Push-me-Pull-you Spitfire. --- for Tophe

[Robomog]

Hi all.

First hat thrown into ring.....

This is what Tophe envisaged



And I'm going to attempt to get somewhere near it using this pile of bits.

 

There is also a mk5 on standby to provide some parts.

I think the biggest worry is the undercarriage.  I'm hoping having the tail wheels on the booms will give me enough clearance on the rear prop

We shall see.

Mog
>^-.-^<

[sandiego89]

Great recycling project! 

[Robomog]

Damn I've been rumbled !  

Mog
>^-.-^<

[kerick]

If you place part of a fin under the boom it would lift the back end. That and the tail wheel would give better clearance. Tophe never drew the wheels anyway so you're free to imagineer what you need.

[PR19_Kit]

Make it a nosewheel? That'd mean moving the mainwheels back, but to a Whiffier of your calibre that'd be a matter of moments.   

[Wardukw]

That's pretty much exactly what I've got in mind for the Mustang and the landing gear was the reason I was going for the float plane layout...solves that problem very quickly.

[Weaver]

I think the biggest worry is the undercarriage.  I'm hoping having the tail wheels on the booms will give me enough clearance on the rear prop

The rear end of the fuselage pod could be significantly shorter than Tophe drew it, which would help. There's a dirty great fuel tank between the engine and the cockpit on a Spitfire: if you eliminated that for the rear engine and just had it mounted straight off the rear cockpit bulkhead, it would be way shorter. That would help with CofG too.

[Robomog]

Thanks for all the advice.

I'm envisaging this as as fast PR aircraft. Unarmed ( obviously) but I want to try and keep the fuel tank for the rear engine to give it some endurance, although this might make it too long as you rightly pointed out.

Good idea about extending the rudders down so that I can hang the tail wheels off that and get more clearance.

The test fitting will decide weather I go for a plausible design or suspend reality and go for looks alone 

Mog
>^-.-^<

[zenrat]

Underslung vertical tails will work as well as ones in the usual position.   

[Robomog]

Hi all

I've done the first fitting and I think I'm going to have to reconsider the design



It's looking decidedly asymmetric fore and aft,  and yes, the rear is sitting on the rear prop so i'm' going to have to rethink the undercarriage and decide whether to go for aesthetics over practicality.

Respect to Warduckw for going with floats he saw this coming long before I did.

I've sourced a couple of tail booms from a Venom which are a bit short but will hold the tail surfaces ok



PR19_kit :- I may yet go for a nose wheel undercarriage, time will tell....


More when it happens...........


Mog
>^-.-^<

[Wardukw]

Moggy mate that rear prop is going to be a pain for you landing gear..I'll be very interested to see what you come up with .
Now the weather has fined up I can use the wifi and get my build listed 😀

[Robomog]

Hi all

A bit more progress, the main body and wings are together now and the first of probably many layers of putty has been administered. I've decided to stick with the asymmetric body as a small nod to Tophs asymmetric tendencies.





I've also worked out landing gear configuration, it's going to be a tricycle undercarriage with the main wheels housed in the booms, the nose wheel will be housed in a nacelle under the nose behind the engine. I may need to give it a bit of forward rake.

Here's a quick mockup of the booms. They are not going to be as aesthetically pleasing as Tophs design. They have acquired some depth due to the curvature of the Spitfire wing. But I can use that to my advantage for the undercarriage solution.



I've extended the booms with sprue and part of a drop tank. When your kitbashing you can never have too many drop tanks in your stash

Thanks for looking

Mog
>^-.-^<

[kerick]

Drop tank are so useful!!
Looking good!

[ericr]

nice evolution !

[Wardukw]

Very very cool Moggy 😎 😀

With your knife in the pic you really get an idea of how small a Spitfire is in 72nd