1:48 Messerschmitt Bf-108B seatbelts STEEL

Photo-etched Bf-108B seat harness straps in 1:48 scale

This item is not a model of an aircraft but an accessory photo-etched set, the seat harness straps for the Messerschmitt Bf-108B in 1:48 scale. It is made by Eduard, a Czech maker from Obrnice near Most, whose photo-etching is among the most widespread accessories of its kind. The word STEEL in the name points to the material: steel photo-etching is springier than brass and in a small scale a strap looks more believable, because it keeps the shape you bend it into.

The real subject

The Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun was a German all-metal four-seat low-wing monoplane of the 1930s with retractable landing gear and automatic slats on the leading edge of the wing. It came about as a sports and touring machine, it succeeded in competition flights, and a number of its design solutions appeared later on the Bf 109 fighter. The B version was the most widespread production variant; it was powered by an air-cooled inverted V8 Argus engine. During the Second World War the Taifuns served mainly as liaison, courier and staff aircraft, and several machines reached foreign operators as well.

What to watch out for

• Separate the parts on a hard surface with a sharp knife or with scissors for photo-etching, not by twisting.
• The bends come out more accurately with a bender, or between two straight blades.
• The straps look more natural when you let them sag slightly; perfectly flat faces look stiff.
• Get the small parts ready over a box or a cloth, because they like to jump out of tweezers.

Who the set is for

• Modelers who want to carry a cockpit in 1:48 scale through to the detail.
• Builders with experience of working with photo-etched parts.
• Anyone interested in German interwar and wartime aviation.