Messerschmitt Bf 109 Werke

Started by Erik Gjørup · 305 · 3 months ago · 1/48, 109, 109 werke, airbum, Bf109, Haldværk, halfworks, Messerschmitt, quarterscale
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    George R Blair Jr said 3 years, 9 months ago:

    I am with Spiros on the open engine panels. I never display an engine, mainly because I find it very difficult to build an engine that looks realistic. An engine is very busy and crowded with detail, and getting that level of detail is very hard for me to do. I have seen engines that are well done, but I have never come close, but you may inspire me to try again.

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    Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 9 months ago:

    Thank you for the comments gents. While I do agree with you both, the Zvezda engine has to be built into the machine (like the Eduard Emil) and with two of them in progress, I just wanted to see if it is at all possible - I will only open the lower and the left hand panels (I am not even sure yet if the lower will be open) and that will keep part of the plane relatively visually intact. I do not plan on anything superdetailed, just a basic presentation.

    And I have been thinking of presenting the engines as small individual kits - I have the Ki-61 engine that is a licenced DB, and it could be fun to show it side-by-side with a DB. But then I would have to look for an italian-built version too. . . . ( I have recently bought a airmodel tripod to hang the engine from https://www.airmodel.de/product_info.php?info=p270_1-48---tripod--field-mounted-crane-lw--ww-2---set-1.html)

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    Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 9 months ago:

    I checked the tripod and looks fantastic my friend @airbum!

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    Louis Gardner said 3 years, 9 months ago:

    This is a great build journal. The engine lift tripod is very cool ! I like it ...

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    Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    @fiveten, yes doesn't it indeed!
    @lgardner, thank you, and yes it is - I could not live without one 🙂

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    Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    Legs, a hole and some more Gustavs

    Some progress is made even if it’s only minor progress

    Last time I made a note that some legs were to follow. Well, here you are



    Zvezda has two different sets of legs for their 109’s, just as the real ones did change the angle of the wheelshaft, so did Zvezda. That may be a minor detail, but nonetheless the reason for bulges on later versions (actually one of the prototypes had bulges in the wingskin too, but that was due to “fatter” wheels, that were at more right angles to the legs.

    And on to the holes. All 109’s had a hole in the aft fuselage for a broomstick – or at least some sort of stick to ease moving around and to help keeping the tail in position during maintenance.


    On the Zvezda F-4 this hole is there, but it is not going all the way through, and so I drilled it to let the light in. There is supposed to be a tube inside, but that will be for another one (I did put the tube in one of my Eduard 109’s I might add)

    As it is getting closer to decision time on these two Zvezda builds, they will soon migrate to new topics of their own. That then brings forth the need to start more 109’s!



    This time it is Eduard 109 Gustavs – one G-6 and one G-4. I will start up the cockpits as they are the same for all Eduards 109F and G’s, and can be used in any F or G version I may want to build in the future.

    The trees are from a “Mersu” dualpack, and these may turn out to become Finnish planes, but as mentioned in the beginning of this tread, nothing is decided yet, so stay tuned

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    Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    You can never have too many 109's in progress, my friend @airbum!
    For me, this is a joy to watch.
    The Zvezdas turn out nicely!

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    Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    Result of lack of QC discovered!

    Unfortunately I am not in possession of a proper QC department here at HalfWorks

    And today I decided to take a picture of the cockpit of the Zvezda G-6 on the request of @gblair. I put the windscreen on. And the gunmount was way above the edge of the windscreen! I simply had glued the firewall in to high.


    I took a picture and cut the entire thing apart – thinking it was good luck that the Zvezda plastic is more brittle that other marks.

    And with it in the right location, it is held in place to settle




    Just put a windscreen on to check if it was the correct width

    I also added the tailplane and flaps.



    The rudder on the G-6 is strangely molded together with the top of the fin – one of many shortcuts in the G-6 kit I find.

    Now, that was probably the last you have seen of the Zvezda 109 G-6 in this topic, as a decision has been made!

    What – a cliffhanger! The grand reveal will come as it surfaces as a new topic in this group. Meanwhile this topic will start to see some eduard 109’s for as @fiveten says you can never have too many 109's – stay tuned and thanks for watching and commenting

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    Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    You can never have too many of them indeed, my friend @airbum.
    The Zvezda G-6 looks great! In this topic too!
    What will the next steps be?
    Eagerly waiting, being sure that we will be pleasantly surprised!

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    George R Blair Jr said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    Cockpit looks great, Erik (@airbum). I completely understand sometimes missing something out-of-place. I am surprised how many times I find something amiss after I have taken photos and uploaded them to iModeler. The rudder and stabilizer problem is very odd. It would seem easier just to mold the rudder and the stabilizer as one piece rather than split it in such an odd place. Or does the odd split allow a different version in the future?

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    Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    Spiros (@fiveten), I am anxious to see what is next too 🙂

    George (@gblair), Isn't it wonderful to take part in a GB here, making you take pictures, posting them, and then discover some flaws and small or large errors in a build. I like it a lot, and think it is a great way to improve while sharing traps and good ideas.

    As for the strange rudder, the kit has one of the larger rudders too, and it is without the fillet, but I would still have preferred a seperate triangle - the cockpit of the Zvezda kits are with the entire rudderpedal arrangement as a seperate item, making it relatively easy to modify it to show deflected rudders.

    Thank you for comments my friends - keep them comin'

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    Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    And one more leaves the “Kindergarten”

    With progress on the Zvezda Bf 109F-4 at an advanced state it is time to move it

    But where will it go? That is for me to know and you to discover

    First up, a comparison on the two Zvezdas as they both gets ready to leave the nest



    I did add some PE to the F-4, taken from some sheets of Eduard PE that I had in my spare PE box.

    A guardplate for the exhaust that looks a lot better (thinner) that the plastic one for the right hand exhausts


    The exhausts themselves are not great, but will have to do (Yes, AM resin and even some metal ones are available, the first a bit expensive, the metal ones scarce as Hens’ teeth – and very expensive)

    The seatbelts this time was for a Fw190, but as the top end is to be hidden behind the seat, they were simply hidden away


    The Revi was modified too as the one in the kit is a Revi 12 and a Revi 6 is needed for this one.

    And an overview of the front


    Lots of paint and some details still needed

    The wings got closed up as well


    Not the best fitting I’ve seen, but may be down to the glue etching the plastic combined with thin frames and heavyhandedness on my part.

    And with that this one will be leaving too and get its own heading.

    next up it will be time to start another pair of builds that are without a proper home, it will be a comparison of two different brands or a simultaneous build of two of the same – nothing decided as of now, so stay tuned

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    Spiros Pendedekas said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    Those are SO attended to detail jobs, my friend @airbum.

    I bravely declare that my future, whenever this will be, 109 build will be totally simplistic, compared to your jobs, but eager to adopt and implement all your expert comments.

    Excellent jobs so far!

    And no, the next pair of builds doesn't surprise me any more...

    You can never have enough ongoing 109 projects within the "109 Gjørup Build"!

    Bring them on, my friend, your jobs are amazing!

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    Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    Spiros my friend, I am certain that your future 109build will be awesome, and I think with your recent wanderings off into vac-form and scratchbuild and whatnot, some degree of out-of out-of-the-box will be included 🙂
    The next pair is closer, a cup of coffe or two and we are off to a new set of 109's!

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    Erik Gjørup said 3 years, 8 months ago:

    The early 109’s

    Bf109 A through D from 3 different kit-companies

    While Zvezda has F and G and Eduard the E F and G and Tamiya the E and G with great success, the early 109’s are not really treated by these companies. For the A, B, C and D we have to look elsewhere, with AMG the first one that sent out a series of kits. They have since been re-boxed by Modelsvit and Dora Wings, with some adjustments.

    boxes versus contents
    Boxart on all three are by Elena Stanlievich




    The AMG and Modelsvit kits are depicted without antennas, the Dora Wings with the early antenna with three aerials. This is not entirely in sync with the contents, The AMG is correct with the rear windscreen without the hole for the mast, Modelsvit has the aerial-mount cast in the glass and the DoraWings kit does have an antenna in the instructions, but the glass is without a mount (and the color guides does not include antennas / aerials on any of them)

    Instructions
    By far the best printed are the Modelsvit offering in full color A4, while AMG is sort of photocopy quality, and DoraWings’ is a small A5 color leaflet, the latter two based on the exact same drawings.




    And this will do for now in order to keep the post short.

    next up I have a look at the contents of the boxes