Martin Baker Mk.10 BAe Hawk Ejector Seat

[Phoenix673]

Looking for some guidance on the colour of the above seats before I fit them into a Hawk. I have seen conflicting photos of these seats with some being in grey and others in black?

 

Can anyone confirm the correct colour of the seats (small head box) that I intend to fit into a T.1A?

 

Many thanks in anticipation...

 

Kevin

[tempestfan]

Some 20 years ago (18 March 2004 specifically), I downloaded a series of cockpit detail pics, no idea of the original URL (probably long gone). They were intended for my then-new Airfix kit, but the front cockpit panorama also made a striking desktop background 🙂 I can't be specific about the variant, but the seat is the same grey as the remainder of the basic cockpit below canopy sill level.

[Whitewolf]

Agree. If you Google Martjn Baker MB10 seat Hawk T1A there are some nice colour pics showing them in grey.

[Phoenix673]

1 hour ago, Whitewolf said:

Agree. If you Google Martjn Baker MB10 seat Hawk T1A there are some nice colour pics showing them in grey.

But I can also find photos of the seat in black...hence my question Whitewolf?

[Whitewolf]

2 hours ago, Phoenix673 said:

But I can also find photos of the seat in black...hence my question Di yiu know when the pics of thexseat in black were 

Do you know when the pics of the seat in black are dated? I would go with the grey

Edited August 26 by Whitewolf

[NG899]

Dark Admiralty Grey, which is BS381C:632 iirc. The standard colour for first generation Harrier and Hawk seats and cockpit interiors.

 

Think Dark Sea Grey BS381C:638 but a bit lighter.

 

Hope that helps 

 

Nick

[Phoenix673]

14 hours ago, Whitewolf said:

Do you know when the pics of the seat in black are dated? I would go with the grey

I'm afraid not Whitewolf? Looks like I'll be going with the safe option of grey

 

13 hours ago, NG899 said:

Dark Admiralty Grey, which is BS381C:632 iirc. The standard colour for first generation Harrier and Hawk seats and cockpit interiors.

 

Think Dark Sea Grey BS381C:638 but a bit lighter.

 

Hope that helps 

 

Nick

Cheers Nick, that seems to make sense so I'll be going with that option.......

[Julien]

Some MK.10 pics here; 

Fitted into a Hawk here;

 

 

 

 

 

[junglierating]

On 8/26/2024 at 10:57 PM, NG899 said:

Dark Admiralty Grey, which is BS381C:632 iirc. The standard colour for first generation Harrier and Hawk seats and cockpit interiors.

 

Think Dark Sea Grey BS381C:638 but a bit lighter.

 

Hope that helps 

 

Nick

One concurs having manhandled enough of them out of the cockpit and down the wing (Shar)

[tempestfan]

On 8/26/2024 at 4:06 PM, Phoenix673 said:

Can anyone confirm the correct colour of the seats (small head box) that I intend to fit into a T.1A?

 

Many thanks in anticipation...

 

Kevin

I had a look through the 1984 Braybrook book. Many pics are rather murky and do only show the headbox anyway, but there are some that are clearly already. From what can be seen, the grey ones are all the ones with square headbox (but some with small headbox look black, but those may have been BAe-owned demontsrators), while the elephant ear headboxes all look black (though sometimes really hard to tell, as the inclined surface of the side extensions looks lighter). As a theory - may the RAF have repainted the seats to grey when they were modified to the square headbox (I think it was a mod programme)? Not sure when the a's got the wiring for the AIM-9, but I think it's safe to assume by then all seats were grey (or rather, 1a's would have received the modified seats).

[NG899]

I've been prompted to dig out my old Martin Baker colours sheets provided by Del Holland at the IPMS(UK) Nationals at Stoneleigh back in 1985!

As I recall Del was a modeller so had produced these pages himself, detailing all the colours on the different parts of the seats.

(Really useful for my scratch-built Mk.10H for my 1/24 Sea Harrier FRS.1!)

 

RAF seats - Types 1-9 and 12 > matt black; Type 10 > dark sea grey (easier than it being dk admiralty grey which was the usual cockpit colour!)

Royal Navy - Types 2-9 and > matt black; Type 10 > dark sea grey

 

If only Britmodeller had a place I could upload a pdf to....?!

 

@Phoenix673 for a Hawk T.1A the flat-sided headbox seats fitted were Mk.10B variants and so dk sea grey.

 

AFAIK, some seat maintenance could be done by the RAF/RN but most of it happened back at Martin-Baker, for obvious reasons...

 

Hope that helps!

 

Nick

 

Edited September 5 by NG899

[Paulaero]

Is this any good, latest harness , removed from a Hawk May 2022 at RAF Shawbury

 

 

[speedy]

I recall the Boscombe Down ones in the mid eighties were grey but the forward face of the headboard was black. Once they changed to the slimeline jobbies then they were as the photo above.

[Phoenix673]

18 hours ago, Paulaero said:

Is this any good, latest harness , removed from a Hawk May 2022 at RAF Shawbury

 

 

Fantastic, thanks Paulaero!!

 

6 hours ago, speedy said:

I recall the Boscombe Down ones in the mid eighties were grey but the forward face of the headboard was black. Once they changed to the slimeline jobbies then they were as the photo above.

Thanks for the info speedy!

[drake122]

Here is a MB Mk.10Q from a Mirage 2000, if that is any help...