SPA Modeler

I'll second that on the decals. Very nice work!

Very interesting how there are no national insignia markings on the aircraft. I wonder if any would have been applied if they had made it into operations?

Very sharp work on the decals Michel!

mustang1989 wrote:I'll second that on the decals. Very nice work!

Thanks Mustang!!

Stikpusher wrote:Very interesting how there are no national insignia markings on the aircraft. I wonder if any would have been applied if they had made it into operations?

Apparently not. I'm posting again the pic of the contemporary diagram with the operational Natter's markings which, as you can see, includes no markings at all.



The reason for that seems to have been that "the Natter was to be operated by Flak units and treated essentially as expendable. Such airframes, with the V-1 another example, were specifically mandated not to carry national markings as their destruction was inevitable and might offer an enemy the chance to photograph a destroyed German aircraft..." (Excerpted from an article in SAM, November 17 issue.

Interesting. About the only comment I could make about the enemy photographing the wreckage was if they were operated from an area near the front lines. Obviously they would be launching from friendly territory, and like say the Komet would be near a high value target such as a refinery or major industrial area. But thank you for the explanation.

speedgraflex wrote:Great job—I just read the entire thread! What I truly appreciate is the level of scholarship here, from your research of the craft itself to the fabrication of cockpit details and decal designs. What stands out above all is the quality of the painting—the layered effects and the subtle shadows. I am curious to see what weathering effects you will use. Are you preparing the ideal look as though we stand on the grass looking upward on the morning of a first flight?

Thanks, Speedgraflex! Glad you like it!

Weathering will be kept to a minimum. My reasoning is that these birds wouldn't have lasted very long, not long enough for a heavily weathered look anyway. Of course it could be counter-argued that landing by parachute wouldn't have been gentle on the airframe but in any case I'm going for an "out of the factory" look.

Next I'll use ink shading to accentuate the shading effects so far, highlight some panels and panel lines, etc. I'm more after shading effects rather than weathering. I'm not sure what you mean exactly by standing on the grass looking up? It's more like looking down at the a/c from somewhere up in the sky (as the viewer is looking at the model) with the top highlighted and the bottom shaded. As it's one of the few a/c to stand up while at rest I thought that it lends itself particularly well to such as play of highlights and shadows. We'll judge by the end result...

M

Stikpusher wrote:Interesting. About the only comment I could make about the enemy photographing the wreckage was if they were operated from an area near the front lines. Obviously they would be launching from friendly territory, and like say the Komet would be near a high value target such as a refinery or major industrial area. But thank you for the explanation.

Yeah, I'm not sure that the explanation is really a valid one, seeing that it comes from a modeling article and not from some scholarly work but it kind of makes sense as there are not pics of markings on any Natter while in the hands of the Germans.

Indeed it would have been used as a point defense interceptor just like the Komet, seeing how it's range was extremely limited.

M

Superb work as always MC - it's always a joy to read your threads. I still remember your Falke fondly.

portman wrote:Superb work as always MC - it's always a joy to read your threads. I still remember your Falke fondly.

Thanks, Portman! Glad you like it!

M