Messerschmitt 
Bf 109G-10

by Stéphane Wrobel

Hasegawa's 1/48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109G-10 is available online from Squadron.com

This is the Hasegawa 1/48 Messerschmitt B f109G-10. Most of the " 109 lovers " know what is nice and what's wrong on this kit. 

The biggest change has been the addition of the Adeco cockpit set and some scratchbuilt details.

This kit is very nice, maybe even nicer than the earlier Hasegawa Bf 109K-4. The engraved detail is very well done. A minimum of putty is required, mostly on the lower surface, between the wing and the fuselage. 

Adeco's cockpit is a jewel, very easy to built in and the instruction sheet gives you all the painting details which is pleasing considering many resin manufacturer often forget to do so.

Most of my scratchbuilding efforts were expended on the wheel well, which needs to be redesigned ; and around the rear cockpit plate which is terribly undetailed. The battery box behind the pilot's seat comes from the original co-axial MG151/20 cover box provided by Hasegawa. Adeco replace it in their set.

As usual, I've added brake lines to the landing gear, using two diameter of wire like on the real aircraft. I used Ultracast exhaust pipes which are marvelous. The propeller blades and the external fuel tank rack come from the Fujimi K4 kit (this one will be used in the spare parts box). Fujimi supplied he rudder too, as I've trashed the original one when I wanted to cut it from the tail.

Click the thumbnails below to see larger construction pictures:

Antenna wires were made from streched sprue and the Morane antenna was replaced by a thinner one in plastic. By the way, you should use very strong glue for the Morane antenna and the ailerons' couterbalance weight. I spent a lot of time on my knees looking for them on the ground of my " office ".

First, the whole model was preshaded in black. By the time I started to paint, I had a lot of airbrush compressor problems. I am cursed with a frequently faulty compressor ! I had to repaint this model completely twice. It's certainly the most painful paint job I've ever done.

The camouflage paints come from Gunze range. Specifically, they are RLM76 for the underside and RLM75 and RLM83 for the upper surfaces. Note that this aircraft has a wooden tall tail which was painted before the final assembly of the plane by the subcontractor. It is therefore common to see some variations in shade and pattern.

I wanted to depict an Italian G10, an aircraft from the ANR. My main reference was the marvelous book from F. D'Amico and Valentini on the Italian Bf109. At the end of this book there is a list of available aircraft with the type and the werknummer (serial number) and the aircraft code. I had several choice but most of Italian G10 are known as G10/AS, ie without under cowling bulges and with a square extension panel on the left side, rather than a curved one.

I asked Ferdinando D'Amico whether a picture of this aircraft had ever been available and he told me that none have been found yet. I have therefore completed my scheme based on what I guessed it should have been.

The decals come mostly from the Aeromaster decal sheet 48-007, an old decal sheet dedicated to Italian 109 (with some errors inside as some data in this domain braught new informations) and for the aircraft code (1-5). I used the Sky Models decal sheet dedicated to Italian 109 too for the " 1-" and a " 5 " number coming from a sheet dedicated to the Regianne Re2000/2001 fighter.

Following decal applications, the model was sprayed with a coat of Aeromaster flat coat followed by a pure coat of gloss coat which gives a slightly satin finish to the model.

Ferdinando made some more comments when the model was finished, and I guess I should have asked him more before starting the painting and markings ! Here are some comment which you can use if ever you want to make such an aircraft. The Asso di Bastoni insigna wasn't painted on the right nose side. If ever I feel courageous enough, one day I'll remove it. On late war Bf109G10 and K4, the underside crosses were certainlly rather completely black rather than black and white. Last but not the least, the ANR fasces may had more stencil breaks on the square by the end of the war, ie two in each corner rather than the sole break on each side.

For a long time I wanted to build a late war Italian Bf109 and this project was a good opportunity to do so. I know that this model is not 100% perfect but the result is to me quite nice and it was a good test  bed for several techniques. More Italian 109 are to come, including an F4, a G2, a G6/R6, a G6/U2, a G14, a G14/AS and a K4. As you can see, I'm quite busy for several months, considering that among those there are some Finnish project and other Italian aircrafts such as a Macchi 205 that I have already started!

Be aware that if you wish to build an ANR 109, you should dive into document research. It's a pity that only German 109 are very well covered. Books such as the D'Amico / Valentini books should be published more often.

I want to personnaly thanks Vincent Kermorgant for his great knowledge of the aircraft and Ferdinando D'Amico for his great knowledge of the Italian Bf109. Both have provided the most interesting information concerning the aircraft itself and the paint scheme.

Click the thumbnails below to view the images full-sized.
Use your browser's back arrow to return to this page.

Model, Images and Text Copyright © 2001 by Stéphane Wrobel
Page Created 19 June, 2001
Last Updated 04 June, 2007

Back to HyperScale Main Page

Back to Features Index