1:48 Bf-109E-1/E-3/E-4/E-7 undercarriage wheel bay paint mask Hasegawa

Bf 109E-1/E-3/E-4/E-7 in 1:48 for the Hasegawa kit

The shaped templates fit the openings for the retracted wheels on the underside of the wing. This version is aimed at the Hasegawa kit; a sister set of the same name is prepared for a different plastic base, so watch which maker is given in the title.

The landing gear that gave the 109 trouble

On this type the main gear legs were attached directly to the fuselage and splayed outward at a marked angle. The wheel track came out narrow and the aircraft tended to swerve to one side on take-off and on landing; a considerable part of the losses arose outside combat in exactly this way. The advantage, on the other hand, was that the wing could be removed without having to lift the airframe. The wheels folded outward into the wing and the cutout for them stayed shallow, with no covering doors.

Painting the underside of the wing

Because the cutouts have no covering doors, their interior is clearly visible on a finished model and deserves a careful separation of tones. The proven sequence is simple: the inner shade first, then lay the pieces down once it has dried, and only then spray the outer surface. A thin coat holds the edge better than a single heavy one. Check the work against the light; small details show up sooner that way than under the clear coat.

Suitable for

• builders of the classic German fighters in the larger scale
• modelers bothered by a jagged boundary between two shades
• anyone working with the plastic from the Japanese maker named above
• collectors of aircraft from the fighting over England and the Channel