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Tamiya 1/48 Bf109E-3


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Building my first German WWII plane. I know this kit is old but does anyone know where I can locate a build review for this kit? Is the cockpit color not RLM02? I have seen pictures of completed builds and some cockpits are RLM02 and some are RLM66. I thought the early Messy's has RLM02 cockpit.

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Building my first German WWII plane. I know this kit is old but does anyone know where I can locate a build review for this kit? Is the cockpit color not RLM02? I have seen pictures of completed builds and some cockpits are RLM02 and some are RLM66. I thought the early Messy's has RLM02 cockpit.

Run searchs on Hyperscale and Modeling Madness, plenty of them there.

Cockpit colors go with RLM 02 and a RLM 66 instrument panel. There were Emil's with mixed RLM 66/02 pits and a few built with with RLM 66 pits but for the most part you can't go wrong with what I mentioned.

Only thing you'll need to watch for is the support struts for the tailplanes, their a tad short and if you use them to align the stabs you'll get a downward angle, use this for a guide

165459555.jpg

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Mesher, I'm building this kit right now. It goes together very easily. The kit decals leave a bit to be desired but with a little care they will work ok.

It is? Mid-1990s doesn't seem "old" to me. That was more like the day before yesterday.

:)

J

PS: I probably don't want to know what year you were born

Get off my lawn! :wasntme:

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I am concerned with the kit decals also as Tamiya are on the thick side but they are also 10+ years old. If the tailplane struts are to short, how do I go about fixing them as if I glue the tailplanes on level, then the struts won't reach or am I missing something here?

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Kit decals should be fine...even if a bit on the thick side. A little Solvaset will settle them down into place quite easily, or MicroSol/Set for that matter. The struts are not too short for this kit and I'd guess you might be trying to glue them to the jacking holes along the 7th & 8th panel line instead of the locating holes for the struts. Check again carefully, as these are not made too short.

Regards,

Greg

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GGoheen, I have not got to the part in the build yet where I attach the struts, I was just going by the remark "crazydon" made stating they were to short. Good to know they are okay, thanks. The other question I have is what Bf109 (or did all of them) have the seem down the spine of the aircraft?

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Just glue the elevators and make them perpendicular to the rudder before adding the struts. I do remember them being a tad short.

Here is mine for giggles. Kit decals. This is just a fun and straightforward build.

IMG_3164.jpg

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Yes they have the seam on the spine, from the canopy to the tail, and underneath as well. If you are worried about the thickness of the Tamiya decals, then use Tamiya's proprietary decal setting solution. It works wonders on their decals, go figure, and other Japanese sourced decals too.

Whoa, this is the first time I've heard of Tamiya setting solution. Link?

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GGoheen, I have not got to the part in the build yet where I attach the struts, I was just going by the remark "crazydon" made stating they were to short. Good to know they are okay, thanks. The other question I have is what Bf109 (or did all of them) have the seem down the spine of the aircraft?

I think Don might be referring to 1/72 scale Tamiya Bf 109E's, as this truly is not a problem whatsoever on their 1/48 offerings. As far as I know, all Bf 109's had the seam down the spine.

Best regards,

Greg

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Don't waste your money on Tamiya brand setting solution. All "sol" type stuff is the same thing - it's all a weak solution of acetic acid. Tamiya's doesn't work any better than Micro Sol or Solvaset.

J

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Here is the link

http://www.tamiya.com/english/products/871...k_fit/index.htm

And yes it does work better on Tamiya decals, I find it too strong for anything other than Japanese decals.

Ron

Interesting. I couldn't find it on the Tamiya USA site. I've used the Mr Mark Softer and Mr Mark Setter and it definitely is differently formulated than the Microsol stuff. I use both depending on need.

Try not to take it personally. I've only been in the decal biz for, let's see... 21 years now. It's all acetic acid. That's it.

J

Microsol Set definitely smells like Vinegar. How about the Sol? What is that stuff?

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