DHC.2 Beaver

[Balsabasher]

Lou its had five coats of primer so far but the weather is holding up painting,also need to visit Halfords to get some more high build primer paint stock which I normally buy in lots of a half dozen at a time,then there is the colours which you never seem to have the right ones for finishing.
My glider dope which I made up sanding sealer from is dwindling as well and the gallon tin is over 40 years old with a rusting tin ! they no longer make cellulose products locally so will have to find an alternative,its expensive stuff now about £85 a gallon,oh for the days when you could go to the local model shop and buy it,cheap talcum powder for the admixture is easy to find on the local market and a big wooden spoon to stir in the talc is all that is needed,a touch of oil of wintergreen keeps the condensation at bay in the sanding sealer but only a few drops no more,a smidgin of castor oil allows it to flex without any cracking as well.

Barry.

[Mark Braunlich]

Great thread and nice model Barry.  Thanks for bringing the Model Aircraft article/drawings to our attention and thanks to Lou for posting them.  Making that built-up fuselage in 1/72 would be great fun.  Attached are pics I took at the Bush Plane Museum in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario this Sept.  I like the yellow Beaver on floats.  They have the prototype Turbo Beaver there as well which would make a super rubber powered model.   Maybe I will draw that up as a future project.

[Balsabasher]

Thank you for these lovely pictures Mark,a Turbo Beaver is on my list,and yes it would make a superb rubber job.
Barry.

[lastvautour]

Found more pictures of CF-OBS. This interest in Beavers is calling me.
Now what scale??
Lou

[Balsabasher]

The luggage carriers over the floats are interesting,these could be easily made from dowel,I thought that your interest in the Beaver had been re-kindled Lou,it certainly makes into a model with lots of character.
Barry.

[Mark Braunlich]

Those are water tanks Barry.   See:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHqA7zHQBz4

[lastvautour]

Just watched the video. With its low speed and great stability put that water exactly on target would be very beneficial. I recall seeing the Beaver and Otter while being posted to Goose Bay. It was impressive in what they could do with them.

Lou

[Balsabasher]

Well you learn something every day,a Beaver water bomber,thank you for that link.
Barry.

[lastvautour]

I wish I had owned a video camera in Goose Bay. Lab Air was trying to land a Beaver (on floats) on a wheeled dolly because they had waited to long to fly back to the docks before the ice set in. He actually did land the darn thing, but elected to put it down on grass. The floats and aircraft were not damaged. It made for an interesting afternoon. They lifted the aircraft up, changed to wheeled skis and carried on.

Lou

[cliff strachan]

Lou, I can't help recalling the many "Dolly Takeoffs" that I witnessed in Thunder Bay over the years. Unfortunately I've never taken a photograph. The procedure was that Mr. Wieben of Superior Airways (or one of his other pilots) would arrive in a high wing monoplane from some remote site in the  north in the fall landing on the grass adjacent to a runway on floats. It was the procedure in the spring that provided the most excitement. With the aircraft again on floats, a man standing in a barrel affixed to a moving truck but now holding onto a rope attached to the tail of the aircraft -to keep the aircraft on a steady course down the runway - the aircraft executed it's takeoff. As the aircraft left the airport runway, the man in the barrel let go of the rope, and the spring takeoff was accomplished. The rope business was intended to try to alleviate any unnecessary runway lights being broken.

You can see why a photograph would be a necessity.

Cliff.

[Balsabasher]

What a fascinating account of these interesting take offs,apparently it is fairly easy to land a float equipped aircraft on wet grass,the Beaver is some aircraft.
Barry.