Eduard Models has been releasing “Overtrees” and “Overlept” versions of their main boxings “Profipack” and “Weekend”. Let me cover the differences among the boxing types:

• Profipack boxing includes plastic parts, masks, pre-painted photoetch pieces, instructions and a decal sheet with typically 4 to 6 different marking options. Often a Profipack release has an orange band on top of the art cover.
• Weekend boxing includes plastic parts, instructions and a decal sheet with 1 (or more recently 2) marking options, but no masks, nor photoetch.
• Overtrees: you get onlyplastic parts. No decals, no photo-etch, no masks, not even instructions. The intention of this boxings is to offer a very affordable “extra” model to apply the un-used marking options of the nice decal sheet from the Profipack boxing.

Bf 109F-4 PE-set 1/48

Now having said that, an Overtree model still provides the same high-quality plastic parts of any Eduard kit plus you can always order an extra mask set or an extra photo-etch fret (Overlept), which is what I requested for this particular review.

Some months back I got to build the Profipack Bf-109F-4 and honestly one of the hardest choices was which camouflage/markings to choose from. I was very happy when I had the chance to review an Overtree/Overlept combo as it meant I could finish it as one of the unused marking options from the Profipack boxing.

As expected, construction starts with the cockpit and it is a very straightforward and well-designed subcomponent. You make it look even better by adding photoetch belts plus a provided fuel line in clear plastic, which when masked and painted looks outstanding. I used the Overlept photoetch parts for the seatbelts and the instrument panel making an outstanding looking “front office”.

The next step is to “sandwich” the cockpit between the fuselage sides. Fit is excellent! You are instructed to add the engine exhaust at this point. I choose not to do it that way and to leave both part H67 (plug for the opening in the front) and the oil cooler out so I could mount the exhausts after painting. Dry fit the exhaust parts beforehand as I found the fit is tight, and I had to sand off a bit of the exhaust shroud so they fit in the openings on the nose sides.

I then started to assemble the tail, which is a multi-part affair, with upper and lower parts for the horizontal tail, separate rudder, and separate control surfaces. The actual assembly was simpler than I thought and everything squared-up just right. Still, I suggest you take your time and make sure you get things properly lined-up.

Construction was moving along and I tackled the wings next. You must assemble the wheel wells first and each one has a total of 3 parts. It kind of sounds like a few too many parts but the overall look of the final assembled part is really good. Be aware that some of those parts have very small alignment pins that can be damaged easily.

At this point I assembled the underwing radiators. I choose not to use the photoetch pieces as it is very difficult to see them anyway. The fit of the plastic parts was again, outstanding. When the wings were assembled as a sub-component I presented them to the fuselage. I could not believe how good the fit it was. Actually, it was so good I decided to paint the wing and fuselage as independent subassemblies. This is my third Eduard 109 (F/G) where I can do that.

Painting was accomplished by using enamels and my Badger 105 Patriot. Some detail painting was done using the Badger 200G with the fine tip. After painting was done, I added the engine exhausts (by the fuselage front, which was left open, plus I had the oil cooler as a subassembly) and then I glued the wing to the fuselage. As said before: fit was perfect!

I applied two thin coats of Future and let the coat cure for 72 hrs. before starting with the decals, which as I said were the leftover decals from the Profipack box I built some months ago.

And there was when the only real glitch of this build hit me.

As I was using leftover decals from another sheet, I had all the tactical markings, squadron badges and even plenty of stencils left (you get two sets with the Profipack box). But I had not enough national markings, nor full-swastikas left in the Profipack decal sheet.

I rummaged through my spare decals and even contemplated purchasing an aftermarket decal sheet to get national markings and swastikas. I was able to find leftover Bf-109F decals for the same time period (the markings changed during the war) although from a different manufacturer. I’m not quite sure if the size is correct or not, nor am I sure that the swastika style is the appropriate one for the airplane I was modeling. I decided it was “close enough”.

Beyond the decal markings availability issue, decaling the model was a pleasure and the Profipack decals are of high quality and present no trouble at all. Decals are thin, in register, with vivid colors and strong enough to resist being moved around (gently) for final positioning and alignment. Just one word of caution: make sure you have plenty of water in the model to “float” the decals into place, otherwise they tend to stick to the first place where they land. Another Future coat sealed the decals in place and an enamel (Tamiya) wash was applied to bring up surface detail.

It was time I turned my attention to assembly and finish the landing gear, flaps, wing slats and such. Not much to say other than excellent engineering having the tires and the wheel as separate parts to make things easier when painting. A small note is that I had to sand the wing slat’s ends to fit the opening in the wing.

All these details were added to the model at that point (flaps, landing gear, etc.) and a flat coat sealed all the work.

As a final word: the model I built was part of a Jabo Staffel (hence the ship marks on the rudder). You are provided with a bomb, but in the interest of delivering the review in time, I did not finish it. Let’s just say I modelled the airplane aftera mission. I will probably add the bomb at a later time.

In summary: The Overtrees boxing provides a very affordable option to get the fantastic Eduard Bf-109F-4 using the extra markings from the Profipack boxing. The only thing to consider is that you need to source the national markings from another decal sheet (aftermarket or leftover from a different model.)

I would like to thank Eduard Models and IPMS/USA for the review sample.