Engine and guns images
Updated on August 30, 2002
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Here are some images that could be useful to improve a model, particularly the ICM 1/48 kit that has already good engine and gun details.


Here is a cutaway of the forward fuselage, giving a good idea of the AM-35A engine and armament mount.
There is one UBS machine gun on central position, and two ShKAS on the sides.
This drawings refers to the short-nosed version; in the long-nosed version, the engine was moved forward of 100 mm for weight balance reasons.


This photo shows  the central structure while building.
You can see many cockpit and engine compartment details, and have an idea of their colors.



These photos show some details. The light internal color is probably the metal use primer, light blue-green.
Note that short-nosed examples have engine cowling opening slightly different than long-nosed examples.
 

The larger photo above can be furterly enlarged with "show image" command.




 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Here are two photos showing the inner face details of the nose panels.
The color looks the same green of the exterior face.
The panel hold by the German soldier is from a short-nosed MiG-3; it goes over te engine, not on the gun bay as it could seem from the photo above.
The same image shows well a curved wall separing the cockpit from the gun bay; the wall is crossed by the gun firing wires.
Note the shaped metallic plates fixed on the steel tubes structure to fix removable  panels by screws.

These images show some details of a MiG-1, and are representative of early MiG-3 too. Later, long-nosed MiG-3s had an unique large panel over the engine, as correctly represented on the ICM model.
The image shows the gun barrels, enclosed within pipes to  protect them from the engine heat.
The pipes are connected to two trasversal tubes. Just behind the propeller, one can see a oil tank (large, on the right)
and a glycol cooler tank (small, on the left).
The thin pipes visible under the trasversal tubes are for fuel injectors.


The ICM 1/48 kit has an excellent reproduction of the AM-35 engine, that can be shown omitting the upper and lower nose cowling of the kit, that are provided as separate parts. Besides, 8 pieces compose the guns, the ammunition boxes and 13 pieces are for the abitacle, tank and other internal structures.
The engine remains visible omitting the upper and lower panels of the nose; the engine sides, although well made, remain hidden by side panels, whose remotion is not considered by the kit manufacturer.
We can consider the possibility to build the model with closed nose panels, and the engine as a model in itself for separate exposition; in this case, one has to reserve the exhaust stacks for the aircraft, and scratchbuild the connections on the engine sides.
Let us comment the ICM instruction sheet:

Phase 1: cilynder banks.
Each one is made by 3 pieces, plus the air conducts with fuel injectors and the exhaust pipes.
The heads (B 16) are a bit too rounded, they could be a bit flattened. Behind each of them, two small disks should be added to simulate the distribution shafts ends.
If exhaust stacks are omitted for separate exposition, one has to build the connections with thin plasticard.
On the external side only, there should be the spark plug wires, two for each cilynder; all the wires of the aft spark plug of each cilynder seems to run together in one bundle (upper), while all the wires connected to the rear spark plug of each cilynder looks to go together in a lower bundle (lower), perhasps connectyed to two different ignitors for redundance.
Under the wires bundles, there is a small metallic pipe, probably for cylinder lubrification; 6 small pipes passing under it are connected to a further longitudinal pipe; all these pipes and wires are silver, well visible if the engine is extracted, but hidden under the stacks if the engine is fitted.
On both sides of B14 an object should be added (ignitor?).

Phase 2: connection of the cilynder banks on the main part; the reductor B30, the propeller shaft b21, the lubrification pipe b42, the two trasmission shafts for the distribution shafts hidden under the b16 heads, the supercharger and its collector.
A major perplexity is about the supercharger: it is conformal with a good drawing of Russian origin, but it looks uncomplete, because it shofs the rotor that should be closed to compress air; besides, it lacks the pipes connecting it to the wingroot air intakes. The supercharger is (scarcely ) visible on an image below; it appears as a couple of thoroidal disks (two stages centrifugal compressor) with two shaped pipes connecting at the centre of the rear face; a small reptangular device (a pressure control valve?) is visible on the right of the inlet.
On both sides of B 14 a reptangular recess should be done, perhaps in corrispondance of the side oil radiators.

Phase 3: building of lower details and  support strut. The piece B36 is probably an electric generator, and the B37 could be the lubrification pump; they both should be painted metallic grey.
The B19 looks to be a two-cylinder compressor or pump; its colour looks to be metallic.
The strut under the engine has to be glued to it only; on the real aircraft, the B41 should be connected to some fixed support, and the B38 -B39  should be connected to a vertical blade by a coil spring.

Phase 5:building of oil tank (b24-b25) and glycol tank (b26-b27). Stoppers, pipes and minor details should be added. The inner side of the exhaust stack cowling should be made thinner. A small hole with an actuation rod for oil coolers outlet flaps should be added to B28 and B29.

 
 


 
 









Here are detailed drawings (from Scale Aircraft Modelling International) of the AM-35A engine.
You can enlarge the drawing with "show image" command.


above: the similar AM-38 engine. Below: the M-35A (from "MiG OKB").

These photos look to show the engine block painted  gloss black, silver piping, auxiliaries and spark wires.
 
 
These images from behind show the centrifugal supercharger. 
  • the central intake should be connected with a twin duct beginning with the wing root air intakes, visible on the photo above but missing in this one.
  • the steel support on the right seems to be for a box, probably a top pressure valve (see photo of AM-38); this valve should be connected with a thin pipe to the compressed air duct.
  • a piece of duct, connecting the supercharger outlet with the longitudinal compressed air collector, is lacking. 
  • note the asymmetrical connection of the supercharger outlet.
On this image of the supercharger, from the top, we see:
  • the oblique shafts visible between the supercharger and the engine block are to move the distribution shafts (two at the top of  each cilynder bank);
  • besides, the shafts move the ignitors placed behind them (not visible here);

  • the clean silver plate (on both sides) could be the support for oil filters (absent).
This image, from the left, shows the same things as above.
On this photo, taken from behind to thcylinder banks, we see:
  • the ignitors, partially visible  on the sides (metallic, connected to silver wiring);
  • the connection between the central compressed air collector (large pipe) and the inlet stacks (two for side, connected to three cilynders each); 
  • between this collector and the stacks there are air flow control valves controlled by the throttle;
  • the control levers for such valves;
  • grey fuel pipes connected to the injectors (only two for each triple stack);
  • metallic supports for the trasversal tubes supporting the gun barrels.
This photo represents the right cilynders bank, taken from behind-left. We see:
  • the holes here are for missing spark plugs (4 for each cilynder, two on the internal side of the bank, two on the external side); the wires should go to the ignitor, as those visible (from the external bank side spark plugs).
  • a metallic support for trasversal tubes substaining the gun barrels is well visible on the upper right corner.
Here we see the external left side of the engine. 
We recognize:
  • the exhaust stacks (with a deformed outlet; it should be circular);
  • the spark plugs (only one mounted for each cylinder; the hole for another one is void);
  • the spark plug wires (only six; in a complete engine, other 6 should pass behind these; the small silver circles are probably the fixing points for other 6 wires);
  • vertical Y-shaped pipes, probably for cooling;
  • a silver thin longitudinal cooling  pipe departing from a larger one connected on each engine side.
This shows the engine from a frontal perspective. 
We recognize:
  • the propeller shaft; 
  • the conical reduction gear;
  • a lubrification (?) pipe attack over it;
  • a twin pipe connecting the reductor to the cylinder banks (for lubrification?);
  • a connection to a pneumatic starter (?), missing on the photo;
  • large holes on the cilynder banks front, perhaps to connect cooling pipes.
In this frontal view we recognize:
  • the head of the cylindrical compressed air duct;
  • the other extremity of the control levers  of the air inlet valves;
  • two green pipes attacks, probably for oil from the side radiators.
This image from the rear shows the lubrification/cooling pump under the engine block. 
We see:
 
  • on the rear, the connection for a coolant pipe to the ventral cooler;
  • on the right, the connection for cooler inlet;
  • the motion should reach the pump by an internal shaft.
The same device seen from the left side. 
We see:
  • a short oil pipe collecting oil from the engine;
  • two outlets for pipes directed to the oil side coolers.
The same device seen from the right side; we see:
  • the connection for cooler inlet (?), 
  • a short lubrification pipe from the engine block to the pump;
  • another pipe for oil, probably directed to two oil filters on the engine sides (absent).
In front of the pump under the engine, there should be a cylindrical device connected to the pump by a small shaft, probably an electric generator. It should correspond to the larger bulge under the MiG-3 nose, and has an hole for air cooling.

 
 



Universal Berezin Syncronized UBS 12.7


ShKAS 7.62
 


Another shot of both weapons ( here the ShKAS has the handle for some defensive installation; by Lee Jong Tae).









There is one UBS machine gun on central position, and two ShKAS on the sides.
Two furter ShKAS could be carried in underwing pods both on old-style wings without slats and on later-style wings with slats; on later production aircraft, the wing gun predisposition was deleted (i.e. the reptangular door for ammunition storage was absent).
 
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