Twin turboprop (or turbofaned) Avro Shackleton AEW.3

McColm · July 10, 2019, 11:15:45 AM

I built a twin turboprop Revell Avro Shackleton MR.3 with a flat nose and the rotodome from a Grumman E-2 Hawkeye a few years ago which unfortunately got whiffed with parts from the Consolidated Privateer.
So after trawling through the 'spares and repair ' models on eBay I found a project that was started but not finished, it's another Frog/ Revell Avro Shackleton MR.3 with a nose weight and broken main landing gear. There's a bag of spares with the model and an attempt to paint the beast.
I have removed the out engines, well they fell off! And flattened the nose, the two resin turbo-Dak engines fit the inner cowlings but will need a bit of filler and exhaust pipes.
The wingtip fuel tanks are glued on and the cockpit just needs tidying up. I'll have a look in my various parts bins for the lumps and bumps.
I can remember seeing a photo of a Shackleton with the words
'Royal Navy ' instead of 'Royal Air Force ' on the fuselage, I'll see if I can dig it out of my pile of reference magazines.

Weaver · July 10, 2019, 05:05:49 PM

It'd better be operating at VERY light weights, since it's only got two 1200hp engines instead of four 1960hp ones....

Replacing four Griffons with two PT6A-67s saves about 6800lb in weight, thus bringing the enpty weight down to about 44,600lb. For comparison, a Turbo-Dakota (Basler BT-67) has an empty weight of 15,700lb.

PR19_Kit · July 10, 2019, 10:28:11 PM

Quote from: Weaver on July 10, 2019, 05:05:49 PM

It'd better be operating at VERY light weights, since it's only got two 1200hp engines instead of four 1960hp ones....

They could just put every other rivet in, that'd save at LEAST 20 tons!

Weaver · July 11, 2019, 01:59:32 AM

Quote from: PR19_Kit on July 10, 2019, 10:28:11 PM
Quote from: Weaver on July 10, 2019, 05:05:49 PM

It'd better be operating at VERY light weights, since it's only got two 1200hp engines instead of four 1960hp ones....

They could just put every other rivet in, that'd save at LEAST 20 tons!

Well with less weight to carry, they could fit it with shorter wings, say from a DC-3, then because of the lower weight they could give it the lighter undercarriage from something like a C-47, and since it wouldn't be able to to carry much volume they could give it the shorter and less draggy fuselage from a Dakota, and... hey, wait a minute....

zenrat · July 11, 2019, 02:55:24 AM

Quote from: McColm on July 10, 2019, 11:15:45 AM
... I can remember seeing a photo of a Shackleton with the words 'Royal Navy ' instead of 'Royal Air Force ' on the fuselage, I'll see if I can dig it out of my pile of reference magazines.

http://www.aviationretaildirect.com/new-releases/sc196-sky-classics-1-200-avro-shackleton-mr2-wg577-navy-light-grey-with-white-undersides-is-due-tbc/

Weaver · July 11, 2019, 03:27:45 AM

Two Armstrong Siddeley Python turboprops would be about right: 4110hp and 3450lb each.

Two Pythons: 8220hp, 6900lb

Four Griffons: approx. 7840hp, 7920lb.

These are plenty of cheap Wyverns around to butcher, and you could always stick a pair of Nenes from a Lancastrian testbed conversion on the outer nacelle positions to give a real hot-rod...

McColm · July 11, 2019, 12:33:18 PM

There's some concept artwork of a Shackleton with the engines from the Boeing B-29 in the book 'Nimrod a Genius ', although I might have to change the propellers.

kitnut617 · July 12, 2019, 06:54:56 AM

Quote from: Weaver on July 11, 2019, 03:27:45 AM
Two Armstrong Siddeley Python turboprops would be about right: 4110hp and 3450lb each.

Two Pythons: 8220hp, 6900lb

Four Griffons: approx. 7840hp, 7920lb.

These are plenty of cheap Wyverns around to butcher, and you could always stick a pair of Nenes from a Lancastrian testbed conversion on the outer nacelle positions to give a real hot-rod...

I have a plan using Pythons on a Shackleton (IIRC I had written about it here too sometime ago). As the air intakes for the engine are right at the backend of it, I was thinking of doing something similar to how the Herald has it's turbo-prop engine intakes. Sorts out the undercarriage at the same time.

McColm · July 12, 2019, 12:52:54 PM

I used a pair of turbofans on a tailless Avro Shackleton build project, these came from a Matchbox A-10 kit. I will be adopting this method on this build meaning I can finish both together.

kitbasher · July 14, 2019, 12:22:06 PM

Quote from: kitnut617 on July 12, 2019, 06:54:56 AM
Quote from: Weaver on July 11, 2019, 03:27:45 AM
Two Armstrong Siddeley Python turboprops would be about right: 4110hp and 3450lb each.

Two Pythons: 8220hp, 6900lb

Four Griffons: approx. 7840hp, 7920lb.

These are plenty of cheap Wyverns around to butcher, and you could always stick a pair of Nenes from a Lancastrian testbed conversion on the outer nacelle positions to give a real hot-rod...

I have a plan using Pythons on a Shackleton (IIRC I had written about it here too sometime ago). As the air intakes for the engine are right at the backend of it, I was thinking of doing something similar to how the Herald has it's turbo-prop engine intakes. Sorts out the undercarriage at the same time.

I've a FROG MR3 built a bazillion years ago that I want to rebuild as a whif. Love the twin Python idea, never struck me before.