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HELLER 1:72 MESSERSCHMITT BF-109 B-1/C-1
Reviewer: Kevin
Ronayne
(kevin.ronayne@nuigalway.ie)
Kit Review submitted:
14 November 2001
Like so many other aircraft, the Bf 109 was blooded in the Spanish Civil War, which was a most opportune 'proving ground' for the Germans, Italians and Soviets. In the Bf 109's long history, the early Bf 109's tend to be somewhat overlooked. One suspects that this is because they were 'only' fitted with two-blade propellers and Junkers Jumo engines. In fact, the Bertha and Clara were a huge success, and helped to develop both pilots and tactics in the long term, as well as helping to establish air superiority in the war itself. Before the introduction of production Bf 109 B's in the spring of 1937 (there was no 'A' version), the Heinkel 51 biplanes had struggled against the Soviet fighters on the Republican side. Alongside air show successes, the Bf 109's combat record in Spain helped establish the almost mythical reputation that the aircraft was to enjoy for several years. By the time of the Second World War, surviving Bf 109 B and C's had been relegated to training duties.
I don't think I was aware that this kit even existed until I came upon it about 5 years ago. Although I'm something of a 109 nut (I have about two dozen), I hadn't paid much attention to the early versions. Still, I bought a couple of this kit anyway - you rarely go wrong with a Heller kit. Heller have produced no fewer than five Bf 109 molds, with only the 'F' being sub-standard. Along with the Bf-109G mold, this is probably the best of them. Unfortunately, you will find it very difficult to obtain this kit at the present moment. It is not in Heller's current catalogue, nor is it reboxed by Smer. In fact, none of the Heller Bf 109's are being sold by Smer - the Smer Bf 109 G-6 is certainly not a Heller kit!
This is a very predictable kit from Heller, which is mostly good news. It is molded in light gray plastic with typical lightly raised detail. There are four main sprues, plus a 3-part canopy/windscreen set, giving 35 parts in total. Optional parts are included for two different propeller installations - both metal and wooden 2-blade units. Decals are provided for a Condor Legion B-1, and a German-based Luftwaffe C-1. The instructions are on a single A4 sheet, with just one (!) construction diagram, with an in-place painting guide. This is not a problem, as construction is very straightforward. The 2/3-way paint and decal guides are very small, especially for the splintered camouflage on the German aircraft. Time to get out the references! As usual, all painting instructions are given with Humbrol colours only. This is no problem, as the RLM references are pretty obvious. The decal sheet is small, but adequate.
This is generally a very accurate kit - at least to my eye. However, the box artwork does it's best to confuse matters. It shows a Condor aircraft with a metal VDM-Hamilton variable pitch propeller - easily identifiable because of the cropped and hollowed spinner, very similar to that of an Emil, for example. Since the kit identifies this subject as a B-1, then it should have the earlier wooden Schwarz fixed-pitch propeller, with a pointed spinner. The painting guide confirms this - the construction diagram shows the optional parts, but not which is to be used for which version! Of course, there is nothing to stop anyone building a B-2 Condor aircraft with the later propeller, or indeed a C-1 with 4 guns - provided you have the right markings (Note: the B-1 and B-2 references are retrospective - I am using them here for clarity). The propellers themselves are quite contrasting - the metal blades are shorter, and much narrower. As far as I can see from photographs, this is correct. The Schwarz spinner should have a small hollow at the tip, but that's not really a big problem in this scale.
As far as single-engined propeller fighters go this is a standard as it gets. The cockpit is well detailed, with sidewall detailing, a floor with pedals molded in place (if a bit basic), and a very nice control stick. The seat is a very crisply molded 'bucket', with no headrest - I think this is correct, judging by photographs. There is also a very good instrument panel, with the correct 'overhanging' effect seen on cockpit close-ups. The cockpit was painted mainly in Humbrol 78 cockpit green (as per the instructions), with appropriate black and silver detailing for the stick and instruments. I added some seatbelts, using very narrowly cut strips of masking tape. Hu 78 is widely quoted by Airfix and Heller kits for Luftwaffe interiors, as it is assumed to be a good match for RLM 02 gray/green. However, newer kits from Airfix and Smer have tended to favour the darker Hu 31 (slate grey). After some deliberation, I resolved to use Hu 31 from now on - including on the rest of this kit, wherever it was required! The fit of the cockpit parts was very good, which was true for the kit in general.
Before assembling the fuselage, I had to fit the propeller. I was building the Condor fighter, so I used the single-piece wooden unit. The metal propeller has 3 parts: blade unit, spinner front, and back plate. Presumably, this approach was taken to help display the extra detail which would be evident on the variable-pitch unit. Unusually, I had to straighten the retaining bolt into place, as it was somewhat out of line. Fitting the large (and detailed) radiator intake grille was a bit tricky, and the join to the fuselage parts required some sanding afterwards. The fuselage halves themselves aligned pefectly, which is always a relief. The small but accurate exhaust stubs were molded in place, but there was a separate part for a small intake just above and behind the starboard machine gun barrel. The kit clearly shows a cowling gun fit with the port gun slightly forward of the starboard gun - a couple of cowling exhaust slats are similarly staggered. I can't see this on any plates of the Bf 109 B or C, but that doesn't mean that Heller are wrong. The three-part windscreen/canopy looks very crisp, but caused a few minor fit problems - for example, there was a small gap between the main canopy and windscreen. The box artwork errs again in not showing a thin vertical strut on the main canopy section. The kit does have it, but it is indeed very thin and difficult to paint.
Adding the tailplane struts brought a sense of deja vu - the part numbers appear to have been reversed. This is a constant problem with Heller kits. With the other 'mirrored' parts (tailplanes, undercarriage struts and covers), it was very easy to see what was port and what was starboard, regardless of what the instructions might say. The main wings (single lower part) fitted beautifully. A small oil-cooler intake is molded onto the underside, just behind the port undercarriage - correct with regard to both size and position. The main wheel wells are devoid of detail, but the main undercarriage looks good. Each unit has a detailed main strut, scissors link, cover and wheel/tire part. I attached the struts to the wing first, to make it easier to get them in the correct position. The attachment pins have the correct 'pre-set' angle, but there is enough 'give' to require attention to make sure that the legs set at the correct side and head-on angle. Check your references again! The tires have no treading, but the wheel areas are very detailed. The wheel/strut covers are also detailed, but there are no attachment points to the main strut - you just have to 'wing' it (no pun intended, etc.). Most of the these assemblies were painted in Hu 31 (RLM 02), as were the wheel bays. The same was true of the tailwheel unit. The kit does not provide for a retracted undercarriage option - I suspect that throwing away the struts and sanding the wheels to halve their thickness would do the trick.
If you are building the C-1 version, then you need to open up the wing gun holes on the wing leading edges. Again, the construction guide doesn't say which version this needs to be done for! There is a curious 'slot' on the underside of the each wing, just behind the leading edge. The instructions suggest that these should be opened, but I would be reluctant to do this. Last to be added was the small underwing pitot tube, and the even smaller wing aileron balances.
Returning to accuracy, this kit comes out quite well in the dimension stakes. Wingspan scales out at 2-3 inches too short, at most. Length is maybe 2 inches too long - bear in mind that all quoted lengths are probably for the VDM-Hamilton aircraft, so I had to compensate for the longer spinner on the Schwarz propeller. Most plates show a small gap on the underside between the radiator rear and the fuselage. The kit has a slightly different, more blended profile - perhaps the plates are showing the flap slightly lowered. The artwork certainly show the flap lowered quite a bit, but the kit has this molded closed. You could open it up if you wanted. The radiator intake/fuselage profile doesn't look quite right when compared to plates, but the kit looks more accurate when compared to photographs. Overall, the accuracy is very good, with simulated fabric covering on the control surfaces, and panel lines, bumps and apertures generally where they should be. I am not aware of any exterior differences between the B-1 and C-1 versions due to the uprated engine in the C-1.
Both subjects have Hu 65 for the underside colour - RLM 65 for certain. The Luftwaffe subject uses a splinter pattern of Hu 91 and Hu 30 - a good match for RLM 70/RLM 71. For the Conder Legion aircraft, the upper surface is given as Hu 64 light gray. This is a very 'generic' shade, and is probably too light for the RLM 63 Hellgrau that it is supposed to represent. However I decided to take a different tack. Recent references suggest that RLM 63 is not the correct colour at all, at least for a Condor fighter. Due to the inadequacies of late-1930's black and white photography, what looked to be a light-to-middle gray was probably RLM 02! Heller are not to be blamed, as this revision is a very recent one, and by no means certain. I used Hu 31 again, after a considerable amount of thinning to correct the fact that the paint was beginning to dry out. It also had the benefit of giving a 'bleached effect' suitable for an aircraft having spent several months in the Spanish sun. Based on references, the wooden blades were also painted in Hu 31 - for the metal propeller blades, I would have used Hu 91 (RLM 70), regardless of what the instructions might say. The spinner and wingtips were painted white.
The decal sheet may be small, but the quality is very good. Unlike some other Heller decals, the register and general accuracy is excellent. The main wing roundels should be further outboard than is indicated on the instructions - the box artwork is more accurate in this respect. They may also be a bit small, although I would not be surprised if there was some variation in practice. I used my standard solution of Humbrol DecalCote 1 and 2, with MattCote afterwards. As usual, the rudder decals didn't fit quite properly, and I used some black and white paint to achieve a seamless effect. No swastikas are supplied for the Luftwaffe version.
Not all Heller kits are in the 'classic' category, but this one fits the label. I only wish I'd bought a few more at the time. A great little kit, and the only game in town as far as the B/C versions are concerned. One can only wonder at the stupidity of the executives who keep molds like this stashed away, as there should be a few in very Luftwaffe collection.
The Spanish Civil War Aircraft site of David Nash is an excellent starting point for this general area. The Codes and Markings page gives some information on the RLM 02/RLM 63 colour confusion.
Note: the following related reviews links have not been updated since early 2000's - more kit reviews of this aircraft may now be on SMAKR, not reflected below. Refer to the Index for other kits of this type.
Related Reviews:-
MPM 1/72 Me 109 G-12 (Ray Bull) : (Richard Stracey)
Revell 1/48 Bf 109G-10 (Ingemar Caisander) : (Paul Dawson)
Related INBOX Reviews:-
Italeri 1/72 Bf-109G-6 (Dave McDougall) : (John Lacey)
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