1:32 Bf 109K-4

The New Year attack on the airfields

The last Bf 109s came into greater action right at the beginning of 1945, when the units tried to break up the Allied airfields in the Netherlands and Belgium with a single strike. They came in low to escape the radars, and some of the formations were shot down by their own anti-aircraft defense, which had not been told about the operation. On this type the recognition features often catch modelers out: the bulges over the wheels lie elsewhere than on the previous version, the tailwheel retracts and the filler cap is moved. Anyone building straight from the box should check those three details before starting to glue the fuselage.

What is in the bag

In the package there is a pair of masks for the clear part from both sides, three films for the national insignia and two metal machine gun barrel parts.

Metal takes reworking, plastic does not

It sometimes happens that after fitting, the barrel projects a little further than it should, because the kit has the bulge of the cowling shaped its own way. On an injected part such a repair is risky, because by shortening it you get into a place with a thinner wall and the part cracks or frays. A metal barrel you shorten with a fine file in peace: clamp it in a wooden block with a drilled hole so that it is not crushed, take material off in tenths and finally true the rim of the muzzle with a few strokes on a flat file. The bore stays open, because it runs deeper into the part than the amount you take off. Burrs at the edge are removed by a single turn of a thicker drill between your fingers; no extra tool is needed for that.