<-- 1/48 Mosquito PR.IX -Twin Engined Aircraft WWII

Good work so far Terry!

A little more on this. Here's the excerpt from the NF II Parts Manual showing metal plates in 3 sections in the area you are talking about Terry:



Below is a screen grab from the NASM's B.35 (a really neat 3D viewable cockpit tour can be found here). I would suggest that this aircraft has the plates installed so I'd say you would be safe in installing these Terry.

Brilliant !
Thanks Andy, a very useful interior view, although some fittings and colours are post war.
I've often wondered what the bar is for, across the entrance hatch. I've only ever seen it on pics of Mossies post war, never on Mossies during WW2 service.

I would think the bar is to pull the door shut from the inside.

I actually found drawings for the heal rests in my files! I believe that the center piece is leather, not metal.

Thanks Andy, I too thought the b ar was either for pulling the door shut, or perhaps a mod for reinforcement.
Good stuff on the drawings, and yes, the center part is a leather 'cuff' around the base of the control column linkage.

Spent over two hours fighting with the camera port and nose windows today !
I'd seen a few reviews some time ago, mentioning problems with the camera port windows - I'm not surprised, the instructions have got the part numbers transposed !
I spotted this after one window slipped down the fuselage and launched itself into the abyss, never to be seen again, when I went to fit the oblique window in the port fuselage. I thought it strange that the window hadn't been moulded with a curve, so checked the other parts, and found just one curved window, called out as one of the bomb bay door windows, and another camera port window shown as the one for the entrance hatch !
Anyone who is thinking of building this kit beware - the Part numbers should read :-

Part 191 = Oblique window for port side (Instructions state Part 188, which is for the bomb bay).
Part 192 = Entrance hatch window (Instructions state Part 187, which is also for the bomb bay)

After eventually getting these poorly fitting windows in place, and making and fitting a new one from clear sheet, I moved on to the nightmare of the nose windows. Extremely poor fit, and quite thick. After b*ggering about for at least an hour, I eventually trimmed and sanded the edges of these windows, and got them to fit almost, but not quite flush.

I'd had enough by this stage, so put the parts to one side, and returned to the FB.VI, painting the 'Gee' equipment ready to fit and 'wire up' - I might have pics of this in the FB.VI thread later.

Terry, just noticed the material call-out on those drawings - "Bakelite"!!!

So think twice about scuffing with silver!

Looking good Terry.

Thanks Andy and Totalize.

Bakelite eh ? Good job I did the scuffing in a dark colour then !
And guess what ?
That missing camera port window turned up (after I'd messed around and made and fitted one !) - hours later, there it was, on the floor, directly in front of my chair, just below the bench. I swear there's a ghost in this house, as it definitely was not there when I searched earlier, even using a torch and doing a 'square' search !
But I'll probably stick with the window I made, as it's a better fit !!

I hope to get a bit more done this afternoon, now that I've got the 'Gee' equipment completed and fitted into the FB.VI, but of course, being Christmas Eve, I just have to go to the pub later tonight - I might be gone some time !!

I eventually got back to the PR.IX, and managed around six hours at the bench, although around half of that time was spent test-fitting, trying to identify what was fouling the cockpit assembly, preventing the fuselage halves from closing without having to exert undue pressure.
As I intend to fit the T.1154 radio transmitter further aft on the radio shelf, as it should be, and therefore allow room for the scratch-built Navigator's head armour to be in the folded position, I needed to ensure that there would be clearance, under the aft section of the canopy, this being lower than the area where the radio would fit if the instructions were followed.
I therefore tacked the main cockpit sections together, and placed them in position in the starboard side of the fuselage, so that the fuselage could be taped together, and the radio position checked with the canopy in place.
Although the main parts had fitted without problem, after cutting a notch into the resin cables along the cockpit sill, this time, with the vertical mid-section bulkhead in place, the fuselage would not close around the nose, without squeezing hard, and I noticed that the cockpit assembly would not slide all the way back onto its locating points, which seemed to be the cause of the problem.
As there is some warpage in one fuselage half, with a distinct 'bow', any other problem with joining the fuselage halves could become serious, leading to misalignment, and a probable 'step' in the joint, or worse.
After disassembling, checking, and trying again, numerous times, it became obvious that the vertical bulkhead was causing the problem - this is a part from the original FB.VI kit from 1980, along with most of the other cockpit parts, with the exception of the main floor, instrument panel and half bulkhead, and the 'bomber style' control column.
It would seem that the marriage of these parts, to the newer fuselage moulding, was not a particularly happy one, as the vertical bulkhead was fouling against the extreme rear edge of the 'map board', moulded onto the starboard cockpit wall, with the spar section, acting as the base for the Navigator's seat, not quite clearing the bottom edge of the trailing aerial crank wheel, both of these items being absent from the older kit.
This fouling was miniscule, probably less than half a millimeter, but enough to prevent the entire assembly from fitting together as it should. To be fair, the addition of the resin parts probably added slightly to the misalignment, even though corrections and allowances had been made to counter any problems.
The remedy was fairly straightforward, though time consuming, having to keep checking fit in three different areas. The vertical 'rib' of the map board was reduced in thickness, the edge of the vertical bulkhead was filed back, and the horizontal section representing the spar was chamferred, to clear the bottom of the crank wheel.
The cockpit assembly now seems to fit, although I'm still expecting some problems when the time comes to join the fuselage, due to the warped starboard section.
So, with that done, I eventually managed to make a little progress, with those ill-fitting nose windows tidied up, sealed around he inner edges, and the edges painted to try cover at least some of the untidy joints. Those areas which needed filing have been re-touched, and some wiring has been added to the resin wiring on the starboard side, leading up over the 'roof' of the nose compartment, towards the rear of the instrument panel.
The main cockpit components have been assembled and painted, and the pilot's seat has been assembled, after first thinning-down the seat pan, arm-rest supports, and the back armour, and work has begun on detailing the radio equipment.

PIC 1. A poor shot, due to the lighting and reflections, but his shows the nose windows, which don't look as bad when views through the nose aperture, and the extra wiring, leading off from the moulded resin wiring.
PIC 2. The main cockpit assembly, with the seat, control column 'boot', and Navigator's knee pad painted in a worn leather shade, and the signal flares painted, along with the fire extinguisher, again, not red !
The camera control equipment in the nose has yet to be painted and detailed.
The pilot's seat has been thinned-down, as has the back armour, and the seat harness shackle has been thinned, ready to accept the Eduard PE pre-painted harness.
PICS 3 and 4. The Airfix T/R 1154/1155 radio equipment is very nicely done, with only a little added detail required to make them really stand out. Here, the R1155 Receiver has had the installation handles added, together with a couple of switches, the pressed panels, and some screw heads.
The underside has been drilled to accept the cables, which will be fitted later, along with the scratch-built support frame.
PICS 5 to 7. Likewise, the T1154 transmitter is a little gem, better, and more accurate, than the Tamiya example. Again, the pressed panels have been added, as have the ventilation holes in the center of the front panel, and some screw heads. The three holes are for the connecting sockets for the power lead, receiver connector, and the aerial cable, all of which will be fitted once the equipment has been painted and installed.

I hope to get the cockpit completed and installed, and the fuselage closed-up, some time tomorrow, and then jump back over to the other side of the Airframes Aircraft (1943) Ltd factory production line, and continue with the other part of the De Havilland contract !

Great stuff Terry.

Thanks again, Wojtek and Andy.

I didn't get as much time at the bench as I expected tonight, so I only got the camera controls painted, the Pilot's seat cleaned up and painted, and the radios painted and installed, the latter taking up the bulk of the time.
I was hoping to be a little more advanced with the cockpit work, and getting towards closing the fuselage, but maybe I'll get there tomorrow. I'd like to think that I can start on the more time-consuming part by the turn of the year - modifying and improving the shape of the front of the engine nacelles and intakes which, although hopefully not too difficult, could be slightly tricky, if damage is to be avoided
Anyway, the pics show the progress to date.
The radios have yet to have the wiring added, and the 1155 Receiver, hanging in mid air, will have a support bracket and regulator/transformer made and fitted.
Once that's done, the seat harnesses can be installed, and the Pilot's seat attached to the bulkhead, the Navigator's head armour can be made and attached in the folded position, the control column can be painted and fitted and, once the three levers for undercart, flaps and bay doors have been made and attached to the instrument panel, that too can be cemented to the floor.
I'll probably make and add the storage rack, beneath the shelf/arm rest on the starboard side of the nose, before fitting the completed cockpit into the fuselage, along with the tail wheel assembly, and joining the fuselage halves.

Back sometime tomorrow with a further up-date on this, and the FB.VI.

Always easier to build a support under something supported by a sky-hook. Those radio parts look the biz sir.

Thanks very much Andy. They look better without the 'power of the lens' showing the odd rough bit.
Took bl**dy ages to paint, and, having now seen the pics, the waveband semi-circle on the Receiver looks slightly 'off' on the top of the curve, but looks fine otherwise, even through a magnifying glass.
I have some decals I could have used, but they look rather pale and 'thin', so I decided to use paint, a pencil, and a bit of scratching instead.

Done good there Terry!

Superb stuff as always.

Jeff

Thanks very much chaps, it's very much appreciated.

And tonight, for your entertainment, we present "Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Disappearing Photo Etch " !!

I am totally convinced there's ghost in my house !
One photo-etched lap strap, one shoulder strap adjuster, a flexible cockpit lamp, and an oxygen economiser all disappeared.
OK, the straps I can accept, as they 'pinged' into oblivion, but the other two parts are a complete mystery. They were there, in front of me, on the bench, after I removed them from the fret, and then suddenly, they were gone, in less than the blink of an eyelid.
No sound of them moving, or landing anywhere, and I hadn't even touched them !
The missing straps were replaced by thin strips of paper, painted the same shade as the originals, and they fitted and worked well, but I decided to omit the other two parts - until the oxygen economiser turned up, an hour later, on the edge of my seat, where I'd already searched, along with half the room and all of the bench and surrounding floor !
This was fitted onto the starboard cockpit wall. I decided against scratch-building the storage rack for the spare oxygen bottles, in the nose, as the limitations of the kit moulding process don't allow quite enough room to make it to convincing scale (it's located under the shelf/arm rest on the starboard side of the nose compartment).
So instead, I got on with the job of 'wiring in' the radio equipment and making and fitting a support bracket for the 1155 Receiver, fitting the harnesses to the seats, as well as the harness release cable on the Pilot's seat, adding a resin sanitary tank, and making and fitting the Navigator's head armour, as well as painting some of the small details, and re-touching as required.
I now just need to make and fit the rudder pedals and the levers to the instrument panel, paint the control column, and fit these to the floor, along with a scratch-built First Aid locker, before fitting the completed cockpit assembly into the fuselage, adding the tail wheel, and joining the fuselage halves.

PICS 1 to 3. The wiring for the radios and the support bracket.
PIC 4. The Navigator's seat harness, with right-hand lap strap, and the right hand shoulder strap adjuster, replaced by paper examples. Also shown here is the resin sanitary tank (which will only just be seen, if looking through the floor hatch !), and the painted camera controls.
PICS 5 to 7. The completed Pilot's seat, with PE harness and lead wire harness release cable.
PIC 8. The scratch-built Navigator's head armour before clean-up, made from thin plastic card, drilled-out plastic tube, and stretched sprue. The 'port hole' was glazed with Humbrol Clear Fix, after painting the part.
PIC 9. The cockpit assembly so far. The angle of the Pilot's seat was corrected after this pic was taken - handling had move it back at the angle seen here.

I might not get any more done now until either New Year's day, or the day after, but I'll be back soon, when there's more to show.
Thanks once again for all the positive comments, and I hope you all have a great New Year's Eve - I'll probably be going to the pub !

I'm calling a giant load of BS on the "probably" going to the pub.

Have a great night....whatever you decide to do.

PS. love the wiring.

Jeff