"The Spitfire Mk VIII aircraft that were delivered to Australia only used three types of oleo struts, the strut types are as follows; 91545, 91901 and 91986, all three before mentioned oleo struts were used on the F and LF Mk VIII aircraft while the HF Mk VIII only used 91986 struts.
The 91545 Oleo Strut Type used a splined ram.
The 91901 Oleo Strut Type used torque/torsion links (
aft torque/torsion link ) , as noted in Australian, Directorate of Technical Services Archival Documents dated 26 October plus 8 and 12 November 1943 as well.
The 91986 Oleo Strut Type used torque/torsion links (
forward torque/torsion link )."
the info source: the post #14:
Spitfire VIII Landing Gear
And also here...
The British Air Ministry document dated on the 28th of June 1943, Reference A.163676/41/S.M.8. identifies Spitfire Main Undercarriage Oleo Struts ..
Spitfire FVII Oleo Strut Types 91545, 91901
Spitfire FVIII Oleo Strut Types 91545, 91901
Spitfire FVIII TROP. Oleo Strut Types 91545, 91901
From S. 84993/II/S.M.8.
Oleo Strut (Splined Ram) Type 91545: Spitfire VII, VIII
Oleo Strut (Link Type) Type 91901: Spitfire VA, VB, VC, VII, VIII, IX, XI, XII, XIII
Oleo Strut (Link Type) Type 91986: Spitfire VC, VII, VIII, IX, XI, XII / Seafire II, III
"Australian technical documents on Spitfire Mk. VIII aircraft describe their Mk. VIII aircraft as having Type 91901 Oleo Struts with Torque Links."
- RAAF Directorate of Technical Services dated 28 October 1943 states:
Undercarriage
Struts are type 91901 with torque links instead of splined ram as on V.C No bronze bushes.
- RAAF Technical Order, Spitfire Instruction No. 23 promulgated during October of 1944 for example describe the following Oleo struts as being extant on Australian Spitfires;
Spitfire F, LF Mk. VIII. Vickers Oleo Pneumatic Type 91945, Type 91901 and Type 91986
Spitfire HF Mk. VIII. Vickers Oleo Pneumatic Type 91986
There are also more primary source technical documents held in Australian Archives that have been promulgated by both British and Australian authors that further describe and document the following 91901 and 91986 Oleo Struts as "Link Types" "Torque Types" & "Torsion Types" interchangeably while also nothing that the Type 91245 Oleo Strut for example is only a Splined Ram Type.
- A document promulgated by No. 2 Aircraft Depot RAAF in response to letters dated 1 March and 9 September 1943 respectively that describes differences between aircraft models received from overseas was received by the Air Board on 13 January 1944 it describes the following;
New type of undercarriage strut fitted (91986) this strut has torque link arms fitted to the front of the strut making necessary the repositioning of the brake hose on rear of spat. It also has a single piece strut axle bracket, previous models having a double piece bracket.
The Type 91901 oleo strut had the torque link arms on the back while Type 91986 had them on the front. The question now is did the Type 91945 have torque link arms at all and if it did where were they located, front or back?
The info and a nice discussion here: Spitfire Landing Gear Oleos
And...
"Type 91545 struts feature no torque/torsion links, Type 91901 struts feature aft torque/torsion links plus full bounce cut outs on the upper and lower link sleeves and Type 91986 struts feature forward torque/torsion links. These variations can sometimes be hard to spot, that said what one must look for is the following points: the Type 91545 struts start to taper above the top of the tyre. The Type 91901 struts don't taper above the tyre and can appear as if there's no taper or a slightly larger portion above the tyre which is related to the angle of the observer, also when viewed from the side the full bounce cut outs can be seen. You will not see the aft torque/torsion links at all because they are hidden completely by the wheel and tyre. The Type 91986 are perhaps the easiest to notice since they feature prominent forward torque/torsion links that are visible above the tyre."
the info source: the post #1:
Spitfire Legs (Warning Picture Heavy!)