HE-219 Uhu "Owl-Eagle" 1970s rebuild

Littlebro and I have embarked on missions to restore old models built in the days of 19 cent Testors paints, squeeze tubes of messy cement, little patience and undeveloped skills, not to mention little if any money.  Now we grown up (boys) are revisiting these archives of plastic.  A comment on Facebook by Raymond Carl, a volunteer restorer at a local museum, is that he feels sometimes restoration is more difficult that building a new kit!  Personally I have done a couple of fairly straightforward updates of a Douglass Dauntless and a OS2U Kingfisher, both 1/72 scale as is the titled HE-219.

Cleaning, some disassembling, additions of missing pieces (from scratch), removal and replacement of old yellowed decals, when replacements can be obtained, and some challenging repainting, all go into the refurbishing.  In the case of the He-219 an entirely new look resulted from online research.  Additional detail and description of various processes can be found on the Wings of Glory Aerodrome website.

WAIT, WHAT!  How did that get there?  I believe Flash thought that there may be an impending attack!

Why The Atom Furnace?

So, my brother (littlebro) has named this blog The Atom Furnace.  For those familiar with the Flash Gordon serials of the 1930's you may recognize the line "To the Wall Men" which was our hero, Flash directing the slaves feeding the Atom Furnace to a protective half wall as he tossed his "wired" shovel into the furnace!  The catastrophic result was the destruction of the Rays holding up the suspended city of the Hawkmen! 

 Of course, Dr. Zarkov immediately discovers a technically inexplainable "New Ray" that saves the city!

Okay Flash Fans here are few more "Flashback" photos...

"This is  Emperor Ming calling bomber B1.  Destroy Zarkov's rocket ship!"

"Flash, is that a rocket ship I hear?"

"Captain Torch I thought I told you to destroy the Rocket ship!"

But Sire, I have captured all of the Earth people and brought them to you for your pleasure!

"Excellent!"

Of course our Hero, faces many threats to overcome, such as the deadly Octosac...

...and many Ming devices of death, but my favorite villain turned ally is the ever jolly King 
Vultan of the Hawkmen.

Our Hero's naturally escaped the evil clutches of Ming time and time again.

Leaving Mongo in the hands of the rightful ruler, Prince Barin....

....Our hero's leave Mongo for the return to earth.

Keep saving us Flash and let us all never run out of Radium!!

Just so you don't think this post has nothing about modeling what follows is a Resin kit you can obtain from Fantastic Plastics.

For fans of the 1930s serials it is obvious that this model is not from the initial 1936 "Flash Gordon (Space Soldiers) as Dr. Zarkov's rocket ship (of his own design) did not have a nose cannon.  This "improvement" came later and it's a good thing too since Flash has to fight off the Bombers of Emperor Ming.  In the 1938 serials sequel Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars,  the gang returns to earth in a Ming Bomber only to have to head out to Mars to fight Queen Azura and Ming (who miraculously survivded the end of the first serial) in that same bomber.  A goof in the first episode shows the bomber in it's flight to Mars being being shot down with a Ray cannon of Mars, but just prior when Zarkov asks Flash to "add more rockers" we see a brief cut of the original Zarkov ship before the scene shifts back to the Ming bomber - an obvious editing budget move!  The nose cannon finally shows up in the third serial "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe".

Here are most of the kit components.  Not a lot so assembly can go quickly.  Of course that is if there is no customization!!

One of my tasks was to add pins to the doors so that they could open and close.

I also acquired figures that I could convert into Flash, Dale and Zarkoz.  Due to the figures constraints, I had to work with my costumes to assume the personas from both the first two serials.

 Here is the crew at the control console on the Rocket "Bridge".

Now the bridge deck with the crew is installed in the nose.  The view screen has been added to the console and you will notice the wire to the right.....

.....which is for the LEDs that were obtained from Evan's Designs.

The LEDs are also for the power generator and the technically unexplainable Greeblies added (from sprue of other model kits).

Now I could put the whole thing together.  I had to drill holes to allow the wiring to exit the ship and be glued to  the bottom fin.  Now it was time to mask and spray on Testors Metalizer!!

Metalizer is perfect for the Rocket Ship because you buff it with a soft cloth in accordance with product description to get that Stainless Steel finish.  So let's light it up!

Perhaps we have landed on the Arboreal Mongo?

Today's Bench 05/28/2020: ME 410 interior

It always starts with the interior, before it starts looking like an airplane. Mr. Color RLM 66 interior and flat black instrument faces.

Once that's dry, RLM 66 touchups, instrument faces, and appropriate flecks of color on controls. Going to need some drybrush highlights in this otherwise uniformly dark interior.

Add a bit of strategic color:

Ever test fit and discover you've installed something incorrectly? Me too. Test fit early and often.

A little white on the instrument faces

With the fuselage closed, I can see what needs to be touched up before glazing.

Today's Bench: 05/27/2020 - Monogram ME-410 B-1

Here's a kit out of my backlog almost untouched. A much-lamented aircraft, only marginally better than it's much lamented sibling the ME-210, but one I've always liked the look of, so I bought it years ago to build "when I had time." Is this the time?

Tell me box art doesn't help sell models ;-)

There's a lot to it, and some nice detail. Later Monogram made some nice kits.

Stay tuned to see where we go with this!

Sneak Preview - Painting US Airborne in Miniature: 1942-1945

What follows is the introduction to an article I am preparing, and may preview in part or whole here, before I release it in toto. If you're following along, your feedback is welcome.

Painting U.S Airborne Miniatures, 1942-1945

A Guide for miniatures in all scales.

I.       Purpose

I have seen the question “what color should I paint my...” appear many times online in modeling and gaming groups.  My purpose is to provide a painter/modeler with the background to make their own choices in creating something that is correct for their shelf or tabletop. Well intentioned people with great research skills and personal knowledge will argue passionately about what is historically appropriate (without reaching agreement). At the end of the day, you and your friends will be the judge of what is accurate for your gaming/modeling universe. I hope this proves useful in providing historical and technical background that allows you to make the choices that satisfy your modeling/gaming needs.

II.     Introduction & History

The United States’ experimentation with Airborne combat began officially on 25 June, 1940, as the French were signing the instrument of surrender in a rail car in Compiegne. On that day, the Commandant at Fort Benning, GA received classified orders from the Adjutant General in Washington. He was to provide from the 29^th Infantry Regiment stationed at Fort Benning, a platoon of volunteers. From this Test Platoon, the story of the US Airborne begins. By September of that year, the 501^st Parachute Battalion was formed. By June 5^th, 1944, U.S. Airborne forces had expanded to five full Airborne Divisions.

III.  PIR: Regiments, Timelines and Variations

Over the course of 4 years, the US Airborne went through many TO&E changes. Regiments added and removed, basic uniforms and equipment updated. This occurred at different times for different regiments, and does not include significant individual differences between units. There is never a single answer to “what did they wear”; it is always affected by what regiment (and in some cases, battalion), when and where. The lists below reflect the typical organization in theater, with exceptions as noted. The specifics of each uniform variant are discussed in section IV.

Type	Rgt/ Btn	Division	Activated	Campaigns / Battles	Basic Uniform	Notes
Parachute	501	101st Airborne Division	11/42	OVERLORD France, MARKET-GARDEN Holland, Belgium, Germany	6/44 - 8/44 M42 (Reinforced); 9/44-5/45 M43 (rigger modified)	Reinforced Knees, elbows, pockets in OD #7. Flag brassard on right shoulder through MARKET-GARDEN. Regt symbols on helmets
Parachute	502	101st Airborne Division	3/42	OVERLORD France, MARKET-GARDEN Holland, Belgium, Germany	6/44 - 8/44 M42 (Reinforced); 9/44-5/45 M43 (rigger modified)	Reinforced Knees, elbows, pockets in OD #7. Flag brassard on right shoulder through MARKET-GARDEN. Regt symbols on helmets
Parachute	503	None - Not Assigned	2/42	New Guinea, Phillipines	M42 (un-reinforced)	There are pics of 503 in HBT coveralls, but no company models that.
Parachute	504	82nd Airborne Division	2/42	TORCH North Africa, HUSKY Sicily, Italy, MARKET-GARDEN Holland, France, Belgium, Germany	6/44 - 8/44 M42; 9/44-5/45 M43 (rigger modified)	Flag brassard on right shoulder through MARKET-GARDEN.
Parachute	505	82nd Airborne Division	7/42	HUSKY Sicily, Italy, OVERLORD France, MARKET-GARDEN Holland, Belgium, Germany	6/44 - 8/44 M42; 9/44-5/45 M43 (rigger modified)	Flag brassard on right shoulder through MARKET-GARDEN.
Parachute	506	101st Airborne Division	7/42	OVERLORD France, MARKET-GARDEN Holland, Belgium, Germany	6/44 - 8/44 M42 (Reinforced); 9/44-5/45 M43 (rigger modified)	Reinforced Knees, elbows, pockets in OD #7. Flag brassard on right shoulder through MARKET-GARDEN. Regt symbols on helmets
Parachute	507	82nd Airborne Division; 17th Airborne Division	7/42	OVERLORD France; transferred to 17th ABN DIV: Belgium, VARSITY Germany	6/44 - 8/44 M42; 9/44-5/45 M43 (rigger modified)	Flag brassard on right shoulder through MARKET-GARDEN.
Parachute	508	82nd Airborne Division	10/42	OVERLORD France, MARKET-GARDEN Holland, Belgium, Germany	6/44 - 8/44 M42; 9/44-5/45 M43 (rigger modified)	Flag brassard on right shoulder through MARKET-GARDEN.
Parachute	509	Independent	11/42	TORCH North Africa, Italy, DRAGOON Southern France, Belgium, Germany	TORCH M42, Italy M42, Dragoon, M42, Belgium, M42	Some companies had field applied camo of green and black spray-painted stripes on ther M-42 uniform and helmet. Some of the helmets continue to be seen later with non-camouflaged uniforms.
Parachute	511	11th Airborne Division	2/43	Phillipines	M42
Parachute	513	17th Airborne Division	12/42	Belgium, VARSITY Germany	M43 (rigger modified)	Flag brassard on right shoulder for VARSITY
Parachute	515	13th Airborne Division	12/43	No Combat	M43 (rigger modified)
Parachute	517	Independent	11/42	Italy, DRAGOON Southern France, Belgium, Germany	Italy, Primarily camouflage 1 M42; Dragoon Early Mix of 42s and 43a, camouflage 2. Late Dragoon 43s, minority camouflaged. Belgium and beyond wools, 43 jackets, no camouflage.	3 color spray-painted stripe camo on uniform and helmet; base uniform, and irregular sprays of black and green.
Parachute	551	Independent; 13th Airborne Division	11/42	DRAGOON Southern France, Belgium	DRAGOON, M42. Belgium, M43
Parachute	555	Independent	12/43	No Combat	M42