Brad-M Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 Hi Edgar, Are you talking about the e conversion that appeared ot the e wing production? In the e wing production wasn't the .303's elliminated altogether, and the shell ejector openings also removed? TIA Brad The so-called "E" wing, on the IX & XVI, was still the "universal" wing, with the outer m/g panels in place. All that needed doing was to swap the cannon over, into the outer compartment, and move it back, as well (hence the shorter barrels,) with the .5 going into its place. Apparently it was done, that way, because it made cocking the .5 easier (the armourers tended to skin their knuckles on the rear of the gunbays, otherwise.)Edgar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RandyB Posted June 5, 2008 Author Share Posted June 5, 2008 The upper outer mg panels were the same. The lower outer mg panels differed - the shell ejection chute openings weren't there on the 'E' wing. In addition, the underside breech blister was larger on the 'E' wing... I guess I have a bit of sculpting to do. (In addition to the upper blister as well...). Was there a specific field conversion kit? I just figured the field depots would "just" juggle things around, remove some stuff (outer mg's and their panels...), and substitute the correct panels... et viola! an 'E' wing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edgar Brooks Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 I read, somewhere, that the "mod" simply consisted of doping a double thickness of muzzle covers over the l/e, and I assume that the ejection ports would have received similar treatment. The fittings, for the .5, differed, but wouldn't have been very difficult for any competent armourer, and it would be a brave storeman who stood in the way of Johnson getting his aircraft altered. From what I can see, in photos, the underwing bulge housed the operating mechanism, and doubled as a deflector for the "empties." As supplied, in the kit, it looks to be the right size. There are some very good photos, of this area, in the Wings & Wheels Publication, no.26, "Spitfire LF.Mk.IX," ISBN 80-86416-25-9. On the XVI, when the "E" fittings became standard, the outer compartments were still utilised, on the cut-down fuselage. No 3 gun held the compressed air cylinders (one each,) and no. 4 held an oxygen cylinder; I assume that the fuselage fuel tank pushed them out, and they couldn't be moved backwards, otherwise the trim would have been made difficult. Edgar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad-M Posted June 6, 2008 Share Posted June 6, 2008 Excellent, thanks Randy and Edgar. One more question, what are your thoughts on the flare port on the after upper portion of the fuselage? Did the Mk IX have them? What about the Mk XVI? TIA Brad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edgar Brooks Posted June 7, 2008 Share Posted June 7, 2008 Both the IX and XVI had the "upward firing recognition device." I have photos, which show the doped-on patch, or, in the case of preserved XVI SM411, the hole. I can't confirm that it was true of the cut-down fuselages; I can't find any photos, and I suspect that they didn't have it. The XVI had a fuselage fuel tank, and I, for one, would be a mite nervous of a pyrotechnic in close proximity to a tank filled with petrol fumes. Edgar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad-M Posted June 7, 2008 Share Posted June 7, 2008 Both the IX and XVI had the "upward firing recognition device." I have photos, which show the doped-on patch, or, in the case of preserved XVI SM411, the hole. I can't confirm that it was true of the cut-down fuselages; I can't find any photos, and I suspect that they didn't have it. The XVI had a fuselage fuel tank, and I, for one, would be a mite nervous of a pyrotechnic in close proximity to a tank filled with petrol fumes.Edgar HI Edgar, Could I impose on you to get a scan of that in an email please? Thanks PS: Sorry Randy for hyjaking your thread. Brad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveJ Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 Ahem... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rigor Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 quote name='LSP_Dave' date='Jul 1 2008, 03:00 AM' post='160521'] Ahem... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RandyB Posted August 19, 2008 Author Share Posted August 19, 2008 So... I guess it's time to dust this thing off. I managed to get approximately 1/2 hour in the shop last night... so I glued the wings to the fuselage. And... I ran into trouble. I'm not sure if you can see it in the image below, but there is a lip at the joint - the wing is higher than the fillet. So, I figure my two choices are: 1. sand like hell and rescribe the lost panel lines and rivets, or... 2. attempt to "cleanly" crack the join (hopefully along the seam) and reglue the joint. Either way, I'm not too happy about having to do it in the first place... Anybody have any other alternatives...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_Kevin Posted August 19, 2008 Share Posted August 19, 2008 Hey, Randy did some modelling! How big's the step at the wing root? I'd be more inclined to go the fill/sand route than break the join, but if it's a large step, you could try packing it out with some Evergreen strip first. Kev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveJ Posted August 19, 2008 Share Posted August 19, 2008 I'd be pretty worried about trying to break the seam, especially since the plastic of that kit seems a bit soft. It's hard to tell from the pic but the step doesn't appear to be that pronounced? I think it could be sanded flush with minimal damage to surrounding surface details. I'd use a very thin sanding stick (one of those square swizzle-stick types that come in a bag of assorted grits) to minimize the damage to the surrounding areas. Compared to the dreadful steps and other body work I'm having to do now on that Matchbox.... kit.... yours looks smooth as glass! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotary Posted August 19, 2008 Share Posted August 19, 2008 milliput (superfine always) on the root fairing and blend into wing root------it's the best and if carefully done won't require to much smoothing. dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RandyB Posted August 20, 2008 Author Share Posted August 20, 2008 Thanks for the suggestions guys! The step isn't too large - it runs along the seam from approximately mid-chord to the trailing edge and it's 0.2mm tall. Definitely sandable - so I'll give that a shot... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azgaron Posted August 22, 2008 Share Posted August 22, 2008 Nice work so far Randy! Good luck with sanding the step! Cheers, Azgaron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RandyB Posted August 29, 2008 Author Share Posted August 29, 2008 So, sanding the step wasn't that big of a deal... I just got my most abrasive sanding stick and went to work. Once I got most of the material removed, I switched to progressively finer grits to polish it up a bit. I'll be using Mr. Surfacer 1200 (rattle can) to prime it, so I'm not too worried about light scratches... Anyway, here is the progress from yesterday - fighting with the radiators. :angry: The image shows one housing in place and only the radiator faces in place on the other. What it doesn't show you is the amount of sanding and shaping invovled in getting these things to fit... and the grooves I machined into the lower wing surface for the radiator faces to sit in (to reduce the amount of sanding on my part)... And here is tonight's work... Here are both radiator housings in place. There are a few gaps that will be taken care of this weekend... Notice the carburetor intake is also attached. And... the upper wing cannon bulges are fitted as well. The upper wing surfaces have a curvature to them while the gun panels and breech blisters do not - there was a fair amount of clamping involved. The wingtips are also in place. The styrene strips are used to align the upper surface of the wingtip with the upper surface of the wing - they are temporarily tacked into place. ...and I'll have a bit of a gap to clean up once they dry overnight. Squadron White putty and nail polish remover (dilute acetone) are my best friends... That's all for now. Hopefully, tomorrow I'll get the seam cleaned up, and this weekend I can rescribe the panel lines and get some primer on her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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