Swine!

[Duke Maddog]

Phenomenal work! I feel like I can sit down in there and start flippin' switches! Way to go!

 

[Stoneboat]

Thanks fellas!

I feel like I can sit down in there and start flippin' switches!

Here's the checklist.

(A friend of mine flies the only operative Martin Mars, dropping water on forest fires. I sent Pete that cartoon as a birthday card one year, called it the Martin Mars prestart checklist.)

 

[phantom II]

How many are actually qualified to fly it ?

Cheers, Christian B)

That would be an awesome flight ( - The fires anyhow )

 

[Duke Maddog]

Thanks fellas!

I feel like I can sit down in there and start flippin' switches!

Here's the checklist.

(A friend of mine flies the only operative Martin Mars, dropping water on forest fires. I sent Pete that cartoon as a birthday card one year, called it the Martin Mars prestart checklist.)

I LOVE IT!!! LOL!

Calvin and Hobbes is the best strip out there! I love this.

Has your friend ever flown that Martin Mars in Southern California dousing fires? If so, I may have seen him in action.

 

[Stoneboat]

Has your friend ever flown that Martin Mars in Southern California dousing fires? If so, I may have seen him in action.

Yes he has, he's been down every time they've sent the airplane. Unfortunately I think they won't be using the Mars any more. From Coulson's site the word is there are no contracts for the airplane this season. Last year it was the same, but halfway through the fire season the short sighted government of BC was obliged to call on them once again. They say the Mars is too expensive, but what the bean counters fail to take into account is that - if there's a supply of water nearby - the Mars can save a million dollars worth of timber in an afternoon. Then there was the Government induced fiasco with the Philippine Mars. Coulson had worked a deal with the US Naval Museum in Florida - Pensacola? - whereby they would have acquired a Herc in exchange for the Mars. They'd even repainted the airplane in US Navy colours and installed serviceable engines for the ferry flight when the 100% freeze-dried, vacuum packed feckwits in Ottawa decreed the deal couldn't go through because - get this - of the airplane's Canadian heritage. Unbelievable!

How many are actually qualified to fly it ?

There are two crews of three to fly the airplane, plus the bird dog pilot and the ground support crew. They lost an engine - did a precautionary shutdown actually - the last time they were south, and the ground crew had the airplane back in the air within 24 hours. Their bird dog is a Cessna Citation when operating at home, but I think they have a Turbine Cessna 206 on amphibs for away.

 

[phantom II]

Has your friend ever flown that Martin Mars in Southern California dousing fires? If so, I may have seen him in action.

Yes he has, he's been down every time they've sent the airplane. Unfortunately I think they won't be using the Mars any more. From Coulson's site the word is there are no contracts for the airplane this season. Last year it was the same, but halfway through the fire season the short sighted government of BC was obliged to call on them once again. They say the Mars is too expensive, but what the bean counters fail to take into account is that - if there's a supply of water nearby - the Mars can save a million dollars worth of timber in an afternoon. Then there was the Government induced fiasco with the Philippine Mars. Coulson had worked a deal with the US Naval Museum in Florida - Pensacola? - whereby they would have acquired a Herc in exchange for the Mars. They'd even repainted the airplane in US Navy colours and installed serviceable engines for the ferry flight when the 100% freeze-dried, vacuum packed feckwits in Ottawa decreed the deal couldn't go through because - get this - of the airplane's Canadian heritage. Unbelievable!

How many are actually qualified to fly it ?

There are two crews of three to fly the airplane, plus the bird dog pilot and the ground support crew. They lost an engine - did a precautionary shutdown actually - the last time they were south, and the ground crew had the airplane back in the air within 24 hours. Their bird dog is a Cessna Citation when operating at home, but I think they have a Turbine Cessna 206 on amphibs for away.

So, there's only two qualified pilots . :hmmm Guess it must be hard to get someone checked on that bird since it's the only example still flying .
Ok, no one retires....

Cheers, Christian B)

 

[uros]

Excelent work Jim!

 

[chrispisme]

Hi Jim, all signed up and watching your build, now able to post. Thanks!

 

[Stoneboat]

Hey Chris, welcome aboard. This is a pretty decent place.

Thanks Uros. Did you build those wheels for that cart on FB?

So, there's only two qualified pilots . :hmmm Guess it must be hard to get someone checked on that bird since it's the only example still flying.

Two pilots per crew, total of four and probably one spare guy. I doubt they'll ever check anyone else on it. My friend has scads of float and amphib time on the Beaver, Beech 18, Goose and Mallard, and he is also a fabric and sheet metal man. Last winter he recovered both elevators on Hawai'i Mars, and his last fabric job was to recover the wings of a DH89 Dragon Rapide for a museum in Washington State, maybe the Museum of Flight, I forget. They used Hawai'i Mars last season to check out a bunch of Chinese pilots on large seaplanes, who will be flying that new 4-engined amphibian the Chinese are building.

 

[phantom II]

Hey Chris, welcome aboard. This is a pretty decent place.

Thanks Uros. Did you build those wheels for that cart on FB?

So, there's only two qualified pilots . :hmmm Guess it must be hard to get someone checked on that bird since it's the only example still flying.

Two pilots per crew, total of four and probably one spare guy. I doubt they'll ever check anyone else on it. My friend has scads of float and amphib time on the Beaver, Beech 18, Goose and Mallard, and he is also a fabric and sheet metal man. Last winter he recovered both elevators on Hawai'i Mars, and his last fabric job was to recover the wings of a DH89 Dragon Rapide for a museum in Washington State, maybe the Museum of Flight, I forget. They used Hawai'i Mars last season to check out a bunch of Chinese pilots on large seaplanes, who will be flying that new 4-engined amphibian the Chinese are building.

Found a good video on the Mars and some other large seaplanes . Very well done.

Very interesting . Japan has a new seaplane but it's not nearly as large as the Mars .

Cheers, Christian B)

 

[moon puppy]

Hi Jim, all signed up and watching your build, now able to post. Thanks!

Welcome aboard Chris! Why not post on the intro forum and introduce your self...on the introduction forum...

https://modelersalliance.org/forum/introduction-forum

 

[Captain Cook]

Looking great Stoney. Massive detail on the interior, most impressive!
The fire extinguisher needs an inspection tag... ;-)

 

[moon puppy]

Don't temp him! But then again, he'll have to drink another beer to get the aluminum to make the tag so :drinks

 

[Stoneboat]

The fire extinguisher needs an inspection tag... Don't temp him! But then again, he'll have to drink another beer to get the aluminum to make the tag so..

A win/win if there ever was one.

I've started the interior. I began by making the cabin floor from a small sheet of .015 aluminum. After cutting the rough floor plan from the template...

...I cut and installed the rear cabin bulkhead from the same material and added a nifty parcel shelf.

The parcel shelf is where the ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitter) is located on this aircraft, so I made one using some scrap plastic and metal, painted it red...

...And installed it on the shelf. The antenna wire is a length of monofilament fishing line and will pass through the fuselage half via a predrilled hole.

The cabin floor fits quite well. You can see the step-up to the cockpit floor. To do that I glued a wooden block - as thick as the height of the step in scale inches - at the forward end of the cabin floor, then positioned the cockpit floor in the correct location and glued and pinned them together.

In the meantime, the snout that transforms the Stoneboat into a Swine arrived directly from the garage of Chrispisme. I was forewarned not to take his name in vain if the fit was off and required a goodly amount of firkytootling. Actually the fit isn't off, and as a bit of garage kit, it knocks the socks off some professional stuff I've worked with. Thank you Chris!

I did have to modify the resin nose a little, for reasons that will become apparent. This is what is required to be cut from the kit fuselage to accommodate the new nose.

I had to cut about 3/16" off the bottom extension on the resin nose, otherwise it would have taken space already occupied by the front cabin/cockpit floor assembly. No biggie, it'll simply mean filling in the space where the old augmentor tube fairing were located, as well as eliminating the little half-round fairing on the fuselage keel below the cockpit. I would have had to do that anyway, since that is where the upper end of the gear strut will be located, and it is too flimsy for my taste. The cuts require a little more work, but fifteen minutes with a sanding stick will take care of it.

 

[lupanzer]

Really a great job so far

Luiz.

 

[phantom II]

Hat's off to you for making these metal pieces fit so well . Actually better than most of the sheet metal people that I've met in the Air Force .

Cheers, Christian B)

 

[moon puppy]

The symmetry again..Both sides exactly the same...

 

[chrispisme]

Nice to finally be in on the ground level seeing one of your masterpieces come together James!

 

[Duke Maddog]

More stunning work! I am truly amazed. Chris, nice work on that resin nose.

 

[chrispisme]

He is the master hey, and thanks!