1:32 Supermarine Spitfire wheels w/ weighted tyres of block pattern & 4-spoke hubs

Four-spoke wheels of the Spitfire for 1:32

The Armory brand offers Spitfire wheels in four combinations of pattern and hub, and this one joins a block tread pattern with a four-arm hub. The manufacturer makes this family in four combinations of pattern and hub, so a choice of forms is available. The part is fitted in place of the wheel from the original package and sets the finished model on an area corresponding to a weighted tire.

The Spitfire in 1:32

The 1:32 format is one in which a fighter gets room for a truly scale level of detail and still fits into an ordinary display case. The Spitfire is rewarding in this scale: the elliptical wing calls for clean work on the transitions and the exposed landing gear bays offer room for detail. That is precisely why it pays to give attention to the running gear, which is the first thing to catch the eye when looking from the front.

Seating it into the landing gear leg

Check the diameter of the pin on the leg and even it out carefully if need be, so that the wheel seats without tilting. The block pattern deserves to be emphasized with a dark shade drawn into the gaps and a light pass over the edges. Keep the hub a step lighter than the tire; a uniform color would merge the two parts together.

For which modelers

• builders of British fighters in a medium size
• anyone interested in a striking grain of the tread
• modelers who want a machine standing on an airfield surface
• collectors who find the series wheels too softly shaped