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Hawker Typhoon Fuel Tanks


mick b

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I am currently building the Car door 24th scale Typhoon and am seeking some clarification as to the colour of the fuel tanks. Instructions state aluminium but I have seen builds of the bubble canopy type using a brick red colour for the self sealing type. Please could someone advise? I believe that Chris Thomas advised on these colours so assume aluminium for the earlier Tiffie is correct?

 

Mike.

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Hello Mike

Thanks for the vote of confidence (?) but I worked with Airfix mainly on external colours. I do not have any good reference for much of the interior, although (from surviving parts) it would seem much was painted silver.  However, I do not think this would be the case with self-sealing tanks, and although red (oxide) seems to be prominent on Hurricanes, the surviving Typhoon wing leading edge tank on display at Duxford is black.  Unless anyone can come up with something more conclusive, that would be my choice.

CT

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Hi Chris,

 

Thanks for the response , much appreciated and apologies if I inferred that I doubted your input.

 

On another note; I am looking at completing it as PR- Z R7713, Baldwin’s mount for some months as you will of course be aware, and in your Osprey Aces book you say the Z on the leading edge would most likely be flight colour of blue as well as the rear of the spinner, but in Richard Franks book it is shown with a red rear to the spinner in the colour profiles, again I am sure you are correct but has any further evidence come to light since publication? I assume the blue would be a pale shade?

 

Mike

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I'm glad you asked that question Mike.  20 years have passed since the T&T Aces book and some further hints have led me to reassess my interpretation.  

 

Back in 1999 I was passing on what was 'perceived wisdom' gleaned from researchers who had gone before, but I now believe that the two-tone spinners originated with a misinterpretation of the poorly-worded order which reinstated camouflage on the nose when the white nose markings were removed.  The initial order said that the portion in front of the blades was to be Sky with camouflage aft of that; it was later amended to to state the complete spinner was to be Sky.   After a close look at photos of 609's Typhoons in the early months of 1943 it seems to me that the rear half of the spinners match up with one of the camouflage colours.  Later this may have changed to 'Flight colours' or even black.

 

Looking at the front view of PR-Z, published in the Osprey Aces book, it appears that the rear of the spinner matches the Ocean Grey where it has been used to paint out the white.  Furthermore, a colour photo of a 609 pilot has turned up, which shows the leading edge letter in Yellow.  Looking at the PR-Z photo again it does seem that the 'Z' on the LE matches the Yellow stripe along the wing.    

 

So my best (partly informed) guess would now be OG/Sky spinner and Yellow code on the LE.

CT  

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Blimey has it really been 20 years! Great stuff Chris, thanks again, the spinner back plate looks to be a pale colour still so is it feasible this may still be white? I appreciate its all a bit of guess work and on PR- Z would you interpret the roughly applied paint down to the white left on the underside of the radiator fairing to be OG or actually newly applied MSG, I’m thinking the former? 

 

Mike

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14 hours ago, mick b said:

Blimey has it really been 20 years! Great stuff Chris, thanks again, the spinner back plate looks to be a pale colour still so is it feasible this may still be white? I appreciate its all a bit of guess work and on PR- Z would you interpret the roughly applied paint down to the white left on the underside of the radiator fairing to be OG or actually newly applied MSG, I’m thinking the former? 

 

Mike

Backplate looks ... maybe Sky ... but logic would say white.  Your call!  repainted side down to the white chin stripe definitely fresh OG.

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