**** DONE: GB-36 1/48 Bf110D - Axis Manufactured Aircraft of WWII

[Airframes]

Thanks Hugh.
No further progress I'm afraid - too stiff and painful for the past 24 hours, as the arthritis is in 'flare up'. Seems to be easing off slightly now, so may get some more done tomorrow.

 

[fubar57]

Looks great Terry aside from the minor setbacks. Looking froward to the Vallejo test. I have a bottle but still using up my Tamiya Flat

 

[Airframes]

Thanks Geo.
My hands and wrists are still quite stiff, but I've started on the props, with the blades and hubs painted,and glossed ready for the 'VDM' logo decals.
I might be able to assemble them, and paint the spinners, later today, but I doubt my hands can cope with the airbrush just yet, so I'm not going to attempt to spray the clear matt coat - bl**dy frustrating.

 

[JKim]

Looking good Terry!

 

[Airframes]

Thanks John, much appreciated.

I've got a little more done on the bits and pieces, with the props assembled and painted, and most of the undercart done too, which yet again involved a lot of work removing sprue attachments and moulding seams. Some very light panel work, paint wear and weathering has also been done to the airframe.
For a 'general run', mainstream kit, as opposed to limited run or resin kit, this must be the most labour-intensive kit I've ever built OOB !

My hands and wrists are still rather stiff, but not as bad, or as painful, as they were, so with a bit of luck, I might be able to get the first matt clear coat on later today.
Might have some pics later ...............

 

[Airframes]

Still a little too stiff to risk using the airbrush, so I continued with the 'bits and pieces'.

PICS 1 and 2. Show the first stage of paint scuffing at the wing roots, and the first layer of underside exhaust staining and dirt from the wheels. The staining will be added to after the matt clear coat.
PIC 3. The masking removed from the canopy sections, with the frames painted inside and out, but yet to be tidied up. There are a couple of fittings to be added to the inside of the main canopy, and some scratch-built hand grips and a latch to the windscreen. Apologies for the poor pic - still getting used to this new lens.
PIC 4. Main undercarriage components assembled and painted, and awaiting a wash. The retraction struts will be added once the legs are installed in the wheel bays. Brake lines were added using lead wire.
PIC 5. Props and spinners assembled, painted and gloss coated, and awaiting the 'VDM' decals. The 'textured' look to the RLM70 prop blades is not as bad as it looks in the pics, but I might yet sand this down and start again. The spinner tips are less than perfect too, so again, these will probably be sanded and re-painted.

Apart from a visitor for about an hour tomorrow, i should have a free day, so if my hands behave, i hope to get the matt clear coat done.

 

[fubar57]

 

[Wurger]

 

[Gnomey]

Looks great so far Terry!

 

[Airframes]

Thanks chaps.

I've rubbed down the prop blades and re-painted them, and they'll get a gloss coat tomorrow, ready for the decals. Fortunately, I checked my reference pics, as I had doubts about the style of logo used on W.Nr. 3155, and sure enough, it didn't have the triangular 'VDM' logo, but the simple rectangular style, which I have on the Microscale sheet.
(Incidentally, a note for anyone building the Eduard '110 kits - the decal instructions appear to be at fault concerning the 'VDM' prop logos, as they show these with the apex of the triangle pointing towards the prop tip, whereas it should be pointing towards the prop root, with the base of the triangle towards the prop tip.)
I also noticed something I missed, in that the RLM 65 beneath the tail planes, extends around the root on the fuselage, so this has been corrected, although another coat needs to be applied, again a job for tomorrow.

 

[Wurger]

And I agree on the VDM logo...

Bf 110B with the VDM prop...

BF 110C with the VDM prop ...

 

[Wurger]

However it seems that the Bf 110D Dackelbauch had a different logo on the prop blades...

 

[Airframes]

Yep, those small, rectangular decals are included on the old Microscale sheet I have. I haven't established yet if it was still a VDM prop, or a Hoffmann or other make, but it's not that important just now.

 

[Wurger]

 

[Crimea_River]

Looking very good Terry. The green house came out well.

 

[Airframes]

Thanks Andy, it was a tw*t to mask, and even more fiddly to 'un-mask' !
Hoping to get the semi-matt clear coat on later today, as my hands aren't quite as stiff and painful as they were. I need to test the 'new' varnish on a 'hack' first, and let it dry thoroughly, before committing to the model, so i might make a start on the '109 in the the waiting period.
Meanwhile, some prep work has been done on the resin wheels and exhausts, which should look good once done and fitted.

 

[Airframes]

Yippee - success !

It looks like I've finally found a matt varnish that works without blooming, frosting or white spots !
I checked with Karl on his use of the Vallejo Acrylic Matt varnish, and thanks to him, I'm now back in business.
The varnish was thinned roughly 70/30, varnish/water, for airbrush use, and was first tested on an old model used for paint testing, with good results and rapid drying. I only used around 4 to 5ml on the entire model, the props (three coats) and wing tanks (2 coats), so fairly economical in use, too.
I'll admit to some trepidation before spraying the '110, remembering some of the recent problems I've experienced, but the varnish sprayed beautifully, with the odd small, greyish-white patch where a heavier coat had settled, which very quickly settled and cleared. I'll let this dry overnight (Vallejo suggest four hours between brushed coats), before deciding if a further coat is necessary. It probably won't be, as I required a semi-matt finish, to replicate the Luftwaffe paints of the period and, as it looks now, the amount of sheen is just about right.
There's some slight 'silvering' which suddenly appeared around the 'M' on the port side (this was an older decal from a different sheet), but I'm confident I can eradicate this, even if it means re-touching and re-varnishing.
Pics below (taken with the little compact digital camera) show the bottle of varnish, and how the model, props and tanks look to date.
Next stage is to add some exhaust staining, and a little dust and dirt around the wing roots, before painting and fitting the resin exhausts, and then moving on the the final construction stages.
Back probably tomorrow some time .................

 

[Wurger]

 

[Airframes]

Thanks my friend.
I forgot to mention - the logos on the props look a little too stark, so these will be toned-down with a light wash, and the pitch hubs will be re-glossed.

 

[fubar57]

Looks good Terry. I think I'll give mine a go as well as my current bottle of Tamiya Flat seems to be more like semi-flat