[stephen f. polyak]

As one who has handled a few plates over the years, I can say that Andy got it just right. His experience and observations match mine to the letter. Main plates (i.e., on 109s) were all in that general vicinity (i.e., fuselage left side, rear of engine cowling/below cockpit sill) - several specific locations were used by subtype (i.e., E, F, G) and maker. Also, as the war wore on and later subtypes entered use, main plates decreased in size and became square- rather than rectangle-shaped.