Revell 1/32 scale Heinkel He 162

[matrixone]

Here is the start of my Revell He 162, the cockpit parts being painted and weathered. I am trying to give it a well used look.

The fuselage halves are not glued yet, just test fitting.

I did not intend to start this model before I finished the other models on the bench but after reading the Classic Publications He 162 book I could not resist! :laugh:

Matrixone

 

[phantom II]

Guess this is the only one that will ever look well used .

Cheers, Christian B)

 

[matrixone]

Christian,
This He 162 will be a what-if, an Eastern Front what-if on top of that so expect to see this one get rather dirty compared to most reference photographs of the He 162.

Matrixone

 

[phantom II]

Wonder if the Russian did any testing on them ? :hmmm

 

[moon puppy]

Wear and weathering are spot on Les

 

[matrixone]

Christian,
The Russians did not capture any He 162's in flyable condition but they did employ the Germans to construct about five of them post war. This was easy to do since the Russians had one of the He 162 factories in their zone of occupation.

Matrixone

 

[matrixone]

Thanks Moon Puppy, not the neatest cockpit job I have done but it does look rather worn and tattered...even when new these machines had some very crude workmanship on them.


Matrixone

 

[jknaus]

Very very nice. I did one of these and have another. Might have to revisit it. Nice looking bird.
James

 

[matrixone]

Thanks James, this kit is one of Revell's better efforts.
I have also built one of these things a few years back, here is a pic of it.

Below are some pics of a few parts on my new He 162 that have been built or painted.

The wheel well for the main gear has been painted and some of the weathering added too, there are a few more parts that need to be added before the rest of the weathering can be done here. The effect I was after was a thinly applied coat of RLM 02 over bare metal with some dirt and grime...it looks bad in my pics but in person looks much better. At the time the He 162 was built the workmanship on aircraft parts was of a low standard and that goes for paint jobs too like what I am trying to achieve here on the He 162 main gear wheel well.

Matrixone

 

[phantom II]

Christian,
The Russians did not capture any He 162's in flyable condition but they did employ the Germans to construct about five of them post war. This was easy to do since the Russians had one of the He 162 factories in their zone of occupation.

Matrixone

Sort of interesting that I have never seen anyone model a Russian version then . The German one are sort of ho hum since they had no fuel to fly them ( to me anyway ) :idonno

Cheers, Christian B)

 

[moon puppy]

 

[matrixone]

Christian,
The two He 162s that were test flown in Russia were painted white overall...not a very exciting paint scheme.
The French also tested the He 162 in 1946 and 1947, those aircraft flight tested were painted overall Khaki green so not too much of an improvement over the Russian test machines.

Thanks Moon Puppy!


Matrixone

 

[phantom II]

Christian,
The two He 162s that were test flown in Russia were painted white overall...not a very exciting paint scheme.
The French also tested the He 162 in 1946 and 1947, those aircraft flight tested were painted overall Khaki green so not too much of an improvement over the Russian test machines.

Thanks Moon Puppy!


Matrixone

Well darn, what a boring epitaph . No wonder no one ever builds anything different. Guess that's why mine looks pristine ( believe it or not )

Oh well, I tried :drinks

Cheers, Christian B)

 

[jknaus]

http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=47135&highlight=salamander
James

 

[phantom II]

http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=47135&highlight=salamander
James

Thanks James. Some very interesting chit chat. Those were desperate days indeed :S

Cheers, Christian B)

 

[ij001]

JG54 would look good, Les, especially if you adapted one of their multi toned greens & tan schemes like the FW190A's.....

Just a thought :v

Ian

 

[matrixone]

The best reference book on the He 162 I have read is the one from Classic Publications, there is little left to discover on the He 162 after this book was published. What I found interesting after reading what its like to actually fly a He 162 was that both German and Allied pilots said similar things about it...the He 162 was a good aircraft in the hands of an experienced pilot. Some pilots did not like it but those that said that were few in number.
Considering that the Luftwaffe had very few experienced pilots left when the He 162 was introduced meant there would have been a huge amount of accidents...not exactly a way to win a war!
But on the other hand when you consider the very short amount of time it took to design, test, and deliver the He 162 jet fighter to a combat unit makes for an incredible story and I doubt any other nation could have accomplished this. Keep in mind the He 162 was built by forced labor in primitive conditions with material shortages and constant revisions being made to the airframe, its a wonder the He 162 even made to JG 1 before May 8th 1945, while the combat history of this aircraft may not have been much to write about the story behind the He 162 is nothing short of amazing.


Ian,
Thanks for the suggestion about the JG54 scheme, the scheme I have in mind will be a mix of standard He 162 camo and what-if.


Matrixone

 

[Arturius]

it's really a good story..

 

[matrixone]

Thanks Arturius, too bad the real story about how the He 162 was designed and built is not more well known because it really is a great aviation story.

Some new pics of this build, the cockpit is finished, the fuselage halves have been joined and the wheels have been assembled and painted and are ready for weathering.

Not much being done on any models lately...its been too warm lately to stay indoors.


Matrixone

 

[moon puppy]

Sweet looking office Les