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Mermorial Build for a Lost Tracker


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A bit more progress -

The tail wheel in the kit is also pretty basic. That seems to sum up the early Kinetic products. Nice outline and detailing on some parts, most of the smaller components are very basic.

In this case, the tail wheel is also molded in the semi-retracted position. This would be appropriate for an aircraft taxiing but for a parked aircraft (such as my model will be), it is usually in the full down position since apparently with no crew on board, the center of gravity is pretty far aft and it would not take much to tip the aircraft onto it's tail.

Anyway, here is the Kinetic part:

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I hollowed out the retraction strut receptacle, drilled a few holes using my pin vice and added a smaller fitting to the forward, upper section. I also repositioned the new strut at the correct angle for the full-down position.

Here is the updated part:

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And here is the updated part installed:

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Lastly, I built the rudder actuator housing from a couple of tiny bits of styrene and glued in place. This was simply an aerodynamic cover over the hydraulic piston that moved the rudder.

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Pretty amazing scratch-building and attention to detail.

I've flown about 3 hours in a Canadian S-2F Tracker, and that inside brought back memories. It was in the summer of 1979, when we visited various bases across Canada to see which aircraft we might be assigned to when we finished pilot training. I must admit the Tracker was at the bottom of my list, but it didn't stop me enjoying the chance to get some hands-on time that day.

We took turns doing touch and goes from the right seat, and the other 3 guys sat in the back in those extra seats. The little one in the back that you mentioned was quite claustrophobia-inducing - what with the noise, turbulence, heat, and violent smacks down onto the runway (thanks to my buddies' attempts at landing the beast), it was quite the experience.

I have to reveal that the back area had a very faint odour of vomit... but not from us!

Seeing your build brings back memories of that day many years ago, and I really like the tribute you're paying to the victims of the crash.

ALF

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Pretty amazing scratch-building and attention to detail.

I've flown about 3 hours in a Canadian S-2F Tracker, and that inside brought back memories. It was in the summer of 1979, when we visited various bases across Canada to see which aircraft we might be assigned to when we finished pilot training. I must admit the Tracker was at the bottom of my list, but it didn't stop me enjoying the chance to get some hands-on time that day.

We took turns doing touch and goes from the right seat, and the other 3 guys sat in the back in those extra seats. The little one in the back that you mentioned was quite claustrophobia-inducing - what with the noise, turbulence, heat, and violent smacks down onto the runway (thanks to my buddies' attempts at landing the beast), it was quite the experience.

I have to reveal that the back area had a very faint odour of vomit... but not from us!

Seeing your build brings back memories of that day many years ago, and I really like the tribute you're paying to the victims of the crash.

ALF

Just want to echo what ALF said, but also point out that you're doing a comprehensive job of modifying the kit... I'm extremely impressed. I can't wait for the next installment.

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  • 3 weeks later...

The fuselage is (mostly) complete!

To show off some of the cockpit details and to make the model a bit more unique, I opted to open the overhead cockpit escape hatches. Also, since I'm trying to model this Tracker immediately before it's last flight, I assumed that during their pre-flight work, the ground crew would have opened these up to cool the cockpit a bit that August day.

Before starting, I dipped all the clear parts in future and allowed to dry for a day. This is a mandatory step for me. It not only improves the transparency of the clear plastic but also allows you to strip it off it you get paint on any of the parts.

Very carefully, I drilled out the rough openings in the clear overhead section, used a new x-acto knife to do the fine work and then finished up with some small metal files. I think it came out ok.

I added the PE overhead console, plus scratch built grab handles. Thanks to the ever helpful Tailspin Turtle, http://tailhooktopics.blogspot.com/ I finally had enough information on how these hatches were stowed when opened up. Using a bit a plastic sheet, I replicated them with just the edge showing. I thought about having the hatches a bit further forward and using clear plastic to show a bit of the transparency but opted for the easier approach of being stowed full aft.

Lastly, I added release handles to the undersides of the hatches. The interior of the entire assembly was painted and then glued to fuselage.

Some pics are below but note that the rough paint job will be invisible once I paint the exterior. I'm also still doing some final sanding so everything looks rougher than it will be on the finished model ( hopefully :) ). As I've stated before, I don't really sweat the details that will not be fully visible when complete. So if some of the parts look crude, it's probably intentional. I've got all the respect in the world for those modelers who superdetail everything, visible or not. I just don't have the time!

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Thanks Neu!

Thanks as well to Alf for the compliment and anecdote. It makes the building process more enjoyable when you have some details of what the real thing was like. Never thought about it but I guess being stuck in that rear-most seat on a long flight, on a hot, turbulent day would be extremely unpleasant. Thank goodness they at least cut in a couple of windows, I believe the very first utility S-2's didn't have any fuselage windows. It would have made a bad situation pretty much unbearable.

Regards,

John

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  • 2 weeks later...

Fuselage is 90% done. I added the aft tie downs and some antenna mounts on the upper fuselage and then masked off all the windows. Hit the entire fuselage with a base coat of gull grey, figured that would work for a primer and show any flaws. Worked great, I realized that my scribing skills s*ck and the joints of the three sections still need a lot of work. It's amazing how you can think it looks great in bare plastic but once you give it a quick shot of primer, you see multiple issues.

I filled, sanded and re-scribed. Hit it with more primer, still had some flaws. Repeat process again. Thinking it was looking good, I masked and sprayed the upper fuselage flat white. Guess what, white shows up flaws even better than grey primer. Putty, sand, re-scribe. Paint again. I literally went through this series 8-10 more times. Still not happy with everything but I can't go any further. Sure wish I had opted for an early S-2 in overall dark blue, you never would have have seen any of the flaws!

After I was done with the grey / white, I masked and painted the anti-glare panel. I painted it flat black, then added a few drops of white to the mix and went back with a lighter, uneven coating. I still may lighten it further, we'll see.

After I removed all of the masking tape, I've found that I have a ridge of paint built up along the grey/white border. I'll need to lightly sand that down and then go back and do so additional touch up to both colors. I'll have gone through a bottle of each before I even get done with the fuselage! Anyway, here are a few pictures. There are some obvious flaws here and there from poor masking. I'll be cleaning those up as well. While I was at it, I managed to nearly dislodge the left hand passenger window. It's barely hanging on. I'll be doing some delicate surgery to get it back into place.

While on the subject, does anyone know the full details on the color scheme for the utility version? I know it's the reverse of the ASW scheme. White on top, grey bottoms. Sounds like the wings, horizontal stabs and engine nacelles are completely grey. Just want to confirm that the control surfaces are also grey and see if anyone knows what color the walkway should be on the upper wings. The kit decals are for the ASW scheme and I assume the walkways are gull grey. This would not work on my scheme since the wings are already GG. Any info is appreciated.

Regards (and Merry Christmas),

John

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  • 2 weeks later...

Outer wings are 90% completed. I painted them overall gull grey, then masked and shot the deicer boots. I used an initial coat of semi-gloss black to replicate the rubber of the original. I then went back and hit a few areas with flat black with a few drops of white added to show some weathering. Did the same for the vertical stabilizer.

While I had the airbrush fired up, I also touched up the lower fuselage. I know there are still some spots that need to be cleaned up on both the wings and the fuselage. I usually just add them to the "punch list" and address them down the road.

Wings:

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Still need to add the aileron control rods on the wing undersurface. I'll get that done tonight.

Fuselage is coming along..

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Also, I received the Vector engines today. To be honest, the kit ones with some extra details would have been fine but I've seen pictures of the Vector ones online and was curious to see what they looked like in person. I have to say that they are simply outstanding. I can't figure out how they can cast in such fine detail, these are truly state of the art resin. With regard to mounting them, a test fit shows that they will fit snugly in the Kinetic cowling. I had to sand a very small bit off the ends of the cylinders but nothing that would have been visible anyway. After I get a complete engine test-fitted, I may opt to open up the cooling flaps aft of the engine in hopes that a small bit of detail might be visible through the openings.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Here is one of the pictures I received from that last FOIA request. As noted, the quality is poor. They send me a single PDF with 10 pictures or so. I took a quick shot at pulling this one and editing it. Not what I have hoped for, I'll retry later. The picture was taken by the SH-3 helo crew, as they escorted 176, above and behind it.

Regardless, if you squint hard enough, you can see 176 at the bottom left of the picture. It's just in line with the roadway running from left to right, at low altitude. You may also be able to make out the trail of smoke from it's one remaining engine, which at this point may have just failed as well. Immediately ahead is the ball-field complex and the woods beyond where the US-2 crashed. A large apartment complex is that whitish blob immediately beyond the woods and at the top of the picture in the mist is NAS South Weymouth. You can just make out the pattern of the runways off in the distance.

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The picture was labeled by the Navy "US-2B 133176, Approximately 1/2 mile to impact". It's the last picture of 176, taken probably 15 seconds before it's crash.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

The resin engines are complete. Approx 40 pieces per engine. A major amount of time. The most tedious part was adding a total of 36 push rods from stretched sprue. The engines fit in the cowlings but you will have to sand down the tops of each cylinder a bit. No big deal since that detail would not be noticeable anyway.

In retrospect, I do have to admit that these were a bit of overkill. Absolutely fantastic detail and look much better than the kit parts but what a PITA assembling them. With the cooling flaps open, the only detail you will see behind the engines are the rear of a few cylinders.

Anyway, they are snug in their cowlings, allowing me to move on to the next step. My modeling time is limited so progress will be slow.

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