Boulton Paul type A (defiant) turret info request (1 Viewer)

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Thanks for those Graeme, the ammunition feed pic is particularly informative although its for the type E turret it does show the principle of what happens to the ammo much more clearly than I'd seen before, I had assumed this was how it worked but when you see it laid out like this it makes the modelling much easier.

Cheers
alex
 
Micdrow - I had no idea these were in the mushrrom book, thought it was just 4 views and colour profiles. I bought the mushroom book on Ebay last week but it still hasn't arrived from Germany yet, can't wait now. That cutaway is chock full of answers.

I think you will be quite happy with this book. It contains most of the info you will need for your model.
 
My Boulton Paul turret modelling project is slowly starting to come together - will post pix in the next fews days once I iron out a few things. In the meantime I wonder if anyone would care to hazard a guess as to what the writing on the side of the turret in the attached photo says? Its a detail from a still of an old air ministry training film showing an early, daylight version of the Defiant. I've tried every photoshop trick I know to enhance the image but cannot make out what it says. Anyone know if there was a standard warning or something stencilled onto the turret at this point or have any other examples - I know the one at elvington has a sticker on it saying please don't touch but I assume that's a recent addition :)

Happy Xmas BTW
 

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As promised here are some progress renders of the turret model so far, still some work to do with texturing etc. Some things may be slightly out of proportion due to having no comprehensive scale reference to work from so a lot of things were just done by eye, there are a few things that I just had to guesstimate as there were a few gaps in my reference - colour for one thing as most of the interior details were modelled from stills of a black and white film.

cheers
alex
 

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Cheers guys, think I'll let the turret stew for a bit and work on the aircrew for a change. then come back to this hopefully with a new perspective.
 
Great work, Alex! BTW, that writing on the turret looks like it refers to the open/locking latch for the entrance hatch. It appears to read something like "Pull out...To Open..." or something similar, and is probably in red lettering.
Hope that helps.
Terry.
 
Cheers Terry, very interesting that you say it would probably be red - was hoping for red or yellow as either of these colours will help draw the eye into the composition. Do you think it would be stencilled or just painted freehand?

Have found another pic of same type A turret on a stand - this seems to read 'Pull --- to open' - missing word looks like Flag/Flap/Plug to me, also have yet to see anything on this part of the turret that looks like it would move, all the bits which protrude here look welded or riveted on.

cheers
alex
 

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Can't quite make out the 'missing' word Alex, but it'll be something like 'Out', or 'Latch'. In the first pic, the tone of the letters definitely suggest red, and in the second pic, yellow. Unlikely they would be painted free-hand, more probably a 'transfer' (decal), which was common, even for items such as serial numbers on Lancs! Otherwise it may be a stencil, but the letters in the first pic look 'solid'. As most, if not all, stencils/markings on 'Special Night', 'Night', and the other black paints were red, with some exceptions for certain markings, I'd suggest that red would be the normal colour, with yellow, as in the second pic, as an alternative.
Terry.
 
Thanks for the support guys and the technical insight which, as ever, is invaluable. Stuck with my brother's screaming kids for the next 24 (I mean blessed by an unexpected bounty at this time of Christmas cheer :rolleyes: ) so won't be able to get much work done for a while.

cheers
alex
 
Thanks for the support guys and the technical insight which, as ever, is invaluable. Stuck with my brother's screaming kids for the next 24 (I mean blessed by an unexpected bounty at this time of Christmas cheer :rolleyes: ) so won't be able to get much work done for a while.

cheers
alex
Hi, anyone know of the ring diameter on the type A turret? Trying to get the proper size for a model I an working on.
 

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