Oil stains on Spitfires!

[Leadsolo]

Just when I think I've got a handle on my weathering....

Seiously, thank you to everyone who has contributed to this, be it at the end of a fractious day or with personal experiences or whatever. The pictures you have posted have been excellent and have helped me no end in getting some weathering on my model. I'm doing a 1/32 Pacific Coast Models Spitfire IX in the Polish Fighting Team markings. I've toned down the somewhat stark colours with Tamiya & MIG weathering powders, to give itthe sligtly grubby effect of living in the desert. I'm also working on the basis that after sitting around in that for an hour or two, as with most desert conditions as I understand, there tends to be a fine layer of dust that gets everywhere. I'm going to have to work on the exhaust staining and put some oil marks underneath, but I do now have a sensible idea of what's reasonable.

Thanks again....this is why I love places like this

[Val]

Well, thank you to everyone who has provided such brilliant information, this thread is invaluable.

It's a real eye opener how dirty spitfires/other aircraft get, especially surprised by the show birds that get such attention to them, fascinating. I feel less bad about my weathering now

Also, those pictures just highlight what an amazingly beautiful plane the spit really is, beautiful

[Test Graham]

Daniel: according to the Kookaburra books, it was the RAAF who had a written requirement that the surface finish had to be so smooth that a dry cheesecloth would slide off the trailing edge of its own accord. Don't recall it saying anything about the leading edge, which is the more important part.

[Jennings Heilig]

I've resisted the urge to post on this thread...

All perfectly true Wez. I would add that you don't necessarily need to have been turning wrenches on airplanes to know this either. I've been flying them since I was 18 (14 types to date), and I know that nothing like *all* the goobers are cleaned off after every flight. Anyone who's spent any time at all hanging around an airplane patch will testify.

Also, please note in those wonderful, large photos, that almost none of the dirt and gunk is as perfectly precise, even, symmetrical, or artistic looking as what you see on about 98.9% of scale models. And I don't see a single pre-shaded panel line on a single one of them!

Edited December 6, 2013 by Jennings Heilig

[Magpie22]

Daniel: according to the Kookaburra books, it was the RAAF who had a written requirement that the surface finish had to be so smooth that a dry cheesecloth would slide off the trailing edge of its own accord. Don't recall it saying anything about the leading edge, which is the more important part.

That is one of those urban myths. I have never seen any such requirement. I believe that it was yet another figment of Mr Pentland's imagination. I agree with you that polishing/cleaning a wing's surface aft of about the 35% chord line, in order to gain an increase in performance, is a waste of time.

Magpie 22

[Nick Millman]

IIRC the "regulation" part of Mr Pentland's anecdote referred to the cheesecloth rather than the procedure.

That units in the RAAF were wax polishing Kittyhawk fighters officially or unofficially, seems not in doubt as that was the subject of two Division of Aeronautics investigation reports from September 1942 and January 1944 (both on file at amair4raf).

RAF trials of Spitfire Vb EN946 reported that smoothing, stopping, rubbing down, painting and polishing the leading edge of the wings led to a gain in speed at rated altitude of approx 6 mph whilst polishing the rest of the aircraft "i.e. fuselage and wings, wax polish only used" gained an additional 3 mph. These results were reported in the minutes of a meeting at Supermarine on 1st January 1943 to discuss improved finishes and the result of parasitic drag.

Nick

[Wez]

All perfectly true Wez. I would add that you don't necessarily need to have been turning wrenches on airplanes to know this either. I've been flying them since I was 18 (14 types to date), and I know that nothing like *all* the goobers are cleaned off after every flight. Anyone who's spent any time at all hanging around an airplane patch will testify.

Also, please note in those wonderful, large photos, that almost none of the dirt and gunk is as perfectly precise, even, symmetrical, or artistic looking as what you see on about 98.9% of scale models. And I don't see a single pre-shaded panel line on a single one of them!

Yes Jennings, you are absolutely correct about not needing to be a maintainer but the comments that provoked my post were about the Erks who were the maintainers, but you are correct, anyone who is intimately involved with aeroplanes will testify as to how mucky the things get, this is brilliantly illustrated in Daniels beautiful photos.

You're also absolutely correct that wear and stains aren't even, and likewise, in my 30 plus years of being around real aeroplanes, I'm yet to see a pre-shaded panel line either (but that's another argument for a different thread).

Wez

[woody37]

Lets not forget that weathering on a model is great for hiding a number of self induced sins in the paintwork, artistic licence always lends itself well !!!!!

[Miggers]

I went for the "clean but just had it's morning warm-up before flying" look with this one:

[Test Graham]

See this thread http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234950986-early-hurricane-mki-details-and-a-challenge-or-two/page-2

OK, they are Hurricanes, but only the desert Mk.IID has significant oil leaks (from the Rotol prop) and the other noses are all clean. To me that's a pretty good sign of care and attention - when you can.

[gingerbob]

Love it, Miggers- the people standing behind the wing- just like at the airshow. Some frighteningly large vegetation, though!

bob