Messerschmitt Me 262B-1a

by Rafi Ben-Shahar

HyperScale is proudly sponsored by Squadron.com

Here is the 1/48 scale Me-262B-1a/U1 from Dragon/DML.

This is perhaps the toughest model that I have ever built. However, after practising with two single seater Me-262A's, I finally managed to avoid the fit problems at the wing root without much hassle. 

There is a lot of reference material about Red 8 and 10 on HyperScale, so I will not go about the construction and painting details. 

I photographed Red 8, currently displayed in Johannesburg. In my opinion, the colour reconstrcution of the fuselage sides does not match the photographs of the original scheme. Light applications of RLM 81over RLM 76 yield greenish blue hues and not brown green. The spots of the original were also much coarser and larger than the reconstruction. The reference photographs also suggest that the application of top camouflage was RLM 76 over RLM 75 and not vice versa. In all, the interpretation of colours is one of the fun parts in modelling. 

It appears that Red 10 had 4 cannon mounted in the nose and not 2 as indicated in the instruction sheet and some references. 

I used some Verlinden parts to enhance the detail of the already highly detailed model. At some stage, I will change the wheels back to the original vinyl material supplied in the kit. (After 25 years, the vinyl tires of my 1/24 Airfix Spitfire has not eaten much of the plastic hubs. I would not bother to replace them with aftermarket tires.)