Spitfire Seats

[mongo]

OK, I'm totally confused about the composition (and hence, color [colour] of the seat in the Spitfire. Some were al-you-min-i-yum, some were plastic laminate. At what Marks were those types of seats installed in the aircraft. More specifically, what seat would a mid-late Mk IX have?

Mongo

[Av8fan]

Here you go:

spitfire seat answer by Mr. E. Brooks.

as always check your references.

[TonyT]

This was the colour, the external has been painted in its life as it is still a flier, but the inner colour is correct, some early ones were metal. The leather back was normally a red colour! The holes in front are for the flare stowage.

http://s536.photobucket.com/albums/ff321/taylortony/Spitfire%20MKx1x/#!cpZZ8QQtppZZ16

That is a mk 19 btw

Edited January 22, 2012 by TonyT

[Grant in West Oz]

Composite seat, it was named Tufnol. There's a fresh-looking one in the background. Mk.V on.

Metal seat. Mk.I/II.

There are shape differences, the kit seat will be the give-away.

G

Edited January 22, 2012 by Grant in West Oz

[Edgar]

Composite seat, it was named Tufnol.

No, it was simply known as "plastic." Some civil servant has caused years of grief, for modellers, by naming it as Bakelite (which it never was, either,) in the Spitfire repair manual.

The manufacturing company was Aeroplastics Ltd., who, like Tufnol, were based in Glasgow, but in a different area. Tufnol make a material, today, which sounds remarkably like the old seat plastic, and it's possible that they took over Aeroplastics production, post-war, but an enquiry, on this subject, brought a deafening silence.

Before May, 1940, all seats were metal (probably duralumin,) and the plastic seat was introduced as an alternative, not a replacement. Early metal seats might well have been painted black, not green, as well.

Edgar

Edited January 23, 2012 by Edgar

[Grant in West Oz]

Illuminated once again. Thanks Edgar.

Actually, Tufnol was a product by Aeroproducts. A laminated fibrous resin, it's strong point was it was able to cope with point fasteners such as flat head rivets.

Their Plastic Spitfire was a bit of a dud tho.

Still in use today as the fibre looking board that holds the metallic printed circuits in our computers etc. Structural carbon fibre panels use exactly the same technology.

Bakelite was a monobloc casting for mantle wireless (radio) shells, switches and the like and pop jewellery.

Cheers,

G