warhawk Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 Hello, Could anyone please help me with a dilemma regarding Dunlop aircraft tires: Should the 'Dunlop' white inscription typically be present on both sides of the tire, or just one? img source: ADS Advance Regards, Aleksandar 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 If it's for a WW2 build, then the maker's name would not have been painted white. I've just looked at a lot of WW2 Spitfire photos and not one had the white lettering. I'm not sure if the maker's name is even molded to the tire's sidewall of WW2 aircraft tires. I couldn't find a clear enough photo. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishplanebeer Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 If the tyres are symetrical in that they do not have an inner and outer side then logically the inscription could be on both possibly? Like Chris almost all the pics I have show no Dunlop inscription on the tyres so either it isn't there and/or it wasn't painted white, however I do have a pic of a Mk1 Spitfire from 611 squadron at Digby in January 1940 where the Dunlop inscription is clearly visible in a light paint (white?) on the tyre side wall. Not sure what definitive conclusion can be drawn from this though. Regards Colin. Ps. the pic in question is from the Aerodata International book on the Spitfire I and II. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 15 minutes ago, fishplanebeer said: If the tyres are symetrical in that they do not have an inner and outer side then logically the inscription could be on both possibly? Like Chris almost all the pics I have show no Dunlop inscription on the tyres so either it isn't there and/or it wasn't painted white, however I do have a pic of a Mk1 Spitfire from 611 squadron at Digby in January 1940 where the Dunlop inscription is clearly visible in a light paint (white?) on the tyre side wall. Not sure what definitive conclusion can be drawn from this though. Regards Colin. Ps. the pic in question is from the Aerodata International book on the Spitfire I and II. So it does! I had just checked if IWM photos, but not any of my books. Chris 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishplanebeer Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 Just looked at The Spitfire Story by Alfred Price and found two other photos which show the Dunlop inscription on the tyre side wall, namely K9792 on 3rd November 1939 (photo 56) and L1007 in June 1939 (photo 60) so perhaps it was only present on very early examples and subsequent tyres were produced 'plain' to simplify their production perhaps? Regards Colin. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 6 minutes ago, fishplanebeer said: Just looked at The Spitfire Story by Alfred Price and found two other photos which show the Dunlop inscription on the tyre side wall, namely K9792 on 3rd November 1939 (photo 56) and L1007 in June 1939 (photo 60) so perhaps it was only present on very early examples and subsequent tyres were produced 'plain' to simplify their production perhaps? Regards Colin. What I was just thinking, too. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWM Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 I think some time (few years) ago similar thread was here and AFAIR there was a photo o Ju-88 tire produced by Dunlop... But I cannot find it now. I think that the forms to do tires were the same right before the war and in following war time years, but maybe during war there was no time but also no reason (no need to advertise) to emphasize the producer name in white... The contracts for huge numbers were already signed without it... Regards J-W Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SafetyDad Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 49 minutes ago, JWM said: I think some time (few years) ago similar thread was here and AFAIR there was a photo o Ju-88 tire produced by Dunlop... But I cannot find it now. Regards J-W Yes. I have seen somewhere a wartime picture of an He 219 wheel with a Dunlop tyre mounted on it. Apparently they had a German factory... I'll see if I can find it - the logo wasn't highlighted in paint. SD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishplanebeer Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Interesting to note that during the BoB both Spitfires and Bf109E's had Dunlop tyres so big business ruled then as it does now, not to mention Triumph making bicycle saddles for the British Army and the Wehrmacht albeit in different factories as exporting was apparently a tad difficult what with all that nasty war business getting in the way. Regards Colin. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warhawk Posted October 19, 2021 Author Share Posted October 19, 2021 (edited) Thanks for the input, I really appreciate it! 19 hours ago, dogsbody said: If it's for a WW2 build, then the maker's name would not have been painted white. I've just looked at a lot of WW2 Spitfire photos and not one had the white lettering. Don't worry, it's an immediate pre-war bird (Not a Spit, but same-size Dunlop tires), and photos certainly show the white inscription on the side opposite to gear leg. 19 hours ago, fishplanebeer said: Just looked at The Spitfire Story by Alfred Price and found two other photos which show the Dunlop inscription on the tyre side wall, namely K9792 on 3rd November 1939 (photo 56) and L1007 in June 1939 (photo 60) Found the book and the photos You mentioned. Unfortunately no conclusive decision can be made from these two, as on No.56 the other wheel is missing, and on No.60 the other wheel is in in shadow and obscured by cover. 15 hours ago, Black Knight said: Tyre information is moulded on both sidewalls of the tyre. My question was specifically aimed at Dunlop logo, visible in photos as painted white (which I doubt for small technical info inscriptions). If the logo was moulded on both sides, I consider it reasonable to be also painted white on both sides for the pre-war use. Regards, Aleksandar Edited October 19, 2021 by warhawk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werdna Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 10 hours ago, fishplanebeer said: Interesting to note that during the BoB both Spitfires and Bf109E's had Dunlop tyres so big business ruled then as it does now, not to mention Triumph making bicycle saddles for the British Army and the Wehrmacht albeit in different factories as exporting was apparently a tad difficult what with all that nasty war business getting in the way. Regards Colin. For clarity, Dunlop had a major subsidiary in Germany, which continued making tyres for the Luftwaffe. It's not like Dunlop UK were shipping tyres over to Germany after the war had started. This was just a German production facility doing what production facilities do.. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishplanebeer Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 I was being slightly flippant with my references to Dunlop and Triumph as clearly there were factories in both the UK and Germany at the time but also interesting to note that Henry Ford was a major benefactor of the embryonic Nazi party and anti-British, refusing to manufacture the Merlin engine under license, with the contract instead being placed with Packard. After hostilities ended he was offered and declined the fledgling VW factory which at the time was being run by an British Army Officer (whose name escapes me) but when the Beetle subsequently became a world wide success he then attempted to buy them out but without success. Regards Colin. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Thompson Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 I remember being somewhat puzzled (and impressed - such fine detail!) when I noticed the Dunlop logo on the tire sidewalls of the Dragon 1/72 Do-335. My first thought was that Dragon had simply copied what they might have seen on the restored Do-335 at the NASM, but then I realized that Dunlop is an international company with the same name regardless of location, so German-made, Dunlop-branded tires, even at the height of WWII, started to make more sense. John 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warhawk Posted October 19, 2021 Author Share Posted October 19, 2021 Did some more digging, and found a nice, large photo, clearly showing the white 'Dunlop' inscription both on the outer and the inner tire side: https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205230004 https://waralbum.ru/398869/ Cheers! 🍻 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paramedic Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 You mean the "Donlup"?? Or what was it that Eduard had on the resin wheels when the Mk. IX (1/48) came along..? Still think I have a pair of those.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishplanebeer Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 This excellent pic would support the notion that it was only carried, or at least visible, on the tyres of very early Spitfires? Regards Colin. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix44 Posted October 23, 2021 Share Posted October 23, 2021 I believe (without too much evidence) that tyres had the logos on one side with the pressure/size information as they were "handed" so that the valve was on the side where it could be most easily accessed. The link below is to a Bf-110 crash site where they found Dunlop tyres. Interestingly they retained the "Made in Germany" in English moulding, presumably because changing the moulding was pointless (or the tyres are pre-War). http://users.telenet.be/airwareurope/en/bergingen/messerschmitt_altendorf_e.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix44 Posted October 23, 2021 Share Posted October 23, 2021 On 19/10/2021 at 23:34, fishplanebeer said: This excellent pic would support the notion that it was only carried, or at least visible, on the tyres of very early Spitfires? Regards Colin. I can't see why they would bother to change the mould though? Probably various good reasons to keep a name on it too, from checking deliveries/inventories to fault reporting and redelivery for remoulding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warhawk Posted October 23, 2021 Author Share Posted October 23, 2021 (edited) 6 hours ago, Phoenix44 said: I can't see why they would bother to change the mould though? Probably various good reasons to keep a name on it too, from checking deliveries/inventories to fault reporting and redelivery for remoulding. I agree that there's no point in re-tooling the moulds. Makes more sense to just leave the logo moulded on and skip the 'paint-it-white' part to save time and resources. Edited October 23, 2021 by warhawk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishplanebeer Posted October 24, 2021 Share Posted October 24, 2021 Perhaps with orders for Spitfires and Hurricanes seriously ramping up, not to mention increasing wear and tear replacements, new molds had to be made to keep pace with demand so this would have been the perfect opportunity to keep them simple and not bother including the company logo any more at extra time and expense? Regards Colin. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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