1/48 Fw 190D-9

[Falconxlvi]

I decided to build one of the classic Tamiya warbirds to start the new year- and so the Fw 190D-9 found it’s way to my workbench.  The kit has its inaccuracies, but it still builds up very nicely and easily.  I decided to use the MDC exterior resin set for the spinner and wheels, but found their replacement gun cowl didn’t fit (at all- it is too narrow), so this part was discarded.  

 

Work begins in’s in the cockpit and the only addition here is set of Eduard steel belts.  

 

 

 

The cockpit was painted with Tamiya Dark Gray acrylic and given a wash with oils and then some dust pigments.  

 

Before too long the model was assembled and it was time to paint.  Despite the models age, I barely used any filler at all!  Just a touch around the leading edge of the wing root was required.  I used Mission Models primer for the first time.  

 

 

Once I watched the Mission Models tutorial on how to use their primer, I was able to overcome my initial adhesion issues (you have to spray close and make sure you apply a generous wet coat).  The primer settles beautifully and unifies the surface as well as Mr Surfacer or Tamiya primers do.  

 

Edited March 9, 2019 by Falconxlvi

[Falconxlvi]

 Next, I applied some Alclad Aluminum around the forward fuselage (so I can chip the paint back to the aluminum later) and lower wing.  I am depicting a late war Dora flown by Josef Priller, and I have seen at least one interpretation of his aircraft that shows a natural metal lower wing.   

 

 

I sprayed white around the aft fuselage for the Defense of the Reich band (I had to go back and spray the accompanying black band later - doh!).  Next, I masked over the natural metal areas on the bottom side of the wing and sprayed the fuselage with Mission Models RAF Underside Sky to simulate late war RLM 76 (RLM 84?).   I sprayed various panels with a lightened mix to add some tonal variation.   The black basing helped as well.  

 

 

After:

 

 

 

Edited March 9, 2019 by Falconxlvi
Spelling

[Falconxlvi]

To add some interest, i masked and sprayed the ailerons and rudder with a more traditional tone of RLM 76 (straight from the bottle Mission Models RLM 76) and then added highlights with a lightened version to accentuate the rib details.  

 

 

 

The conplete lower surfaces:

 

[Falconxlvi]

Turning the model over, I decided on using RLM 81/82 for the topside camo of Priller’s machine.  First the topsides of the wings were sprayed in RLM 82.   Control surfaces were once again highlighted to bring out the rib detail.

 

I had an old set of Cutting Edge masks for the Tamiya Fw 190D-9 and so on it went:

 

And RLM 81 with highlighting followed:

 

Finally, the completed wings and tail planes:

 

 

 

 

Edited March 9, 2019 by Falconxlvi

[Falconxlvi]

Then it was time to move onto the upper fuselage camo.  The wing roots were dutifully masked off and I sprayed the upper RLM 81 freehand using my Tamiya HG III airbrush.  

 

 

 

 

I also conpleted the MDC resin propeller assembly, minus the spinner spiral decal.  It was cast slightly out of round, but I used it anyway as it is a significant improvement over the kit part.   

 

I love those wide paddle propellers! 

 

See you next time for some mottling fun and possibly national markings using vinyl masks.   🧐

Edited March 9, 2019 by Falconxlvi

[martin_sam_2000]

Looks great!  Love the nmf wings!!  Looking forward to seeing complete

[AlienFrogModeller]

Looking great!!

[CaptainObvious]

The paint looks good. I like what you are doing with the fabric areas.
-co

[Falconxlvi]

On 3/10/2019 at 6:40 AM, martin_sam_2000 said:

Looks great!  Love the nmf wings!!  Looking forward to seeing complete

Thanks - it’s a unique look and definitely something that attracted me to this particular bird.  

On 3/16/2019 at 6:28 AM, AlienFrogModeller said:

Looking great!!

Thanks sir - your hornets are coming along great 👍🏻

On 3/16/2019 at 11:41 AM, CaptainObvious said:

The paint looks good. I like what you are doing with the fabric areas.
-co

Thanks Capt!

 

3/17 Update

 

Mottling camouflage is not one of my strong areas.  However it was time to give it a go on the Fw 190D.  I thinned Mission Models paint at about a 3:1 ratio, paint to the thinner (which is very thin for MM paint) and adjusted my compressor to about 15 psi.  Then I applied random blotches of RLM 81 and 82 on the tail and rudder.   I retouched the rudder mottles multiple times before they met “good enough” criteria.  

 

 

I also added the RLM 82 patches on the fuselage ahead of the gun cowl and under the cockpit rails. 

 

Next, I unmasked and over-sprayed the Reichsverteidigung bands with RLM 81/82.  I inadvertently sprayed the RLM 82 too low on the white band per my references for Priller’s aircraft but I’m pressing ahead anyways.  

 

 

Everything was rubbed down with a 3000 grit sanding sponge to keep the paint finish uniform.  

 

Finally, I began weathering the wing roots and forward fuselage by scratching the topcoat with an Xacto knife back to the underlying aluminum paint.  I also supplemented this with a silver PrismaColor pencil.

 

Edited March 18, 2019 by Falconxlvi

[Falconxlvi]

Update 3/17 Part 2

 

Next, it was time to apply the national markings.  I normally like to paint the Balkenkruez on late war Luftwaffe models to avoid excessive decal carrier film which can be difficult to hide.   It’s a must on the natural metal undersurfaces of the wing IMHO.   I used my trusty TallyHo stencils and MMP Black and White.  

 

Unfortunately, I will be using a decal for the side markings as I don’t have time to paint the individual group, aircraft, and national markings (which are conveniently one decal on the Aeromaster sheet- saves a ton of time on alignment 😉).

 

Step 1- Masks applied.  It’s a bit more tedious than applying decals since the vinyl masks don’t exactly slide into position 🤨.  That, and you have one chance to get everything matched up correctly between wings halves and fuselage sides.  

 

 

 

Step 2 - spray!  Not too wet to avoid runs under the mask and to keep the surface fairly uniform.  

 

Step 3 - Carefully take the masks off and enjoy your handiwork 😜

 

 

 

 

Better than decals!

 

I also managed to prime and paint the Quickboost resin exhausts using MMP black primer and Tamiya XF-84 dark iron. The weld detail on the Quickboost exhausts is excellent and much better than the kit exhausts.  

 

 

 

The exhausts were subsequently dry brushed with Testors Jet Exhaust enamel (a slightly lighter shade), and will be further weathered with pigments and oils later.  

 

Other accomplishments today include:

- painting the boarding steps white (base color) 

- painting the gun barrels, DF loop, and pitot in metallic colors (Citadel Boltgun Metal)

- painting the exterior landing gear doors RLM 75. 

- painting the trim tabs red (after I took the pics below 😉)

 

Tomorrow I have to mask and paint the gear bays RLM 02, as well as the main struts and tailwheel assembly.  It would have been easier to do this first given the circular nature of the wheel wells 🤦🏼‍♂️😬.  

 

Here she as of this evening (note: the tail planes, cowl, radiator, and spinner assembly are all just press fit for now).  

 

 

 

More to come soon 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

 

Edited March 18, 2019 by Falconxlvi
Spelling

[AlienFrogModeller]

Sir, your progress is coming along very well! loving the finish, nice work on the mottle.

[Falconxlvi]

11 hours ago, AlienFrogModeller said:

Sir, your progress is coming along very well! loving the finish, nice work on the mottle.

Thank you sir!  I’m just glad there’s interest in a prop build on Jet...er, I mean Aircraft Resource Center 😜

 

Update 3/18

 

I painted the landing gear bay and fiddly bits today.  I used Citadel Boltgun Metal and Testors Chrome Silver to highlight some of the bolts and screws on the gear and wheels.  I also added a red paint stripe (slip indicator) on each wheel/tire combo.  I love the MMP Worn Black Gray Tire color.  It is spot on for worn rubber in my

book!   

 

I masked over the entire bay, burnished the tape, and then cut along the edges with a sharp new Xacto blade.  

 

The bay was sprayed RLM 02 with Gunze lacquer.  

 

And the fiddly bits:

Edited March 18, 2019 by Falconxlvi

[jester292]

Can’t believe I haven’t seen this until now. Great effect on the control surfaces! And I love to see the JG 26 markings. Looking good!

[Falconxlvi]

On 3/19/2019 at 8:40 PM, jester292 said:

Can’t believe I haven’t seen this until now. Great effect on the control surfaces! And I love to see the JG 26 markings. Looking good!

Thanks - I appreciate it.  

[Falconxlvi]

Update 3/24

 

Decal Time!

 

I used an old Aeromaster sheet I've had since at least 2007.  The decals performed flawlessly!

 

 

The exhaust "flare" decals are sized for the Tamiya kit, which made life a bit easier.  However, I still had to trim the starboard side exhaust decal around the supercharger intake to get a good fit.  There are no known photographs of the starboard side of Priller's Fw 190D, so it's a mystery as far as how the black accent actually looked.  As for the decal, perhaps you are supposed to apply it before fitting the supercharger intake?  Oh well.  

 

I painted the edges of the exhaust cutouts black to match the decals.  The painted black and the "decal black" will blend better once the decals and surrounding paint are glossed again in prep for a wash.  And if they don't, airbrushed exhaust stains will further mitigate the issue.

 

 

The side decals with the tactical number, Balkenkruez, and group markings had a ton of carrier film.  After applying the decal on each side, I poked holes in the carrier film with a sharp hobby knife and flooded the decal with Solvaset to prevent silvering.  Solvates makes the decal crinkle up for a minute or two and you have to trust the process and not freak out!  It looks bad!  I need to get some Mr Mark Softer or something that's a little less "hot" for next time.  Solvaset was overkill, but it worked.

 

 

I used a wet cotton swab while the decal was saturated with Solvaset and rolled the decal out from the center to get all of the air out and ensure the decal conformed to the various fuselage shapes (such as the raised hinge line on the port side radio access hatch).  As the decals dried, I removed the residual Solvaset by using additional wet cotton swabs.

 

The spinner spiral was a real pain because the aftermarket spinner I used is not the same shape as the (incorrect) kit spinner- and the Aeromaster decals are just perfect for the kit spinner.  Too make matters worse, my resin spinner was cast ever-so-slightly out of round.  I think the spiral decal came out ok, although there are a few flattened out "folds" to make it work.

 

 

Well, that's all for today.  I am sealing up everything with another few coats of Tamiya X-22 Gloss Clear and will let it set for a few days before everything gets an enamel wash.  

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Steve

 

Edited March 24, 2019 by Falconxlvi

[Falconxlvi]

Final update 3/28

 

I’ve done a ton of work over the last 48 hrs to nearly finish the build.   

 

The model was washed with Mig Productions excellent enamel washes - Deep Brown on top and Sky Grey on the bottom.  I ended up using some Tamiya Black wash on a few panels as well to really make them pop.   

 

 

Fiddly bits washed- it brings them to life!

 

Next the airframe was sealed up with a Tamiya XF-86/Gunze leveling thinner flat coat.  I subsequently added exhaust stains by slowly building up a heavily diluted XF-63/64 mix along the wing roots.  

 

 

I added some chipping along the wing leading edge by gently rolling a toothpick with a dab of chrome silver across it.  

 

The propeller was permanently attached.

 

And here is where we are!  1 more day to go until the show- I think I’m going to make it 😂

 

Edited March 29, 2019 by Falconxlvi

[Falconxlvi]

All done - final pictures located in the “Display Case” forum.