Tigerausfb

Hi, I believe 41H is Hawkers manufacturer ID, used from the 1930s through to Hunter (and beyond?). 41H/197654 is another example on a Hurricane rudder. Assume for ordering spares you'd have your AP1086 or such like with Manufacturer/Aircraft Model (26AF)/ and then sub-sections for fuselage, wing etc etc Andrew

Amazing work. Appreciate your design skills but I was thinking how lucky we are to have this sort of printing stuff available now days.

Cough....two years later... The Hurricane is finally ready for a coat of paint. It's going to be P2923 VY-R at Castle Camps which is just about the nearest 'Hurricane' airfield to me, except for I guess RAF Wyton/Warboys Met Flight and Wittering. Work done since the wing fairing has been adding the tiny rudder trim balance, adding holes for the formation lights in the side panels, the two plates to shield glare from the exhaust, hydraulic lines for the wheel brakes, cutting nasks for the windshield and just going over and over all the small mould sinks on this kit. The main wheels were resized on my lathe. I turned a wide mandrel from aluminimiuminium on the lathe to hold them in which gives greater support after an attempt with a live centre to support them (a live centre is a a pointed piece that runs freely in a ball bearing race, that fits in the lathe tail stock). What I should have thought about with the wing fairings is making a form and metal bashing something up from brass or copper sheets, would have been much easier and repeatable long term. The difficulty with doing it from plastic and epoxy is trying to recreate the Fairey fasteners as the pressure of the grainer can (100% did) chip the putty and or deform the plastic. Still some bits to add, rear view mirror, pitot head, handhold door but I'm now ready to ruin hours and hours of work by painting it. Anyway, photos...which I'm out of practice at. Firstly wheels getting turned, who doesn't love vast wispy spirals of plastic all over the bench? Thanks for looking - Andrew

Having trawled through various archives myself after tank related stuff over the years this sort of work really is a labour of love. The author/site does say the source documents contain errors and inconsistencies but even so, amazing effort. Andrew

583mm/72 or about 8mm total length Andrew

I don't really keep an eye on what is newly released as I feel so guilty about what I've already got in the loft but this kit...hmmmm and in 1:48...mmmmm. Tempting. I like building 'local' aircraft too, seems to have some relatable meaning. Good luck with the model. https://www.americanairmuseum.com/archive/media/media-396093jpg Andrew

Superb! Thanks very much, sorted that point out very nicely. Also thanks to everyone elses efforts in throwing some light on something I was in the dark about. Andrew

Hypothetical indeed but here we are. And as I said above, a theory that needs documentation. They also don't mention the rudder trimming tab in the Hurricane I pilots notes so I think we can forget that as a source. Maybe it's the same reason they put the lights on the Spitfire, is that documented at all? 17 Sqdn YB-A P303X Andrew

Gosh yes and you know I should have looked harder, shots from the starboard side don't seem to be as common or that stbd panel's removed for servicing the oxygen tanks. I can see it in the Wingleader book V7111 p. 86,, P1354 on p.68. Pretty sure it's also into 1941 as well e.g p67 Hurricane At War 2, 151s Hurricanes in Russia p56 Hurricane At War 1 and my favourite BoB era photo AE-X p 82 Hurricane At War 1. Obviously I'm not going to say the night flying lights theory proved but one to keep an eye out for some documentation. Nice so both sides. Now I've got some more drilling and filing to do. Andrew PS. Just had a thought while fondling an Avocado; if they are lights they may appear on Blenheim and Defiant fighters in the same time frame.

I'm still pondering what it is. With the shield around it with the greater part toward the cockpit it is, to my mind, trying to shield the pilot from something. There can't be that much natural light in that part of the fuselage that you'd want to shield whatever it is from the other direction i.e light from the cockpit. The radio runs off of four batteries (two, the 120 volt HT - High Tension - and a smaller grid bias, being inside the TR9 case itself) but you have a 2 volt LT - Low Tension - battery on the outside there to supply the voltage to the valve heaters (Valves need two to three different voltages to work). I thought the clear panel may be something to do with that, something like a mA gauge to read the remaining current left but as Ammeters draw current themselves, not something you'd really leave attached to a battery in situ all the time. It's also too low under that radio tray and that 2V battery would just get swapped out for re-charging after every five hours or whatever flight time as part of the aircrafts daily servicing anyway. So that idea went out the window. I also thought about the flare tubes but they're basically a big shotgun and I don't know what you'd want to check from that position if they're were loaded or not. Theory time. Going back to the interior shield on that panel and where it is, we see the two formation lights appear on Spitfire cowling around this time, is this some form of light for night fighting? Flaw is it's only on one side and I can't work my theory around that. It is a very loose theory I admit. Anway, interesting. Andrew Add: Valve heaters are tiny filaments in a valve, exactly like the filaments in pre-LED light bulbs, that glow and heat the cathode, freeing electrons. Grids are little mesh elements inside the valves glass body, which by applying a varying voltage to, you can manipulate the flow of electrons as they head towards the valves anode. The old brightness knob on your CRT TV is one example of that.

Question from me, what's the little access port for? It's not on the first Hurricanes, I was looking lovingly at my freshly primed Airfix Hurricane and said to myself 'that's the model ready for paint then'. Thirty seconds later I saw that hatch. It looks to be glass or Perspex and clearly people were told not to apply paint over it as many a/c codes are applied around it. I don't see it on many models either. Is it access for a first aid pack? Thanks - Andrew

I arranged for a local Hurricane to pose for some saucy wing to fuselage pics last year, hopefully these further show that little flare. I suspect it was done on something like a Ranalah wheel, they certainly used it for panels on the Spitfire. Andrew

You mean where they have the panels around the wing 'joint' straight (perpendicular to the fuselage sides) instead of flaring onto the wing? Andrew PS. One gold star in my homework book for spelling perpendicular right!!

Impressive model. I find grey such a hard base to work with and weather so nice job here, Andrew

This is the old Tristar mould right? I think I still have a couple of those unopened in the loft so nice to see how detailed it is.

Not sure if you want something for modelling purposes or more technical stuff like transmission frequencies, PRF rates, valve types etc Geschichte der deutschen Nachtjagd by Gerhard Aders has some information though nothing like Fritz Trenkles multi volume German only, rare and pricey volumes on WW2 German military communications. Books for only the most serious fans of electron excitation. Martin Streetleys Confound & Destroy has a section on German radar sets. Other that that you'd likely be looking at technical data like in TM E 11-219. Andrew

That menu's great! Reads like a superbly posh restaurants menu but is just a normal Christmas dinner, love it. I have some Christmas stuff from RAF Langham, Strike Wing in my collection

Something I noticed after I posted above but didn't have time to post again before the nurses locked me away for the night; if you have the Wingleader Hurricane I title, there's a photo of a cockpit on p.37, no rudder trim wheel is visible. Here it is in the Hurricane II AP 1564B cockpit photos. Andrew

I had a look through the Mk.I pilots notes AP 1564A last week, while taking note of what Graham mentions above, there's no mention (April 1940 insert) of a rudder trim control inside the cockpit and just 'a fixed preset tab' for the ruddder. Well we know that just ain't never even not even right. However, AP 1564B for Hurricane II, Dec. 1940 insert now mentions it 'the automatic balance tab on the rudder can be set......by a small control wheel on the LHS of the cockpit.'. This is a small wheel on the LHS inverted 'V' tubing next to where the elevator trimming wheel is (the black Bakelite wheel in Troys photo above). It's not there in the photo of the Hurricane I cockpit in AP 1564A. Of the little trimming horn itself, I've included a couple of photos that I've taken in the past, hopefully useful detail for modellers. Tip for 1/144 scale modellers, note the grease nipple, there is one on each aileron hinge too. . PS; maybe an optical illusion but Hurricanes rudder trim tab should be flush on the outside edge with the rest if the rudder. These two beauties appear not to be. I have been looking at period photos to see if I can spot any extended ones but no luck yet Andrew

What an effort, just amazing. I've a real soft spot for the Stirling, living where I do. Such a shame there's not a real one to feast ones eyes on but this model will do Andrew

It is, in Syria

I'd love to see have seen the real thing flying! I've still got my original release unopened in the loft so looking forward to seeing how you get on being another local-ish to Waterbeach boy.

I'll ask again, are you sure they're not Australians? Clue: that's not Egypt.

Are you sure they're not Australians?

F-106, DH Hornet, Albatros D.V and a high back Spitfire XIV