John R Posted November 21, 2015 Share Posted November 21, 2015 First flown in 1945 powered by Rolls Royce Trent engines which were basically a Derwent engine fitted with a reducing gear which drove a propeller. After a dodgy first flight during which both engines attempted to lose all their oil the fault was corrected and it became a useful research tool contributing to the very successful Dart. Despite being much heavier than the Meteor F1, from which it was derived, the take-off distance was reduced, initial climb was improved and was faster than the earliest Meteors. The model went together quite well but there are some significant errors. The propellers seem to bear no resemblance to the actual thing and had to be slimmed down. There is some confusion in my mind about the props as they were initially 8ft in diameter but Eric Greenwoods description of the hairy first flight (Air Enthusiast March 72) states that the engines went back to Rolls Royce for modification and came back with 4ft 10” props. However later pictures appear to show it flying with the larger diameter versions. Can anybody clear this up? Anyone who wants to see what the props should look like have a look at this thread where there is a photo of the actual article http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234947300-gloster-trent-meteor-prop-blade/ The kit would have you fit a new tail bullet which does not appear in any photo that I have found and neglects to have any provision for the anti-spin parachute housing fitted for the early flights despite it appearing on the box art. This version had a longer u/c than the jet because of the need to provide clearance for the props. MPM would have you fit longer legs but these would not fit the u/c bays. Some discussion about this in another thread came up with information that it had the same legs but the oleos were pumped up. If you compare photos of the two versions you can see that the trailing arm is angled more downwards so I kept the original leg and adjusted the trailing arm so that the wheel position matched that of the photo. The picture shows the difference between the two kit arms, Trent and original, and my modification. Incidentally this task was made a nightmare because the resin wheels are too narrow for the trailing arm and they kept falling out. Glueing did not seem to be an option as they are weighted and I couldn't guarantee that the flat bit would sit parallel to the ground until all wheels had been fitted. Eventually I got it together but it was suggested that a better idea would have been to drill out the wheel hubs and fit an axle. I wish I had thought of that. The kit nosewheel needed extending. I'm not entirely happy with what I have done. The top of the strut and retraction jack could do with improvement but getting at it now the props and aerial are on is a bit daunting. One item of contention was the colour of the forward panels on the nacelles. The kit says “Sky” but the consensus appears to be that they were unpainted primer so I used Tamiya XF4 yellow/green as my memory says that this matched the primer I saw used in my apprentice days. Built for the Meteor GB. WIP here http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234990667-trent-meteor-mpm-172/ Any comments (critical or otherwise) and additional information welcome John PS. References Gloster Meteor by Butler and Buttler published by Aerofax Meteor - Aeroplane Icons series Air International March 72 Aeroplane Monthly July 75 contains a superb Charles Brown colour photo 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcNewitt Posted November 21, 2015 Share Posted November 21, 2015 Love it! Marc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted November 21, 2015 Share Posted November 21, 2015 First one I've seen built and I'm not disappointed. Lovely job. Duncan B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artie Posted November 22, 2015 Share Posted November 22, 2015 Wow.....very beeautiful Meteor...can't say nothing but "I love it"..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpha Delta 210 Posted November 22, 2015 Share Posted November 22, 2015 Lovely model od a fascinating subject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martian Posted November 22, 2015 Share Posted November 22, 2015 Nice build! Martin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcdonnell Posted November 22, 2015 Share Posted November 22, 2015 Hello,JohnR - My compliments to you on a beautiful looking,clean and classically finished build of your 'Trent Meteor'.A resplendent tribute to this aircraft.All the best,Paul. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr T Posted November 22, 2015 Share Posted November 22, 2015 Very nice build with some interesting information added. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John R Posted December 3, 2015 Author Share Posted December 3, 2015 Thanks for the compliments. Main post edited to add references. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feifeitim Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 I like this! The Meatbox had so many variants and your subject is certainly one of the most interesting! Well done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark4700 Posted December 6, 2015 Share Posted December 6, 2015 I never knew this aircraft existed. Many thanks for sharing your build. Well executed build of a fascinating subject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Head in the clouds. Posted December 7, 2015 Share Posted December 7, 2015 I like odd and obscure planes and your build is a cracker and well done with solving the problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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