1:32 Fw 190F-8

Operations low over the ground

The ground-attack F-8s came off the lines at a time when ground was being given up on every front, and their pilots flew mainly at dusk and at night. Special units for night harassment flying were formed for them, replacing obsolete biplanes and light trainers. Small racks for a series of small bombs appeared under the wing and one large one under the fuselage, and some of the machines received rocket armament for attacks on armored vehicles. On these aircraft the cockpit canopy tends to be the sliding one in the late form with a better view to the rear, which matters for masking the glazing.

What is inside

In the bag there is a pair of masks cut for the clear part from both of its sides, a pair of films for the national insignia and two turned barrels for the machine guns above the engine.

How to replace the injected part

The procedure is simpler than it looks. The original barrel is cut off as close to the bulge of the engine cowling as possible, ideally with a razor saw with fine teeth, so that the surrounding surface does not tear. The stub is leveled flush and a hole matching the thinner rear part of the metal component is drilled in the middle. The drilling should be done dry and slowly, because warmed plastic stretches and the hole then comes out larger. The metal barrel is fitted dry, checked from the front and from above to see whether it sits on the axis of the fuselage, and only then secured with a drop of glue. Any remaining play is reliably filled by thicker cyanoacrylate, which, unlike the thin form, can be dosed precisely.