Supermarine Type 391 "Super Seafang"

[Justo Miranda]

Speculative Drawings

 

[kitnut617]

That's very good Justo ---
One of the things I've wondered about, is where does the exhaust exit, would you have any info on that ?

 

[Justo Miranda]

Trailing edge

 

[Schneiderman]

Most unlikely as that would require running the exhausts internally and under the cockpit to route around the radiators. More likely they would have been much the same as on the Wyvern, just omitted from the simple Supermarine GA drawing

 

[Schneiderman]

The biggest issue with the Type 391 is the misleading statement, quoted all over the place, that the Type 391 used the Spiteful/Seafang wing and undercarriage connected to a new centre section. ( see https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/supermarine-391.29445/) This is completely untrue, as a comparison of the original blueprints makes clear. There would have been no common major components between the two aircraft, the Type 391 is an all-new design unrelated to the Spitfire/Spiteful lineage. The taper and aerofoil of the two wings are the same but the size of that on the Type 391 is considerably larger. As the Spiteful/Seafang did not require blisters on the upper surface over the cannons (there were small ones on the under surface) the Type 391 certainly would not and there is no need to imagine complex exhaust systems, open stubs are all that is needed and coloured artwork that blindly follows Supermarine's simple layout drawing and show none are missing the point.

 

[kitnut617]

Schneiderman --- that's a fantastic comparison, thanks for posting it. Just a comment though, I've just built a model Wyvern TF.1 so I've a good idea how the exhaust is, but don't you think that the exhaust line is a bit close to the radiator inlets on the Type 391? It's barely above the upper lip of the inlet.

 

[Schneiderman]

I do, yes. Not their best work