Scalemates Schwalbe Group build 2021

I've been wanting to open this box for a long time. Thanks Scalemates Schwalbe GB 2021! 

There's the sprues. This came in handy later when I needed to track down a missing piece. Directly below the top/central tail section sprue, there'a pair of gates that don't have a part attached to them. That's where the front, side landing gear door should be. 

Let's start by spraying the interior with Tamiya XF-16 Aluminium. 

Time for a quick dry fit to see how this is going to look. Yeah, that'll work. 

8g of weight in the nose should keep her from becoming a tail sitter... I hope. I used white glue to secure the lead weight. I've heard that, over time, CA glue can react with the lead and create a white powder that will eventually pop the seams. Best not to head down that path. 

Getting some parts ready for painting. 

And voila! The wheel well assembly gets painted with Tamiya XF-16 Aluminium. The engines get a coating of XF-84 Dark Iron and the cockpit interior gets XF-63 German Gray. 

Some detailing on the cockpit and engines. 

All assembled. Probably overdid it on the putty, but I'm trying my best for a no seams/no gaps build her. The fit is very very good though. 

A quick coat of Tamiya XF-22 RLM Gray reveals a few more spots in need of some sanding... of course! 

Sanding complete, canopy in place...  

Masked up and ready to go! 

I want the red to be quite dark. So I'm going with an undercoat of XF-22 RLM Gray and some panel line shading using XF-1 Flat Black to give it depth. 

Not bad... but this will need a few more coats. 

There. Looking much better now. 

A coat of Future to seal it up. 

And a Tamiya panel line wash really brings out the contrast. 

Assembled the landing gear... this is where I discovered I was missing a piece! 

Scratchbuilt landing gear door ready... now to paint the wheels. The hubs were painted XF-84 Dark Iron and the tires were painted with XF-85 Rubber Black. 

Got the decals on... a bit of silvering to deal with... 

Decals on... another coat of Future to even out the silvering a bit... all that's left is the base and Hans von Hammer himself!