Tamiya He-219 “Uhu” (Part 1)

Next on the Bench was Tamiya’s late war German night fighter the He-219 “Uhu” or “Owl”. Construction started with the cockpit of course and Tamiya was nice enough to supply a metal “tub” for all the major cockpit components, this should be pretty helpful to keep the nose down. After putting a couple of nights at the bench in I have to say, I’m already quite disappointed with the kit. Not the typical Tamiya fit as it seems as I had some issues joining the wings together.

I am however quite happy with the level of detail so far, especially on the radio operator’s station! really looking forward to detailing the cockpit up. I’ve also opted to get a aftermarket Fug 220 radar set which, after applied on the nose of the aircraft, will really stand out. I also picked up a set of resin wheels from Eduard. I’ll be posting comparison pictures a little later on in the build.

For the priming I’m trying out Mr. Finishing Surfacer 1500 Black. I found the Vallejo Black primer I used on the Mossie peeled way, way too easily. I found while using the new primer I was still getting a overly rough surface texture even after thinning with leveling thinner. I think I’ll have to look more into what I might be doing wrong airbrushing wise. I suspect the paint is drying before reaching the model, but more investigation is needed.