While not the most noticeable difference between the Mk I/V and the III, from a modeling perspective it could be the most challenging alteration. As I indicated in an earlier post, the Mk III radiator is larger than a Mk I/V, and has a boundary layer splitter. Since I decided to use the Airfix Mk Ia as my donor kit, and had rejected a few others, I decided to start by comparing the radiators of some specific kits.
An obvious choice for modification could be a Griffon radiator, however the Mk III radiator was not really similar to the Griffon engined marks, while it was just as deep there were some other differences. The below photo shows 5 kit radiators. 2 Griffon, 2 Merlin and my fabricated Mk III.
The Mk III looks much larger than the Fujimi and Airfix Griffon radiators simply because it is. These kit radiators seem a bit anemic now that I've fabricated the III radiator, however I must admit that my attempt may be inaccurate. I do not have drawings, only a hint at depth and some poor photos that give basic details, but not size. What I did was use the Airfix Ia radiator as a prototype, and as I fabricated I ensured the new radiator would fit length/width wise.  |
| Looking at intake |
This next photo provides some additional details.The "rails" on the bottom fit into the wing recess for the kit radiator. Photos of the prototype give the impression of a gaping maw, very square.
I fabricated the radiator from sheet styrene. First 4 layers of .040 inch card for the actual radiator, then another sheet to create the boundardy layer, and yet another for the "rails". The sides and bottom (top in this photo) are .010 card.
On the underside of the kit wing, the perspective is a bit better. There is still a bit of fiddling to do, namely narrowing of the fairing as it fits into the recesses on the wing, and of course filling in the wing recesses under the boundary layer splitter. I'll do all that once I've completed clipping of the wings.
Thank you for reading.
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