Jaguar main gear doors

[perdu]

Hi I am considering, ah belay that, I am going to use the Airfix Jag in my stash.

Can someone advise whether the main gear doors are 'normally shut' or 'normally open' when on the ground and parked please?

I have read scathing comments about this model in BM but on checking it with the plans I have I can only find a minor length discrepancy of about 8" or less

The review I read said the span was far too wide at 6" (huh?) but having checked against plans that look pretty good against photos in comparison I don't think there's enough wrong to worry about

I like the lack of deep panel lines, it's far easier to put in light scribe marks where I want them

I am opening up the gear wells where it seems advisable, the nose wheel well will give me a decent floor height to sit the seat on too and some place to lock the 'Liquid gravity' inside too

So with the main gear I am remaking the activating units, Airfix had the shockers moulded across the leg, which will be made better so I'd like to know soon whether I should open the main wells to put the rest of its gubbins on display

I have already played with making the doors for it, not awfully difficult with a sheet of 'ten thou' polycard

If I don't need to I doubt if I will, I like a bit of detail but I'm not a slave. I might take off the front wall and leave a void which can house the extending piston back inside out of sight

Not having to get all the switches exactly right won't worry me either Steve (yes I expect you will see this)

And coincidentally I have been trying to find cockpit rear wall details so the seat looks at home, the only one I have found yet seems to be of Fritag entering his Jag back in the days when he drove them

But the rear wall detail is next to invisible

Any help will be welcome, thanks

bill

[Cheshiretaurus]

Can someone advise whether the main gear doors are 'normally shut' or 'normally open' when on the ground and parked please?

Fritag is probably the best qualified to answer this.

A quick look at some pics shows them in both positions,

From a systems description (page108) the 2 large doors (side and lower) are operated by a hydraulic jack connected to each of the side doors only and interconnected by a rod mechanism to the lower doors so they both move together, They can be opened on the ground for servicing etc. Both doors will still move together.

So in short when parked they can be in either position I think

This is my understanding of them. I'll stand back now and let the Jaguar experts tell me how it really works.

[perdu]

:)

pages 105 to 113 are not shown in this preview

I wonder why not?

Thanks for that though it helps some

[Cheshiretaurus]

try this linky

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=3HrrAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA108&lpg#v=onepage&q&f=false

[perdu]

You wouldnt believe it Mark

You have reached a page that is unavailable for....

No worries mate, there lots of time and, like you, I found lots of pictures in both configurations

[xvtonker]

Typically the main & nose doors were closed in-between sorties and when hangered. We opened the doors for maintenance.

XVTonker (formerly of 6, 14 & 31Sqn Jags)

[Edgar]

And coincidentally I have been trying to find cockpit rear wall details so the seat looks at home,

Edited November 30, 2014 by Edgar

[perdu]

Thank you Edgar they are exactly what I need

Tonker likewise, so I can clean the opened bit of Airfix's bays and be done with it

Cheers

[bentwaters81tfw]

Take a look here.

http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/70916-sepecat-jaguar/

[Scootsah1]

The gear doors were left open so the linies could do their b/f, t/r and a/f inspections. Also the 'G' meter was in the left hand bay and you couldn't read it with the doors closed. The battery was above the nosewheel bay and dropped out through the bay when it needed changing.

They were closed on the ground if the jet was being left outside overnight to stop birds & other creatures nesting/sleeping in the bays.

On 41 we used to close the doors to fit the big BAe Recce Pod, then open them again afterwards.

Happy days

Scoots

[Fritag]

I am sooo glad you you is doing a jag build Bill.

Sooo much better that you get the answers to techie questions like this - that I can then crib - then i have to admit to not knowing nearly as much about a jet, that I did 2 tours and more than a thousand hours in, as I should.......

Not only that It's nice to think of a jag getting the perdu makeover

I'm glad xvtonker and Scootsah1 have already given the 'professionals' answer....

IIRC that photo of me you're talking about is actually me getting out of the jet after a sortie - and also IIRC it shows the gear doors open?

If I'm right so far then the liney will have opened the doors at or about the same time as he plugged in the ground power unit cos they'd have been closed when I landed and taxied in and would've stayed closed unless opened.

I think there was a little switch inside the small panel above the ground power plug socket that operated the doors - the engineers can correct me if I'm misremembering

I also think the doors were hydraulic and not electric powered - but I cannot now remember where the pressure came to open or close the doors on the ground. Maybe it was residual pressure in the system? Again the engineers would know

I can't remember now if we had to open the doors on a pilot turnaround - say to make a note of G meter readings - or if we just left em closed.

Most of the photos I've got of parked jags have the doors closed. But some - including some when we've landed away from base - have the doors open (usually the jet is plugged into a GPU which may or may not be relevent) so I think you can chose to model it with doors open or closed with equal validity.

Looking forward to the WIP..........

Edited November 30, 2014 by Fritag

[Julien]

Take a look here.

http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/70916-sepecat-jaguar/

Cheers for pointing that out. Had to do some evasive manoeuvring around the Bentwaters Security to get those shots!

[Fritag]

Cheers for pointing that out. Had to do some evasive manoeuvring around the Bentwaters Security to get those shots!

So worth it Julian - invaluable stuff

Edited November 30, 2014 by Fritag

[12jaguar]

Fritag is correct there's a small panel just fwd of the port main u/c bay, inside is a switch which IIRC was introduced under a Service Engineered Mod

John

[JagRigger]

Yep - location of the switch correct, just above the power socket on port side. Doors opened pre-shutdown after marshalling in, and were closed during the see off. Normally 'on the line' flaps & slats are down, airbrakes and doors open

[perdu]

Gracias chaps the Bentwaters stuff is just epic and more than a bit sad, I hate seeing aeroplanes reduced to bits. (Produce)

Thanks Julien, I am sure it was worth you risking getting yer bum bitten by bad mannered 'satians and handlers.

And of course you are right Steve, I'm just asking the questions you won't be able to and keep yer street cred man.

If I do a WIP it will have to be picture light, I'm up to 84% in my photobucketbucket already.

I tried Picasaweb but it immediately took over all my picture files, even those stored in the back of beyond and behind the fence in my garden, then stopped me using Windows Picture viewer.

I had to uninstall the thing, totally unbillfriendly.

I have the Airwaves etch stuff coming, do I need my head looking at? Yup, prolly do after the Waspystuff waste of time but it all adds up in the 'un'skill bank.

So in a day or two I may begin

That secret switch, is that the small panel just in front of the well covers? S'spect it will be.

Jury still out on open or shut, maybe we should let Steve get down and REALLLLLY dirty with that aspect

Next year

ish

I see there was a nice photo of the sidewinder rail on the front cover of a newly released magazine when I popped into Tesco for brain fuel yesterday, nice detail maybe I should buy it.

But at just north of eight quid maybe I shouldn't

Edited November 30, 2014 by perdu

[Max Headroom]

Here is the ACT Jag at Cosford which I snapped last year. Hope these are if some use.

HTH

Trevor

[Scootsah1]

Ok gents,

in the 2nd picture of XX765 you can just see the small square door hinged at the top in front of the u/c bay where the u/c door switch lived. Also in there is the ground intercom (headset) plug so you could talk to the pilot during a see-off. Personally I never used it in my 6 years on Jags, always did a see-off/see-in with hand signals ( the Jag Liney Dance, Fritag will know what I mean !!!) .

Just below that door is another square door hinged at the bottom which follows the contour of the fuselage. Inside there is the ground power socket. The doors were closed after engine start then the ground power disconnected and opened before engine shutdown. Ground power was usually connected after the Jockey had left the scene.

[perdu]

Thank you for that Scootsah, I thought that would be it

I have decided that I'm going to build it with the main doors shut but of course (why do we never do the easy thing) will be having the interior visible from behind so I have to replace the extension jack and dollop it up against the back wall upper section

[JagRigger]

That's not a retraction jack - just a drag strut to prevent the gear moving backwards under load. Only hyds are to unlock it.

The retraction jack is actually on the back of the leg, and like the nose jack, retracts to bring the gear down. Makes the whole thing a lot stronger for the Jaguars rough field capability

[perdu]

Thanks jagrigger

It didnt look strong enough but that is quite a complex system there

All this info helps me

I hope it stops me making a mess of it, I have already stripped the main leg of the strut at the back which could be the one you mean

Airfix merged all that into one

Edited December 2, 2014 by perdu

[Cheshiretaurus]

Couldn't resist picking this up in Tesco today,

http://www.aeroplaneicons.com/view_issue.asp?ID=6290

Penty of detailed reference pics and drawing of various sorts, scale plans, diagrams of undercarriages, flaps, airbrakes and other movable bits. couple of interesting pics of XX109 operating off the M55 motorway. Probebly Fritags got his mug in there too.

Well worth a flick through.

[perdu]

Lovely

Just the picture I wanted, nice upper detail for the AIM rails

I did see that in Tesco, almost certainly going to pick it up there this weekend

Still not decided which version I'm doing

My Airfix kit was a cheapo 50p from my club's for sale table back in about 1980 or so

No decals but otherwise unmolested, with the apparently infinitesimal differences between GR 1 and 3 and a recently delivered Pavla seat and Airwaves etch sheet (I know, I wasn't going etchy again for a while...) I'm just tidying up the mouldings

Popping in a nose wheel well and jetpipes so far

I'll probably do a minor WIP, depends on these preliminary moves

I have a Modeldecals RAF Germany set for a GR1, I may use that

[Fritag]

Penty of detailed reference pics and drawing of various sorts, scale plans, diagrams of undercarriages, flaps, airbrakes and other movable bits. couple of interesting pics of XX109 operating off the M55 motorway. Probebly Fritags got his mug in there too.

Don't think I'll be able to resist visiting Tesco now Mark. Starting to collect a few references myself.

I've got the 1/72 Hasegawa Black Jaguar Combo in the attic for when the time comes.....I'll probably do a GR1a and a T2a in parallel.

There's one particular piccie of a 4-ship of 6 squadron jags in line abreast - all with a different weapons load - that cropped up a few times in late 80's early 90's Jag publications, and which I'm leading' that was a purely photographic sortie - but save for that the Fritag service was largely by passed by the aviation press

Lovely

Just the picture I wanted, nice upper detail for the AIM rails

I did see that in Tesco, almost certainly going to pick it up there this weekend

Still not decided which version I'm doing

My Airfix kit was a cheapo 50p from my club's for sale table back in about 1980 or so

No decals but otherwise unmolested, with the apparently infinitesimal differences between GR 1 and 3 and a recently delivered Pavla seat and Airwaves etch sheet (I know, I wasn't going etchy again for a while...) I'm just tidying up the mouldings

Popping in a nose wheel well and jetpipes so far

I'll probably do a minor WIP, depends on these preliminary moves

I have a Modeldecals RAF Germany set for a GR1, I may use that

No over wing pylons on RAFG Jags Bill.

Nor the little grey bump in front of the windscreen - that came with the sat nav (I think - never had sat navs or that bump on any jag I flew)

And two aerials behind the canopy - but you'll know that one.

Looking forward to a WIP on this Bill, minor or otherwise

[Cheshiretaurus]

I've got the 1/72 Hasegawa Black Jaguar Combo in the attic for when the time comes.....I'll probably do a GR1a and a T2a in parallel.

Will be will be looking forward your builds on that, have both the Hasagawa GR1 & T2 in the stash, not in the same box though. GR1 will be converted to XX765 the ACT Jag and the T2 will be XX145 Both raspberry rippled (I like bright colours). Have the AirDecal sheet for the T2 and the Combat conversions Set and decals for the Single seater.

Just had a quick flick through the Jaguar book, your 4 ship piccy doesnt seem to be in there.