Here's my 1/32 Hsaegawa (mostly!) Fw-190D-9 from JV-44's "Wurger Staffel. This is Red 1 flown by Lt. Heinz Sachsenberg. For those not similar with this small unit, it was specially formed to provide airfield defence for Galland's Me-262's, vulnerable during t/o and landing (hey, you guys know the history!).
The kit itself is OK, but does have some issues. I replaced the cockpit, nose ring, upper engine/cannon cowling, prop blades, wheels with some excellent A/M parts. The most obvious issue is the kits very "booby" upper engine/gun cowling, giving the aeroplane very "DD" proportions. This had to go! The entire model was then "riveted" with the correct size "punch", I think sourced from Radu Brinzan. These "rivets" are the proper circle style, representing a proper flush rivet - not just a simple hole. I still have nightmares about this process and lengthened completing this build for five years. I built two other models whilst locked in the torture of this "riveting" experience! I'm sure it brought untold amounts of mirth amongst some fellow modellers! Anyway, this was my Everest and I had to keep climbing.
Having also spent a small fortune on books on the 190 over the years as well as on JV-44, with plenty of actual photos of this aeroplane, camouflage seemed pretty straight forward, or so I thought. Now, anyone who has modelled anything WW2 Luftwaffe knows that nothing is straightforward when it comes to this subject. I settled on the very well known and published two RLM late war greens 82 & 83 for the upper colours, red with white stripes underneath. Then, the famed Jerry Crandall having years earlier saying this aeroplane was the two greens upper in his first JV-44 Wurger Staffel book, released in his multi-volume series of books on the 190 a never before seen blurry colour photo of Red 1, with what appeared to be greys on the leading edge of the wing! Fan-effing-tastic! 5 years of work and the "legendary" Jerry Crandall now tells me he was wrong all along and Red 1 wings are in fact the two RLM greys (74 & 75)!
All this crap I guess is some explanation as to why I'm a little burnt out with doing Luftwaffe subjects! Civvy aerobatic and racers here I come! Hey Ray and Salty and Stu - it at least has your respective companies corporate colours underneath!
The message on the side of Sachsenberg's aeroplane reads "Sell my clothes, I'm going to Heaven!".
