What is this instrument panel from?

Hi Ivor , cant help with id but i used to own a panel the same sans guages , looking at the brake guage and thinking post war , so whatever it came out of was also used in Australia.

cheers dave

I’ve taken a photo of the badly corroded facia of the undercarriage light unit. Maybe this will help to pin the identification down? I’ve never known the combined knowledge of the forum be beaten before!

Photos of the cleaned panel. I’ve also found the remains of the faceplate of the undercarriage indicator in a box of debris. It is very badly corroded but I can make out the N signifying an aircraft with a nosewheel.

The panel is “as bought” in the late 60s or early 70s from a scrapyard which dealt in aircraft so I’ve no doubt that it has not been altered since it was in use. It was given to us along with a lot more items from the same source, most of which I’ve identified. They include parts from Gnat, Harrier, Canberra, Viscount, Piston Provost, Halifax plus many individual instruments and other electrical units.

The stamp is an N in a circle and the 4 L-shaped holes are mounting holes.

Love the ‘stamp of zorro’ on it – is it ‘Z’ or ‘N’ ?

Also – the 4 ‘L’ shaped cut outs ??

Yep, believe nothing. Still don’t know what it’s off though. Could be a bottom panel or maybe an overhead, also maybe second cockpit? Cutout looks like an altimeter or a VSI on the missing dial.

Remember that quite often with instrument panels the original instrumernts do not remain. It is not uncommon for previous owners to fill in gaps with any instrument that fits. Therefore the instruments already fitted may not necessarily be your reference point as to what the panel is from.

I think I’ve identified the undercarraige switch as well. I believe its the same as the one one up from the bottom of this page:

http://spitfirespares.co.uk/Instruments%20page%2016%20Undercarriage%20indicators.html

I went off the shape of the knob and the three screws.

Do the other gauges have the sloped style edges on the back or the rounded corners? I think the sloping style was more of a post war thing.

The knob on that synchroniser unit is very similar to this one, apart from the word engraved on it.

I’ve cleaned the panel up and found some words engraved under the pressure gauges – “Fore cut-out” and “After cut-out” – which don’t seem to tally with the hydraulic gauges. The engraved words have been covered by small rectangular plates, now missing, which appear to have been glued on. Their position can just be made out in my original photo.

I’ve also realised that the two pressure gauges are marked “Hyd” (left) and “Air” (right). Both are graduated to 3000psi.

If it’s got a Synchroniser switch to me that implies twin engine. The switch looks like an American type similar to this one.

I was at a bit of a loss how to describe the panel, hence the name.

The two-position switch on the left is marked “Synchroniser” on the knob and “On” and “Off” on the plate. Stamped faintly on the rear of the casing is RA44021-WPC328 RAL140. It has 26 pin terminals on the rear.

The Smiths brake pressure gauge is marked System A Port & Stbd and System B. The data plate reads Code 529PG.

The two hydraulic pressure gauges are made by Smiths, both marked 323PG plus serial numbers.

The u/c indicator is in very poor condition, the faceplate having corroded away exposing the coloured celluloid (there’s a word I haven’t used for many a year!). The top third of the celluloid is red, the rest green. The data plate reads “Undercarriage Position Indicator 9 Lamps. Code 35CFP”

There are no AM stores refs on any of the units.

Not from a Horsa, Hadrian or Hamilcar. In fact, with an undercarriage indicator in the panel, it was never likely to be from a glider (assuming you’ve named the jpeg because of that instrument).

There might be a clue, though, if you were to clean up the face of the indicator and tell us how it is arranged, i.e. what windows does it have and how are they marked, e.g. “P & S” or “P & S & T” or “P & S & N”, etc.

Also, what is the rotary switch on the left of the panel – any Stores Ref. or other markings?

Well you live and learn!

…with brakes?

Both the Horsa and Hamilcar had differential brakes – as long as the
air in bottles lasted that is.
Whilst the Americans showed off and fitted Hydraulic brakes to the CG4A.

Multiple hydraulics doesn’t say ‘glider’ to me.

On the other hand, I can’t actually offer a better suggestion.

Moggy

Assault glider?

…with brakes?

Assault glider?