martins meteor mk4

[martin57]

HI this will be my entry to the sig.
its a revell 1\72 scale mk4 meteor.
got 2 of these, so if i muck it up i can do the other, this will be first time useing the new metal paints from V...

Here are the box and sprue shots.



















Well there you have it ,looks pretty good to me .
i hope it turns out ok useing the metal paints because i have a few kits that need doing .
history and build to follow

[chief5437]

Nice choice, a classic British jet. good luck with it

[Cymru]

Good choice
Is there a good Vampire kit out there? You could do the pair, as on the box art

[Kevthemodeller]

Good choice
Is there a good Vampire kit out there? You could do the pair, as on the box art

There is a Vampire I built ones years ago think it was Revel can't be sure though.

[patrickroos]

Very nice choice!

Good luck Martin!

[martin57]

OK then back on this little gem .
first a bit of history .

he Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' only operational jet aircraft during the Second World War. The Meteor's development was heavily reliant on its ground-breaking turbojet engines, pioneered by Sir Frank Whittle and his company, Power Jets Ltd. Development of the aircraft itself began in 1940, although work on the engines had been under way since 1936. The Meteor first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with No. 616 Squadron RAF. Nicknamed the "Meatbox", the Meteor was not a sophisticated aircraft in its aerodynamics, but proved to be a successful combat fighter.

Several major variants of the Meteor incorporated technological advances during the 1940s and 1950s. Thousands of Meteors were built to fly with the RAF and other air forces and remained in use for several decades. The Meteor saw limited action in the Second World War. Meteors of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) fought in the Korean War. Several other operators such as Argentina, Egypt and Israel flew Meteors in later regional conflicts. Specialised variants of the Meteor were developed for use in photographic aerial reconnaissance and as night fighters.

The Meteor was also used for research and development purposes and to break several aviation records. On 7 November 1945, the first official air speed record by a jet aircraft was set by a Meteor F.3 of 606 miles per hour (975 km/h). In 1946, this record was broken when a Meteor F.4 reached a speed of 616 mph (991 km/h). Other performance-related records were broken in categories including flight time endurance, rate of climb, and speed. On 20 September 1945, a heavily modified Meteor I, powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent turbine engines driving propellers, became the first turboprop aircraft to fly.[1] On 10 February 1954, a specially adapted Meteor F.8, the "Meteor Prone Pilot", which placed the pilot into a prone position to counteract inertial forces, took its first flight.[2]

In the 1950s, the Meteor became increasingly obsolete as more nations introduced jet fighters, many of these newcomers having adopted a swept wing instead of the Meteor's conventional straight wing; in RAF service, the Meteor was replaced by newer types such as the Hawker Hunter and Gloster Javelin. As of 2013, two Meteors, WL419 and WA638, remain in active service with the Martin-Baker company as ejection seat testbeds. Two further aircraft in the UK remain airworthy, as does another in Australia.

the cockpit on this is very small and not a lot of detail, i used the kit decals and added some seat belts .
then joined the two sides together not a bad fit at all'









The Meteor F.1 was powered by two Rolls-Royce Welland turbojet engines, Britain's first production jet engines, which were built under license from Whittle's designs.[26] The Meteor embodied the advent of practical jet propulsion; in the type's service life, both military and civil aviation manufacturers would rapidly integrate turbine engines into their designs, favouring its advantages such as smoother running and greater power output.[84] The Meteor's engines were considerably more practical than those of the German Me 262, having both a longer service life and being more efficient; unlike the Me 262, the engines were embedded into the wing in nacelles between the front and rear spars rather than underslung.[85][Note 7]

The W.2B/23C engines upon which the Welland was based produced 1,700 lbf (7.58 kN) of thrust each, giving the aircraft a maximum speed of 417 mph (670 km/h) at 3,000 m and a range of 1,006 miles (1,610 km).[39] It incorporated a hydraulically driven engine starter developed by Rolls-Royce, which was automated following the press of a starter button in the cockpit.[Note 8] The engines also drove hydraulic and vacuum pumps as well as a generator via a Rotol gearbox fixed on the forward wing spar;[26] the cockpit was also heated by bleed air from one of the engines.[79] The acceleration rate of the engines was manually controlled by the pilot; rapid engine acceleration would frequently induce compressor stalls early on; the likelihood of compressor stalls was effectively eliminated upon further design refinements of both the Welland engine and the Meteor itself.[87] At high speeds, the Meteor had an unfortunate tendency to lose directional stability, often during unfavourable weather conditions, leading to a 'snaking' motion; this could be easily resolved by throttling back to reduce speed.[88]

Based upon designs produced by Power Jets, Rolls-Royce produced more advanced and powerful turbojet engines. Beyond numerous improvements made to the Welland engine that powered the early Meteors; Rolls-Royce and Power Jets collaborated to develop the more capable Derwent engine, which as the Rover B.26 had undergone a radical re-design from the W.2B/500 while at Rover. The Derwent engine, and the re-designed Derwent V based on the Nene, was installed on many of the later production Meteors, the adoption of this new powerplant let to considerable performance increases.[26][85][Note 9] The Meteor often served as the basis for the development of other early turbojet designs; a pair of Meteor F.4s were sent to Rolls-Royce to aid in their experimental engine trials, RA435 being used for reheat testing, and RA491 being fitted with the Rolls-Royce Avon, an axial-flow engine.[26][90] From their involvement in the development of the Meteor's engines, Armstrong-Siddeley, Bristol Aircraft, Metropolitan-Vickers, and de Havilland would also independently develop their own gas turbine engines.[91]

moveing on next up was the wings , this is were some work was needed, this was on the centre section as you can see by the photos , a good bit of
sanding was needed to get a good fit .







then the outer parts of the wings were glued together , there was not any locating pins or tabs to help line these up , but a bit of manovering and
thay went on ok.



Second World War[edit]

Gloster Meteor F.1 of No. 616 Squadron
No. 616 Squadron RAF was the first to receive operational Meteors: a total of 14 aircraft were initially delivered. The squadron was based at RAF Culmhead, Somerset and had been previously equipped with the Spitfire VII.[102] The conversion to the Meteor was initially a matter of great secrecy.[103] Following a conversion course at Farnborough attended by the squadron's six leading pilots, the first aircraft was delivered to Culmhead on 12 July 1944.[11][Note 11] The squadron and its seven Meteors moved on 21 July 1944 to RAF Manston on the east Kent coast and, within a week, 32 pilots had been converted to the type.[104]

The Meteor was initially used to counter the V-1 flying bomb threat. 616 Squadron Meteors saw action for the first time on 27 July 1944, when three aircraft were active over Kent. These were the first operational jet combat missions for the Meteor and for the Royal Air Force. After some problems, especially with jamming guns, the first two V1 "kills" were made on 4 August.[105] By war's end, Meteors had accounted for 14 flying bombs.[106] After the end of the V-1 threat, and the introduction of the ballistic V-2 rocket, the RAF was forbidden to fly the Meteor on combat missions over German-held territory for fear of an aircraft being shot down and salvaged by the Germans.

No. 616 Squadron briefly moved to RAF Debden to allow USAAF bomber crews to gain experience and create tactics in facing jet-engined foes before moving to Colerne, Wiltshire. For a week from 10 October 1944 a series of exercises were carried out in which a flight of Meteors made mock attacks on a formation of 100 B-24s and B-17s escorted by 40 Mustangs and Thunderbolts. These suggested that, if the jet fighter attacked the formation from above, it could take advantage of its superior speed in the dive to attack the bombers and then escape by diving through the formation before the escorts could react. The best tactic to counter this was to place a fighter screen 5,000 ft above the bombers and attempt to intercept the jets early in the dive.[107] The exercise was also useful from No. 616 Squadron's perspective, gaining valuable practical experience in Meteor operations.[108]


Meteor F.3s with original short engine nacelles
No. 616 Squadron exchanged its F.1s for the first Meteor F.3s on 18 December 1944. These first 15 F.3s differed from the F.1 in having a sliding canopy in place of the sideways hinging canopy, increased fuel capacity and some airframe refinements. They were still powered by Welland I engines.[109] Later F.3s were equipped with the Derwent I engines. This was a substantial improvement over the earlier mark, although the basic design still had not reached its potential. Wind tunnel and flight tests demonstrated that the original short nacelles, which did not extend far fore and aft of the wing, contributed heavily to compressibility buffeting at high speed. New, longer nacelles not only cured some of the compressibility problems but added 120 km/h (75 mph) at altitude, even without upgraded powerplants. The last batch of Meteor F.3s featured the longer nacelles; other F.3s were retrofitted in the field with the new nacelles. The F.3 also had the new Rolls-Royce Derwent engines, increased fuel capacity, and a new larger, more strongly raked bubble canopy.[52]

Judging the Meteor F.3s were ready for combat over Europe, the RAF finally decided to deploy them on the continent. On 20 January 1945, four Meteors from 616 Squadron were moved to Melsbroek in Belgium and attached to the Second Tactical Air Force,[110] just under three weeks after the Luftwaffe's surprise Unternehmen Bodenplatte attack on New Year's Day, in which Melsbroek's RAF base, designated as Allied Advanced Landing Ground "B.58", had been struck by the piston-engined fighters of JG 27 and JG 54. The 616 Squadron Meteor F.3s' initial purpose was to provide air defence for the airfield, but their pilots hoped that their presence might provoke the Luftwaffe into sending Me 262s against them.[102] At this point the Meteor pilots were still forbidden to fly over German-occupied territory, or to go east of Eindhoven, to prevent a downed aircraft being captured by the Germans or the Soviets.[111]


Ground crew servicing a Meteor of 616 Squadron at Melsbroek, Belgium, 1945. Note the all-white finish used by the four F.3s sent to Belgium, this was to aid recognition by ground troops during familiarisation training before the operational F.3 aircraft arrived
In March, the entire squadron was moved to Gilze-Rijen and then in April, to Nijmegen. The Meteors flew armed reconnaissance and ground attack operations without encountering any German jet fighters. By late April, the squadron was based at Faßberg, Germany and suffered its first losses when two aircraft collided in poor visibility. The war ended with the Meteors having destroyed 46 German aircraft through ground attack.[citation needed] Friendly fire through misidentification as Messerschmitt Me 262s by Allied anti-aircraft gunners was more of a threat than the already-diminished forces of the Luftwaffe; to counter this, continental-based Meteors were given an all-white finish as a recognition aid.[108][110][112] The nearest No.616 squadron came to a jet-to-jet battle came on 19 March, when a force of Arado Ar 234 jet bombers attacked their airfield.



all the airframe together and a small amount of filler needed , and we are ready for a coat of black primer.



priming done went on nice and smooth .




Record setting[edit]

The Sapphire Meteor WA820 on display at Farnborough Airshow, 1951
Late in 1945, two F.3 Meteors were modified for an attempt on the world air speed record. On 7 November 1945 at Herne Bay in Kent, UK, Group Captain Hugh "Willie" Wilson set the first official air speed record by a jet aircraft of 606 miles per hour (975 km/h) TAS.[173][174] In 1946, Group Captain Edward "Teddy" Donaldson broke this record with a speed of 616 mph (991 km/h) TAS, in EE549, a Meteor F.4.[174][175]

Neither of these records, however, exceeded Heini Dittmar's 623 mph (1,004 km/h) unofficial record velocity in one of the Me 163A rocket fighter prototypes, set on October 2, 1941 after being towed to the height for the attempt by a Bf 110. Test pilot Roland Beamont had previously taken EE549 to its compressibility limit at 632 mph (1,017 km/h), but not under official record conditions, and outside its official safety limits.

In 1947, Sqn Ldr Janusz Żurakowski set an international speed record: London-Copenhagen-London, 4–5 April 1950 in a production standard F.8 (VZ468). Suitably impressed, the Danes later purchased the type.[176]

Another "claim to fame" was the Meteor's ability to perform the "Żurabatic Cartwheel", an aerobatics manoeuvre named after Gloster's acting Chief Test Pilot, it was first demonstrated by Meteor G-7-1 G-AMCJ prototype at the 1951 Farnborough Air Show;[177] the Meteor, due to its widely set engines, could have individual engines throttled back and forward to achieve a seemingly stationary vertical cartwheel. Many Meteor pilots went on to "prove their mettle" by attempting the same feat.[178]

On 7 August 1949, the Meteor III, EE397, on loan from the RAF and flown by Flight Refuelling Ltd (FRL) test pilot Patrick Hornidge, took off from Tarrant Rushton and, refuelled 10 times by the Lancaster tanker, remained airborne for 12 hours and 3 minutes, receiving 2,352 gallons of fuel from the tanker in ten tanker contacts and flying an overall distance of 3,600 miles (5,800 km), achieving a new jet endurance record.[179]

Meteor F.8 WA820 was adapted during 1948 to take two Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire turbojets, and from Moreton Valence, on August 31, 1951, established a time-to-height climb record. The pilot was Flt Lt Tom Prickett, of Armstrong Siddeley. A height of 9,843 ft was reached in 1 min 16 sec, 19,685 ft in 1 min 50 sec, 29,500 ft in 2 min 29 sec, and 39,370 ft in 3 min 7 sec. Air Service Training Ltd were responsible for the conversion.[180]

This is what i will be useing for the final coats of paint, first time useing these .



came out ok looks good to me .



then moved on to a gloss coat and then the decales were put on , these are quite thick so had to use a good bit of micro sol red .





so thats my progress so far , i have part assembled the under cart , but that will be shown on the next update.
i hope you do not find these posts boring , i am not very good at writing and explaining myself,
thanks for looking .

[pourquoi61]

Looks good so far,did you have any problems with the metal colour paints?

[martin57]

Looks good so far,did you have any problems with the metal colour paints?

no thay went on really nice first time i have used them , thay brush paint ok as well , need a good shake and thay are good to go no thinning .

[martin57]

Right this will be a short thread , it was my plan to do the under cart next , but this went totaly wrong.
when i attempted to install the landing gear i could not get it to sit right , to low one side or the other ,i tried all ways to get it to look right.
so before i totaly muck it all up i made it the wheels up version instead ,witch is not that much of a pain it fits in the display cabinet better.
so that said i have posted the finished job over on the reveil thread .

[mperegrinefalcon]

Good choice
Is there a good Vampire kit out there? You could do the pair, as on the box art

The kit I'm building for this SIG from airfix is great, feel free to go check it out

[Cymru]

The kit I'm building for this SIG from airfix is great, feel free to go check it out

Thanks, but I don't build 1:72, my eyes aren't up to it!
I found a 1:48 kit from Trumpeter