What If II GB

[TMC_Sherpa]

I'm so glad I'm not the only one who worries about things like that. I have semi-evil plans involving parts swapping between a B-25 and an A-10. Ever park one next to the other? Gives me a terrible case of the whiffs but there are, lets say, some logistical concerns involved.

[Albeback52]

It has the chin radiator. However, that causes a problem. The Sabre is a much deeper engine than the Merlin and Griffon. Putting the Sabre thrust line at the same level as the Merlin thrust line would leave the radiator only an inch or so clear of the ground and the propellor tips striking the ground. So the Sabre is set higher on the fuselage. This means that the cockpit sits higher leading to a bubble canopy on a full depth fuselage. The Sabre is also much heavier than the Merlin, leading to CG problems. So the cockpit may be set further forward, with the fuel tank in the rear fuselage. The extreme power of the Sabre also means that the tail surfaces have to be bigger to counteract the torque swing. On the other hand, the lack of radiators in the wing mean that there is more room for fuel tanks and increased armament.

Phew!

That'll be fun. I'm sure you've got your plans already in hand but, if I may be so bold as to offer a suggestion, if I were to attempt such project, I'd look at combining (say) the larger tail surfaces & wings of a late mark Spitfire with the deeper fuselage /nose of the Tempest?. This intriguing aircraft would also presumably be a lot heavier than a Spitfire.I'd also be looking at a much sturdier ( and longer) wide track undercarriage ( a la Spiteful)?. That would get at least round the ground clearance problem with the prop.

All the best Enzo. I look forward to seeing this

Allan

Edited September 28, 2012 by Albeback52

[Albeback52]

Sorry, yes, from Oct. 6th to Dec. 30th so expect to see the official GB and threads open in the near future.

Hmm, Post-devolution Scottish Air Force, sure there are some possibilities there with not only Tornado GR.4 and Typhoon but also Sea King SAR and fisheries protection machines.

I've actually already given this some thought. Along the lines of ;

Fighter wing with a Squadron of Typhoons/F-16/F18/Rafale in the Air defence role & a squadron of Tornado GR4 in the strike role

Training wing equipped with Tucano/Hawk/PC-9/Firefly to fulfil the primary/advanced training roles

Transport wing with combined rotary/fixed wing assets

Maritime patrol wing ( this would cover the SAR/Fishery protection roles)

VIP flight

Any thoughts on a multi engined trainer?

[robw_uk]

unfortunately i may have to withdraw as i hve to have minor op start of Nov which probably means no modelling for 2-3 weeks... i could just do a WHIF paint job on the Gnat instead - will give it some thought.....

[Enzo the Magnificent]

I'd look at combining (say) the larger tail surfaces & wings of a late mark Spitfire with the deeper fuselage /nose of the Tempest?. This intriguing aircraft would also presumably be a lot heavier than a Spitfire.I'd also be looking at a much sturdier ( and longer) wide track undercarriage ( a la Spiteful)?. That would get at least round the ground clearance problem with the prop.

My thoughts exactly! I really wanted the elliptical wing rather than the later 20-series wing, but I will certainly be using a Spiteful-style tail. I've been thinking about a wide track inward-folding undercarriage but the problem is that it would encroach on the area needed for the gun bay. So I'm stuck with the higher thrust line. However, I think it might give the resulting aircraft a look a bit like the early Firebrand, especially if I move the cockpit forwards.

[Albeback52]

My thoughts exactly! I really wanted the elliptical wing rather than the later 20-series wing, but I will certainly be using a Spiteful-style tail. I've been thinking about a wide track inward-folding undercarriage but the problem is that it would encroach on the area needed for the gun bay. So I'm stuck with the higher thrust line. However, I think it might give the resulting aircraft a look a bit like the early Firebrand, especially if I move the cockpit forwards.

There might be a way round the undercarriage problem. Bit difficult to describe without illustration but, if you swapped the wheel bays round ( i e port bay under starboard wing & starboard bay under port wing,), you'd have an inward retracting, wider track undercarriage AND, sufficient space outboard for (say) 4 x 20mm cannons? The undercarriage would take up the same space as the existing Spitfire u/c but, in reverse ( if you get my drift)

Edited September 28, 2012 by Albeback52

[Enzo the Magnificent]

I'm so glad I'm not the only one who worries about things like that. I have semi-evil plans involving parts swapping between a B-25 and an A-10.

That sounds very interesting! Looking forward to seeing that.

[Enzo the Magnificent]

There might be a way round the undercarriage problem. Bit difficult to describe without illustration but, if you swapped the wheel bays round ( i e port bay under starboard wing & starboard bay under port wing,), you'd have an inward retracting, wider track undercarriage AND, sufficient space outboard for (say) 4 x 20mm cannons? The undercarriage would take up the same space as the existing Spitfire u/c but, in reverse ( if you get my drift)

Interesting! However, that wouldn't solve the ground clearance problem. But you got me thinking when you mentioned the late Spitfire wing. I really want an elliptical wing so my intention was to use the wing from an Airfix Spitfire XII which became spare when I put a Seafire XVII wing on it to make a Seafire XV. I was going to use some Seafire XVII wingtips to make the classic wing planform. However... having matched the XII wing uppersurfaces to a Mk 24 undersurface part, I can see that the major difference in the planform occurs at the tips. So... I'm going to use the wing from an Airfix Spitfire Mk 24 modified to the classic planform using the Seafire XVII tips. The undercarriage from the 24 is a bit stalky so that might go some way towards alleviating the ground clearance issue. The fuselage will be from an Aeroclub Spitfire XII conversion kit which became redundant when the Airfix kit was released. The tail will be from an Airfix Spitfire 24, but not the same one that the wings came from! The engine will be from an Eduard Tempest, left over from my recent conversion to a Tempest II.

I have to work out what to do with the prop. I could use the Tempest prop with cut down blades. Or... I could rob a fifth blade from another Tempest kit and use the Spitfire five-bladed spinner. The blades would still have to be cut down. The Spitfire spinner has a smaller diameter than the Tempest one, so I would have to extend the Sabre nose slightly, making it a little sleeker.

Cor! This is fun!

[ChancerUK]

Using the attached experimental eurocopter as inspiration I'll be building an MI 35 (MI24) Hind G.

Not sure if it will be Navy or VDV.

http://upload.wikime..._X3_0600_b1.jpg

Edited September 28, 2012 by ChancerUK

[Arniec]

Enzo,

You could also use a 5 bladed prop from quickboost. Maybee you would only need it a little bit to reprofile it to get a good match to the engine.

Just a quick thought.

Cheers,

Edited September 28, 2012 by Arniec

[TMC_Sherpa]

That sounds very interesting! Looking forward to seeing that.

Heh, I suspect the A-10 will look something like a Mosquito but that's the easy one. The Mitch I haven't quite figured out yet. Pod engines slightly increase the odds of having your own man put holes in them which is a problem and I think the bomb bay is going to be unhappy with the wings being lower on the airframe.

Oh well, time to pull a few things off of the sprue and see where they line up

[Will Vale]

Ooh, the date's getting close on this one. Can I join in with an Academy 1/72 Raptor? The idea is to rework it as a near-future drone, sort of like the proposed X-44 MANTA only pilotless. I will probably paint it black

Cheers,

Will

[Enzo the Magnificent]

I will probably paint it black

You are Mick Jagger and I claim my five pounds!

[Will Vale]

Curses, foiled again. I'd have got away with it too if it hadn't been for you pesky kids...

[smeds]

Mine will either be an RAF 1/32 A-10 N/AW (617 Squadron) or 1/48 V-22 Osprey in RN SAR (771 Squadron) service

[AnonymousDFB1]

The forum is now open in Current GBs

[BrandX]

OK, had a bit of a

moment...now equivocating over the Typhoon scheme; it may be a funky RNZAF one after all.

God, I hate having to make decisions. I think...