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Greetings all I've always enjoyed the Stuka since I was a kid, so had it in the back of my mind to build a night attack version using the Owl markings. Managed to get hold of a Hasegawa G-2 (with Mater barrels) that I was going to convert into in D-8, but then as luck would would have it, I found a D-8 on an auction that fit the bill perfectly. So.....I suppose I will eventually get to building the night G-2, but this D-8 comes first. So below is the version of the D-8 I was going to build, however, the kit markings and camo scheme are way more appealing to me. So there we go. I'll be building that specific version as on the box art. The G-2 version I'll do at a later stage with the Owl markings... As you can see from the above pics, I've the Aires interior set, Eduard masks and HGW belts for it. On the way is a Quickboost spinner and blade set, as well as a Yahu IP Cheers Iain

Here is my first RFI on the site, proof that I actually have built some models more to come at later stages as I get pics taken. This aircraft is a Bf109G-14/AS from 4./NJG11 (or 5./NJG11 depending on sources). SAM Publications Modellers Datafile "The Messerschmitt Bf109 Part 2 'F' to 'K' variants has an image of the aircraft found in a hangar at the end of the war on page 55 of that book as well as a colour side-view on page 93. Some would have this as possibly a G-6/AS variant, but in my research the presence of the larger Fo987 oil cooler which is quite evident on the image puts this as a G-14/AS, as the G-6's used the smaller Fo870 oil cooler. But hey, I might be totally off the mark! I used the AIMS Decals "Late war 109's" decal sheets as a basis to cut my masks for all the insignia. Parts List: Revell Bf109G-6 "Late and early version" A.M.U.R Reaver Resin cowling and spinner/prop blades Barracuda Studios resin wing inserts, large oil cooler, tall tail wheel, MLG wheels AIMS Late war 109 decals (basis for masks), exhaust stacks, hatches and latches(to modify the filler cap locations for this a/c) HGW Rivet/control surfaces set (for Hasegawa, bit of fettling to make it work on the Revell kit), seatbelts and Bf109 stencil set OWL Fug217 antenna and exhaust stack covers (all now sadly OOP). Some Fug 217 were SB to replace broken parts Master Brass barrels Eduard Instrument panel and Brassin U/C legs Quickboost Revi C/D gunsight MDC Drop tank and centreline mount/braces Noy's Miniatures Luftwaffe Hangar for the photo's All paint/markings/spirals - Gunze Laquers. RLM76 overall Might be a bit more small things I've forgotten about, but hope you all enjoy Thanks for looking Iain

Inspired by Thunnus amazing 109G-6/AS build earlier this year I've taken a deep breath and started my first advanced conversion build. First cuts and all fits spot on. Reaver prop to go with the conversion = perfect match! Added the Aries radio set for the open hatch at the rear. Designed for the Hasegawa kit it fitted without issue. Cut out the hatch and replaced with the pe. Thinned the inside Aries pit next and a drop in fit. Like Thunnus removed the front bottom pour for the wing strut. Larger oil cooler from Barracuda tested, no problems! Quick dry fit of everything I'd done today. Aaron

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

Finally, here's my Dragon 1/32 Bf110C-3 Night Fighter (modified from the C-7 kit). Build represents a/c 235-5, 235° Squadriglia, 60° Gruppo, 41° Stormo Intercettori at Lonate Pozzolo airbase, Spring 1943 Build thread can be found here Many thanks to all who helped along the way, but especially to John Vasco himself who guided me along the precarious tightrope regarding the subtleties in the variant differences of the Bf110. Quite a bit I would have been very unaware of and wouldn't have modded without his help. The C-3 is a very interesting beast to say the least. Thanks for looking...on to the next one! Iain

With my F6F5-N build on hold, I'm starting on the next one, which is the Dragon Bf110C-7 backdated to a C-3 variant, flown as a night fighter by the Italians. I can only guess that the Luftwaffe wouldn't have given them new machines.... My main source of reference is the fantastic book about the Bf110 by John Vasco and Fernando Estanislau. If you're building the 110 C, D or E, this is a must-have. Mg17 barrels will be replaced by brass ones from Master, and the colour scheme is from a set of decals I have from Owl. I'll make my own masks though on my Silhouette, using the decals as reference. I had a choice of schemes/decals to choose from, but the oddity of the scheme won me over.... For the cockpit I have the choice of Yahu panels, Eduard Panels or the kit panels. I will most likely end up going with the kit interior....the first two, although they're OK, just don't offer that 3D look of the plastic parts. I'll put some Airscale decals and placards on it, and it should look the part. That being said, I might use the Eduard throttle quadrant box details on top of that to spice up that portion. The Dragon Bf110 kit is getting harder and harder to find, which is a real pity, as they are a real gem of a kit. I have 6 of them already, as I plan to do a night fighter version of all the main variants - C (in progress), a D (built), E, F, G2 and G4. The detail on the kits is excellent - crisp moulding, awesome texture and the plastic is lovely to work with. The instructions themselves are dodgy at the best of times, but once you've figured them out, and in most cases deviated from them, it's plain sailing! To make the most of the tooling and moulds, I think Dragon based almost everything on the D/E variant, and then tooled details that would make building the C's possible. To convert this kit to a C, all I had to do was fill the cockpit fresh air vent just aft starboard (from E variant onwards) and fill the port aerial connection point on the fuselage (only C-2 and earlier had the twin aerials) According to my reference book, the changes between a C-7 variant as in the kit and the C3/4 were miniscule. Deleting the central bomb rack basically mods the C-7 to a C-4, and then between the C2, 3 and 4 there were differences in the radios, belly radio mast and whether or not it carried improved MG-FF/M cannons. But as some frames were retrofitted with different modifications, the sources state that it is almost impossible to externally tell the difference between a C3 and C4....makes life easier for this conversion though! So I have started with assembling some of the major components - some for test fitting, some for details - like the engines - (which will be concealed beneath cowlings) to the firewalls and gear bays. That gap forward of the horizontal stabilizer is meant to be there....the angle of the stab was adjustable. Test fit only to the fuselage, that's not glued either. The kit has had its Mg17's removed, but I managed to keep all the retention clasps for the guns as per the kit - so the Master barrels are a slide-fit into the nose. So no pointy bits to break off whilst handling the model, and they can be burnished towards the end of the build and inserted into the nose cap. So that's it for now! Hope you enjoy the process with me! Iain

Hello again Some more images taken, this time it's a FW190A-6/R11 of 6./NJG300. Hasegawa Fw190A-6 kit Eagleparts cockpit, spinner and prop, outboard cannon wing fairings, tail wheel set, main wheel/tyres EagleCals Fw190's JG300 Part 2 (used as reference for the major markings to cut masks, some decals used) Master Barrels and pitot set HGW seatbelts Quickboost Revi C/12D gunsights Owl Fug 217 antenna plus SB items AIMS Fw190 Oleo markings MDC Drop tank Landing light in the left wing leading edge SB. Now.....when I was building this kit, my references plus the riveting plans I was using showed the cannon fairings/bulges on top of the wings. I was told just after I laid the paint scheme down that the A-6 didn't have them. So disclaimer - I've probably messed up . I wasn't going to destroy everything to take them off. It is what it is. Paint is Gunze Laquers - RLM74/75/76 scheme, with the 74/75 misted over with 76 to reduce contrast. Thanks for looking Iain

So here's my first entry to the GB. JG300 Red 12 Bf 109 G-6/R-6 Bonn-Hangelar 1943, a great messy scheme to work with. Using the Trumpeter kit as a base simply because I can open the engine up and its fully riveted already. Got the owl PE acoustic pipes and a Reever prop. HGW fabric seatbelts via Eduard (slightly cheaper option) and Makatar masks.