Messerschmitt Bf 109E-7/Trop by ccoyle - Halinski/Kartonowy Arsenal - 1/33 - CARD - Werner Schröer's 'Black 8'

[ccoyle]

INTRODUCTION

Well, here I am -- unashamedly back in the land of "not ships," doubly accursed by the fact that my not-a-ship is also made out of card. 😮 The subject of this build log will be Halinski's Bf 109E-7/Trop (tropicalized), which is from their Kartonowy Arsenal series of 1/33 scale planes.

 

 

The kit depicts the mount of Staffelkapitän Werner Schröer of 8. Squadron of JG 27, flying in North Africa in the autumn of 1941. His aircraft was photographed in flight by the Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda..

 

Public domain, courtesy of Wikipedia

 

Schröer survived the war, surrendering to the British in Schleswig-Holstein on 5 May 1945, and passed away in 1985, aged 66. He is credited with 114 aerial victories, including 61 in North Africa. (Interesting historical side note: Some historians have noted that the Luftwaffe's tally of aerial victories in North Africa, though considerable, consisted to an astonishing degree of Allied fighters rather than Allied bombers. Though I'm sure that Allied fighter pilots may have preferred that Experten such as Schröer focused a bit more of their attention on the bombers, this somewhat puzzling tactical mistake allowed the Allied bombers to wreak havoc on German ground forces and supply lines, making a significant contribution to the eventual Allied victory in North Africa.)

 

You may dimly recall that I previously built Halinski's Bf 109E-4, so why am I building another Emil? Well, for several reasons. First and foremost, the Luftwaffe desert camouflage is just drop-dead gorgeous -- who can resist a leopard-print Emil? Certainly not me! Second, I was inspired by Mike's Henschel Hs 129 build. I just felt his Henschel needed an escort -- never mind the fact that the Emil had been replaced by the Bf 109F in Africa by the time the Hs 129 entered service. Oh, well. Third, I made a few mistakes on the E-4 build, and I'd kinda like to see if I can rectify those mistakes on what is admittedly little more than a re-boxing of the E-4 kit.

 

Lastly, and most importantly, my wife picked this kit. No, seriously! I had seven potential projects set out in a stack in my man cave when the missus paid an unexpected visit. She offered to give an opinion on which of the seven kits I should build next. I hadn't even finished laying out all seven kits when she pointed at the E-7 and said, "That one!" Well, okay then! I guess she likes leopard-print, too. If the wife expresses such a strong opinion on the matter, then it must surely be a sign! It doesn't hurt that I was leaning toward the E-7 anyway.

 

THE KIT

Okay, enough intro. Here's a look at the kit, starting with one of the parts pages. Again we have world-class graphics by Marcin Dworzecki,

 

A very nice feature of this kit is that it includes an optional second livery. If desert camo does not appeal to the modeler, the kit can be built as a non-tropicalized E-7 in Eastern Front colors. (Second interesting historical note: In addition to coping with the high pace of operations in North Africa, the devastating losses of numerous Experten, such as Hans-Joachim Marseille, and the usual stresses of combat, at least one historian has suggested that the morale in JG 27 was also adversely affected by the stories of huge victory tallies being racked up with seeming ease by German pilots fighting against the Russians.)

No, I will not buy a second copy and do a two-for-one build!!

 

We have Halinski's usual wealth of CAD-generated diagrams, among the very best in the business.

 

And finally, I have purchased (as is my habit these days) the available after-market frames, molded canopy, and exceptionally detailed resin wheels.

 

Look for first cuts soon!

[Keith Black]

 Lead on Chris "The Card" Coyle.  

[Canute]

I'm in, too, Chris

[Dave_E]

I’m in! 🍿🥤👍😀

[ccoyle]

The first bits of cockpit. Looks shockingly like an E-4 cockpit. (The reason for that is that the only significant difference between the E-4 and E-7 variants is that the latter was equipped to carry a drop tank, which roughly doubled the Emil's range.)

 

 

I have no idea where part 2d goes (it doesn't go on any of the white spaces you can see in the photo). It's a filler cap of some kind. It is not indicated on any of the diagrams, and I have been unable to locate it in any online resources. As a general note to anyone considering a Halinski kit, it really pays to work slowly, study the diagrams, and think about the sequence of parts to be installed. Once some things go in, it may be difficult to install things that come after. But sometimes the numerical sequence of the parts is not always the most sensible order to follow. Usually it is, but not always.

[Keith Black]

 Chris, it looks like 2D goes in the bottom center of the rudder controls part #4C

[Paul Le Wol]

Hi Chris, even though I enjoyed your beautiful Speeljacht build, I am glad that you are back in “not ships” land. Very nice introduction!

[ccoyle]

17 hours ago, Keith Black said:

it looks like 2D goes in the bottom center of the rudder controls

Good eye! What's really weird (other than the odd location of the part in the diagrams) is that there was a "cut out" symbol on the part that 2d gets glued to -- which in retrospect seems kind of pointless.

 

Anyways, here's the finished pedals and duct work. This stuff will largely be invisible on the finished model.

 

And here's why it will be largely invisible.

 

One new option in the E-7 kit compared to the older E-4 is the option for glazed instruments, which I have included for this model.

[Keith Black]

3 hours ago, ccoyle said:

Good eye!

 Not so much having a good eye but more due to the fact that we own a iMac27 and I can enlarge photos to a ridicules level. 

[ccoyle]

Cockpit seat added. Believe it or not, some masochists actually replace the paper strap buckles with wire. I am not a masochist. 😑

 

 

[ccoyle]

And just like that, the inner cockpit details are completed. Next I will add the remaining cockpit framing and move on to the inner cockpit skins, where all the wall-mounted goodies go.

 

 

[ccoyle]

Cockpit framing is done.

  

 

[ccoyle]

Going forward, my progress may be more than the usual intermittent. I have a large collection of family photos I've been meaning to archive for years, and the necessary supplies arrived at the house today. I have to get this done before I die, because no one else in the family knows who most of the people in the photos are. 😮