Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6

by Chris Wauchop

images and text by Brett Green

Hasegawa's 1/48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6 is available online from Squadron.com

Here is Chris Wauchop's most recently completed commission, Hasegawa's 1/48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6.

Chris has built many of Hasegawa's Bf 109s over the years, but it has been a while since the last one.

The model was built basically out of the box,.

In the cockpit, harnesses were added from strips of lead foil. Buckles were folded from fine wire.

The fuel line on the starboard cockpit sidewall, the oxygen hose and the seal for the retrofitted Erla canopy were all added using stretched sprue. Chris finds that stretched sprue remains malleable for a few minutes before it completely cools, and is much easier to glue in place that non-plastic material.

The access hatch for the pilot's stowage behind the headrest was scratchbuilt from thin styrene card. The canopy release handle and grab handles on the corners of the windscreen were added from scrap plastic.

Forward radiator flap actuators, the dribble pipe in the centre of the oil cooler housing, and the FuG 25 IFF antenna  were fabricated from stretched sprue. Holes were drilled into the lower surfaces after the parts were secured, then the sprue was pushed into the hole and sliced off.

The DF loop was bent into a circle from a fine staple.

Tyres were flattened with a bastard file and solder was used for the brake lines.

Aerial wire was added from monofilament (smoke-coloured nylon invisible mending thread), and the resistors were built up from white glue. These were painted when dry using Gunze RLM 02. This material was also used for the canopy retaining wire.

The model was painted using the Testor Aztek A470 airbrush.

Camouflage colours were Gunze acrylics (RLM 02, 74, 75, 76). The red RV band and yellow lower cowl were also Gunze paints - RLM 23 and RLM 04 respectively. Tamiya paints were used for weathering the exhaust stains, panle lines and shading.

Chris employed his usual method of post-shading the panel lines for the model. This method comprises airbrushing a very thin mix of brown and black along the panel lines. This is followed by a thin semi-gloss Black heavily thinned with water, applied directly to all panel lines using a 10/0 brush.

The back of the propeller blades were first painted silver, then Tamiya Black Green was sprayed from the base of the propeller blades, not quite to the tip. This represents the typical wear pattern seen on the back of Bf 109 metal propellers.

The paint chipping effect was entirely achieved with a silver artist's pencil. Even the heavy wear on the wing roots was applied by gradually building up tiny dots from the tip of the silver pencil.

The canopy frames were masked with Tamiya masking tape.

EagleCals' decal set EC#40 were used for this Bf 109. They performed flawlessly - even the spinner spiral!

Click on the thumbnails below to view larger images:

Model by Chris Wauchop
Images and Text Copyright © 2003 by Brett Green  
Page Created 08 June, 2003
Last Updated 17 March, 2004

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