I'm building a 1/48 Tamiya Bf109E in the markings of Helmut Wick. I'm trying to get the fuselage mottling right but I'm not sure.
I've found quite a few pics and camo diagrams but they all vary, I've simply tried to get the overall look something like. The triangular "patches" just forward of the fuselage cross on each side are where the markings were changed on the original.
My reference pics disagree on the colour of the spinner, some show it yellow like the engine cowling, some show it dark green. If anyone knows which is right I'd appreciate any info.
Apart from adding some Eduard seat harnesses it is OOB. Any criticisms are welcome.

Hi Martin

Great to have you back with us!... So this is what you've been hiding!

Nice job - the German stippled / ragged camouflage schemes are some of the most difficult to model. As you say, the refs are are contradictory but, for what it's worth, I'd say you could go a bit tighter and denser still with the stippling.

(Sod's Law stepped in here; I thought "I'm bound to have a ref for this a/c"... but I seem to have pics of every Wick aircraft BUT this one...)

All the best

Rowan

Looking good Martin. Mine was the Hasegawa kit and I did it as per the kit instructions. On mine the spinner back plate is white and the spinner RLM 04 Gelb (Yellow) I had never seen any pics of this aircraft until long after I had done it. I don't have any references with pics in so I can only comment from memory, but your stipple looks pretty good to me. Apart from where it's close to the uppersurface camo, I would imagine it would be feathered in more. A bit like you have it at the front cover, but not quite so dense? Remember, though, I don't know this in fact.
Looking forward to seeing this done
Mal

That 109 looks absolutely wonderful now! The cockpit looks amazing! How did you get the mottling so small on the sides? And is there something wrong with the tail? It looks cut short. I have never seen one that way before.

Thanks for the comments guys.



I think you are right Rowan, I found a pic of Wick sat in the cockpit and the mottling is really dense in that area.



My mistake Mal. In one photo I have there seemed to be a slight gap in the stipping where it meets the top camo but after your comment I checked some more and the stippling does indeed blend in with the top camo. Thanks for the info on the spinner. I have found quite a few camo diagrams of this aircraft but they all show diferences in the detail. I would assume that changes were made to the camo as the battle progressed. In one instance I found two pics of the rudder. On one the mottling came half way down, in another it extended all the way down.




I airbrushed smudges of colour along the fuselage, then used an old paintbrush where the hairs were splayed out to stipple on the rest of the colour. It isn't as tight as I'd hoped but I will be touching up some areas so hopefuly it will look better. The tail looks small because when removing masking tape I snapped off the antenna bracket.
One day I will actually build something without any disasters..........one day.

The white spinner back plate might stem from the fact that before yellow cowlings became the norm I believe white was used as a quick recognition colour.


Well if my experience is anything to go by......no you wont. It's part of what makes modelling fun.........Isn't it?

Mal