Macchi M.33 floats

[David M]

The long OOP Atelier Noix 1/48 kit of the M.33 provides two sets of floats.

They have the same basic shape except that one pair are slimmer than the other.

I surmise that the "fat" set are an early version, the "slim" set being a refined version and thus likely to be those used in the Schneider event.

Alternately I surmise that the "slim" set were early and not buoyant enough and were replaced by the "fat" set.

My kit has no instructions and I understand that they were in Japanese, so (at least to me) unreadable.

None of my Schneider or Macchi references mention a change in the floats.

The SBS 1/72 seems to have just the "slim" set...

Can anyone clarify if and when the different floats were carried?

[Lazy8]

I'm no expert, but from what I can see in a book called "The Speed Seekers" (Thomas G. Foxworth, Haynes, 1989) the M.33 was built with narrow floats.  Various modifications were made before the 1925 Schneider race, including a revised rudder (the original having a pronounced mass balance).  The narrow floats were still fitted after the rudder was changed, and the broad floats were in place for the race.

Hope that helps.

[David M]

Thanks Lazy8, I broadly agree that the narrow floats were the first fitment.

I have the Speed Seekers book and the image of the part built prototype on page 406 seems to be the only image I can find that shows the floats both out of the water AND directly from in front or behind.

All the rest show them in 3/4 or side view, making accurate assessment of the width essentially impossible.

However, the port float in the p406 image (which has been reproduced widely) is close enough to 'square on' to determine the ratio between the height of the float and its width, by my measure this is at (or very close to) 1:1.

The various published drawings seem to agree and show them with their height and widths either equal or close enough for our purposes.

The Atelier Noix floats vary slightly in width (two slim ones at 7.0 and 7,25mm wide and two fat ones at 8.7 and 8.85mm wide) giving h/w ratios of 1.06 - 1.09 and 1.32 - 1.34 respectively.

I suspect that, just as the wing spans was different, they too were different side for side, to offset torque and aero effects.

At least one drawing by Robert Hirsch in La Fanatique  shows the floats with slightly different widths, i.e. with slim to port and fat to starboard. 

SBS's scale somewhere in the middle at an h/w around 1.2.

I am still mystified as to when and why the "fat" floats were added.

However, the "slim" AN floats seem to be on the money and thus my inclination is to build mine as the prototype with them and the original rudder.