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Seafire 46 undercarriage doors


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I am just getting to the point of finishing touches on the Admiral Seafire 46. I have lost the 3 of the four undercarriage doors! Can't find them any where. I have one that fixes to the undercarriage strut so I have been able to copy that one to make another for the other side. I now have to make a pair of the doors that close over the wheels.

However, I have a question. I lots of the pictures that I am looking, I think that these doors are closed again once the wheels were deployed. Is this correct> In the photos I am looking at of later mark Seafires and Spitfires these doors seem to be missing in the view which makes me think this.

Can anyone put me right or confirm?

I know that this isn't a 46 but it is Griffon powered http://www.flickr.com/photos/egwu/4905683400/lightbox/

David

SBX Models

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Hi Dave,

Looking at a few of the pics in "The spitfire story" by Alfred price I would go for the inner doors as dropped on the ground- there are a few Photos (well published ones of Mk24's in Hong Kong in the early 1950's) and the inner doors can be seen as dropped. The mark 24 Spitfire essentially shared the same wing design as the mark 46 Seafire.

As far as I can tell, the 46, 47 and the equivalent 22 and 24 had the new wing shape (the final spitfire wing design) which introduced these inner doors for the first time- hence the Mk XVII that you link to, although griffon powered, had the old type eliptical wing which had no inner doors- (I understand that the Seafire XVII is essentially a navalised Mk XIV/ Mk XVIII)

Best wishes from a former customer!

Regards,

Troffa

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Hi Dave,

Looking at a few of the pics in "The spitfire story" by Alfred price I would go for the inner doors as dropped on the ground- there are a few Photos (well published ones of Mk24's in Hong Kong in the early 1950's) and the inner doors can be seen as dropped. The mark 24 Spitfire essentially shared the same wing design as the mark 46 Seafire.

As far as I can tell, the 46, 47 and the equivalent 22 and 24 had the new wing shape (the final spitfire wing design) which introduced these inner doors for the first time- hence the Mk XVII that you link to, although griffon powered, had the old type eliptical wing which had no inner doors- (I understand that the Seafire XVII is essentially a navalised Mk XIV/ Mk XVIII)

Best wishes from a former customer!

Regards,

Troffa

Thanks for that. Why 'former' customer?

David

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Right in spirit, Troffa. The wheel-cover doors are actually "outer" doors rather than "inner"- they are most definitely open (down) on the ground. The Seafire XVII was more of a developed XV, which has more in common with the Spit VIII and XII than the XIV and XVIII.

bob

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