The RAF's sole Savoia Marchetti SM-77 - Egypt, 1942

[PR19_Kit]

The centre section of the SM-77 is large enough for a complete, 4 burner kitchen range, sink & draining board, fridge AND a washing machine! 

And that doesn't count the space in the twin hulls either.

Is there any truth in the rumour that the NAAFI wanted the aircraft as a beach head canteen?

Not quite.

Monty wanted it to land at intervals along the Egyptian Mediterranean coast to act has his own personal kitchen as his advance worked its way steadily west, chasing Rommel.

But the RAF wouldn't have it, saying 'We captured it, we re-engined it, re-armed it AND loaded it with tea and spam. Go find your own kitchen!'

[NARSES2]

But the RAF wouldn't have it, saying 'We captured it, we re-engined it, re-armed it AND loaded it with tea and spam. Go find your own kitchen!'

Ah Spam  I still treat myself to the occasional tin 

Now I've eaten in a couple of aircraft fuselages that have been turned into cafes/restaurants, but you could probably turn that one into a flying one complete with dance floor and cabaret 

[PR19_Kit]

Now I've eaten in a couple of aircraft fuselages that have been turned into cafes/restaurants, but you could probably turn that one into a flying one complete with dance floor and cabaret 

I like it. 

I may include a speaker and a sound track in the build now. 

[rickshaw]

Now I've eaten in a couple of aircraft fuselages that have been turned into cafes/restaurants, but you could probably turn that one into a flying one complete with dance floor and cabaret 

I like it. 

I may include a speaker and a sound track in the build now. 

Can you dance to the "RAF March"? 

[PR19_Kit]

Now I've eaten in a couple of aircraft fuselages that have been turned into cafes/restaurants, but you could probably turn that one into a flying one complete with dance floor and cabaret 

I like it. 

I may include a speaker and a sound track in the build now. 

Can you dance to the "RAF March"? 

Actually I think you can, I've watched my Mum and Dad do exactly that.  They changed step according to the bands rhythm change too. 

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=raf+march+past+youtube&&view=detail&mid=3A87D0FD654517F48BB03A87D0FD654517F48BB0&&FORM=VRDGAR&ru=%2Fvideos%2Fsearch%3Fq%3Draf%2Bmarch%2Bpast%2Byoutube%26FORM%3DVDRESM

[dogsbody]

I've just found this topic and it looks most interesting.

A question, if I may, regarding the props. Will you be reversing the pitch of the rear pair, or are you going with the rear engines having an opposite rotation to the front engines?




Chris

[PR19_Kit]

The rear engines will have an extra idler gear, and the prop mounted the other way round on my model.

Finding some matching props with the other rotation turned out to be impossible, so now I've got maybe 4-5 sets of wrong props in my spares box.

[PR19_Kit]

Lots of work on the S77 today. I tidied up the main wing-fuselage assembly after mucho PSR etc, and gave it a final coat of primer.



I'm not quite sure what to do with the dents in the upper wing where the original engine struts went. I could fill them in, using the bottom of the struts themselves and then PSR the hell out of them, or just leave them as they are, suggesting that the RAF at Heliopolis couldn't really bothered be after having more than doubled the horsepower. What's a little form drag with that much muscle, eh? 

I've also sorted the cooling for the rear engine of the starboard Merlin pair, with a cooling exhaust port for the front engine on the inside of the pylon (just a case of cutting the styrene and bending part of the skin inwards) and I added the cooling intake for the rear engine's radiator on the outside of the pylon. That used to be the cooling scoop for an AZ MB5 that I had lying around.





Just doing some PSR on the latter and then the pylon's ready for priming.

[PR19_Kit]

I just spent a 'happy' hour re-scribing a zillion panel lines on the S77. How I HATE re-scribing Panel lines! It's almost as bad as PSR stuff, but not quite. 

As most of the wing of this comes from a metal Lancaster there's LOADS of lines on the outboard section, but the inner wing is wooden, so doesn't really need them, so I had to blend them in gradually. Not helped by the fact that the inner wing mostly consists of layers of styrene sheet and a ton of putty, but it's done now.

I don't guarantee that both sides are the same however..... 

[tigercat]

Coming along nicely 

[Old Wombat]

I don't guarantee that both sides are the same however..... 

Well, that's just not good enough!





 

[Rheged]

I don't guarantee that both sides are the same however..... 

Well, that's just not good enough!

 

This could be part of a cunning plan.......either that, or he's setting out to go for Tophe-type asymmetry to fool us all.

[PR19_Kit]

I just got SO cheesed off with that damn scribing! 

The backstory will say that Flt. Lt. Barker's guy's replated some of the S77's wing panels as they'd taken hits from a couple of RAF Gladiators while it was trying to escape from Masawa and that's why the crew surrendered it. 

[PR19_Kit]

It's got engines! 

Well, two of them anyway. It's starting to look how I imagined it now, but it'll be even better with all four engines of course.

At the moment it's a 'Tophe-like' with only a couple on one side. 

[tigercat]

Very Tophesque