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Avro Shackleton AEW Mk. 2 Details


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Its a removable film on WL790's windows, but the UV rays had already turned most of them white prior to that. The covering of the windows also keeps down the interior temperatures so it won't wreck the cabin.

Edited by richw_82
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The wing looks essentially correct to my eyes and double checking through photos the panel lines appear to be in the right places. I really wish that I took more detailed shots of the wing upper surface when I was able to though.

The minor deviation that I can see in the kit from the AP illustrations is what looks like a squarish fuel tank access panel in between the spars, and inboard of the inboard engine. This can easily be filled in with a smear of filler, though on my kit I'm not going to bother as the upper detail is reasonably busy anyway.

Most illustrations, including the excellent Chris Bowley Warpaint ones show this panel in place for some reason. Everything else looks correct enough, including the liferaft cover panels aft of the rear spar.

Rich is right, there is only one window under the tailplane, on the stb'd side - will amend my previous post.

That upper central cockpit window discussed earlier, does not appear to be tinted in my pictures of WL795. It can appear so in some shots, I think due to its proximity to the flat glass panels in the windscreen.

Just noticed that in addition to the top IFF sharks fin, there is one near the underside centreline, halfway between the rear obs position gazing and the rear camera bay bulge.

There is also one on the flat ASV radome blanking panel, this seems to represented as the aft of two blade aerials, just a case of carefully filling down and reshaping.

These pics are of Newarks' MR.3 but the detail is the same for the AEW, showing the anti-col light, IFF, two camera bays doors, and the little raised jacking point, all relevant on the AEW.

24897711313_8027245004_b.jpgShackleton MR.3 WR977 tail detail by James Thomas, on Flickr

24893876354_107a680231_b.jpgShackleton MR.3 WR977 tail detail by James Thomas, on Flickr

This shot kind of shows the radome flat spot

24895210624_7958df6a72_b.jpgShackleton AEW.2 WR963 8 Sqn Mar 89 by James Thomas, on Flickr

View up at the upper control panel and glazing

6466042143_7877ee7e0a_b.jpgShackleton WL795 overhead console by James Thomas, on Flickr

I should stress I'm being super picky, I wouldn't expect most 72nd large aircraft kits to have all this detail, IFF fins are tiny on 48th models.

Edited by 71chally
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A couple of other very minor points,

There is a raised intake depicted on the kit, ahead of the bomb bay on the port side, this should be removed completely for the AEW.

Also leave out part B3 all together, as it was part of the cannon sighting equipment.

I don't know what Rich, or others may know, but I don't remember a bulkhead behind the gunners seat/bomb aimers window on an AEW? This is molded in with the gunners seat on the kit.

Also worth adding the engineers panel and signallers table behind the pilots seats bulkhead, the former is quite obvious through the window.

Looking at the Revell and the Airfix kits, one route I might take is to use some of the Airfix interior within the Revell kit.

Edited by 71chally
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There's no gunners bulkhead/door on the MR2, so nothing there to carry over to the AEW2. The bulkhead was an addition on the MR3. This can be confirmed by the diagrams for layouts of equipment shown in the manuals for the aircraft.

10290635_10153893173777049_4868269104040

The AEW2 had the gunnery and bombing equipment stripped and oxygen crates positioned where Boulton Paul cannon cradle assembly (main part of the turret) mounted.

Looking at kit there's a few parts making an appearance which shouldn't in the beam area for an AEW2 - ASV scanner jacks and the Blue Silk radar all of which can be seen if you have the crew door opened.

Edited by richw_82
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This is excellent information, as I have both kits, what we really need is a idiots guide for the likes of myself that shows the areas on the kits that need modifying comparing to the actual aircraft photos, without to much technical jargon

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It is a chunky bit of 'stuff' isn't it

From these great pictures it seems the de-icing leading edges were in the tailplane too

I missed that in my old AEW2 I made from the Frog kit back in the day

I really should have noticed and modelled them but we didnt have constant, easy research sources back then only pictures from shows and magazines :)

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Yes, as Rich says the ASV scanner jacks shouldn't be there on the AEW.2, so leave off parts A12 & A13 all together. These are missing from the Airfix MR.2 kit, as is the aforementioned Blue Silk 'cylinder' just aft of the door, which should have them, so you know what to do...

The deicing strips are best represented by brownish, or wood effect strips of decal.

It is interesting to see how the two manufacturers have approached the Shackleton, both kits have real strengths and weaknesses.

I've started my Revell kit with some of the Airfix interior, the positive thing is how well the parts fit each kit, which is reassuring from the measurements point of view!

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Deicers are wood strips on the leading edges of the mainplane, and metal strips on the horizontal tailplane. They get missed on most models as they're right on the joints.

I took some close-ups of the Coventry MR2 - including these that show the wooden de-icer strips..... hope they are useful ?

coventry%20shack_01.jpg

coventry%20shack_02.jpg

coventry%20shack_03.jpg

Nice bit of marquetry work there.

Ken

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How did those de-icer strips work? Did they have small holes drilled in them to allow de-icer fluid to seep through? Their positioning below the centreline of the aerofoil nose section intrigues me. Presumably any fluid seeped upwards because of the reduced pressure?

I did briefly wonder about there being an inflatable boot behind the wood, but why add weight and complexity, and a boot would normally be above the C/L to help crack off top surface ice, wouldn't it?

Superb information this - thanks all. I used to see Shackletons almost daily for years and never noticed or knew of half these details.

John B

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Deicers are wood strips on the leading edges of the mainplane, and metal strips on the horizontal tailplane. They get missed on most models as they're right on the joints.

Yes I knew that Rich, I put them on my model back then but hadnt noticed the tailplane strips too

Logic should have told me there's be de-icing back in the horizontal stab

:(

We live and learn

;)

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The Airfix one was measured off a spare we had. I've just had a chuckle as they've even moulded in the bolts, and I'd not noticed!

Thanks for that ! I'll assume the Airfix one is correct then. ( it's currently sitting in a mold box waiting for the silicone to go off..... )

Edited by JagRigger
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Excellent gen on the De-icing strips and the "spark plug" guys thank you. Still no definitive answer on the colour on the inside of the flaps yet DSG or white or something else?

Cheers

Ian

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I've only ever seen DSG on the flap interiors of non white aircraft. The flaps very rarely seem to droop open on standing service aircraft, unlike the bomb doors, I think due to their hydraulic mechanical actuation system.

White was used for the undercarriage and weapons bays, the undercarriage legs were usually in a mid grey.

The best AEW Shack for photo references etc is WR960, as it was preserved exactly how it left service in '81, it wasn't repainted (apart from the transport joint strips) or reconfigured.

There are some great shots of it online, but if anyone here is local to it, it would be great to see some detail shots.

That Orange Harvest is a big bit of kit, I remember when a crated one arrived for WL795, however the Revell one looks right on the kit, the Airfix one is much better in shape.

To my eyes, the fuselage windows look too deep on the Revell kit, not enough for me to correct though.

I'm also leaving out part no M49, at the rear, as I don't remember this on '795.

In summary I'm leaving out parts B3, G153, A12 & A13, and M49 completely.

I'm using all of the Airfix interior for the nose section and cockpit to the flight engineers station, scratch build signallers position, cockpit floor and forward bomb bay bulkhead. All the work station seats are the Airfix ones. I will probably use the Airfix Orange Harvest and the radar altimeter box under the rear fuselage.

The Airfix main undercarriage bay rendering is more accurate than Revell, I doubt that it can realistically be incorporated on to the Revell kit though.

Not sure what others think, but I think my Revell Shack was 'rushed' out, all though very good surface detail it does suffer with some sinkage on one fuse half, and there is an odd unfinished area on the top of the fuselage that will need to be filled, also finding the plastic quite hard to work with, including the sprue attachments and removing the parts, the Airfix is better in this regard.

If there is interest, I can post pics of the modified parts of the build here.

Edited by 71chally
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