Eagle Head. Horst Hannig's Fw-190A-4 - Paint job

[Thunnus]

Exquisitely beautiful build!  I'm seeing lots of stuff for the first time like the use of masking material for the fabric control surfaces, painted rivets and those stencil masks.  Taking notes!

[Giorgos]

amazing work mate cograts 

[MDuv]

On 6/30/2021 at 8:44 PM, scvrobeson said:

Nice job with the tiny details!  The little latches look excellent painted on.

 

 

 

Matt 

Hi Matt, thank you ! They are quite simple in form, but I think I would have forgotten about them had they not been on the 1ManArmy's sheet.
Cheers
 

On 6/30/2021 at 10:00 PM, Thunnus said:

Exquisitely beautiful build!  I'm seeing lots of stuff for the first time like the use of masking material for the fabric control surfaces, painted rivets and those stencil masks.  Taking notes!

Thank you John, I am Taking a lot of notes as well following your build logs !
Cheers.

 

 

On 9/4/2021 at 2:44 PM, Giorgos said:

amazing work mate cograts 

Hi Giorgios ! Maybe you can give a try to the cut files I just uploaded on SMPM ! Would love to see them well used.
Cheers.
 

[MDuv]

Hi Guys, 
After a look at the Old's Man blog, I just gave a shot of dedust on this little Focker, 
Got some mojo to take it to the finish line before ZM comes out with the big artillery
 

I got the tail and tail wheel painted on, and fixed.

 

 

I then sprayed very dilluted mixes of black, grey and brown smoke over the panels.

 

 

 

And started to work on the front legs and wheels: Paint and preparation for fixing.

 

 

 

Early wheels inner structure was shamelessly stolen Inspired from a very well known Build log

 

 

Should not be too long to the finish line. Lets hope.

 

Cheers.

 

Mathieu

 

[MDuv]

Hi @reserve_22.

It’s never too late in my book.

 
While I have seen pics with red bands, there are pics of early Fw with white bands as well. So I’m a bit puzzled.

 

Now looking at them on the model. I find them a bit too large and oversized. 
I will surely do something about them, but will dig a bit more on the color before doing so.

 

Cheers 

 

Mathieu
 

Edited September 5, 2021 by MDuv

[MDuv]

This one looks white to me but black looks clearer with reflect, so I’m still puzzled, one thing is sure anyway, width is to be corrected.

cheers


 

[MDuv]

4 minutes ago, reserve_22 said:

White is cross but realy looks bright .Thanks I download photo to my pc   

Hi, Note the very early canon blister on the wing root.

After having looked at many ref, I think red walkways was most comon indeed ! This last picture achieved to convince me: Same period, JG2

 

Will redo them in red.
Thanks for pointing this out!

Another question: what was the normal position of the  inner gear doors when onthe ground ? I have seen them dropped, or up. Hard to make my mind.

Cheers.

Mathieu
 

[MikeMaben]

1 hour ago, MDuv said:

 

  Another question: what was the normal position of the  inner gear doors when onthe ground ? I have seen them dropped, or up. Hard to make my mind.

 

They were designed to be closed but you could go either way Matt.

I too have seen white wing walks on early 190s.

[MDuv]

3 hours ago, reserve_22 said:

Mike its posible but when you havent photo on your model I thing red is good choice

 

Another one in the same matter : Your opinion on the upper wing cross style for this bird in early 43?

I made the earlier style, but the pic shown above shows the later all white cross.
 

Guess it's 50/50 as the later cross was introduced at this time?

[MDuv]

3 hours ago, MikeMaben said:

 

They were designed to be closed but you could go either way Matt.

I too have seen white wing walks on early 190s.

Thanks Mike ! think I will go closed on this to ease painting of the belly exhaust stains.
Cheers.

 

Mathieu

[MDuv]

Per @reserve_22's advice, I stripped the (too large and too visible) white walkway off.

 

Then modded my mask: 10mm /32 makes around 0.3125mm. I went 0.3mm to have them more concealed.

 

 

 

If you look from distance, they are barely noticeable. Wich is what I aimed for.

 

 

Much more happy with this verion.

 

TTNT.

 

Mathieu

 

 

 

[MDuv]

Hi Folks,

Some kind of an update on the weekend labor.
This time not really a step by step, but more of an actual state of thing reports. 

First area of focus was the canopy. 
I discovered early in the build that the real canopy would flex in by going backward, and the actual width of it would get narrower as it goes.
For this the plexiglass was designed to have flexing point at the edges, and the mount of the armored headrest was build in that way as well.

Then I took a look at the hasegawas part, they are molded to depict a closed canopy, and thus are too large when posed open.
I tried earlier to force this part into the width by mounting solid pins on the structure, and force the pins into adequatly placed holes in the rear deck. It was ok at first, but cracks rapidly appeared on the clear parts, so this solution wasn't retained.

Then I took a look at a  FW Revell box lying around, and was pleased to discover 4 rear hoods inside the box.

2 Blowns hood, 2 Flat hoods, each type having the closed and opened corresponding width.

I was fast to decide the Revell's will be build as a latter type, with a blown canopy... and quickly made the flat part avaiable for this one!

Here are some comparison pictures:

Revell Closed / Revell Opened

 

Hasegawa / Revell Opened

 

Here is the Revell Canopy mounted, the width is near perfect match.

The personnal effect door on the rear deck is scratched from pieces of plastic, covered with a metal sheet, then embossed into shape.

Hasegawa giving us the later door, wich is valid on late production aircrafts.

The wiring is made from 0.1mm black fishing line. It's very strong and flexing, easy to get the right tension. a simili spring is added at the base, but the wire just go through.

 

Then moving on to the belly:

 

The gear legs were given some tubing and decals (from AIMS).

All theses addition to distract from the fact I did not shortened them.

Hasegawa having done them a bit too long, but I was too far into the assembly when I found it out... 

 

 

 

The gear doors should be going inside the hole, and there should be no blank step between the wing and door.

 

Still on the belly: Third itteration on the stain and leaks: think i will keep this one.

 

 

And to conclude on this week end:

The last stencils were applied from the excellent stencil masks from 1 Man army: 

 

 

Only remain the MG151 tubing into the wheel wells, and the wheels.
The wheels being the early type with textured tyres, I will have to borrow them into the Revell boxing as hasegawa gives us only the flush one.

I can only hope the next update will be the RFI shots.

Cheers.
Mathieu

 

 

 

[LSP_Kevin]

Superb details, Mathieu!

 

Kev

[John Stambaugh]

Excellent work sir, I just finished a PCM Fw190 A-3. Am happy with it but mine is nowhere near this level. Bravo!