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Posted

For my next trick - the rarely seen, desert exiled brother of Wellington...

Anyone know of a Wellesley workaround or source of reference pix.

There are plenty of generic exterior shots but not in much detail, nor is there a huge number of interior views.

There are a few detailed models out there but I would like to judge a selection from the real deal, especially as I intend to so a LRDA as opposed to a standard mk1.

Trust me to choose the difficult version... :)

Actually I looked at the Matchbox decals and had doubts as they've seen better days. If they so end up u/s then the LRDA aircraft will allow a Wiff option I have in reserve.

...

Thx in advance.D.

Posted

You've probably seen this, however all the old profile publications are on the boxart den website.

Here's the link to the Wellesley.. http://www.boxartden.com/gallery/index.php/Profiles/Aircraft-Profiles/Britain/Between-the-Wars/Vickers-Wellesley-Variants

Hope this helps.. Dave

  • Like 1
Posted

Ibjave sewn it, but Thx anyway as its nice to know I'm not alone on liking these osballs.

I do wonder if the Profile is the only publication ever to print more than a single...err...profile!

May try to download a copy later as I uavent been successful finding a print copy, at least at a reasonable price anyway (fleabay is more than I paid for the kit!)

Posted

I've read the BM threads and many others besides.

There's a dearth of detail shots though, and as nice as others models and profiles may be theres nothing beats a decent walkaround that focuses less on the geodetic framework and mire what it looks like with skin and equipment attached.

The long cowl planes are particularly lacking except fir the lDRU trio, and Matchbox's decals are for K7717 which is an elusive beast.

I've got a copy of Profile #256 but I won't be buying the Warpaint if it contains nothing new.

Posted

Hi-Ho,

I am slowly building one at the 'mo and am having much 'fun' adding all the bits that Matchbox forgot.

The grand total of my references are the Profile, the Warpaint title and a couple of images off of the met. If you can get a decent enlargement of the cutaway, (IIRC, from the Profile tome). Using that and examining the other internal shots has proven most useful.

Once I had worked out the position of the internal geodetic framing the rest was relatively easy :winkgrin:. Just need to find a decent picture of the radio set up...

Christian exiled to a country just below where they were used early in WW2

Posted

I'm fairly convinved Air International had a feature on Wellesleys including a cutaway and some detail shots in the 1978 to 1981 bracket.

Has anyone else noticed the MB kit features an air intake with Volkes (?) filter that isn't mentioned anywhere in the instructions (of the original issue at least) ? I wonder if they originally planned a different marking option to use it, or whether it was applicable to one of the options but forgotten by the drawing department.

Posted

I'm fairly convinved Air International had a feature on Wellesleys including a cutaway and some detail shots in the 1978 to 1981 bracket.

Has anyone else noticed the MB kit features an air intake with Volkes (?) filter that isn't mentioned anywhere in the instructions (of the original issue at least) ? I wonder if they originally planned a different marking option to use it, or whether it was applicable to one of the options but forgotten by the drawing department.

Yup, but it took me a couple of days to figure what it was :blush:

Posted (edited)

Trust me to pick the most awkward and unphotographed of options...a long cowl non-LRDU bird...not a single pic of K7717 has surfaced yet but I bet I could find all the other airframes if given time :)

Little done so far apart from adding the nose to the main fuselage and making the sear less of an odd pointy topped L to something a little more chairyfied - not that it will be seen unless I find the pics to mark the cut points for the Spitfire-esque pilot drop down side panels (so far all are bad angles or the grease monkeys are in the way).

I love a challange but even the Prototype D4Y3 had more pix - all 2 of them!

Tempting to remove the nose and replace with the short cowl option...but where's the fun in that? :) :)

Edited by dpm1did1
Posted

Tempting to remove the nose and replace with the short cowl option...but where's the fun in that? :) :)

Good point! But it's easier than doing a Mk.II. I'm surprised that no-one has produced an aftermarket canopy, or even that Valom failed to do it. Valom do however sell the long-cowling LRDU aircraft.

Posted

I would hold on until you have gotten a copy of Warpaint No. 86 Vickers Wellsley;

http://www.guidelinepublications.co.uk/index.php?GOTO=4&PICFILE=4&STKNR=4&STRH=&ORDN=&RNZ=281338

I am finding it indispensable.

I shall be a heretic abd admit I never really saw the advantages of buying the Warpaint books.

I had some of the earlier ones bit don't miss them. Colour profiles look nice but they don't really help with detailing a model. The pix never seemed to be able to match the quality and detail I could find elsewhere. And the 'wordy bits' too often were around the operations and stories surround the types as opposes to tech details. Overall i found them lacking.

For the price I would rather dig out an In-Action, Red Star, Aerofax book, or one of a handful of others, some of which may not even in English.

Of course sometimes a subject will crop up where information is scarce (and o seem to have the knack of jumping in with both feet) but then I often find scouring the net is just as effective.

Now I admit I havent had my paws on the Warpaint for the Wellesley, notably because I don't have a local stockist atm, but I currently see no driving motivation to spend £ on it simply on the off chance one pic might be halfway useful.

I don't build competition standard models (more of a 'throw plastic at glue and pour on paint' type) so buying for the sake of buying just isn't worth it in many cases.

Posted

Trust me to pick the most awkward and unphotographed of options...a long cowl non-LRDU bird...not a single pic of K7717 has surfaced yet but I bet I could find all the other airframes if given time

Errr...last pic on Post #6 from Chris (Dogsbody) shows K7717. Shows pretty much everything you need for markings etc.

Posted (edited)

Errr...last pic on Post #6 from Chris (Dogsbody) shows K7717. Shows pretty much everything you need for markings etc.

Looked at...noted it...forgot about it...OLD AGE!

Unfortunately it's pretty much what can be seen in dozens of other pics available from that angle. Really only the long cowl signifies theres anything different about it, and even then most would probably say it was a LRDU bird, and the only detail not shown on the box top is the pilots turnover structure (which having now added to the modified seat is barely visible anyway, let alone the side details.)

If i detail the interior I will have to open the canopy or else it'll be all bit invisible - the work never ends.

Now about the ventral hatches, undercarriage extension markers, internal pannoer structures...the list goes on...and internal colour notes as web builds differ...

Suppose I may have to consider a new engine too.

...perhaps call this a practice build and go nuts on Wellesley #2 should I ever find one again (it took years this time around!)

...or maybe stick to the Wiff plans...

Edited by dpm1did1
Posted

The internals should be pretty straightforward - cockpit would most likely be Interior Green while the rest of the fuselage would have aluminium structure with patchy brick red for the interior of the fabric. There are a couple of half-decent interior pics on the web to show details but the fuselage is pretty narrow and dark, so I'm not sure how much detail would be visible in 1/72 scale. Per the pic, you could leave the panniers off your model and save yourself the challenge of working out internal structure of the bomb bays.

Rear Fuselage looking aft:

Aircraft_of_the_Royal_Air_Force_1939-194

Rear fuselage looking forward:

Aircraft_of_the_Royal_Air_Force_1939-194

Pilot's Cockpit:

wellesley-2.jpg

In case you haven't seen them...and in hopes they're of use.

Cheers,
Mark

Posted (edited)

All the (limited number of) internal pix seem to be nicely lengthwise along the fuselage, and although they do look nice just don't make it so easy to determine placement for the numerous boxes that these aerial critters invariably seem to attract.

Cutaways, for once, are even worse. Geodesic fuselages were not designed with the modeller in mind as the ribs seem so much closer to each other than conventional frames and ruin the view - designers can be so inconsiderate :)

Will probably start off by copying the basics from ther builds - err I mean be inspired by... - before coming back to the pics to add the ickle bits later (and then promptly close the halves and never see them again!)

I can't completely ignore the panniers, because that wouldn't be masochistic enough. Must build and detail them...and then not fit them :)

....

After this a nice easy Bristol Bombay? Loads of references available am I right? Or a Fairey Henson...

...I have books with obscure 1 off Russian prototypes with more info and pix :)

Edited by dpm1did1
Posted (edited)

If you don't like Poirot/Columbo/Molder & Scully/The Scooby Gang...or a host of other TV detectives I suggest you look away now... :)

*******

I may have finally solved the mystery of K7717.

Seems Matchbox have pulled a rare bird from a rare nest to add to their collection of rare feathery friends.

We have all seen the pic:

450px-Vickers_Wellesley.jpg

...and this is the accompanying Wiki text:

Type 292 of the Long-Range Development unit. Unlike production Wellesleys, the engine cowling is blended with the fuselage profile.

And for Vickers Type 292

Three aircraft were modified for long-distance flying. The aircraft were used by the RAF's Long-Range Development Flight. (standard Wellesleys were type 281)

This is where it gets murky. For example:

http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?9013-Long-Distance-Wellesley-Flight

...the four machines were...L2638...L2639...L2680....L2681..

So 3 of the LRDU now becomes 4!. Actually L2681 only went as far as Egypt and so often gets forgotten from the list.

But still no K7717!

Probably the only direct reference I have found to the airframe

http://aviadejavu.ru/Site/Crafts/Craft26028.htm

This matches well with production notes that state quite clearly that K7717 was a type 281 Wellesley 1 delivered to 148 squadron. It also ties in with the photo matching the Matchbox kit but running contrary to the stated RAF service.

Back to Wiki:

Five aircraft...were modified for long-range work with the RAF Long-Range Development Flight.

Well we've already accounted for the 'famous 3' + 1 other, and now it seems we do indeed have a 5th!

Maybe there was once more info, or it still exists but it is hidden away from the prying eyes of the webosphere, either way why didn't Matchbox just give decals for a LRDU machine instead of an obscure bird that , it would have made life so much simpler... :)

Now I just to to build the damn thing!

****

TV detective haters can look back now...

Edited by dpm1did1
  • Like 1
Posted

Well, I guess that's all there is to find on the Wellesley, whether it's the LRDA aircraft or the regular squadron machines. I've spent time over the years looking for more info, but there's not a lot out there.

Chris

Posted

Well, I guess that's all there is to find on the Wellesley,....

Alas all too true. I'm sure Airfix would have gladly kitted it to accompany their other 30's subjects.

Posted (edited)

Jeffery Quills book describes an interesting incident when he had to jump out of one, they could get into an unrecoverable spin.

Edited by grahamf
Posted (edited)

Well, no. I realise that books are old-fashioned, but looking in Putnam's Vickers Aircraft, by C.F. Andrews and E.B. Morgan I found the following (necessarily abbreviated):

K7717 was first allocated to 45 Sq in Egypt. It was there fitted with a Pegasus XVIII for tropical trials, and then returned to the UK as a "trial horse" for the five LR conversions, and later other duties. The five aircraft converted for the LRDU were L2637, L2638, L2639, L2680 and L2681.

These five aircraft also had the very new Rotol constant-speed propeller. It would make sense hat there would have been one spare for a flight intended to be of four aircraft.

Quite why modern sources haven't consulted this, which I'm sure is the most reliable and best informed of all, I can't say. It doesn't say whether K7717 also had the Rotol, nor does it say why or when the 148 squadron marks appeared on K7717. However, having claimed accuracy for this source, it seems that the history of K7717 has been confused (possibly with K7777?). Air Britain's The K File has it delivered to 7 Sq for transfer to 76 Sq on formation, then to 148 Sq before returning to Vickers for the LR mods.

Rotol did have a Wellesley for continued trials with Rotol propellers, (not K7717, possibly K7753? )but the book Rotol does not give a serial, nor does it have much text on the LRDU - although it does say "in next chapter" sadly it isn't. It does have a good closeup of the propeller, which is one of the early ones with magnesium blades not the broad-rooted wooden ones which later became familiar.

I've also found two other Wellesleys with the LRDU, K7734 and K7735 presumably not modified.

Edited by Graham Boak
  • Like 1
Posted (edited)

Just to be clear I didn't just type 'Wellesley' in to wiki and cut & paste without checking and crosschecking where possible.

If the internet is wrong then it's not my fault that it tallied after 2 days of searching a stupid number of site. If it doesn't match Putnam then it's nothing to do with me. (And who's to say the book is 100% correct anyway. Not saying it is but errors have been known on printed material too!)

Re: confused serial - impossible because L7777 was a Wellington. I did find a list of all Wellesley serials and squadron use but can't find it again.

K7734: Missing 23/2/38

http://www.crashsiteorkney.com/page29.htm

Edited by dpm1did1
Posted

Missing from the Flight online archive (pages around 520 of December 8th 1938) but reprinted in 'War in the Air' magazine June 1989 is a detailed description and drawings of the Wellesley structure - but not the fittings therein. It includes the photo of K7717 in 148 Sqdn marks with the caption

"The engine cowling arrangement on the long-range model differs from that of the standard type shown in the heading. This particular machine is a standard Wellesley used by the Bristol Company for engine tests."

The cowling in the photo is the long chord type.

I can email a PDF if sent a PM with an email address.

Air Entusiast Vol 63 featured the LRDU Wellesley, I can probably find it but not tonight (Josephine!)

Ross

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