Hi all!

I need some help!

I have to do a Luftwaffe Diorama to test a new product wich will be (hopefully) available in the next couple of month. These items are only a small sample of a much wider range of WW2 aircraft diorama accessories. You can see them in the bottom left corner of the picture below.



I want to make a little scene but I have a problem: I just can't choose between the following two kits, wich one I should build!?



Me 309 or Fw 190 S? Prototype fighter or biplace trainer? I need your opinion: what model would you choose? Of course, we will have to find the appropriate scene to go with it.

I need your comments and your ideas!

Jean-Luc

Hi Jean-Luc,

I am not much for trainers, so my vote is for the 309. A nice airfield with a test pilot arriving in his car...

I second that emotion....309!

i would go with the 309 jean-luc, although if you are having a base with your diorama on you could always put the focke wulf in place of the 309 later and get the best of both worlds

Hi Jean Luc!
I would go along the same lines as Phils thinking, a generic base that you can use both planes on.
As for a diorama scene,,I think you ought to incorporate at least 2 of your Kettenkrads :-)
Nige

309 for definite. Just because it looks cool .
Andy

Hi all!

Thanks guys!
So far it's 4-0 for the Me 309! Nobody wants to see a Fw 190 trainer

Jean-Luc

Hi Jean-Luc

I would vote for the trainer instead of the project .... I am 150 kg+ do I count for 2??? :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)

cheers

Steffen

Jean-Luc......maybe you could work them both into the diorama?
Maybe like the rookie is learning to fly to later fly the 309?
Another one of those what if ideas...pretend its late 1945?

For sure the 309

Hi all!

So if I count two votes for Steffen (are you really 150+ :-) ), that would still make 5-2 for the Me 309. I don't count those who say I should build both. Sorry Jan, but I can't place two models on the diorama as the base I was given (3 pieces of wood planking) will give me just enough surface for one plane...

Do someone know good pictures of the 309... and the Fw 190 S (just in case ).

Jean-Luc

Sad but true, and it is unequally distributed on 194cm height ....



the pic is not very good to me, but I was taken by surprise .... I don't like being photographed.

And now for something complete different: pictures of nicer subjects.

There is a short paragraph about the Fw 190 S-5, S-8 in Peter Rodeikes "Focke Wulf Jagdflugzeug Fw 190 A, Fw 190 D, Ta 152" which alse has some nice pix (I would recommend this book to everyone interested in Luftwaffe fighters)

I have seen some pictures of the Me 309, but they are randomly distributed through my books and mags ... sorry

best wishes

Steffen

Hi all!

So the Me 309 it will be!
I already started to "clean" the resin parts and must say the Czech Master kit produced a lot of junk!



I made some researches to find some ideas and came across these two pictures in the net:



The first one is a well known picture of the prototype in it's ealy stage. The second one is a picture of the same plane wich seems to have been abandoned somewhere in a corner of an airfield. Guess what? I'll depict the Me 309 in the second state! :-)
My diorama will be called something like "the fall of a prototype". Two guys (Luftwaffe pilots?), accompanied by a technician, will take a look at the damaged Me 309 and wonder why it wasn't succesfull. I think rather than add a Kettenkraftrad or a starter cart, a VW Käfer or a Kubelwagen are more appropriate. The pilots would have been driven to the plane's location by the civilian. What vehicle schould I take? Kubelwagen or Käfer?

Jean-Luc

Hi all!

I made little progress... but it's better than nothing!

I glued the resin wheel bay inserts and it worked fine with some sanding...



I also painted the basic colors for the cockpit interior and the wheel bays. Next I will dry brush, wash and weather these areas.



The question is still open: VW Käfer or Kubelwagen? (see previous post)

Jean-Luc

The VW Käfer gets my vote. You said the pilots would be driven to the site by a civilian ? Can't wait to see the dio sounds like a great idea.

Hi Chuck!

Thanks! This makes a 100% vote for the VW! :-)
Now I just have to choose a color for it



I made some progress with the Me 309 and finished the interior (cockpit and forward wheel bay). The two fuselage halves have been glued together and so far the build is pretty straightforward. But I think glueing the wings will be another story as there are no locator whatsoever.

Ooops! Just forgot to add some weight in the nose! Must go back to the workbench...

Jean-Luc

Color choice for VW = DunkelGrau Hope it's a split window

DunkelGrau not because it's a great looking color, but because it seems alot of the early one were that color or black.

Hi Chuck!

Thanks for the info about the color. I looked at the instructions of the Tamiya kit and it is written that indeed the car were painted German Grey untill 1943. This goes well with the Me 309 prototype! So Grey it will be...
I managed to break the fuselage apart and placed a 20 gr lead weight. I hope it's enough!

Jean-Luc

:-) Weight calculation is always a problem - remember you can always "cheat" and glue the nose wheel down

Hi Jean-Luc and Chuck


i would say black. I was told that all "civil" Type 82E were delivered in flat black. Do not mix the prewar type 60 with the type 82E that has the "Kübelwagen" chassis and thus sits higher on its wheels (you could of course lower it, but I would then recomment to use other wheels .. maybe from the Citroën)

best wishes

Steffen

Hi all!

Steffen, thanks for the additional info. I'm not sure anymore to paint my VW grey now... thanks! :-)

I made some progress on the diorama. While the wings to fuselage joints of the Me 309 were drying I started to build the base. I used some new products (not yet on the market) by a French manufacturer called Mark58: three wooden bases and three wooden fences. I placed them on a simple cardboard base with "Jack", my dummy plane, to figure out an appropriate layout. Then I replaced the cardboard by Styrofoam. I like this medium because it is easy to work with and you can achieve good results in short time.



Below is the current status of the project. I think it gives an overall idea of the scene now.





As you can see there is still a lot to do so any comment or idea is welcome.

Jean-Luc

Salut Jean-Luc,

you haven't told us how you attached the wings - no locators..?

Hi Jean-Luc

why not paint it "sandgelb" and add the Luftwaffe markings from the kit?

assuming you'll make a grassy base and dk grey concrete it would be a colour spot in you little table top

best wishes

Steffen

Hi all!




Neil, I used the simple method of attaching them directly without locators using plastic cement. I test fitted the wings first and found the dihedral to be ok. Then I put glue on the fuselage (Karmann) and the wings. I waited a couple of minutes for the glue to "eat" the styrene and then assembled the parts. Of course I worked one wing after the other and positionned them vertically while the glue dried.




Steffen, I think I'll do that! You are right by saying it will add a little colour spot! If it doesn't look good at the end, I can still buy another "Käfer" and replace it!
By the way, the base isn't concrete but wood planking.

Here is the current state of the Me 309 build:





I sanded the model smooth and rescribed the panel lines were they disapeared. Then I sprayed a coat of Humbrol Metal cote. The wings to fuselage joints are looking ok in my opinion. Tomorrow I will buff the paint a little and start the camouflage painting.



While the paint was drying on the model, I worked on the base. I sanded the foam first and then applied sand over white glue. I'll see tomorrow if I need to add a second layer...

Jean-Luc

Looking great Jean-Luc!