1:200 Boeing B-52K 'Stratofortress B.I', "ZA447/(AJ)G" of  Royal Air Force 617 Squadron; Waddington, England, 1999, during 'Operation Allied Force' (Whif/Dragon kit conversion) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

With four RB211s. Looks good, but ground clearance is a serious issue -I should have shortened the pylons, esp. the outer ones.

Quote from: kerick on June 05, 2023, 11:24:25 AMI like the turbo prop A-10 idea!

Configured like the Cobra Rattler?  Or with a pair of propfans?

The propfans would be interesting. I think I would have to build them from scratch. There are fan art of a turboprop A-10 around somewhere. At least there is good ground clearance.

The four engine B-52 made a lot of sense on paper but the cost of building new pylons and all the plumbing and wiring was too much.
Here's a test rig pic of what the partial F130 pod might look like. Also, along with new cockpit and new radar systems it will be known as the B-52J. I hope they don't run out of letters someday!

B-52ZΩZ?  

They got up to 'Z' with the AH-1 ages ago.

Just watching . This 

Quote from: Old Wombat on June 06, 2023, 06:51:45 AMB-52ZΩZ?  

That'll be the one equipped with 8 F-Class shuttle nacelles, and celebrating its 300th birthday in 2252

That 52 looks brilliant Dizzy..and yep you'd need to bring those outer engines up a bunch for ground clearance..the 52s wing tips aren't the high off the ground when it's loaded but damn that still looks awesome..the colours work extremely well with the 52s shape too.
One question I which is twisting my nut around a bit is why would ya want to mix a jet engine with a radial engine mounted on a twin engined plane?
Fred posted a question on the rules section and it's a great pic..loving the fire power 
The thrust from the jet would always have to be matched with a propeller which would be a monster pain to always get dead right.
The jet..going on Freds pic.. is always going to want to over power the radial engine..a standard prop is never going to provide the same thrust as a jet when it comes to using its power .
So you'd have to power match the engines all the time..would be better with twin jets ...also fuel..not to sure how a jet would run on the fuel the radial would use but I'm sure one of you blokes will have a better idea on that 🤔 😉

Quote from: Wardukw on June 06, 2023, 12:26:46 PMOne question I which is twisting my nut around a bit is why would ya want to mix a jet engine with a radial engine mounted on a twin engined plane?

Prototyping?

If the embedded image url doesn't work, click >>HERE<<

Scooter mate that is a normal way to test bed a jet but if ya look at Fred's pic it's a bad way it was done.
The picture shows a B-25 with one radial engine on its port side wing and a jet replacing the radial on the other.
The balance alone would suck let alone the power problem.

Quote from: The Wooksta! on June 05, 2023, 02:37:42 PM

Quote from: Doug K on June 05, 2023, 01:03:13 PMAs mentioned elsewhere I have in mind  are-engining of the Beaufighter, original thought was Centaurus (so a couple of Matchbox Tempests were acquired, then maybe Sabres would be fun, only to find that great mind think alike - see earlier on this thread!

So I do have a Merlin conversion set for the Beaufighter and the Beaufort is pretty much the same wing huh?

Centaurus is too heavy for Beaufighter.  Read the relevant sections on the tortuous development of the Brigand in BSP Vol.3.

My own plan to do a Sabre Beau has foundered on the fact the replacement nacelles are mahoosive and just too big for the Beaufighter.

I've been wanting to do a Merlin Beaufort for some time and did look at using the Alleycat Merlin Beaufighter conversion on the Airfix new tool Beau, but it didn't quite fit.

Yeh. The sabres are a bit huge, maybe play with the radiators a bit.... The brigand experience was in my mind too. I'll give the Merlin Beaufort a go, nothing ventured and all that!

Quote from: Doug K on June 06, 2023, 01:24:06 PM

Quote from: The Wooksta! on June 05, 2023, 02:37:42 PM

Quote from: Doug K on June 05, 2023, 01:03:13 PMAs mentioned elsewhere I have in mind  are-engining of the Beaufighter, original thought was Centaurus (so a couple of Matchbox Tempests were acquired, then maybe Sabres would be fun, only to find that great mind think alike - see earlier on this thread!

So I do have a Merlin conversion set for the Beaufighter and the Beaufort is pretty much the same wing huh?

Centaurus is too heavy for Beaufighter.  Read the relevant sections on the tortuous development of the Brigand in BSP Vol.3.

My own plan to do a Sabre Beau has foundered on the fact the replacement nacelles are mahoosive and just too big for the Beaufighter.

I've been wanting to do a Merlin Beaufort for some time and did look at using the Alleycat Merlin Beaufighter conversion on the Airfix new tool Beau, but it didn't quite fit.

Yeh. The sabres are a bit huge, maybe play with the radiators a bit.... The brigand experience was in my mind too. I'll give the Merlin Beaufort a go, nothing ventured and all that!

Well Merlins have already been done on the Beaufighter so a Merlin conversion on a Beaufort sounds like the way to go.
I don't remember ever seeing that conversion done before and I wonder why not .
I've just put a bid on a 48th TA-152 and I'm already thinking of fitting BF-109G engines to it..if I can get my hands on a couple of matching cheap 109s .

The Beauforth GR. Mk. III was a proposed version with Merlin XXs engines. They would have raised the top speed from 423 km/h to 508 km/h but the range would have been reduced by 65 km, The Mk. III were never built.

Quote from: Doug K on June 06, 2023, 01:24:06 PM

Quote from: The Wooksta! on June 05, 2023, 02:37:42 PM

Quote from: Doug K on June 05, 2023, 01:03:13 PMAs mentioned elsewhere I have in mind  are-engining of the Beaufighter, original thought was Centaurus (so a couple of Matchbox Tempests were acquired, then maybe Sabres would be fun, only to find that great mind think alike - see earlier on this thread!

So I do have a Merlin conversion set for the Beaufighter and the Beaufort is pretty much the same wing huh?

Centaurus is too heavy for Beaufighter.  Read the relevant sections on the tortuous development of the Brigand in BSP Vol.3.

My own plan to do a Sabre Beau has foundered on the fact the replacement nacelles are mahoosive and just too big for the Beaufighter.

I've been wanting to do a Merlin Beaufort for some time and did look at using the Alleycat Merlin Beaufighter conversion on the Airfix new tool Beau, but it didn't quite fit.

Yeh. The sabres are a bit huge, maybe play with the radiators a bit.... The brigand experience was in my mind too. I'll give the Merlin Beaufort a go, nothing ventured and all that!

Every individual who ever does an engine swap is always fixated on Cowling A going on Airframe B, as opposed to looking at the engine itself and applying it to the airframe and then working out the cowling around it.  This is something that has bothered me for years, because whiffing is meant to be thinking outside the box, as opposed to simply cut and shut from dissimilar airframes.  For example, a Griffon Tigercat, apart from being underpowered, would not have Spitfire cowlings as these were tailored specifically to the Spitfire's slim fuselage.  IF Grumman stopped laughing long enough to consider a "Packard" Griffon (as Congress would not allow UK engines on US military hardware, even in WWII), they would design their own bespoke cowlings. 

What also complicates matters is that they never consider the thrust line of the prop.  On both the Merlin, Griffon and Hercules Beaufighters, the prop axis/thrust line goes through the wing.

My own thoughts on a Sabre Beaufighter were along annular lines, using the nacelles from the Sabre Warwick as a basis (the annular cowlings were the same for all aircraft using the annular Sabre - Typhoon, Tempest and Warwick) and they extend beyond the trailing edge to eliminate buffeting issues, as proven on Mosquito.  They'd be reminiscent of the nacelles on the projected Buccaneer, but they are mahoosive compared to the Beaufighter wing. And the thrust line is in the wrong place. Too low. So that gets a Fail.

I did also consider a possible Sabre Brigand, but the existing kits are... challenging, and whilst Bristol had proposed a Centaurus Mosquito based on the B.XVI (I've seen the sketch), I think the Sabre would possibly tear the wings off. At the very least, the take off swing would be markedly worse and I doubt the u/c could take the weight.

So, rethinking a Sabre Beau, with all the caveats above.  Ignore Typhoon and Tempest. Dead end thinking. You need a Merlin Beau wing for the mounts and I would go for a Firebrand II or Tempest I cowling, or if you want to be really fancy, an LA610 Fury cowling with a Seafire 47 style intake (they all look very similar, power egg style cowlings). Radiators? Go leading edge.  So much cooler.

You can choose where the engine/s is/are.