Matt308
Glock Perfection
That is just wonderful work. I love this plane.
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I'm glad you did, I would have left it as it was and now I'm glad I I went ahead and did then right.Your rings look spot on, sorry if I gave you a head ache.
Just to muddy the waters even more, about the pictures it was only the later transport Sterlings that had propeller bosses, they were added along with fans due to concerns over the engines over heating while towing gliders. If you look at the Yorkshire Air Museums Hercules engine Halifax (which is not exactly an authentic aircraft) you will notice the collector rings have been painted an all over rust colour, the Canadian Halifax which is a far more original machine has it's collector rings painted black.
I have two Sterlings on the build and thought about painting these rings a boring black as I don't actually know the exact colour they were when unpainted, in the end I decided that black would be nothing short of cowardice and I have done them like yours in alclad copper and magnesium mixed with airframe aluminium.
I'm a bit confused, do you mean the rings were a copper bronze colour or actually made from copper or bronze? I am also thinking that bronze is an alloy consisting mostly of cooper and tin. The Bristol engine aircraft I have seen at Hendon etc all seem to have what looks like steel collector rings either painted or polished into a nice pewter shade. I wonder were Mercury and Hercules collector rings made from different metals? do some aircraft such as the airworthy gladiators, swordfish and Blenheim have remanufactured modern replacement collector rings using different metals from the originals? I have never seen modern pictures of Bristol engines with copper collector rings and was wondering why that wartime pictures nearly all appear to be copper, I can only put this down to them being discoloured.Great job Paul, it's really looking the part. The exhaust collector rings, front and rear sections, were copper bronze, and sometimes painted to reduce shine or 'glint'.
That 'hole' in the front of the exhaust itself, contains two small breather pipes, like on the Beaufighter and other Hercules engined aircraft, which can be seen protruding in some of the pics posted.
Sorry for the late reply. I should have clarified what I meant - the colour was a copper/bronze shade, and dragging back into my memory, I believe the collector rings themselves were either copper, or perhaps copper plated. Certainly most wartime pics show a copper tone, and I remember seeing this on various radial engines fitted with collector rings, back in the late 1950's.I'm a bit confused, do you mean the rings were a copper bronze colour or actually made from copper or bronze? I am also thinking that bronze is an alloy consisting mostly of cooper and tin. The Bristol engine aircraft I have seen at Hendon etc all seem to have what looks like steel collector rings either painted or polished into a nice pewter shade. I wonder were Mercury and Hercules collector rings made from different metals? do some aircraft such as the airworthy gladiators, swordfish and Blenheim have remanufactured modern replacement collector rings using different metals from the originals? I have never seen modern pictures of Bristol engines with copper collector rings and was wondering why that wartime pictures nearly all appear to be copper, I can only put this down to them being discoloured.