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After a 10 year hiatus, the dark ages between 2000 and 2010, I became interested in building scale models again. I was always attracted to large scale models. When it was announced in 2012 that Zoukei Mura was going to release the Heinkel He219 in scale 1/32 I woke up. What a cool plane, I wanted to build it! I decided that it was a good reason to focus on planes in scale 1/32 from now on. Models where you can put a lot of detail in, you are busy with it for a while and you do not have to buy that many. We all know how that ends. The stock to be built increases faster than the models being built. Anyway, although I occasionally make a trip to a smaller scale, or larger (I still have a halfway build 1:16 King Tiger), I manage quite well to focus on 1/32. We have also been quite spoiled the last decades with new models, enough choice! Before I ventured into the He219, I wanted to gain some building experience. In the meantime, more than 10 years have passed and I thought it was time to really start on the He219. The He219 The He219 has been the subject of many books in recent years. I’m not going full on history here, but it was cutting edge technology at the time. That being said, the aircraft's performance did suffer from the relatively weak engines. In addition, the aircraft was produced too late and in too small numbers (because of political decision making) to make a serious difference. Perhaps that was a good thing. The aircraft was specifically designed for night-time hunting. The first operational production aircraft with ejection seats. Nose wheel instead of tail wheel. The cockpit at the very front and top of the aircraft for good all-round visibility. Elements that you still see in fighter aircraft today. Collecting references, I quickly came to the conclusion that I wanted to build the aircraft with a completely black bottom and a Wellenmuster (wave pattern) camouflage on top. Just like the surviving example at NASM, which coincidently was being restored at that time. I got hold of 'A research paper (3rd edition)' by R. Ferguson, one of top researchers on this subject. He concluded that there are two construction series that were executed in this scheme; work numbers 290054 - 290078 and 290110 - 290129. Both series were build as the He219 A2 variant. After further searching I came across a decal set of OWL decals. Work number 290070 - with the Verbandskennzeichen (license plate) G9 + CH. More about this later. This awesome period picture of the He219 in flight from the same build batch, is what inspired me, work number (290068). If I’m not mistaken, this is in fact the sole surviving He219: History R. Ferguson was also able to find out what happened to the specific frame I wanted to build. Like all other He219s, the aircraft belonged to NJG1 and operated from Fliegerhorst Venlo in the Netherlands, my home country. In the night of 3 / 4 February 1945, Hauptman Graf Rességuier and Feldwebel Fritz Habicht took off to intercept enemy bombers. The reports are not clear, but the aircraft was hit by enemy fire near Roermond. The pilot was slightly injured, the navigator seriously injured. Both managed to escape using the ejection seat. Rességuier landed with his parachute near Schmelendorf, Germany, just across the border from Venlo and Roermond. The registration number of the aircraft is G9+OH and not G9+CH as stated in various publications and the decal set of OWL. In the model I have adjusted the decals so that it says OH. The model Although the ZM models are known for their extensive interiors, I still prefer to build 'complete' aircraft. Why not the Revell version you might ask? I bought that one too, but putting them side by side, the difference is night and day in my opinion. The ZM version comes a lot closer to the original. Both in overall shape and detail. But, it so happens that the ZM model is made as an A0 variant. There is a lot to be said about that, but the external differences between the A0 and A2 variant are not that big. There is one element that stands out, the air intake for the engines. For the first aircraft it was round or oval shape, but it was soon changed to a so-called shark mouth shape. The Revell version does have that shape of air intake. This change was done quite easily and quickly. Furthermore, I only used aftermarket sets from ZM itself; the metal chassis and the antennas. The construction The construction was pretty straightforward, apart from the previously mentioned modification of the air intake. It is clear that the model was designed with the idea of opening all the hatches. It can be closed but the margins are very small. For that reason I used the interior parts as much as possible, but did not paint them. I left out the engines, these are nice mini models that I may use for something else. I kept the cockpit quite simple. This is because I also wanted the cockpit closed so that the lines of the aircraft come into their own. Besides that I added lead weight behind the props, just to keep the nose down. The painting After sanding, filling and priming it was time for the paint job. I was a bit apprehensive about the camouflage scheme. RLM 76 over RLM75 in a meandering pattern. Not sure if I could pull it off. The easy way is to spray RLM76 first and then apply RLM75 over it with simple dots. However, this does not match the way how it was originally done. Long story short, I opted for the original way. After many trials, the best method turned out to be to make small circles with the airbrush. Then you break up the resulting pattern with random lines and by connecting the circles in several places. It took me a few evenings of my life in any case. I almost stopped after the third or fourth attempt and had to take a break for two weeks. But in the end I persevered, and though not 100% as hoped, I’m ultimately quite satisfied with the end result. The painting was done mainly with paint from Mr. Paint. The main colors I used were MRP 65 (RLM75), MRP 225 (FS35622) (I found the RLM76 version a bit too blue) for the top and MRP 137 (Black) for the bottom. Now you made it this far, here are the pictures! Cheers, Wouter

I've always liked the '162, it's a pretty sleek looking jet. It appears that it was a rather good aircraft to fly, with Eric Brown noting that it was manoeuvrable and fast. If it wasn't for the fact that dodgy glue led to parts falling off them, sometime with fatal consequences, it might have been an excellent fighter. Another short coming was it's limited fuel endurance. The Revell kit appears to be basic, but nice enough. I haven't decided on a French of captured Air Min aircraft yet. I also transferred the plastic to a better box as the Revell side opening ones are not the best.

Well, so much for my break from building twins. I took the box out for a quick look see and got a bit carried away. Here's the box shot: Our cat these days seems to seek me out the moment I sit down at the bench.

Greeting to all the artisitic types out there, And I'm not one of them!! Below are to pics of a Heinkel he 111 . One a period B&W photo and the other a model featured in one of AK magazines tutorials, Now the wartime photo clearle shows the upper surface of the heinkel looking quite dirty, but the AK magazine version looks a little overdone IMHO. I'm wanting to acheive something in between. I'm thinking oils- for the ability to manipulate translucency of the effect but would be interested to knnow how you guys might go about it. Also , if anyone has a colour wartime photo of a Heinkel I would be massiviely grateful, Cheers Tim

So was thinking of backdated Revells 1/32 Heinkel He 111 H6 to a Batlle of Britain H4 version. I see the kit contains the sprues with the bomb bay from their P version, so that's no problem. Have ordered some decals for the H3 / H4 version so my cunning plan is looking quite viable. Any Heineken experts out there that could advise me on other changes I'll need to make. . I know there were some differences in mg armament but am struggling to find references. Many thanks in advance Tim. P.s. I meant Heinkel experts not Heineken. That's auto correct for you, though know doubt Heineken experts could also give valuable advise

Seven years ago I paused with modelling, you know, because of life . I stopped with armor and now I started with large scale planes. So this is my first kit in 7 years. Lot's of mistakes, but the result is not to bad in my opinion. Learned a lot, not the least that I need more patience. Also building armor is more forgiving then planes. If you make a mistake with armor you can always cover it up in mud... The build process can be found here: http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=47233&hl= The finished model below. Cheers, Wouter

Thread index In this index an overview is given of the posts that show work or overviews of knowhow re. a certain aspect of the build. In other words, it's trying to be a red line of relevance throughout the thread. This in no means that all the great advice, tips, hints, compliments, motivational remarks and other great content from all who commented in any way, should be forgotten and I won't. Frankly I couldn't do without those kind and helpful replies. The hereunder overview is merely made for the ease of reference for myself (take a look at the number of pages of this thread on the one hand and the number of items in the index on the other, and you'll see) but also for those who are building a He 111 themselves and need reflection re. a certain aspect of the build. 1. General http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=532968 (RLM colours on the 111) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=533293 (RLM colours on the 111) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=533460 (overview of remaining 111) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=532219 (doors in or out?) 2. Cockpit up to and including 1st bulkhead http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=526418 (cockpit in general) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=526571 (cockpit in general) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=526968 (communicator scratch build) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=526972 (communicator scratch build) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=526974 (communicator scratch build) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=528979 (bulkhead mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=529211 (Master Details cockpit set sorting job) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=530153 (pilot seat lifting mechanism mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=530188 (pilot seat lifting mechanism mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=530579 (pilot seat lifting mechanism mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=530595 (bulkhead mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=530595 (bulkhead mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=530885 (bulkhead mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=530888 (bulkhead mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=531505 (bulkhead mod) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=532109 (doors sliding system) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=532580 (doors sliding system) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=532861 (doors sliding system) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=533760 (doors sliding system) 3. Bomb room up to and including 2nd bulkhead http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=531505 (bomb racks) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=531509 (bomb racks) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=545792 (bomb racks scratch build part 1) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=546031 (bomb racks scratch build part 2) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=546219 (bomb racks scratch build part 3) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=546261 (bomb racks scratch build part 4) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=547645 (bomb racks scratch build part 5) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=547646 (bomb racks scratch build part 6) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=547762 (bomb racks scratch build part 7) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=548424 (bomb racks scratch build part 8) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=549779 (bomb racks scratch build part 9) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=550158 (correct bomb rack measurements) 4. Radio and gunners room up to and including 3rd bulkhead 5. Landing gear http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=528013 (brake lines) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=528035 (brake lines) http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=48155&p=528286 (brake lines) 6. Exterior The kit + aftermarket parts - Revell He 111 P1 (which is really a P2); - Eduard Big Ed; - CMK tailwheelstrut and bay; - PM Profimodeller pitot tube; - Master MG15s; - Profimodeller oxygen masks and systems set; - Kagero 111 P2 decals; - Aires Quickboost exhaust set; - 8x MDC SC 250 bomb; - Master Details cockpit interior; - MasterCasters weighted wheels. Planned extra work: - Reading about the plane and its functionality while the build progresses; - Scratchbuilding and trying to copy Nigel's work on the interior (ribs, flooring etc.); - Scratchbuilding as much detail as I can find on pics and drawings of the interior and exterior; - All the riveting (including part of the interior); - correcting Eduard's two-dimensional brake lines by using copper wire; - the larger markings will not be 'decalled' but painted on, to preserve rivet detail. The model - He 111 P2 while it is being converted into a P3 (P2 is the base kit version, although Revell claims it's a P1 - probably because the Gardermoen museum specimen on which the kit was based USED TO BE a P1 before it was converted into a P2); - One of the two bomb racks will be shown already removed from the plane, standing in front of it. This way, the rack's detail will be very well visible and also the interior of the bomb room will be much better visible. Also the plane's internal bomb raising system will be visible. I guess not many 111 models show the bomb raising mechanism detail because when both bomb racks are installed it's almost invisible to anyone other than the insects domiciled in the fuselage. - Plane coded ‘1G+DL' of 3./KG 27, crew: Uffz. Otto Wehmeier (pilot), Uffz. Arthur Voigt (observer), Uffz. Otto Miklitz (flight engineer), Uffz. Manfred Kisker (radio operator); Münster-Handorf, 10 May 1940 (3rd option of the Kagero decals set) without the images; or I'll make my own codes. As the decals will not be applied to the plane (codes will be painted on) I'll have some flexibility. - To be set in a very large diorama (at least 1 m2) also featuring at least the Verlinden power cart, a Verlinden fuel cart, a Verlinden bomb loader, a Zoukei-Mura Kettenkrad plus cart and some figures. It will be set in a hangar + work shop. Specific Heinkel He 111 literature used - Walkaround (Squadron); - Kagero monograph 8 (Kagero); - Aerodetail 18 (Model Graphix); - Heinkel He 111 in action (Squadron); - Heinkel He 111 WWII Combat Aircraft Photo Archive (Airdoc); - Bedienungsvorschrifte 111 (2 factory manuals); - Bewegliche Waffe (7 factory manuals); - Abwurfwaffe (5 factory manuals); - Bewaffnung Bildgerät (2 factory manuals). - Bordfunkanlage (factory manual). - Montage- und Betriebsanleitung (2 factory manuals). - Lehrbildreihe 35 (factory picture manual). - Ersatzteilliste (factory book of 111 spare parts). - Flugzeughandbücher 00, 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08, 09A, 9B1, 9B2, 9C, 9D, 9E, 12A, 12B, 12D, 12G (19 factory manuals). - Several online sources (such as this! http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=33650&do=findComment&comment=309634) - http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=42394 (Ralph Riese). Stalled February 2013. Specifically interesting for riveting. - http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=43287 (ArnoldLayne). Stalled June 2013. Couple of nice Casa 111 pics. - http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=44960 (Bigg943). Stalled July 2013. Nice to see how the Revell bomb bay doesn't look too bad! - http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=36954 (Nigelr32). Stalled December 2012. Informative on many aspects, mainly including fuselage interior. - http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=39743 (Animalmother). Quick build, not sure if finished. - http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=39014 (Scvrobeson). Doors in situ, nicely riveted (see page 4), beautiful result. (to be continued) Current build status - Learning about the bomb bay and preparing their build.