1/48 AMT Beechcraft G-17S Staggerwing

Gallery Article by Michael Presley on Mar 3 2010

 

    When I was a child, my father instilled in me, and my younger brother, Paul, a great love of aircraft.  We spent countless hours watching departures, and arrivals at Love Field in Dallas.  By the time I was five, I could identify almost anything that took off, landed, or taxied by.  He also taught us, that certain aircraft deserved more than just affection...they demanded reverence.  The Staggerwing Beech was one of these.  Today most pilots consider the Staggerwing to the very apex of classic aircraft.  Even those who don't know what one is, are usually smitten at first sight.  Model 17s are duly treated as they should be, with reverence.  In Mar. 2003, 'Plane & Pilot' magazine named the Staggerwing one of it's 'Top Ten All-Time Favorite Aircraft'.  In the April, 2007 issue of AOPA (Aircraft Qwners & Pilots Assoc.) 'Pilot' magazine reported that the Staggerwing was voted by nearly 3000 AOPA members as the 'Most Beautiful Airplane'.  "Members said it's the perfect balance between 'muscular strength, and delicate grace', and rated it highly for it's 'classic lines and symmetry.'"   In his highly regarded book, ' The Great Planes'  (published in 1970), the famous English aviation author, James Gilbert, spoke of the Staggerwing in this fashion..."You have a feeling of of pure efficiency about the airplane that belies it's biplane layout, and you are right: a Staggerwing, power off, has a glide ratio of fully fifteen to one. ...The final Staggerwing was the G-17S, embodying a number of improvements that had been hanging in the fire during the war years: a cleaned up cowl line, windshield, and gear doors; bigger tail controls; a still more luxurious interior. Only twenty G-17's were built, and maybe ten survive - the most highly prized Staggerwings of all.  They seldom change hands and then at ridiculous prices...I suppose maybe two hundred Staggerwings in all still exist.  They are among the most enduringly beautiful airplanes ever made.  Even on the ground, standing clumsily on it's gear, a Staggerwing will invariably attract a crowd of admirers at any airport.  But no Staggerwing for all of Beech's many improvements, is happy on the ground.  One must be seen in the air to be completely enjoyed.  A Staggerwing aloft cleaves it's way through the sky as a shark idles through the water, unconscious of any effort.  Truly it is a design for all time."  Thomas A. Horne had these insights in his fine article, 'Staggerwing: Beech's Beautiful Biplane'..."Civilains weren't the only one's drawn to the D17.  Between 1937 and 1944, the U.S. Army bought 105 airplanes and the U.S. Navy anted up for another 320, making the military the Staggerwing's best customer.  After all, Staggerwings were as fast - or faster - than many fighters of the 1930s.  Military models were used in utility or transport roles, and at times civilian Staggerwings were drafted into the service from their owners. Some even served Allied foreign governments (mainly Great Britain) in either military, or diplomatic missions.  With total sales of 785 airplanes, the Staggerwing had a wonderful production run. It survived the Depression, went to war with several nations, won gobs of air races, built a cult following, and was modified to accept everything from skis to floats."   Bill Lear, the creator of the Learjet series, often said that the inspiration, and marketing model for his elegant little jet was unquestionably the Beech Staggerwing...classic begets classic, and yet another tribute to the great Model 17.

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  AMT's Beech Staggerwing kit first appeared in 1977, and it only stayed in production for a handful of years (although ESCI boxed it with a different set of makings in the late 80's, I believe).  The decals that come with the AMT kit are for perhaps the most photographed Staggerwing of all, Jim Gorman's G-17S, NC80305 (there is even a photo of NC80305 in Gilbert's 'The Great Planes' from 1970).  My Dad was an accomplished R/C builder, and pilot.   When Byron Originals first put their Giant Scale, fiberglass fuselaged Staggerwing on the market, he was one of their very first customers. Although he elected not to use the kit's factory markings (pictured in ads in every R/C magazine, on every newsstand in the world), those markings were for none other than Jim Gorman's NC80305.  It was the fourth postwar G-17S (Out of 20 total.  Beechcraft serial number B-4), and was manufactured in 1946. Mr. Gorman actively flies NC80305, and it has been a frequent star at many airshows across the country for many decades.  It is based just East of Mansfield, Ohio at an airport that bears it's owner's name, Gorman Airport. 

   The good news about the AMT Staggerwing (and it's 1/48 AMT series stablemates, the Lockheed Vega, and Stinson Gullwing)...it's a fairly accurate model from a dimensional standpoint with some nice, if heavy, surface detail (which is appropriate for a fabric cover aircraft, & can be easily reduced in prominence with some light sanding/polishing).  The bad news (and  it's a load), not only have these kits been out of production for 30 years, they tend to be pricey when you find them.  They suffer from very poor molding, and badly thought out engineering, Some parts, particularly the wing halves, are molded far too thin, without internal, structural re-enforcement and are invariably badly warped, often beyond usefulness. Other parts are dated, primitive, & need to be highly modified/corrected, or simply replaced...engine, propeller, wheels, main gear struts, etc. 

    I had bought one of the AMT Staggerwings when they were fairly new. My first copy was so badly warped, and I was so disgusted, it was relegated to the parts bin (which turned out to be a lucky break, so to speak...explanation to come). My friend, the fine illustrator, Steve Pietzsch, bought one, and it was almost without defect. He was able built it into a very nice model, his only deviation from AMT's instructions being, that he painted it red. He even used it as a subject in one of his illustrations (picture below). Years later my brother, Paul, built one for our father. He had to find two kits (and by this time, late '80's, they were long out of production) to have enough unwarped, or at least correctable parts for a symmetrical model. That model still survives, also painted red to represent N700N, a red and black G-17S based at Dallas Love Field (Both the model, and the plane are quite lovely). In point of fact, these are the only two AMT Staggerwings I have ever seen completed with my own eyes. Furthermore, I have only seen a handful in magazines, or on the internet. It is, simply put, a difficult build.

  Nonetheless, I have always been determined to have a Staggerwing in my case, and some years ago, I  began collecting the parts for the project. I was able to buy my first 'new' (sealed 30 yr. old kit) from my friend, Dean Sills, at 'Dean's Hobby Stop' in Flushing Michigan, about 3 yrs. ago. Dean's specializes in older, vintage kits, (as well as newer kits at bargain, 2nd hand prices), and puts out a bi-monthly catalog of their current inventory. This is a wonderful resource for any serious modeler, but especially those who don't live close to large metro areas with IPMS sponsored shows/swap meets (a quick internet search can put you in contact, and on their mailing list). I later ordered a Pratt & Whitney R-985 from 'Engines & Things' to replace the kit's very simplistic three-part piece. Set aside a Hamilton Standard 2 blade prop from a Monogram AT-6 (one of the most useful replacement bits for dozens of projects), a pitot tube from a Tamiya P-51B, etc. I also began to collect Model 17 reference photos off the internet (something I do for every build), and (as usual) Airliners.Net proved to be the mother lode. Not only did they have photos of nearly every flying Staggerwing in the world, but DOZENS of shots of Gorman's NC80305, from 1983 to present day. Interestingly, as with most of today's flying examples, NC90305 has had many avionics, antenna, and even nav/strobe light changes/upgrades over the years. This really widens your available detailing options. As I finished the list of prior projects off, I began to get serious about finding a second kit. Unfortunately, there wasn't any for sale at Dallas/Ft. Worth area's Scalefest, so I again turned to Mr. Sills, who within a few months, located one for me. My brother (who often pulls my chestnuts out of fires) found yet a third, partially built one, and knowing the warpage issue, generously donated it to the cause (It would be needed). So, after I had finished my Blanik L-13 (which was pretty much an out of the box, breather), it was time to roll up the sleeves.

   After removing the shrink wrap from my 2 'new' kits, I was in for several disappointments. One kit's windscreen was already broken in two...just to the starboard side of the center post. Both kits had badly warped wing panels (there are six in all). One's lower wing bottom side was so badly curled up, it resembled a long dead flying insect. The other's fuselage halves were so misshapen, I could not force the front to match up, with the tail locked in place. Fortunately one the the top wing, upper halves was almost straight. I heated, & cooled it with a hair dryer for an hour, & was able to straighten it. Also most of the parts in my brother's kit seem to be much better, however, it could detect the beginning of a crack in the windscreen, in EXACTLY the same place as the broken one. I then recalled online build article of an ESCI kit making the complaint about the windscreen breaking near the centerline after minimal handling. So a pattern was emerging. I got out the spare parts bin, & sure enough, there was the old windscreen from the original kit, I'd bought in 1978! It was covered in little abrasions from jostling around with hundreds of other little bits of plastic, but was intact and showed no sign of the right of center crack. I thought I would use it for a paint mask, but decided instead to glue the broken one together to serve that function, I was to be glad, I did. After painting up the interior to match the brown leather and mohair of NC80305 (yes, there's several photos online, including inflight photos with Jim Gorman at the controls) I added some dark brown seatbelts (3 sets for the rear bench seat). Then I drilled holes for the steel tube airframe structure visible through the windscreen. There's two that form an inverted 'V' that meet at the center of the top wing's leading edge, and two behind the windscreen/sidewindow divider which also runs into the forward spar. From the exterior photos, I judged these to be "painted" in a slightly darker shade of brown than the interior materials. However the in flight photos revealed these to be covered in med. brown leather (never underestimate the luxury of a Beechcraft, especially a Staggerwing), so I painted the clipped needles used for the tubing with Testors leather, which looked right. Cut the elevator seams, and actuated them in a gravity drooped position, as per sitting on the ground. The main wheels are too narrow, so  spacers were cut from Evergreen sheet plastic and inserted between the wheel halves. Late model Staggerwings have disk brakes mounted on the outside of the wheels, just below the gear doors. These were totally absent from the AMT kit. I thought, I would try to find some appox. bits in the spares box, or try to shape something out of sheet, but them I remembered something. I dug out one of the two Academy F8F Bearcats, I had in my stash. The disk brakes are molded on to the bottom of their gear legs (rather than molded onto the wheel, as in the case of the Testors Bearcat). Furthermore, I recalled they were a bit undersized for an F8F... but they were just right for a G-17! So these were swiftly 'liberated' from the gearlegs, & mounted onto the newly widened G-17's wheels. The main gear forks were thinned from the inside and outside...so were the trailing arms.  Brake lines (jeweler's solder) would be attached to the outside fork of the trailing arms, and run down the gear to the brakes. The gear doors fit is wrong. Too high at the back, and too far back from the wheels (a'la P-51). This was corrected by drilling a new hole an 1/8 lower than the one provided. The gear legs peg fits into it, and everything lines up right (and looks MUCH better). Wanting to make sure the new resin, Engines and Things R-985 lined up properly without sawing up the nose/firewall of the only unwarped fuselage, I had, presented another problem. So did getting the exhaust pipes from the collector ring to hit the three holes on the bottom of the cowling. So then I got a 'bright idea' (you know, one of those that makes you look like a wizard, OR blows up in your face kinda deals?)...why not saw the front of the resin engine off, & attach it to the kit engine's back half, & collector ring?  I could measure the difference in the length of the 2 gear boxes (the E&T resin box was longer, & correct), then just file the difference off the firewall/nose? ...Well, guess what?...it worked perfectly. I painted the hybred, added plugs, wiring harness, an used carefully clipped straight pin sections for push rods (I have NEVER seen a Staggerwing that did NOT have chrome plated pushrods). There are two little flat ovals molded into the inside of the bottom lip of the cowling. They look like a flaw in the mold, or thick flash, but they actually represent the intake tubes for the R-985's supercharger. I suspect most modelers cut them off. Well, I had another 'bright idea', and thought I could flatten some Evergreem tubing and put these in as a better replacement...Ahhh...this one blew up in my face. I could not get the tubes seated properly, let alone cut at a steep enough angle to clear the bottom cylinders. Fortunately, I had plenty of cowlings. I took another and used a the smallest round Dremel router bit I had as a hand tool, and hollowed out the faces of the ovals. The rest was illusion done by shading with paint. Taking the T-6 prop, I thinned it down with sanding sticks, clipped the tips down to Staggerwing length, and reshaped the tips / lower blades to the correct proportions. Fitting the spiiner to the prop took a lot of careful rat tail file work, but was not overly difficult. I then made a backplate for the spinner, as that was also overlooked by AMT. Once these three parts were mated, & polished, I sprayed then with decanted Krylon Gloss Black.  After drying, that too was polished, & sprayed with Alclad II Polished Aluminum. That was overcoated by brush with Future, and Hamilton Standard trademarks from the decal box were applied.  A custom shade of 'Beech Yellow' (my name) was blended using Testors Model Master 'Blue Angel Yellow' (which, while lighter than Chrome Yellow, is still too saturated for NC80305), and Testors small bottle, 'Light Yellow' at a 2 to 1 mix. There was so much variation photo reference's color intensity, this seemed like a perfect average, I called it good, and did not second guess myself. Oh yes, Testors 'Blue Angel Blue' is a dead on match for the blue of the decals. This was used to paint the cowling nose, while an extra decal sheet provided the red pin stripe. The wheel wells are much too shallow, and there just about nothing that can be done about it...at least with my skill set. NC80305's wheel wells, and gear doors are painted with aluminum dope. This varies greatly from one G-17S to the next, even more so with older models. Looks to me like about half have their gear legs, oleo springs, gear doors, and wells paint the main exterior color, while the rest are aluminum painted, or a mix of the two. Anyhow, while I painted the gear door interiors with aluminm, I painted the wells with a darkened steel. I then applied several glazes of Future mixed with India Ink. This naturally built up in all the creavases, which greatly enhances the illusion of depth. Retraction rods were added to the tail wheel, and it's doors. These were made with stretched silver spruce. The clear styrene landing lights on the underside of the wings (in folded position) were replaced with railroad CV Lenses (a cheap, but effective trick, that always draws raves.). The navigation lights in the leading edge of the lower wings were much to puny to survive construction, These were cut out and a squared off notch left as a marker. Later I glued a piece of plastic rod into the notch, clipped, and rounded it off. Mr. Surfacer 500 filled and smoothed the gaps. The tail light was cut off, and drill out with rod used there, as well. As mentioned before, kit's fat pitot tube was replaced by a slightly shortened one from a Tamiya P-51B. I also added the rudder's trim tab's pushrod on the starboard side of the rudder. The fuel drain tubes on the underside of the lower wing leading edge (plus one on the fuselage aft centerline), and the fuel vents on the top wing were made with Detail Master #1 fitting line inserted into pre-drill holes. There are also two fairly large intake holes at the wing roots of the lower wings. These were drilled out, shaped, and smoothed before overall paint was sprayed. The avionics antennas were a collection of spares, with a few made of sheet plastic. They pretty much reflect the current array on NC80305.

    Now about the windshield. I began using the 'old one' from the spares box as a fit tester. Sanding the edges here, and there trying to get an optimum fit, Then taking off the same areas on the two remaining 'new ones'. Well, this was going just fine until I noticed a little glint at the top center of one of the 'new ones'.  Yes, it was the start of a crack. Right then, I began handling the 'old one' with much more care. I polished out it's little scratches, & dipped it in Future with the 'new ones'. As masking, and painting progressed, BOTH of the 'new ones' split, while the old one from the parts box did just fine, and THAT'S the windshield on the model.

So there you have it, my OOB Staggerwing...well, out of three boxes...four if you count the spares box.

Thanks to: Dean Sills, Paul Presley, Henry Popp, & to my late father, Bill, for the 'art appreciation'.

Reference Sources: 'The Great Planes', by James Gilbert, 'Staggerwing: Beech's Beautiful Biplane' by Thomas A. Horne, 'Plane & Pilot Magazine', AOPA's 'Pilot Magazine'. Airliners.Net, the Staggerwing Museum Foundation, Inc., 'Wings of Yesteryear: The Golden Age Of Private Aircraft' by Geza Szurovy,

Michael Presley

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Photos and text © by Michael Presley