[jim]

Working on it.

[Shamrock]

I knew I could rely on one of the 'old stalwarts' Jim. TFM have a snap of it on their site. 317 Polish Squadron in early 1941 Fighter Command scheme.

[jim]

Interesting ,
I have checked through a load of info and all I can find is that several trails were done on the Spit MKV with different engines and props but none were made in significant numbers.

BBMF has a VB with a four blade prop number AB910 but I have not found any info on this one.
Several MK3s with the VB wing had a 4 blade prop, but never saw service and were used as development aircraft.
A MK4 Spit was fitted with a 4 blade prop and used as a trail set up for a 6 cannon armed Spitfire!
I dont know how they proposed to get that armament into the VB wing but they built a mock up and tested it in principle.

I have found notes that tell of 3 Spits MKV with VB wing being used as high altitude test planes (this is before they built the extended wing models) these had the 4 blade prop.

I am enjoying this investigation Shamrock, its a long time since I read up on the Spitfire.
Very interesting development programme indeed and quite confusing because different marks of Spit was used to develop new marks.
The Mk1V and V11 and V111 were used to develop both the 1X and XX11 but also the MK 11a was used to develop the X1V.
I wont even begin to go into the engine variations and the upgrades to the Merlins fitted to these numerous test planes.
A standard Merlin 45 achieved the amazing output of 2000 hp under tests to see what the actual engine itself would take before it broke!

Another piece of info thats interesting is that the 11a used as a test plane achieved speeds of 400 mph in 1941 and used a four blade prop.
However to complicate things, a MKV was tested with both a 3 and 4 blade prop fixed to the Merlin 45 and no significant difference to performance was noted!

Tonight my bedtime reading will be Spitfire written Jeffrey Quill, a great book that I must reread, its many years since I read this book.
Its a must have for any Spit Fanatic.
It contains the full development story of the Spit from begining to end.

[Shamrock]

I knew I could count on you Jim. I've a plethora of Spitfire material including the standard works by Dr Alfred Price etc. Could this Witty be a model of the BBMF MkV with the four prop blade? Over to you 'Sherlock of the Dales'

[jim]

Originally Posted by Shamrock

I knew I could count on you Jim. I've a plethora of Spitfire material including the standard works by Dr Alfred Price etc. Could this Witty be a model of the BBMF MkV with the four prop blade? Over to you 'Sherlock of the Dales'

Shamrock,
Alfred Price is an excellent aviation auther, his best work by far is the book he wrote with Jeffrey Ethwell called Target Berlin.

Its a masterpiece of detailed research that I think has not been bettered, about a single raid on Berlin by B17s.
Its a very graphic blow by blow account told from both sides in this battle, the information has been checked and cross checked in order to be as near accurate as is possible.
It is a book that is not for the faint hearted because it tells of the reality of war with no punches pulled.

As to the Spit, it could well be but my problem is finding out how and why this one came to have a 4 blade prop.
This aircraft was Jeff Quills mount from the early fifties until he retired from flying warbirds around the mid sixties.
It was very much a battle weary plane and was fully restored by Supermarine between 1951 and 52 almost from the ground up.
If Supermarine fitted a new uprated engine then they most likely fitted the 4 blade prop.
A little piece of useless info is that with the first tests of the MKV with the Merlin 45, 1 inch was shaved of the DH prop to keep its tip speed subsonic and thus reduce drag, (this added 8 mph to the Spits top speed).

In total there were at least 52 variants of the Spitfire, however if we include every change from begining to the end of its production the actual figure was quoted by Supermarine as closer to 100 !!!!!!!!!!!!

[flyXwire]

Originally Posted by Folgore

I just picked up a Witty A6M5 to see for myself. IMHO, both Witty and Dragon Zeros have pluses and minuses and they end up even. WItty's mould is crisp, but the panel lines are tough to pick out under dark paint. Dragon's Zero has the opposite problem: horrible, uneven panel line inking. Witty scores on this point. On the other hand, Witty's cockpit has no detail and -- this is my biggest gripe with the Witty Zero -- there's no engine. Peer past the props into the cowling and there's nothing there. I like to see cylinders. Dragon, hands down. But Witty's undercarriage, albeit fixed, is better than Dragon's.

For me, at least, they break even.

I'm gonna go left field on this one and say my Zero diecast preferences would be 1st) FOV, 2nd) Dragon, 3rd) Matchbox, 4th) Witty in 1/72 scale.
I just love the crisply rendered panel lines and overall proportions on the FOV Zero.

[lanslide]

Originally Posted by flyXwire

I'm gonna go left field on this one and say my Zero diecast preferences would be 1st) FOV, 2nd) Dragon, 3rd) Matchbox, 4th) Witty in 1/72 scale.
I just love the crisply rendered panel lines and overall proportions on the FOV Zero.

I just went down to Target and picked up two FOV Zeros for $12.99 each. I'm gonna repaint them with the correct glossy pale olive green (like my avatar and threads at the Marushin section) with gray fabric control surfaces and see if this can't be the best 1/72 Zero around. hworth - aren't you gonna do that with your Marushin too? What's your E.T.A. on that?

[stalag8611]

Right on, flyxwire, that FOV Zero is spot on. I can hear the boos from the peanut gallery, but I also have the Corgi A6M2 and the FOV at $10.99 from Target is better. Better by $13.96, in fact.

[sundowner]

I have the Witty Tiger Meet F16 and the LN F16C They are great models. I hope to get a F18 soon.

[win_arc]

I got one F15, F16 and Su27 from WW, I think they looks like do modern jets better than WWII model. Just my opinion!