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Karel Doorman The Last Cruise, Grumman S-2A Tracker and SH-34 Helicopter


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Hi Martin,

There's another useful reference for your project:

http://www.dutchprofile.nl/#?publications&_suid=139625923462308705718291829978

Grumman S2F-1 (S-2A) Tracker 'Stoef' Profile no.14

In service with the Royal Neth.Naval Air Service.

History by Tim van Kampen. Produced, research and profiles by Luuk Boerman. 52 pages in FC, and with colour profiles of the Tracker in Dutch service. Text billingual in Dutch and English.

ISBN 978-94-90092-00-9

tracker-730x1024.jpg

V.P.

Edited by Homebee
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Thanks Homebee a copy of this sits on my desk as we speak; in fact, it was this book that finally decided me on the project. What I Could use are a couple of shots of the nose undercarriage bay as I think I might end up doing it from scratch.

Anyhow, as promised here is a picture of the cockpit floor in place.

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I lay awake last night thinking that the kit supplied weapons bay looks a bit on the shallow side. A check on references this morning reveals that this is indeed the case. Since I am committed to having the observers' cabin on show, this will involve more scratch building as the lack of depth of the bay will throw the floor level of the cabin out so I guess the next thing to do is to get the rear cabin bulkhead done and fit a new floor. All a bit tedious but getting the correct layout of things will save an awful lot fo grief later on down the road.

Thanks for looking

Martin

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Quite right Colin, it's a bit tedious at the moment but getting it right now is going to save a whole lot of grief later on in the build. I have just spent a pleasant hour and a half scratching the bulkhead for the rear of the observers' cabin. Managed to get a really good fit in the end but now have to wait for the glue to set properly before taking on the floor / weapons bay roof. I also broke out the grinder and removed and superfluous locating pins and ejector pin marks. Here is the picture of the bulkhead in place.

Thanks for looking

Martin

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PS: When I have got the basic layout of the Tracker in place, I must get the same out of the way for the SH-34 as it is bugging me and I always like to get bits that are worrying me out of the way as soon as possible during a build. Once those are sorted it usually makes for a much more relaxing and enjoyable build.

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I had a couple of really good sessions at the bench yesterday and managed to get the weapons bay and "split level" cabin flooring sorted out. There are a couple of bit that need cleaning up a bit, but on the whole I am well chuffed with the progress made as I had been anticipating far more trouble with this part of the project than I actually experience. Respect too to the Man Upstairs who answered my prayers that the oh so carefully marked out bits of card needed for this stage, would actually fit without any hassles. And, lo, it came to pass that the bits did all fit with only the slightest of fettling.

Pictures are in artificial light so I will probably add another couple in the morning.

Thanks for looking.

Martin

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The light is not great this morning but I think these are a bit better. I think I will stop trying to do pictures in artificial light as I am clearly no good at it.

Martin

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keep it coming

I will try, although not every update will show as much progress as the last one. Yesterday was a good day health wise, everything went OK first time, and there were no distractions; a rare combination of events here at Hale Towers! Still, my enthusiasm for the project has survived first contact with reality so hopefully some more tonight or tomorrow morning.

Martin

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I tell you what Martin, you're getting me very, very interested in this kit. I love the Tracker and in 48th it looks a beauty. Problem is shelf space in my dispaly. If I built one it would probably push a couple of Wessex out of the nest!

Colin

Edited by heloman1
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I tell you what Martin, you're getting me very, very interested in this kit. I love the Tracker and in 48th it looks a beauty. Problem is shelf space in my dispaly. If I built one it would probably push a couple of Wessex out of the nest!

Colin

I think you would be OK actually. When it has it's wings folded, and who could resist that strange diagonal fold anyway, it does not take up much more space than, say, a 1/48 Sea King or Wessex. Of course, if you chose to leave the wings unfolded, that's another matter altogether!

Go on, have a go, you know you want to, in fact you just admitted as much!

Martin

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Cheers JW and Evert, two more Dutchmen watching, no pressure at all to get it right then! Plus I seem to have doubled the pressure with the SH-34! Go easy on me when I screw up guys, I'm just a mere Brit after all!

Martin

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Just a quick update tonight as I spent most of this afternoon visiting a sick friend and didn't have much time for modelling today. All I really got done was some fine tuning with fettling yesterday's work and to cut out a hole in the bulkhead immediately to the right of the cabin door. From photographs, it seems this was used as a sort of unofficial storage area. I have a cunning plan for this bit...................

Thanks for looking

Martin

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Just finished a very productive afternoon constructing the wing box in the cabin interior. Crucial this, as a couple of half bulkheads attach to it and some important shelving to them.

I would like to crack on and get them done this evening but it is our going out anniversary and Gill wants to go out for a meal. I think I had better go along with her plan, not, of course, that I object to her treating me, but best to knock modelling on the head for this evening!

Thanks for looking

Martin

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Following a very agreeable night out with Gill, I managed to get the two half bulkheads cut out and fixed to the roof of the weapons bay. I was quite relieved to get them done as they are a bit complex in shape but the measured parts fitted first time. They need a small extension adding, I felt these were easier to add to the basic bulkhead, rather that further complicate an already involved part. They need to have a shelf attached between them but this will have to wait until have constructed the airframe structure behind it.

I am going to put pictures of this up in the morning as I think I have demonstrated that I do not have the photographic skills and or equipment to do them in artificial light.

Speak to you in the morning

Martin

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What FS colour are you planning to apply to the interior Martin?

I'm asking you this because a few days ago, I had a debate with some lads about whether the Tracker's interior was painted with the FS-36231 or with the FS-36375.

My opinion was that, early Trackers were painted internally with the FS-36375.

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I will be a light to mid grey, that's all I can say as, sadly, I am colour blind and FS numbers mean little or nothing to me. I will probably get all the lighter tones of grey I have out and get Gill to decide.

No update tonight as I had a phone call at 06.30 this morning to say would I go into work for the day as the girl who throws sickies at the drop of a hat had done it again! So nothing got done on the Tracker and now I feel to unwell and too tired. I mean, I go in regularly carrying a couple of really disabling conditions, she can't even be arsed to do the job properly when she's there: not a happy bunny tonight! :badmood:

Sorry about the rant.

Martin

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As promised, here are the pictures from my last session on the build, showing the half bulkheads over the weapons bay. I hope to get in another session on the model today and get the shelf between them and the aircraft structure behind it in place. I had hoped to be able to skip the structure but, looking through the door, there is the possibility that one will be able to see some of it. So, rather than risk a bare area, in it will have to go. Still it will help set the correct depth of the shelving if nothing else.

Thanks for looking

Martin

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No need to be sorry, its just one of those things. I was born that way and it seldom causes me hassle and never stresses me. When in doubt I just ask someone. The only time it has ever upset me was at the age of twelve when my art teacher decided to take the proverbial out of me in front of our class over it.

Ninety nine times out of a hundred it get by just fine by reading the names or numbers on the paint pots and the odd time I do need to mix a colour I get Gill to tell me what to do, her colour vision is fantastic. I also think that, given that much of the structure will be obscured by boxes and wiring as well as being in varying degrees of shadow, a good approximation of the interior shade will be fine.

Martin

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This is going well. :popcorn:

Thanks, I am beginning to get a bit worried that it is all going rather too well! There are still plenty of areas on the kit with the ability to go pear shaped and, if all else fails, there is still the SH-34 kit waiting in the wings to derail the master plan. In fact, having been studying the way that kit is broken down and made note of an error or two, I suspect that this will be the real stinker of the two models to do. Fine if you want it OOB but not so easy for what we have in mind here.

Martin

Martin

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