Hello out there,
Hope someone can help me, I'm doing 1:72 Revell "Dam Buster" Lancaster and want to put the spot lights on it but kit dosen't have any in it. Can anyone tell me where I can find pics or other info to work out where they were located and how to make the spotlights.
Next I might do a dio for it but thats another project

sas007

There are quite a few pics of Lancasters here:
http://www.airliners.net/search/photo.search?&maxres=500&keywords=Avro%20Lancaster&keywrange=&nr_of_rows=148&first_this_page=15&page_limit=15&sort_order=photo_id+DESC&nr_pages=10&page=;;;
I didn't go through them all, but there are many large, clear pics there.

Hope it helps !

Hi SAS007, welcome to Armorama
I've had a look through what I have on the Dambuster Lancs and there is no mention of the spotlights that were used to gauge the, critical, hight. It might be worth getting hold of the film, I think it shows them. I couldn't say if the film shows them in the correct place or not.
When/if you find out where they were located the could probably be made using plastic tube of the correct diameter, fitted in to pre-drilled holes and "glazed" with Klear, after painting.
I will keep looking for the answer on positioning, as I would like to know this as well.
Mal

As I remember the movie shows the lights mounted in the wings but this site shows them fore and aft on the fuselage.
http://www.thedambusters.org.uk/height.html
Let us know if you find the truth, it must be out there.

Nice site Chuck, I always figured that the lights would be on the centre line but obviously the bomb aimer can't watch them, he has to use the distance sight ("Y" shaped thing with a ring at the eye end and 2 nails at the other, set at the width of the dam towers, at about 450 feet). I found this on the link:

"They were angled so that the two beams would meet when the aircraft was at exactly 150 feet. It would be the job of the navigator to look down through the starboard (right) cockpit window and talk the pilot down until the lamps met at the required altitude".

So obviously the lights were angled to starboard as well. They might even have been fitted to the right of the centre line?

Mal

Hello SAS007,

I hope this helps......
http://www.chaucersonline.co.uk/images/gjohnson.jpg

Hi all
Sorry i've not got back sooner but had problems with PC
Thanks Bill some great pics of Lancs but non of the Dam Buster one I was looking for
Thanks also to Chuck that was a site I somehow missed when I first Google searched but has given me a bit more info.
Sorry David just can't get on link you gave me then again it may be PC .
I think I've been watching the same program as you Mal :-) but I'll be glued to TV on Saturday night as (just as it happens) The "Dam Busters" film is on :-)
Thanks again guys,If I get more info and do a dio will be sure to put some pic on site.

SAS007

Hi Steve,




If you watch the film you will see that the lights were set in the fuselage, one in the nose and one in the tail. When the later aircraft make their bombing runs Gibson flew in above them with his navigation lights on to draw off the flak, these are the lights in the wingtips, if you look carefully you will see they blink on and off.

Hi all
I,ve finally found out where spotlights were located,walked into the model shop here in Dundee and saw the Di-cast model of the Lancaster so the owner took it out of it's box and lo the spots were on the model.
I took note of where they were and put them on my model.
When I get it finished will get a pic on for all to see :-) .
Thanks all
sas

Yeah, ........and who made the lights in less than a minute........ah ha
aye
BARV

Hi all
Finally completed my "Dambuster " Lancaster so here are a few picks










Hope you like the Dio

SAS007

PS Thanks dad 4 the lights and base

Looks good. Hope you had fun putting this one together - I made one years ago and remember things like the retracting undercarriage and poseable flaps - the amount of "raids" I must have taken that thing on are no odds to nobody!

Not that I'd do such things today of course...not that often anyway.

Thanks for sharing your pics.

Thanlks for the comment you can see the rest of the pics in my gallery :-)
sas007

Nice one Steve, looks good. I like the fact that you have included Guy Gibsons dog "Nigger" in the dio.
Well done, what have you got planned for your next model?
Mal

Hi Mal
Thanks
Next on my list is an Airfix 1/72 Avero Vulcan.
Started doing it about 3 days ago but only work on it when wife and kids go to bed :-)
Had fun working out what Airfix paint numbers ref with Humbrol.
Got a cross ref guide of IPMS Stockholm site so will be a week or two till finnished.
The good thing is the kit has markings for 617 Sq so it can go with my Dambuster Lancaster.

SAS007