Getting started

[Marcel]

So here is the deal. About 50 years ago my father-in-law got a model of a Stuka. He started building a little but didn't finish it at the time. He put it on the shelf and the word was that he wanted to finish it when he retired. Now he is retired but never started building. He finally decided that he wouldn't do it anymore. He threw it away, but I secretly retrieved it. I would like to build it and return it to him when finished (if ever). I haven't been building since I was a kid, so I probably don't know what I am doing.
Not sure if I will finish this, the kit is in a bad shape, but I boldly bought some glue and a knive and will give it a shot anyway. First read up in this forum to see how get starting. I'll post some pictures later.

 

[Airframes]

Sounds good Marcel. I'm guessing it's the original Airfix 1/72nd scale kit?
If so, it should be fairly straightforward and, being an original moulding, the fit of parts might actually be better than the currently available kit!
I'm sure that if you take it stage by stage, and ask any questions you need answers to along the way, it should turn out well.
Looking forward to seeing the progress.

 

[Wurger]

I agree with Terry. I'm at your disposal. Ask if you need please.

 

[rochie]

go for it Marcel

 

[Marcel]

Thanks guys.

Sounds good Marcel. I'm guessing it's the original Airfix 1/72nd scale kit?
If so, it should be fairly straightforward and, being an original moulding, the fit of parts might actually be better than the currently available kit!

No such luck Terry. It's from an obscure manufacturer called Lindberg. Looks pretty cheap. I don't even know the scale. It says 1/4 inch = 1 foot. Have to recalculate that . The model has an electric engine to turn the prop. Unfortunately my father-in-law broke and threw away the stand which should have contained the batteries. One of the propelloeblades is broken. There is no cockpit interior so the pilots have to be hanged in mid-air
I can do without the standard. The stuka has fixed gear so it can stand on it's wheels. I think I can fix the prop.

I'll make some pictures by daylight.

 

[jjp_nl]

Is this the kit per chance? Must be from the late nineteen fifties or early sixties or something

 

[Marcel]

Is this the kit per chance? Must be from the late nineteen fifties or early sixties or something

That's about right. Box is different though. Although that doesn't mean much.

 

[vikingBerserker]

That is so cool! I believe 1/4 is equal to 1/48

 

[Wayne Little]

Good on ya Marcel, look forward to seeing it...

 

[Vic Balshaw]

What a great challenge and noble thought and the kit looks interesting. Good luck Marcel I think you will find many helpers here.

 

[Thorlifter]

Good luck on the kit Marcel. The first thing I noticed on the box that JJP posted was the swastika was removed from the tail. Hmmm, they were already doing that back in the 50's-60's.

 

[copcheck]

I'm here for moral support.

Good luck with the kit, sound like a noble cause and I hope it turns out well for you!

Jon

 

[Marcel]

Thanks guys, I'll need it. And I'm going to need all the help I can get as I am a total noob in this building thing
Thor, the swastica is missing indeed.
The scale is indeed 1:48 exactly.

I don't have a spray gun for painting, not sure if I'm going to buy one as I never used one of those. I also believe it to be quite expensive and as I don't know how long I will have this hobby, might not be worthwhile to buy for only one project. I believe one of my neighbours does paintspraying as a hobby, so I'll try and ask him or try something else (hand painting?). I believe I some parts should be painted before assembling, am I right? So I should decide quickly.

See below som pictures, sorry for the bad quality, they were taken with my phone. Latere I'll try and make better pictures with my DSL, but it'll give you an impression. Notice the broken propellor blade. As the stand is gone, the engine will not do much. It's rusty anyway, so I doubt it would have worked.

I'll probably need all sorts of equipment. I now have a set of sharp knives and some glue.

My father-in-law took all of the parts out of the frame, not all of them neatly. I'll probably need some advice on how to repair some of that damage if possible.
The assembly doesn't look overly complicated. Some parts don't fit very well, so I probably start tonight to work on some rough edges and see if everything is complete or not.

I also have to think about what paintscheme I want to do. Desert seems nice, but looks complicated. I believe the germans used a simple dark-green/light-blue scheme when invading the NL, so maybe that could be a fitting scheme to try. Having said that, I have to determine what type of Stuka it is. I believe a J87B, am I right?

 

[Wurger]

Looking really very nice and seems to be the B variant.

My first suggestion would be not to attach the electric motor. I don't think it is needed at all and might cause nothing but troubles. Especially with the balance of the model ( too heavy nose can try to set the model front down on it. )

Concerning the camo scheme you will need three clours RLM70, RLM71 for model tops and RLM65 for undersides. Additionally black one, some silver and white and RLM02 for cockpit interior. Depending on period of time the dive bomber was used at the RLM66 will be needed too.

For painting an airbrush isn't needed too. It is enough to purchase a couple of brushes of soble endings, no. 3, 2, 1, 00, 000. It would be nice if you bought some masking tape of Tamiya for instance.

Regarding tools.... some sandpaper of different grades will be welcome. I would suggest buying something like a nail file used by women usually. These are offered of different shapes and covered with sandpaper of different grades including covering for polishing.

 

[Marcel]

Thanks Wojtek,

I'm planning on painting by hand. Could be fun. Haven't been to the city center yet to buy the paint. I want to have it before I start building. A friend of mine has some paint to do the smaller parts like the pilots, so I only buy the paint for the exterior. I'm now sanding the edges to make it fit better. I promise to post some pictures soon.

 

[Wurger]

OK. please let me know if you need something....

 

[Capt. Vick]

It's from an obscure manufacturer called Lindberg.

Not so obscure if you grew-up in the States my friend. Many an American modeler cut their teeth on Lindberg kits back in the day and they are still around today!

 

[jjp_nl]

Once you get to that stage and are in need of a pair of swastika's to complete the kit in terms of decals drop me a line. I have a nice big sheet of Swastika's in 1/48 scale in all sorts and shapes and I'd be happy to help you out with a few so you can put them on the tail.

While I'm at it, perhaps a word of caution on the decals in general. You mentioned the kit is indeed a very old one, and as far as decals goes...it shows..they look pretty shot to me. Best to try and work out if the decals are any good at all after all those years, and if not a 'new' set of (aftermarket) decals might be needed (prolly including swastika's as well) ( take a look at the Luchtvaart Hobbyshop for example, they might come in handy when you need to look for new decals) or perhaps appropriate measures need to be taken to prevent the decals from disintegrating at all once they touch water.

 

[Wurger]

Not so obscure if you grew-up in the States my friend. Many an American modeler cut their teeth on Lindberg kits back in the day and they are still around today!

A taki fajny, Amerykanski...


I agree with the opinion above, These decals that came with the kit don't look good. Replacing with an aftermarket set will be really needed

 

[Marcel]

Once you get to that stage and are in need of a pair of swastika's to complete the kit in terms of decals drop me a line. I have a nice big sheet of Swastika's in 1/48 scale in all sorts and shapes and I'd be happy to help you out with a few so you can put them on the tail.

While I'm at it, perhaps a word of caution on the decals in general. You mentioned the kit is indeed a very old one, and as far as decals goes...it shows..they look pretty shot to me. Best to try and work out if the decals are any good at all after all those years, and if not a 'new' set of (aftermarket) decals might be needed (prolly including swastika's as well) ( take a look at the Luchtvaart Hobbyshop for example, they might come in handy when you need to look for new decals) or perhaps appropriate measures need to be taken to prevent the decals from disintegrating at all once they touch water.

Thanks I'll remember that.

The decals also look colored with age, so I already thought of that. But I guess I'll worry about the decals if I ever come to that point Let me start building first

Wojtek, the shop here in Dordrecht didn't know the RLM70 and 71. He said they were old color numbers. Is there a way to convert them to new numbers?