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sprue

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sprue last won the day on April 12 2018

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  1. According to John Sweetman in his book Operation Chastise, 50 Upkeep mines and their casings had been completed by April 9th and sent for filling. He also notes that the Air Ministry had instructed that all live weapons were to be painted green while inert practice weapons were to be grey. All these weapons were delivered to various locations such as Scampton, A&AEE Boscombe Down and RAF Manston plus others concerned with technical issues regarding fusing, handling and balancing. April 18th following a test at Reculver where the cylinder broke free of the wooden casing but continued to perform as expected was the day it was decided to abandon the wooden casing. All stores at Manston were then stripped of their wooden casings. On April 21st Capt Sam Brown unsuccessfully dropped the first bare cylinder from 185 feet and it shattered. Interestingly Sweetman notes that some of the earlier dropping tests didn't involve full size Upkeeps. There were many trials carried out as the main issues seemed to be dropping height, rotation speed and airspeed, and it seems nothing was finalised until about the second week of May. The final drop prior to the raid was May 15th. As to when the order was given to remove all wooden casings is not recorded but the fact the Germans recovered an Upkeep in oxide primer is note worthy.
  2. I can imagine that the original wooden clad mines would have been green as per instructions and regulations but not the metal inners, hence the mine recovered by the Germans was indeed in primer alluding to the notion that the wooden coats had been previously removed in haste. I'm sure that after the raid, which was supposed to be repeated on other targets, the remaining mines would have been correctly painted and marked before being stored. Of course when Bomber Command realised the loses were unsustainable and that the Germans had knowledge of the technique they were never used again. As previously noted it's a can of worms and we can never be absolutely sure. To confuse things further my understanding is that testing continued after the raid in preparation for an aborted campaign and some photographs thought to be taken prior to the raid were in fact taken afterwards. As for the colour for models its your choice, but I settled on primer red.
  3. The bombs were originally designed to be encased in a wooden overcoat to make them more spherical. Testing revealed that the wooden part would break away upon impact with the water and the inner metal mine would also shatter. Barnes Wallis had to accept that the only way of delivering the weapon (which was already in production) was from a lower height of 60 feet rather than the 120 feet he originally planned. Further testing then showed that the wooden overcoat continued to break up but that the metal mine remained intact but importantly behaved as intended. Remembering that design. testing and production was carried out in a very short time frame against a deadline some the weapons were delivered days prior to the raid still in their wooden overcoats. I think it unlikely therefore that the metal parts would have been painted in anything other than primer as there was no point. Doubtless those weapons already delivered were hastily stripped of their overcoats and left in primer as there was probably no time to repaint but it was imperative that the mines were balanced a) to prevent uncontrollable vibration in the aircraft when it was being spun and b) to ensure that the weapon remained true on track after release. I therefore doubt that weapons would have been repainted at the last minute due to these factors. After the raid I'm sure all remaining weapons would have been painted and marked as per regulations.
  4. A technique I use on acetate canopies is to use clear decal painted in which ever colour necessary then cut into strips and applied just like a decal. Some canopies are just too fragile to use the tape and cut method. Start by dipping them in clear or equivalent and allow to dry.
  5. Its a very deep rabbit hole as you have to be aware that by the time a Lancaster had finished its service and been struck off charge it could quite possibly have ended up with sub assemblies from different airframes as the salvage and repair organisation was extremely efficient at recycling.
  6. Very good research and a convincing conclusion. We must never forget !
  7. I've just picked this thread up and here is the discussion I had on another forum and the final comments. Airfix Lancaster II - Page 5 - Short Stirling & RAF Bomber Command Forum (raf38group.org) following correspondence with the 3 Group Bomber Command Historian it seems highly unlikely that any Lancaster BIIs carried GH Bars in 1944. These bars appeared in late summer early autumn in1944 by which time the BIIs had been replaced. Thanks Steve for your valuable help and input. Hope this helps Mike
  8. The 1/48 Arma Hobby Hurricane has got to be the definitive model and this one is superb. I'm working on one at the moment and I've reached the painting stage. Interestingly I've reacquainted myself with Xtracolor enamels which airbrush beautifully because I can't get hold of my usual Colourcoats or Humbrol . I wonder if Arma are going to do a MkI? Well done Robstopper she's a cracker.
  9. Hi Jamie I've been trying to purchase paints from you but this happens, the order is confirmed paid for using Paypal and then it's cancelled immediately. I've tried twice and I'm getting nowhere. I don't think there's anything wrong with my Paypal account because it is working elsewhere. I'm out of ideas. Can you help please. Mike
  10. Thanks Guys. Small intakes seem to be the favourite. Mike
  11. I'm planning an RAF Dakota Mk.III KG326/19-Y as given on the Xtradecal sheet X72083 using the Airfix kit A08014. The photos I've found on the net of similar aircraft seem to show three different styles of carb intake and I can't fathom out which one is correct for this model. I can't find any photos of KG326. Can anyone point me in the right direction and perhaps some drawings? Thanks in advance. Mike
  12. Here's my effort there might be a few clues . Good luck Mike
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