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RAF 250lb bomb, July 1941 period


Simon

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Hello everyone

 

Working on my Airfix Blenheim, and I'm doing it with a four x 250lb load. The kit has what I think is two x 500lb, so I've got hold of some CMK 250lb-ers. Thing, is they don't seem that much smaller than the kit's bombs. I've got some Pavla 250lb ones (a later time-period version maybe, with the different shape?) in the stash, plus some spare ones from the Italeri Stirlings, and here's a size comparison of all four:

 

bomb-sizes

 

Sorry if this is a daft question, but was the 250lb-er only slightly physically smaller than a 500lb, dimensions-wise? Bearing in mind the CMK ones are already fitted to the model, but can come out...:pray:

 

Thanks

 

Simon

Edited by Simon
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Hi

    this tablelinked here may help with dimensions 

 

 

 

http://www.wwiiequipment.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=100:50lb-120lb-250lb-500lb-general-purpose-bombs&catid=43:bombs&Itemid=60

 

 

cheers

   jerry

Edited by brewerjerry
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Interesting replies everyone, many thanks.

 

From the link posted by Jerry:

 

250lb:

LOA 54.2 inches -> 1/72 = 19mm

Diameter 10.3 inches -> 1/72 = 3.6mm

500lb:

LOA 68.7 inches -> 1/72 = 24mm

Diameter 13 inches -> 1/72 = 4.6mm

 

So the Airfix 500lb is the right length and diameter, and the CMK 250lb one is about 4mm too long but the right diameter. Curses...:swear:

 

I've just come across this photo of RAF bombs being loaded in South East Asia from 1945 - are they 250lbs being handled, and a pair of larger 500lb bombs in the foreground? Quite a size difference, and seem to match the pdf posted by Chris (Dogsbody).

 

https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-raf-ground-crew-in-burma-loading-250lb-bombs-on-to-loading-trolleys-19770774.html

 

I think I have a cunning plan, but we'll see how it goes...

 

Regards

 

Simon

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If they're the CMK "250 pounders" I bought for my Heyford I found them to scale almost exactly with 500lb bombs ( I think it was the same link that @brewerjerry posted - I only got suspicious when they only fit in the four stations of the longer central section of the Heyford's bomb bay which was the only place 500 pounders were carried). My assumption was that CMK had simply read off the wrong line in the dimensions when making their masters!

 

For what it's worth I have just measured the bombs supplied with the Airfix Swordfish and they scale out more or less exactly to the 250lb GP Mk. IV in the link (about 3 scale centimetres too fat). The kit comes with 6 bombs so that might be a useful source of a loadout for your Blenheim?

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The Pavla bombs look like the short-tail 500lb originally developed for getting four into the Mosquito bomb bay (according to DeH anyway) but also seen (not necessarily recommended!) on the old Airfix Typhoon.  I agree that it looks like a US bomb, but I don't think that the UK continued to build the longer aerodynamically shaped weapons throughout the wat, but adopted a stubbier shape much like the one shown.  One for Selwyn to rule on, I think.

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Thanks for the replies. I had thought the Pavla ones were later ones, so not really right for my Blenheim - thanks for confirming my suspicions Graham.

 

So, Cunning Plan A was to use the 250lb bombs from the Valiant Wings RAF Bomb Set, which I suddenly remembered I had three sets of stashed away.

 

Seemed a good plan, until I took them out and compared them to the CMK ones:

 

bomb-sizes-2

 

I think they may be a tad too small...and a tad amorphous.

 

Cunning Plan B. The Italeri Stirling ones are the wrong shape, but a good diameter, and I do have two sets of them. I thought I'd try to cut a section out of the straight-sided centre section, then stick the head onto the tail and add on a plastic tube tail.

 

So, top to bottom  - Airfix 500lb, CMK '250lb', cut down Italeri, original Italeri:

 

bomb-sizes-3

 

It looks a bit on the rotund side, is slightly too long, and the tail fin brackets are a swine to keep on without them snapping off, but getting there...

 

Cunning Plan C is to go on the 'Wanted' section and beg for some Airfix Swordfish bombs...thanks for the heads-up Chris. :thumbsup2:

 

Cheers


Simon

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Eduard's various Spitfire VIII/IX/XVI boxings all have a pair 250 pounders per kit as well.

There may be quite a few of these kicking around in people's spares boxes as most Spitfires seem to be built 'clean'.

No idea how good/bad or otherwise they are. They look the biz on my Whirlwind.

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The bombs in the picture from south east Asia are 250lb MC bombs not 250lb GP bombs the MC series replaced the GP from about 1942 onwards.

 

Selwyn

The italieri and pavla bombs are also the later MC bombs probably not seen before 1942.

 

Selwyn

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1 hour ago, Selwyn said:

The bombs in the picture from south east Asia are 250lb MC bombs not 250lb GP bombs the MC series replaced the GP from about 1942 onwards.

 

Selwyn

The italieri and pavla bombs are also the later MC bombs probably not seen before 1942.

 

Selwyn

Thanks for that Selwyn, much appreciated. :thumbsup2:

 

Simon

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Curious how hard it is to find WWII RAF munitions. It looks like you can find a good model of everything the Luftwaffe ever carried in every scale. Good USAF and Soviet munitions also seems to be easy to find but I tried to find a 1/72 18" torpedo recently and gave up. 

 

I have some of the Swordfish 250 pounders in my spares box but you will have to prize them from my cold dead hands I am afraid 😂

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Details of all the British bombs, fuzes etc can be found in this US document dated Nov 1944.  Dimensions, markings etc. Just about everything you will need.

 

Details of the obsolete 250lb GP are on page 198 (p200 of the .pdf file)

The 250lb MC is on p36 (p38 of the .pdf file)

The 250lb SAP is on p 60 (p62 of the .pdf file)

 

https://stephentaylorhistorian.files.wordpress.com/2020/02/usnbd-british-bombs-and-pyrotechnics.pdf

 

There is also one for the US bombs and fuzes dated Sept 1945

http://www.ibiblio.org/pha/BOMBS.pdf

 

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On 6/10/2020 at 3:51 PM, Simon said:

Cunning Plan C is to go on the 'Wanted' section and beg for some Airfix Swordfish bombs...thanks for the heads-up Chris. :thumbsup2:

Cunning Plan D might be to contact Airfix's spares dept, telling them how many you want and the exact part numbers you need, and asking them how much they would charge to supply.  I did that when the Airfix Swordfish first came out and, while they weren't exactly cheap, the price wasn't prohibitive.  I don't know if they've got greedy in the meantime.  Airfix will tell you what the price is and how to pay: as soon as the spares dept is informed that payment has been received, the parts are posted out, very promptly IIRC.

 

PS I'd be inclined to ask for the bomb carriers as well as the bombs proper: it surely wouldn't make much difference to the price

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Is the Airfix spares department is still closed (well, not sending anything out)?

 

I was going to post a request on the Wanted section here, but I'm forging on with the 'cut-down' Italeri ones for the time being, and see how they go.

 

Cheers


Simon

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2 hours ago, Simon said:

Is the Airfix spares department is still closed (well, not sending anything out)?

 

I was going to post a request on the Wanted section here, but I'm forging on with the 'cut-down' Italeri ones for the time being, and see how they go.

 

Cheers


Simon

Why not ring them and then you can tell us? https://www.airfix.com/uk-en/contact

The Wanted section on here will re-open on Monday

Edited by Work In Progress
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