Sea Victor- Finished!

[PR19_Kit]

Here is a diagram of the loading bay on the P6M.  Hatch is aft (to the right), then a trolley takes the weapons forward to the rotating weapons bay.

Yes, that's EXACTLY the diagram I was trying to remember. 

It's amazing that they ssemingly carried the entire loading gear around with them inside the aircraft! A bit like the An-124 with its internal gantry cranes.

[The Rat]

As the resident flying boat fanatic, I will be watching this with great interest! 

[bearmatt]

Very interesting modeling going on here! Looks good 

[sandiego89]

Planking on the hull done, still needs a few more sessions of sanding and putty.  Lots of cutting and fitting of panels to make this up.  Lost count, but around 20 separate scratch styrene panels went into the hull planking.  8 major bulkheads and a few more minor underneath.  Forward part of boat hull is layerd styrene and generous putty. 

Beaching cradle next.  Scratch. 

[sandiego89]

Hmmmm, the old Lindburg intakes look way undersize for a Victor.  The Victor usually stikes me with gaping intakes that were going to present huge challenges for a seaplane version- just wanting to suck in vast quantities of water.  Think I need to increase the size of the intakes. I have an idea in mind to reduce the majority of the spray- will not be a top mount nacelle like the SeaMaster.   

I am also struggling with paint choices.  I am leading to EDSG and white, or like the Shakeltons wore in the late 1950's but dark blue like a SeaMaster seems obvious, similar to the Neptunes in RAF service.  I don't think white, or mainly white like a Sunderland would look good. So any thoughts for circa 1957?  Were the Shaks ever blue? When?   

[TallEng]

I expect the intakes look to small to you because it's a model of a mk1 Victor, which was powered by Armstrong siddeley Sapphire engines, and the Victor your thinking of the B2 was powered by RR Conways! Which had the much bigger intakes.
As for colour schemes, well.. The last Sunderlands were white with just the very top of the fuselage and the wings in Dark Sea Grey, And the Shackletons also started that way before going to Extra Dark Sea Grey all over, then later with a white fuselage roof (for cooling?).
But as your ushering in a new 'jet age' flying boat why not bring in a new camouflage scheme for it?
After all there are plenty of interesting British camouflage colours to choose from 

Regards
Keith

[NARSES2]

This gets better and better 

As for a scheme I've always liked the Dk Sea Grey over white, depends where she's due to be based ?

[McColm]

RAE at Farnborough used a grey, white and blue colour scheme on their Shackleton. The French used  dark blue on their Lancasters.

[The Rat]

You'll get more speed out of it if you curve that step instead of having the knife-edge.

[tc2324]

Liking this alot. 

[sequoiaranger]

This is looking interesting. Kind of like a Martin Seamaster on steroids!

Might you have retractable, inlet-sized "winglets" in the fuselage near the intakes that would extend on takeoff/landing to deflect splash-water influx??

[kerick]

I was thinking of the same thing. Just a simple vane low between the cockpit and the wing root. I know I've seen it on other seaplanes.

[Captain Canada]

Oh yeah...this is awesome !

[Weaver]

Great project - looking forward to seeing this one finished! 

Re the intakes, you could have a MiG-29-style system whereby an internal baffle closes the front intake and acts as a deflector ramp for air drawn in through louvres that open behind it in the upper wing surface.

[sandiego89]

"Ding, Ding, Ding" Weaver wins the Prize!  Looking at a slide out horizontal ramp that divets most of the water away from the intake, and pop open intake doors on the top of the wing like the B-2 bomber. Sequioiranger and kerick, will also have some vanes/strakes on the hull to divert water. Thank you all for the input.  Was in California all week, so little progress. 

Starting on the beaching cradle. Scratch styrene, painted yellow.  Floatation cells, wheels and outboard motors to be added.    

The Rat, thank you.  I curved the step to make it a little cleaner/faster.  Would have preferred a more scalloped curve, but due the underlying frames I had to go with an angled curve.