Inspired by A2A Piper Cherokee

[heywooood]

rear bulkhead fuel control panel, mixture, tank selectors, and carb heat controls

 

[heywooood]

our pilot is seated..

 

[heywooood]

This pilot is the wrong scale for the model at approx 1/12” scale...the plane is closer to 1/28” so I removed the big feller for use on another project more suitable for use.
The new man is wearing an A-2 with Mae West so I think this plane will be finished in the Coastie paint as depicted on the box top. Now I can use the kit supplied markings as well.
I have also gotten the nacelles rounded up as part of the conversion to radial engines. I can post pictures of those shortly..

 

[heywooood]

Here is the new aviator..

 

[heywooood]

Turning Rangers into radials...

 

[heywooood]

More progress..

 

[wombat666]

I like to look in from time to time and I'm always impressed!
My own time is a bit overwhelmed at this point to even consider model building, the urge is there, but RL is keeping me on a short leash.

 

[heywooood]

I’m just trying to keep up morale as it has been a tough go for a bit too long.
I appreciate your kind encouragement and thank you.
Working on these projects clears my head and keeps me moving forward.

 

[heywooood]

I have the floats assembled with their struts. I have substituted aluminum tubing for the strip platic supplied bu the kit mfg. because it looks better, will be stronger over time, and because I dont need the floats to flex on hard landings. Hopefully as a display model there wont be any of those.
So I still need to make the horizontal tail, and the propellers. Then begins final assembly and sanding / sealing, primer and paint.
But this is the home stretch I guess.

 

[heywooood]

The modified nacelles turned out pretty well I think. The modification was not difficult at all as it turns out. I was sweating it early on though. I used cowlings from the guillow Catalina kit which I used as patterns to cut 1/16” thick balsa circles of the same diameter. One of each of these circles were attached to the faces of the existing kit supplied oval bulkheads used to make the Ranger nacelles forward of the wing leading edge. Additional circles were each used as the new radial engine firewalls and inserts flush inserted at the back of each cowling as a mating surface to the nacelles. The diameter matched to the overall outer dimensions of the original oval bulkheads perfectly.

 

[heywooood]

Tail area is complete...I have sealed and sanded the fuselage / tail and the wing and will paint these two components seperately prior to assembly.

 

[heywooood]

Spruce Gosling...

 

[heywooood]

Props are fabricated. Now just need to be sanded and sealed before painting.
When I purchased the cowling sheets from Guillows (Catalina) for use on this model the sheets included other components including these very nice propeller hubs..
all I had to do was carve the blades.

 

[heywooood]

The paint scheme for this model will be the Coast Guard natural alum fuselage, tail and nacelles with the yellow wing top. It will have a black anti-glare panel in front of the windscreen and possibly on the cowlings too ( inner half nearest the pilot on both cowls) and even though the r/l aircraft still has its Ranger inline engines on it I think this model will look good in those clothes with its radials and round cowlings. Hope so anyway

 

[heywooood]

The prop blades have only been shaped and sealed with the initial coat of sealer. As I sand and seal probably three to five more times these propellers will be reduced to the proper scale..as long as I’m carefull

 

[heywooood]

A first coat of primer and a first of natural aluminum

 

[heywooood]

More filler and more sanding yet..

 

[heywooood]

Yellow wings and round engines...

 

[heywooood]

The model is complete

 

[heywooood]

Couple more photo’s