1:72 Spitfire Mk.Vb Exhausts Round type for Eduard kit

The round outlet belongs to the early fifth version

The Supermarine Spitfire changed the shape of its exhaust stubs several times, and modelers can tell from them which period a machine comes from. Early examples of the Mk.Vb version led the exhaust away through six pipes with a plain round outlet; only later did the flared fishtail, which added a little thrust, come into use. The difference is small, but on the profile of the engine cowling it is visible at once and it decides whether a model fits a particular month of 1941 or 1942.

Against the part from the sprue

Exhausts molded in a tool always have the outlet blanked off, because the core cannot reach into so narrow a pipe. Many builders therefore sit with a drill for half an hour carefully deepening six holes, with the risk of breaking through the wall sideways. This set brings stubs with the outlet already there, with a wall thin along the whole length and a sharp edge at the end. The time saved is not the main thing; what matters more is that all six pipes look the same.

Fitting

Before gluing it is worth trying the fit dry, because the seat in the engine cowling usually needs widening slightly. Paint them away from the airframe so that the rusty shade does not carry onto the surrounding surfaces; a dark base and a dry brush work well.

Parallel variants

The same maker also offers stubs in the fishtail and in the shrouded form, so a later machine can be turned out from the same source. Beside them stand cockpit doors and Hispano cannon barrels, which together make up a coherent group of small replacements for a single box. Anyone building several Spitfires side by side will value exactly such small things: from a distance you will not spot them, but close up they let even someone who has never read a word about the aircraft tell one version from another.