Grissom
-
Posts
23 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Events
Profiles
Forums
Media Demo
Everything posted by Grissom
-
Thank you, Peter, for clearing that issue up. It's all totally understandable now. Kind regards, Wayne Melbourne, Australia
-
Hi Peter (Magpie 22), I've finally arrived at the painting stage of my project and so it's 'crunch time' - time to commit to the markings this machine had at the time it was lost. In your initial response, you said you have only seen one photo of this aircraft, being the one you posted of it in flight. A couple of websites (Ozatwar and ADF Serials) record AR523 as being RAAF serial A58-2. Is this correct? The reason I ask is that I stumbled upon a photo of a RAAF spitfire undergoing maintenance in the field that appears to bear the serial A58-2. It is simply coded 'T'. This link takes you to that image: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/9f/c7/8c/9fc78c36989bab2632c4991b9c620a85.jpg If the Ozatwar and AD Serial websites are correct in identifying AR523 and A58-2 are one and same aircraft, I am now confused. I always thought the RAAF overpainted an aircraft's factory-applied serial number prior to applying a RAAF serial number. If this is the case, then the image of the aircraft undergoing maintenance in the field is the more recent photograph of the two. The problem I have is that that photo does not depict the aircraft with its 'QY' code markings. If the QY codes were applied after the 'maintenance' photo was taken, why does the Westland-applied serial number appear on the airframe when it's sporting its QY codes? In other words, which serial number would the aircraft have been displaying at the time it was lost?
-
Hi Peter, Thank you, so much, for your very detailed reply. I didn't realise this particular aircraft was a 'communal' fighter shared by various NCO's. (I assume this is an example of 'rank has its privileges... and NCO pilots have virtually none.) In any event, I am keen to model this aircraft because of the amazing resilience Duncan displayed whilst marooned in the outback for days following the mishap on the 30th of May, 1943. So, after all that, I shall model her as you have described. Once again, thank you very much for sharing your knowledge about this subject matter. You are a true asset to the hobby and modellers worldwide.
-
Hi everyone, I'm building a RAAF Spitfire Mk Vc at present and have thought about modelling the 452 Squadron aircraft flown by Colin Duncan, machine A58-2, serial AR523, coded QY-F. My research hasn't yielded much and so I'm a bit uncertain about the aircraft's colour scheme and markings. My current way of thinking is to paint it in the 'standard' foliage green, dark earth and azure blue scheme. I think it would have had RAAF light blue codes, medium sea grey A58 serial and a black spinner. I know it had the wide cannon covers on top of the wings. I don't know what size upper wing roundels it had. Does anyone have any evidence that might help me? Incidentally, I've only found two photos of the aircraft on 'the net' - one with Duncan sitting on the rear of the port wing and the second of the machine undergoing maintenance in the field. Thanks in advance.
-
Wow, talk about speedy service! Thanks Pete (Magpie 22) and Ray_W. I cannot thank you all, enough. Such an awesome site and such awesome, helpful people.
-
Thanks for responding, Pete. I saw Ray_W's build (which is lovely) and I see that he included a Remote Contactor in his cockpit. I also note that he didn't fit a 'dorsal' antenna. Unless I get some definitive evidence, I guess I'll run along the same path Ray did (if he doesn't mind ).
-
Hi Everyone, I have a couple more questions concerning RAAF Spitfire Mk Vc's. Firstly, I'm building a rendition of the machine flown by 457 Squadron pilots, 'Bush' Hamilton and Rex Watson - aircraft with codes ZP-X. I'm converting a 1/32 Hasegawa Mk Vb kit and I am in the process of turning the 'B' wing into a 'C' wing. All good, so far. So, with a specific airframe identified, I'd like to know if this aircraft had an IFF Remote Contactor device on the right side of the cockpit, or some other type of IFF device. Secondly, I can't work out if this airframe had a radio aerial extending from the dorsal antenna post to the rudder. I've looked at a plethora of photos but find anything definitive. The 'Langdon Badger' Mk Vc at the South Australian Historical Aviation Museum has such an aerial but I don't know if it it's a 100% accurate restoration and, if so, whether a similar set-up was fitted to ZP-X. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
-
1/48 Eduard Spitfire Mk VIII 452 Sqn RAAF
Grissom replied to Andrew Perren's topic in Ready for Inspection - Aircraft
Lovely build, Andrew... as usual. Close-up/macro photography is so brutal to what we might regard as excellent workmanship - it can be demoralising to see the results of your blood, sweat and tears in a close-up photo. Your model, however, looks brilliant, clean and crisp. I reckon it would look amazing in the flesh, so to speak. Incidentally, I went to Temora, NSW, a few years ago to marvel at the various warbirds. I was sitting next to a chap who looked somewhat familiar. He was sitting with, presumably, his wife and grandchildren. I knew his face and struggled to try and work out where I'd seen him before. I then realised he had a name tag on his shirt. I waited what seemed like an eternity until I could have a good look at his name tag. His name tag read, "R. Cundy, Cronulla RSL". I couldn't believe it! Not 2 hours earlier, I had bought his book 'A gremlin on my shoulder' in the Temora gift shop. Needless to say, I excused myself and asked if he would mind autographing his book for me. He appeared somewhat embarrassed but willingly signed the inside of the book. Your model is a lovely tribute to him. -
Awesome, guys. Thanks heaps, Ray, Terry and Dave.
-
Hi Ray_W, Sorry Ray but it's been a long day and I'm not sure what you're saying. Fastterry just referred me to this build on LSP: https://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?/topic/85370-the-antique-bob-revell-spitfire-mki/page/9/ In your opinion, is the builder making the ducting correctly?
-
Thanks, guys, for all your help. I really appreciate it. FYI, I'm modelling the 457 Squadron Mk Vc ZP-X flown by Bush Hamilton and Rex Watson - exactly the same aircraft you modelled recently, Ray_W. (Very nice job, by the way!). I will install two tubes in the radiator duct and route them through the sidewalls. I don't have any reference photos of the duct and its plumbing so I will use a bit of artistic licence. Wish me luck
-
Hi fastterry, Thanks for your input. I can picture the exhaust manifold plumbing being routed through the leading edge of the wing - makes perfect sense. The reference that Ray_W posted specifically mentions that that plumbing (from the exhaust manifolds) heated the cannons, not the .303 MG's. I'm not disagreeing with you, mate, I'm simply pointing out that there is conflicting information on the web - hence, my query. About the hot air extracted from the radiator ducts; do you know if there would have been two 'scoops'/pipes behind the radiator - plumbed through both sides of the duct? Regarding your query about the venting of hot air from the wings, this topic was recently addressed on the Large Scale Planes website: https://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?/topic/85798-early-spitfire-wing-heating-outlets/ Thanks, once again, for your help.
-
Thanks Ray_W - that's an excellent reference to the issue I'm talking about. I note the following in the second paragraph of your linked text: "In Battle of Britain era Mark 1 Spitfires, the freezing up of the .303 inch Browning machine guns at altitude had prompted a simple modification, by which hot air from the radiator was ducted into the wing cavity and then vented through an exit port on the underside of the outer wings. With the Mark VB’s introduction of the hyper-sensitive Hispano 20mm in 1941, this system had had to be supplemented by a second, heavier-duty heating system. Air was now heated at the exhaust manifold and thence ducted outboard through the wings to the cannons via a system of aluminium piping. This was known as Modification 314, applied part way through the Mark V production run.[2]" The word 'supplemented' in the second sentence explains why I am unsure. Does supplemented in this context mean 'in addition to' or does the writer mean 'alternative'? In a nutshell, I'm modelling a RAAF Mk Vc and want to know if I should add gun heating plumbing to the rear of the radiator duct. Thanks for your prompt replies.
-
Hi everyone, I have a question regarding RAAF Spitfire Mk Vc's and, specifically, about their gun heating plumbing. Please be gentle as I'm still learning at lot about Spitfires. . I understand the RAAF Mk Vc's obtained hot air to heat the guns directly from the engine's exhaust manifold and that this particular system gave the Australians a lot of grief. Apparently, the plumbing rattled, cracked and fell apart in quite a few aircraft. As I understand it, this explains why some of the plumbing is missing from the exterior of the engine cowling in some photos. My question is: Because the gun heating was obtained from the exhaust manifold, does this mean there wasn't any gun heating plumbing present in the rear section of the radiator duct? Put another way, does anyone have a nice photo of the rear section of a RAAF Mk Vc's radiator duct? Thanks in advance.
-
Hi Whiskey, My bad... I didn't explain my query well enough. I know that the chipping at the wing root is explained by it being a high foot-traffic area. What I meant was, the Spitfire wing roots seem to chip more readily than the wing roots of P-47D's, which I find somewhat strange, given that P-47D's probably didn't have any primer on their wings (unlike Spitfires).
-
Thanks for your replies, guys, much appreciated. My hunch is that primer probably was not applied to these P-47D's. The funny thing is this: RAF paint was (obviously) applied to wartime Spitfires and it was applied over a primed surface. Oddly enough, it's the wing roots of Spitfires that seem to chip a lot, revealing the underlying bare metal.
-
Hi everyone, I'm building a 1/32 bubble-top P-47D and intend to finish it in the popular scheme of Frank Oiler's 'Eileen'. I believe this particular airframe, like many in the 78 FG, was sent to Europe in a factory bare metal finish. RAF paint was applied to the aircraft, presumably 'in the field'. I've been studying period photographs to get an idea of the weathering I'll need to apply to my model. It seems to me that these P-47D's didn't suffer as much paint chipping as might be expected. My question is this: was a primer coat applied to the airframe prior to the RAF Dark Green and Sky paints? If so, what colour primer is most likely to have been applied. Thanks in advance. Wayne
-
Thanks, guys, for your advice. I've continued searching 'the net' for photos of bubble-top' 78FG P-47D's and I've found some aircraft with a very light coloured underside and others with a seemingly darker one. These differences could be due to any number of factors and circumstances. Having said that, the bubble-top 'Eileen' appears to have very light-coloured undersides. Thanks to your advice, I'll paint her undersides with RAF 'Sky' and take comfort knowing (on current knowledge) that this is not likely to be proven wrong.
-
Hi everyone, I've started building Hasegawa's 1/32 scale P-47D and intend to finish it in Frank Oiler's well known aircraft named 'Eileen'. From what I can glean, quite a few of the 78FG's bubble-top P-47D's were finished with RAF paint as it was said to have been readily available at Duxford in 1944. This makes perfect sense to me. Some of the 'Eileen' builds posted on the internet have been fished with RAF Dark Green on the upper surfaces and RAF Sky on the undersides. My question is this: Why 'Sky' undersides when Medium Sea Grey was the standard underside colour of RAF fighters at the time? Was there an excess of RAF Sky paint? I welcome your replies and hope that someone can cite a reliable reference or source for their advice.
-
Thank you for such a prompt and detailed reply, Troy - I'm much indebted to you. Apologies for not posting the photo or hyperlink of the 242 formation - yes, that's the one I found but mine wasn't captioned/titled, hence my uncertainty. Kind regards, Wayne
-
Hi everyone, I'm researching BoB era Hurricanes with a view to modelling one. Naturally, 'Willie' McNight's aircraft has a lot of appeal because of its attractive artwork. Despite my efforts I haven't found any photos of his machine, save for a couple of 'tight' shots that show very little of the aircraft. Most modelling and artwork renditions of Willie's aircraft depict it with a Sky coloured spinner, as opposed to the black spinners of most aircraft in the squadron. What authority is there for this proposition? I have found a photograph of 242 squadron Hurricanes flying at altitude (in an echelon formation) and they all appear to have Sky coloured spinners. I don't know much about Hurricanes but the serial number on the aircraft closest to the camera seems to indicate a later variant than those that flew in the BoB. Is anyone able to resolve this issue?
-
Hi there, I have been trying to contact 'Britain at War' magazine with a view to obtaining further information about a Spitfire flown during the Battle of Britain by Australian ace Flt. Lt. Clarence (Pat) Hughes. This magazine's July 2013 edition (issue 75) contained an article about Mr. Joe Roddis, one of the men who maintained Hughes' aircraft during the battle. I have sent 3 separate emails to the magazine's nominated email addresses (including the Editor's) but I have not received a reply or acknowledgment to any of them - in over a month. Is there a protocol I must follow to contact this magazine? I would welcome any advice about how to contact a representative of this magazine or, better still, Mr. Roddis directly. Thanks in advance. Cheers, Wayne
-
My (stupid) question: During the Battle of Britain period some Spitfire Mk I's were fitted with an internal rear-view mirror in lieu of an external one - Eric Lock and Alan Deere both flew machines with internal rear-view mirrors. I believe some of these internal mirror arrangements incorporated a device designed to improve over-the-nose sighting. Is this true and, if so, does anyone have any close-up or detailed pictures of these devices?
