Finally completed… after years of on&off working on this model: a 1/48 Grumman Goose.
I sat in the co-pilot seat of an aircraft just like this about 5 years ago. My dad and I were flying out over the Queen Charlotte Islands of British Columbia to go salmon fishing. This model is a gift for him. Flying in the Goose was an unforgettable experience. Unfortunately, Pacific Coastal no longer operates these aircraft after a couple of fatal crashes. They were stunning while they were in service.
The model is a 1/48 Czech Model offering. I don’t know if it’s even still in production. It came with some resin bits, and the fit was typical for short-run kits. The profile is the closest-to-scale of any kit I’m aware of (at least in 1/48), but it took quite a bit of surface work for me to get the seams worked out. I tend to be slow at that, though. It was especially challenging around the canopy, which is molded as a single clear piece over the entire cockpit area. Also – I had to customize the model to represent more-modern modifications on the Goose. The wing tips were chopped to fit the float pods in the retracted position. The 2-blade 1930’s props were replaced with 3-blade props from the 1/48 testor’s Ov-10 kit. Decals were provided by JBOT decals (link), and I highly recommend them. Lastly, I used a pilot figure from the parts box and worked out some internal structure for the mounting rod. The model is removable from the base.
Working those seams might have taken you a lot of time, but it was worth it, because the joints seem to be close to perfect - like nowhere to be found! Congratulations! Thanks for sharing and have a nice day
My hat’s off to anyone that can finish a Czech Model limited run kit!
And you did a fantastic job on her. Even more it’s pretty friggin’ awesome that you were able to find the right decals and everything to finish her up as a memento of something as awesome as getting to fly on one! [t$t]
I completed this same kit last year, so I admire you for what you had done to it. But you are right, its the only kit of a Goose that has the most accurate lines. Your windscreeen came out flawless. Mine not so much. Did you put the full interior in it? Also, what wheels did you use? I found it hard to find a set that actually fit into the wheel wells since my kit wheels, both plastic and resin, were too large. I ended up using resin nose wheels from a B-24.
Scott, relative to the wheels: I had the same issue with the kit parts, so I went fishing through my parts bin. They might be mustang wheels, but i’m not 100% sure. I forgot about that wrinkle! As for the windscreen blending… there is a LOT of putty making it work. I went throught at least 5-6 ‘putty, sand, & prime’ cycles in that area until it was smoothed out. For the cabin internals, I used some of the parts, but not all of them. Its near impossible to see inside the passenger cabin, so I focused mostly on the cockpit area. Thanks for the feedback everyone. It was fun to give it to my dad yesterday.
