1:48 Bf 109E-1/4

Two sub-versions under one designation

Writing two figures after the letter is no oversight. The dash-one sub-version had a pair of 7.9 millimeter machine guns in the wing, the dash-four carried twenty millimeter cannon instead, and a number of airframes went through conversion from one standard to the other at the units themselves. The difference is therefore only in a few parts and the kit respects that state of affairs by leaving the choice to the builder. The rest of the aircraft, that is the angular cockpit, the radiator fairing under the wing and the retractable tailwheel, stays common to both variants.

When the markings are painted over by a mechanic at the airfield

The original scheme of 1939 left the sides of the fuselage in a light blue-gray shade and a sharp edge separated them from above. Experience from the spring and summer of 1940 showed that a machine like that was visible from a distance over the Channel, and units therefore began spraying blotches of their own onto the sides of the fuselage. This was no factory job but improvisation with a sprayer at the airfield, so the density of the blotches and their shade differed from aircraft to aircraft. The cross on the side sometimes stayed untouched, at other times the edge of the overspray partly covered it and it had to be drawn in again. The modeler either does without this layer or repeats it literally.

Working with the set

The order of the steps is simple: first mask the cockpit, then spray the camouflage and only at the end the insignia through the sheet. The decals can be used on their own or as a supplement to what is created in paint. The vinyl film follows the slightly bulged shape of the cover without wrinkling, so the frame comes out sharp even in this scale.