with that curved belt holding them back in place. Yes, it's counterintuitive, but as Mr. 109 said, "that's the fun thing about the 109, there's always something new to learn to disprove the rule."

You definitely look like you are having fun here.

This is a wonderful idea to see how the two most knowledgeable people on Luftwaffe subjects I know will tackle the building of the same kit. Like you, I also think it is odd how the instructions would call for RLM 66 in place of the more commonly accepted use of RLM 02 on the cockpit. I agree completely with your choice of colors for sure.

Speaking of the cockpit, I am very impressed by the provided contents and you are doing a wonderful job with this. The seat upgrade however is another good idea.

I have two of the 1/48 scale Modelsvit Bf-109 kits in my stash. One of these kits is a C-3 and the other one is a D-1. As far as the early Emil kits I have several of the Hasegawa kits with one being the E-1 and the other an E-3. It would be good to see how the older Hasegawa kit builds compared to the Tamiya E-3 from the same era. This is something that I might consider doing in the future as part of the Luftwaffe group.

So I am always looking to learn more about the 109’s, and this is definitely going to be on the watch list for sure. With both of you guys building the same kit, I am very impressed with what you have posted, and equally interested in the final report.

Thanks for starting these builds. Currently I have some 1/48 scale A6M’s and P-40’s under construction ala “Iron Werke” style, but you guys are definitely inspiring me with your builds, and this is making me want to build up some Luftwaffe fighters in the very near future. Now I have to decide if I want to build up some FW-190’s or Bf-109’s.

As a side note, I have moved our “mutual” 1/48 ICM Dornier 17Z model on the build table now, so look for it to show up on the build thread you started for this project soon.

Thanks again my friend for posting this build journal and it’s a wonderful idea. I am definitely looking forward to seeing your next installment.

Stay safe my friend.

Time for an update on things.
Going back to Tom’s build review of this same kit here on iModeler, he said this is a true weekend project (and I’m quoting this from memory now), and I couldn’t agree more.
So it’s been a most enjoyable build, almost everything just falls into place, and while I personally would replace several PE pieces for injected plastic ones, the kit still offers all you superdetailers out there plenty of scope to work from.

Since I still have a few bits to add or paint around the cockpit the model is not fully completed by now. Probably tomorrow I’ll finish those bits and glue the wings to the fuselage. From there on it’s all about paintwork for me.
I’ve found that the main flaps are a bit tricky to get in place, but removing the 2 small lumps that I assume are there to enable a fully retracted flap set, I could lower them a bit and the fir still is perfect. Unfortunately as you can see in the photos one of the detached itself while I was handling the model for the photo session. That’s because I’ve been using pin point application of liquid glue all throughout the build (that’s how good the parts fit!)

Here’s how the cockpit looks when pushed inside the fuselage

Not much is visible right?
So now how it looks partially unassembled

The lower nose section of this Emil is the best I’ve seen so far because it includes some visible details of the engine

The wings radiators are very detailed and one needs to take time getting the parts correctly align, including the PE slot.

The fuselage gun fairings have been painted in the closest color I had to the Hellgrau L40 shade, which is the most likely colour I believe was used in several pre and early war Emils (not 04 yellow as several kit makers suggest). Masking them will be a challenge

Finally why did I named this WIP “The bull and the mouse”?
Because the kit will be made to recreate Kurt Ebbinghausen 109 E-1 in 1939, using some decals provided by the first JG26 Kagero book, which I have for many years and always kept the hope of using these unique markings one day

Thank you John, hope our dual journey is worthy in the end. I’m eager to see what Erik will be doing on his 109!

Just a quick update: I have completed the cockpit (minus the Revi gunsight and a few knobs that go in the IP) and assembled it already inside the fuselage

While it dried I also mated the wings to the fuselage, a perfect fit with just a lip of extra plastic around the frontal edges… no putty whatsoever. Next update I’ll post these in the photos

One last update for the weekend’s work around the kit
Like I mentioned earlier the wing and fuselage joining was effortless and seamless also…

…with the exception of a small “lip” of plastic that needs to be sanded smooth
Here’s how the lower side also fit nicely
No “fake” panel lines here, the joint lines folllows genuine 109 sections

Today I completed the gun deck, where I replaced the kit MGs barrels for some resin AM stuff, and also had my very first experience using AK weathering pencils, using their “Smoke” pencil to recreate some fume filth around the MGs ports. I found it easy to use, and gave me the sensation similar to pastels.

Having made that I proceeded in glueing the entire upper deck piece that Wingsy made, and one that like the rest of the kit, follows the 109 panel lines.
This step was the trickiest to get right I’ve so far found in this build. As you can see in this image in the end a small gap remained. This is no big issue to solve of course, but it proved me that I should have pressed forward a bit more the piece since now the canopy will (apparently, don’t forget it’s a dry run tentative) not fit as well as it should .
The thing that made this part assembly more demanding is the smal indent on its most forward area (see the green putty are on photo 3 to understand what I’m referring to).

Although I trimmed it a bit so it would fit that little hammer shape part is probably to big still because it prevented the entire deck part to move that couple of millimeters forward.
One last advice here, press the area around the gun ports down, otherwise it will look awkward because it stand out a bit. When I pressed it down (while applying some liquid glue) the piece just snuggle down nicely with a small pop. Once that is done you’ll find that Wingsy has indeed capture these lumps and openings of the 109 nose exquisitely well.

Looking great, my friend @holzhamer!
Thanks for all those little tips!