[.041 Safety Wire]

First photo shows supercharger housing with downdraft carb.

http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/engine ... 15753.html

Actually the shockwave created by the 38 eminates from the wing with its convergence point being right on the elevator. The compressibility brake moves this convergence further aft and allows the pilot to maintain controllability even as the airflow over the top portion of the wing goes supersonic.

One of the stronger points of the Thunderbolt was that they eliminated the need for an intercooler and subsequent weight gain of this component for the turbocharger by mounting the turbo in the aft fuselage, the long piping for the turbo cools the charge to eliminate the possibilty of detonation which can be quite destructive to a powerplant.