ICM Focke Wulf Fw 189 Uhu Build in 1/72 Scale Part III

Priming revealed relatively few seams to re-fill, so I proceeded to paint the yellow identification panels. I base coated these with white as the yellow really doesn’t cover very well on its own.

Here is the model at maximum mask. The German splinter patterns were not random, they followed a standardized plan. Hours of masking, minutes of painting.

The standard Luftwaffe bomber camouflage scheme was a 65 / 70 / 71 splinter pattern, transports and reconnaissance type were also painted this way, as were fighter types for the first few months of the war. This lasted until the last year of the war when the colors shifted to the late-war greens, but few types other than fighters were being built by then. RLM 70 and 71 have a similar appearance in photographs and it’s often difficult to see the difference. I think the Mr. Color 71 is a bit too light, here I have darkened it with some 70.

I have posed the model with open canopies to better show the interior, but quite a bit is visible through the clear parts in any case. Definitely the most challenging part of this build, there are fourteen parts to the canopy before any cutting needed to open the panels up.

Here is the finished model. I like the looks of the Fw 189, but I would not recommend this kit to the novice. The molding is great but the canopy is complex and difficult to assemble. I am tempted to give the kit another try at some point, there are a few interesting camo schemes and I would hope to get a better result with the lessons learned from this one. The Bv 141 used a very similar crew nacelle, if there is ever a new mold of that aircraft I would be obliged to try it as well.

Construction Part I here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2024/03/15/icm-focke-wulf-fw-189-uhu-build-in-1-72-scale-part-i/