Gun(?) heating tubes on Spitfire

[oldfartmodeler]

Greetings

I am looking for information on those tubes (ducts) that run from behind the wing radiators on the V.S. Spitfire. They remind me of heat transfer ducts to move warm

air from the back of the radiator(s) to somewhere (guns). I can't find any specifc reference to them in my library. Did they differ from Mark to Mark and what was there intended purpose? Any assistance would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance;

JBrown

[Edgar]

This is the cannon bay of the IXc; you can see the heating pipe arriving at the back, passing up beside the cannon, then turning through 90 degrees, to pass in front of the ammunition trays, and, from there, out to the .303" Brownings. The pipes were simply open tubes, which collected warm air from the back of the radiators, so that each radiator fed its particular set of guns.

On the early Marks, the single radiator had to supply heat to all of the guns, with a pipe crossing through the fuselage, behind the pilot, and then out to the port guns; this was always a problem, and was made worse when cannon came into service. Eventually, the radiator was left to feed only the cannon, while "augmenter tubes" were passed through the exhaust stubs, through the engine compartment, along the wings' leading edges, then through holes in the mainspar web into the area of the .303" gun breeches.

To ensure the hot air travelled all the way through to the outer guns, you'll see conical, rearward-facing tubes under the wings (on Marks up to, and including the V) outboard of the outermost guns; these used the airflow to draw the air through the wings, then exhaust it to atmosphere.

When the twin radiators arrived, extra heating was no longer necessary, so the augmenter tubes were ditched, in fact at times there was too much heat for the ammunition, so the extra had to be ducted away.

Hope this helps a little.

Edgar

[oldfartmodeler]

This is the cannon bay of the IXc; you can see the heating pipe arriving at the back, passing up beside the cannon, then turning through 90 degrees, to pass in front of the ammunition trays, and, from there, out to the .303" Brownings. The pipes were simply open tubes, which collected warm air from the back of the radiators, so that each radiator fed its particular set of guns.

On the early Marks, the single radiator had to supply heat to all of the guns, with a pipe crossing through the fuselage, behind the pilot, and then out to the port guns; this was always a problem, and was made worse when cannon came into service. Eventually, the radiator was left to feed only the cannon, while "augmenter tubes" were passed through the exhaust stubs, through the engine compartment, along the wings' leading edges, then through holes in the mainspar web into the area of the .303" gun breeches.

To ensure the hot air travelled all the way through to the outer guns, you'll see conical, rearward-facing tubes under the wings (on Marks up to, and including the V) outboard of the outermost guns; these used the airflow to draw the air through the wings, then exhaust it to atmosphere.

When the twin radiators arrived, extra heating was no longer necessary, so the augmenter tubes were ditched, in fact at times there was too much heat for the ammunition, so the extra had to be ducted away.

Hope this helps a little.

Edgar

[oldfartmodeler]

Thanks a bunch Edgar. Just the information I was seeking.

JBrown