Scale Aviation Modeller International — February 2018

are used. Also, before you close

up the wings you need to decide

if your model is going to have

the underwing 20 mm cannons

or the centreline fuel tanks, and

open up the appropriate holes.

The Bf109 undercarriage

has a very splayed appearance,

and Tamiya has reproduced

this perfectly with some clever

engineering, so it is all but

impossible to

get it wrong. The

tyres and wheel

hubs are supplied

as separate parts,

which is a feature I really like, as

it makes painting so much easier.

It is at this point, with all the

major construction completed,

that the instructions diverge:

you have to assemble a number of

alternative assemblies that can

be swopped as required to change

the appearance of your model.

The way the model assembles

means that a number of sections

need to be removed to change

the cowlings, so many parts have

ply cap or metal washers hidden

inside to enable this to happen.

Basically, on the completed

model you remove the propeller,

followed by the front section of

your model. Then come the open

or closed upper nose cowlings,

and the dropped or closed lower

nose radiator doors. Finally,

you detach the section in front

of the cockpit, including the

windshield and instrument panel.

Assembly reverses this process,

but with one addition: if you are

opening up the engine bay, you have

a section that clips into place on

the upper engine moulding. This

part contains the forward fuselage,

engine bearers, and radiator tanks.

Of course, if you are going

to display your model only as

open or closed, you do not need

to assemble the parts that are

not going to be seen, and can

permanently glue everything into

place. I was pleased to find that,

though this process could be a

nightmare, the engineering is so

clever that everything clips into

place perfectly. With all the panels

closed up, it’s actually hard to tell

the difference between an engraved

panel line and an opening part.

You also have the option of

fitting either a tropical filter or

the normal air intake on the port

cowling in this area. Two of each

Profile by Darren Prior

40 • FEBRUARY 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

038-41-QB-Bf109G-0218.indd 40 12/01/2018 11:58