SOH Team Project - Grumman Tracker, Trader, Tracer

[AndyG43]

C: What is this? Does it drop/extend/retract? When, are there speed limitations?
A) I don't know

Don't know for sure, but logically that is some form of radar scanner; compare it to the Gannet & the Alize. In their cases they do extend/retract, surely that is what John's photograph shows, MAD boom out & radar extended?

[Milton Shupe]

A: What are these? How do they work?
A) I don't know
B: Is this a rotating beacon?
A) YES
C: What is this? Does it drop/extend/retract? When, are there speed limitations?
A) I don't know
D: I have several pictures that do a fair job of showing the cabling here but some not definitive.
Is there a better, more accurate schematic or drawing available?
A) HF long wire antennas with zero tension release
E: I cannot make this out: mini doors?
A) Retractable blade antenna
F: Appears to be a retractable antenna like on top of teh E1B radome?
A) I dont know
G: Identify please.
A) Looks like a glideslope antenna
H: Fuel dump on right nacelle is located outboard; left nacelle fuel dump is inboard?
A) correct fuel dump chute on left engine is inboard

Thanks John; that helps.
Will add the retractable antenna, the glideslope antenna, add the beacon, and correct the left fuel dump location.
I will do the best I can with the wire antennas.

EDIT: Does this list help identify the belly radar and the smaller one behind it that appears also to extend/retract?

[Milton Shupe]

thought i'd stick my nose back in, Weathering is 90% complete, parts being shipped bit by bit to my 'sidekick' Nick for final decalling prior to go on the Stoof with a Roof paintkit

Yeaaaa!

[Milton Shupe]

Don't know for sure, but logically that is some form of radar scanner; compare it to the Gannet & the Alize. In their cases they do extend/retract, surely that is what John's photograph shows, MAD boom out & radar extended?

Andy,

Are you referring to "C" in my picture labeled question above on page 29, attached here?

[AndyG43]

Andy,

Are you referring to "C" in my picture labeled question above?

Yes, just trying to help.

[Milton Shupe]

Yes, just trying to help.

Thank you.

The "C" item, I have seen no pictures nor have no documents that show it other than in the above picture.
The radar in front of it is the APS-38 radome in retracted position.

EDIT: And, I really appreciate all of you helping to sort these things out so we can get this as right as possible.

EDIT2: Found the following comment but without explanation: "The last new version of the Tracker built by Grumman was the S-2E; later versions were all modified S-2s. There were some external differences between the S-2D and S-2E. The E had a long retractable antenna under the fuselage and an extra small radome behind the belly search radar."

[tankerguy72]

Thought this may be of use to you Milton. Something I pulled out of the maintainence book on the searchlight.
Attachment 48775

[Milton Shupe]

Thanks TG; got it. BTW, I think there are some helicopters with search lights in the package. Can anyone name those that exist where the search lights are controllable with a joystick like control, or at least can swing left/right/down/up?

Well, some progress here on the S2F-3 with 12 more things added, and 8 yet to add. Due diligence ...

[p3aewguy]

Thank you.

The "C" item, I have seen no pictures nor have no documents that show it other than in the above picture.
The radar in front of it is the APS-38 radome in retracted position.

EDIT: And, I really appreciate all of you helping to sort these things out so we can get this as right as possible.

EDIT2: Found the following comment but without explanation: "The last new version of the Tracker built by Grumman was the S-2E; later versions were all modified S-2s. There were some external differences between the S-2D and S-2E. The E had a long retractable antenna under the fuselage and an extra small radome behind the belly search radar."

Milton,

This is correct. It was a fixed radome used on the S-2E and G.

On your last post with the update pics of the model, the "antenna" on the port horizontal stab is too far outboard. The drawing and first picture attached here show the antenna in the proper position for all the extended stab variants (S-2C, D, E and G as well as the C-1A Trader). You'll note the picture is of a C-1A (also illustrating the flight station windows that were the same on the E-1B and C-1A only). The original position was never changed when the horizontal stab design was extended for the later models.

The shorter stabilizer was on the S-2A/B models, see 2nd picture (short fuselage variants)only as well as their sub-variants (TS-2A, US-2A/B) only. The only short fuselage models to have the longer stabs were the S-2C (due to the bulged bombbay) and the C-1A (due to the deeper bulged fuselage). In both of these cases, the longer stabs were to correct instability induced with the larger fuselages. All of the long fuselage versions had the longer stabs.

On a interesting side note, the retractable blade antenna on the belly was in fact the exact same antenna used on the top of the E-1B radome and was also used on SH-3 and SH-2 helos of the same vintage. It was for a data link system to transmit ASW data to the home ship.

Hope this helps!

Dave

[Milton Shupe]

Thank you Dave for the info on the fixed radome. I will put that in place. It is interesting that it is "seated/recessed" like the larger one, and maybe, due to its location, it was "extendable" for maintenance purposes.

I am aware of the hstab antenna position being more inboard; I just haven't gotten back there to relocate it yet. But, great heads-up; I appreciate that.

And thanks for pointing out the info on the C1A flight station windows and longer hstabs. I haven't gotten to that model yet so the differences are not yet clear to me.

The retractable antenna fact is appreciated too. I copied it over from the E1B. My only unasked question about it is, did it retract forward or aft. I set it up to retract forward.

Thanks for taking the time for the input and feedback.

[euroastar350]

Uncle Milton,

Once all the models are done, send the gmax files my way and I'll redo the FSX for the E1B

[Milton Shupe]

Uncle Milton,

Once all the models are done, send the gmax files my way and I'll redo the FSX for the E1B

Will do euroastar350. I always hesitate to send these out until I am certain there will be no more changes, at least to the main body parts and animations because that just causes confusion and frustration, loss of time invested for you. Since things continue to evolve, let's wait a bit until I see some stabillity here.

[lazarus]

The antenna on the stab is actually a 'shot-put damper' a weight to damp out some rather horrific resonance ( the tail falls off without it) that happens otherwise. The small radome aft is fixed. Might be doppler. Cannot remember, I only ever messed about with the CP-121/S/TS-2A/C-1's- one TS-2 showed up with 'Governor Ronald Regan' painted under the co-jo's window. G's were a picture in the book. 125KTS seems to stick in the brain as dome down max AS- a dim recolection of a placard somewhere, but I could be wrong. The search lights were quite the rig. We'd run a few when the CP-121 were arriving from back east- powered 'em with an arc-welder; you could cook a wennie or get a tan in front of one. I've a couple of the AVQ-2A controller joysticks in the basement, and one of the searchlight reflectors-about 25lbs of pyrex; had to souvenir a couple before they went into the bin. I'd send alomg some snaps of some of that crap- armament controll boxes, boarding steps-Theres a prop blade off one in the garage( techno packrat); but the cameras are all in another country for a few weeks.
Looking damn fine!

[tankerguy72]

Thanks TG; got it. BTW, I think there are some helicopters with search lights in the package. Can anyone name those that exist where the search lights are controllable with a joystick like control, or at least can swing left/right/down/up?

Well, some progress here on the S2F-3 with 12 more things added, and 8 yet to add. Due diligence ...

Amazing progress!!! This is gonna be my primary "go to" aircraft for sure!!!

[Milton Shupe]

The antenna on the stab is actually a 'shot-put damper' a weight to damp out some rather horrific resonance ( the tail falls off without it) that happens otherwise. The small radome aft is fixed. Might be doppler. Cannot remember, I only ever messed about with the CP-121/S/TS-2A/C-1's- one TS-2 showed up with 'Governor Ronald Regan' painted under the co-jo's window. G's were a picture in the book. 125KTS seems to stick in the brain as dome down max AS- a dim recolection of a placard somewhere, but I could be wrong. The search lights were quite the rig. We'd run a few when the CP-121 were arriving from back east- powered 'em with an arc-welder; you could cook a wennie or get a tan in front of one. I've a couple of the AVQ-2A controller joysticks in the basement, and one of the searchlight reflectors-about 25lbs of pyrex; had to souvenir a couple before they went into the bin. I'd send alomg some snaps of some of that crap- armament controll boxes, boarding steps-Theres a prop blade off one in the garage( techno packrat); but the cameras are all in another country for a few weeks.
Looking damn fine!

Thanks for that input Lazarus; good stuff! Appreciate the help and kudos.

Amazing progress!!! This is gonna be my primary "go to" aircraft for sure!!!

Well, you and others have helped a bunch; yea team!