1:72 Temco Model 63 YT2T-1 'Buckskin', U.S. Navy “13/S (BuNo. 133929)", assigned to the Naval Air Test Center (NATC); Patuxent River, 1960 (Whif/Special Hobby TT-1 conversion)
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The Temco Model 63 "Buckskin" trainer was designed by Texas Engineering & Manufacturing Company (TEMCO) as a private venture to replace the US Navy's piston-engine, land-based Beech Model B45 'Mentor' primary trainers in the mid 1960ies, but with better performance and more likeliness to modern jet fighters.
The Model 63’s forerunner, the Temco Model 51, had been initially proposed to the US Air Force in response to an Air Force competition for a jet-powered primary trainer, which was eventually won by the Cessna T-37 Tweet. A small number of the Model 51 were built and put into service, powered by a Continental Motors J69-T-9 (a license-built Turbomeca Marboré) jet engine and officially designated TT-1 ‘Pinto, but only saw a limited career.
Like the Pinto, the Model 63 was a mid-wing, tricycle landing gear trainer with an enclosed cockpit. What made the Model 63 unusual was a pull/push tandem engine arrangement, similar to the Cessna 336/337 that was under development at the same time. The Temco Model 63 was driven by two small Turbomeca Bastan IV turboprop engines, each developing 650 shp (485 kW).
The rationale behind this layout were the compact dimensions, actually, the aircraft was not bigger than the single engine TT-1. Studies undertaken during the early design stages had shown that a classic layout with wing-mounted engines would have necessitated a considerably higher wing span and a longer fuselage, too. Another benefit was the improved safety of two engines, esp. during envisioned long navigation flights over the open sea, and the Bastan engines gave the Model 63 the ability to fly safely even with one of the engines shut down.
Compared with the TT-1’s small jet engine, the propellers gave the Model 63 a better responsiveness to pilot input and the turboprop engines offered a very good fuel economy, while enabling almost the same performance as the single jet precursor. Furthermore, the two engines gave instructors the option to simulate different flight regimes, while the tandem arrangement helped avoid torque and asymmetrical thrust issues. Besides, the T2T was equipped with many of the same features found in contemporary operational jets, including ejection seats, liquid oxygen equipment, speed brakes, along with typical flight controls and instrument panels.
Anyway, the unusual layout came at a price: it necessitated a totally different tail section with twin tail booms and a single, high stabilizer connecting them at the tips of the fins. Despite familiar outlines, only parts of the TT's outer wings and the cockpit could be used on the Model 63 - the rest had to be re-designed and/or strengthened, so that the aircraft's overall weight became markedly higher than the TT's. Despite this drawback, officials became interested enough in the turboprop trainer program to procure a pre-series for trials and direct comparison with jet- and piston-engine alternatives.
The aircraft received the official designation T2T. Like the Pinto, the T2T was intended as a primary trainer, so it carried no internal armament but could be outfitted with wing tip tanks and had two underwing hardpoints for 500 lb each, placed outside of the strengthened landing gear. These hardpoints were reserved for auxiliary tanks, cargo boxes, smoke generators or camera pods.
The first XT2T maiden flight took place in summer 1959. Flight characteristics were considered good, and, compared with the earlier TT-1, the machine was not as underpowered (which was a problem during landing abortions and touch-and-go manoeuvers). After initial tests with two more prototypes in summer 1960, a batch of five YT2T-1 pre-production aircraft, which were updated to the intended serial production standard and incorporated some minor modifications, was ordered and directly sent to the Naval Air Test Center (NATC) Patuxent River.
Results were generally positive, so that a further batch of 24 aircraft were produced as T2T-1s between 1962 and 1963. These aircraft served in the Air Training Command at Pensacola, Florida and used in a training program demonstration testing the feasibility of using jet- and turboprop-powered trainer for primary flight training.
The tests were not conclusive, though, and no further T2Ts ordered. The 'Buckskin', how the aircraft was christened unofficially, was pleasant to fly and offered very good performance. But the aircraft was – esp. for its limited role – complex. Maintenance costs were high, and the authorities were never really happy about the French engines on board of the home-grown trainer type.
The US Navy liked the turboprop engine, though, but wanted a less complex aircraft. This eventually materialized in the early Seventies with the T-34C Turbo-Mentor. After a production hiatus of almost 15 years, the Beech Model 45 returned, powered by a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-25 turboprop engine. Mentor production restarted in 1975 for deliveries of T-34Cs to the USN and of the T-34C-1 armed version for export customers in 1977, this version featuring four underwing hardpoints. Since the late 1970s, T-34Cs have been used by the Naval Air Training Command to train numerous Naval Aviators and Naval Flight Officers for the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, and numerous NATO and Allied nations - and the small T2T fleet was phased out by 1979.
General characteristics:
Crew: two
Length: 32 ft 7 in (9.93 m)
Wingspan (incl. tip tanks): 29 ft 10 in (9.09 m)
Height: 8 ft 1 1/2 in (2.48 m)
Wing area: 150 sq ft (13.9 m2)
Empty weight: 2,848 lb (1,292 kg)
Loaded weight: 5,400 lb (2,448 kg)
Powerplant:
2× Turbomeca Bastan IV turboprop engines, rated at 650 shp (485 kW) each
Performance:
Maximum speed: 345 mph (300 knots, 556 km/h) at 15,000 ft (4,600 m)
Never exceed speed: 518 mph (450 knots, 834 km/h)
Cruise speed: 247 mph (215 knots, 398 km/h) at 25,000 ft (7,600 m)
Stall speed: 69 mph (60 knots, 111 km/hr)
Endurance: 2.5 hr
Service ceiling: 30,000 ft (9,145 m)
Rate of climb: 1,900 ft/min (9.7 m/s)
Armament:
2x underwing hardpoints for a total load of up to 1.000 lb (454 kg)
2x optional wing tip tanks
The kit and its assembly:
The final entry for the 2016 "In the Navy" Group Build at whatifmodelers.com, and a close call since I started work on this conversion only 5 days before the GB's deadline!
The original inspiration was the photoshopped picture of a private TT-1 in all-blue USN markings, created by artist "Stéphane Beaumort" in 2010 (check this illustration originally posted at AviaDesign: aviadesign.online.fr/images/temco-buckskin2.jpg).
A slightly bizarre aircraft with the tandem propellers and the twin tail booms, and IMHO with some fishy details in the CG rendition, e.g. including the idea of driving both propellers with a single engine through shafts and gearboxes. But the concept looked overall feasible and Special Hobby offers a very nice TT-1 Pinto kit, which I was able to procure from Poland an short notice. As a bonus, this kit comes with markings for this specific, blue aircraft (“13/S”), actually a re-constructed, privately owned machine.
The Special Hobby kit became the basis for my personal interpretation of the T2T, and it underwent some conversions, being outfitted with a variety of donation parts:
- The front engine once was a cut-away Merlin from a Hobby Boss Hawker Hurricane
- The tail booms and fins come from a Revell Focke Wulf Flitzer
- The stabilizer was created from two Hobby Boss He 162 tail elements
- Propellers come from a vintage, box scale Revell Convair Tradewind
- In order to attach them, styrene tubes were implanted and the props mounted on metal axis’
- The front wheel also belongs to a Hobby Boss He 162, longer than the OOB parts
- The main wheels are bigger, from a Matchbox Folland Gnat
Work started with the central fuselage, the added front engine and conversions for the rear pusher engine. Once the wings were in place and the propeller diameter clear, attachment points for the tail booms were scratched from styrene tube and added to the wings' upper sides (leaving the lower surface free, so that the OOB landing gear could be used). Then the tail booms and the tailored stabilizer were mounted, as well as the wing tip tanks.
The landing gear came next; the main struts and covers were used, but slightly bigger wheels chosen from the scrap box. For the front wheel well, a "hole" had to be dug out of the massive new nose section (consisting of 2C putty and lead beads) - the OOB covers were used, though, and a longer and more massive front wheel was mounted.
Sounds simple and conclusive, but things evolved gradually and the job involved a lot of body work - under dire time pressure. The fact that the kit fell from my workbench after day #2 and hit the floor in a nasty angle, so that the tails suffered severely and needed repair, did not help either...
Another issue became the canopy. I am not certain where the problem lies, but the canopy turned out to be 2mm too short for the fuselage? Could be the result of the massive rhinoplasty with the added front engine, but I am also a bit worried about the position of the cockpit tubs – when I mounted them, the appeared to be in the correct position, but once the fuselage was closed both seat positions appear to be too far to the back – even though the dashboards seem to be correct?
Painting and markings:
I used the CG drawing as benchmark, also because the Special Hobby kit came with the right decal set for an all-blue USN livery, which historically was about to be changed in the late Fifties to brighter schemes.
The interior surfaces, both cockpit and the landing gear, were painted in a very light gray (FS 36495, Humbrol 147), just as on the real world TT-1. All outside surfaces became Sea Blue FS 35042 (ModelMaster). Very simple, and some panel shading with was done for a more dramatic look on the otherwise uniform airframe.
The silver leading edges on wings and stabilizer, as well as the yellow canopy framing, were created from decal strips. The propeller spinners became, as a small highlight, bright red, and some of the OOB sheet’s red trim for “13/S” were used, too. No more weathering was done, and, finally, everything sealed under a coat of gloss acrylic varnish, except for the propeller blades and the black anti-glare panel, which became matt.
An odd creation, and taking into account the four and a half days time frame from sprues to beauty pics (including background research and text), as well as the body work involved in the building process with the new front engine and the tail booms, I am quite happy with the result. Could have been better, sure, but it was finished in time, just as planned/hoped for. ;)
Anyway, the T2T looks interesting; my build slightly differs from the benchmark CG renditions, but remains true to Stéphane Beaumort’s basic idea. Cheers!
1:72 Temco Model 63 YT2T-1 'Buckskin', U.S. Navy “13/S (BuNo. 133929)", assigned to the Naval Air Test Center (NATC); Patuxent River, 1960 (Whif/Special Hobby TT-1 conversion)
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The Temco Model 63 "Buckskin" trainer was designed by Texas Engineering & Manufacturing Company (TEMCO) as a private venture to replace the US Navy's piston-engine, land-based Beech Model B45 'Mentor' primary trainers in the mid 1960ies, but with better performance and more likeliness to modern jet fighters.
The Model 63’s forerunner, the Temco Model 51, had been initially proposed to the US Air Force in response to an Air Force competition for a jet-powered primary trainer, which was eventually won by the Cessna T-37 Tweet. A small number of the Model 51 were built and put into service, powered by a Continental Motors J69-T-9 (a license-built Turbomeca Marboré) jet engine and officially designated TT-1 ‘Pinto, but only saw a limited career.
Like the Pinto, the Model 63 was a mid-wing, tricycle landing gear trainer with an enclosed cockpit. What made the Model 63 unusual was a pull/push tandem engine arrangement, similar to the Cessna 336/337 that was under development at the same time. The Temco Model 63 was driven by two small Turbomeca Bastan IV turboprop engines, each developing 650 shp (485 kW).
The rationale behind this layout were the compact dimensions, actually, the aircraft was not bigger than the single engine TT-1. Studies undertaken during the early design stages had shown that a classic layout with wing-mounted engines would have necessitated a considerably higher wing span and a longer fuselage, too. Another benefit was the improved safety of two engines, esp. during envisioned long navigation flights over the open sea, and the Bastan engines gave the Model 63 the ability to fly safely even with one of the engines shut down.
Compared with the TT-1’s small jet engine, the propellers gave the Model 63 a better responsiveness to pilot input and the turboprop engines offered a very good fuel economy, while enabling almost the same performance as the single jet precursor. Furthermore, the two engines gave instructors the option to simulate different flight regimes, while the tandem arrangement helped avoid torque and asymmetrical thrust issues. Besides, the T2T was equipped with many of the same features found in contemporary operational jets, including ejection seats, liquid oxygen equipment, speed brakes, along with typical flight controls and instrument panels.
Anyway, the unusual layout came at a price: it necessitated a totally different tail section with twin tail booms and a single, high stabilizer connecting them at the tips of the fins. Despite familiar outlines, only parts of the TT's outer wings and the cockpit could be used on the Model 63 - the rest had to be re-designed and/or strengthened, so that the aircraft's overall weight became markedly higher than the TT's. Despite this drawback, officials became interested enough in the turboprop trainer program to procure a pre-series for trials and direct comparison with jet- and piston-engine alternatives.
The aircraft received the official designation T2T. Like the Pinto, the T2T was intended as a primary trainer, so it carried no internal armament but could be outfitted with wing tip tanks and had two underwing hardpoints for 500 lb each, placed outside of the strengthened landing gear. These hardpoints were reserved for auxiliary tanks, cargo boxes, smoke generators or camera pods.
The first XT2T maiden flight took place in summer 1959. Flight characteristics were considered good, and, compared with the earlier TT-1, the machine was not as underpowered (which was a problem during landing abortions and touch-and-go manoeuvers). After initial tests with two more prototypes in summer 1960, a batch of five YT2T-1 pre-production aircraft, which were updated to the intended serial production standard and incorporated some minor modifications, was ordered and directly sent to the Naval Air Test Center (NATC) Patuxent River.
Results were generally positive, so that a further batch of 24 aircraft were produced as T2T-1s between 1962 and 1963. These aircraft served in the Air Training Command at Pensacola, Florida and used in a training program demonstration testing the feasibility of using jet- and turboprop-powered trainer for primary flight training.
The tests were not conclusive, though, and no further T2Ts ordered. The 'Buckskin', how the aircraft was christened unofficially, was pleasant to fly and offered very good performance. But the aircraft was – esp. for its limited role – complex. Maintenance costs were high, and the authorities were never really happy about the French engines on board of the home-grown trainer type.
The US Navy liked the turboprop engine, though, but wanted a less complex aircraft. This eventually materialized in the early Seventies with the T-34C Turbo-Mentor. After a production hiatus of almost 15 years, the Beech Model 45 returned, powered by a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-25 turboprop engine. Mentor production restarted in 1975 for deliveries of T-34Cs to the USN and of the T-34C-1 armed version for export customers in 1977, this version featuring four underwing hardpoints. Since the late 1970s, T-34Cs have been used by the Naval Air Training Command to train numerous Naval Aviators and Naval Flight Officers for the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, and numerous NATO and Allied nations - and the small T2T fleet was phased out by 1979.
General characteristics:
Crew: two
Length: 32 ft 7 in (9.93 m)
Wingspan (incl. tip tanks): 29 ft 10 in (9.09 m)
Height: 8 ft 1 1/2 in (2.48 m)
Wing area: 150 sq ft (13.9 m2)
Empty weight: 2,848 lb (1,292 kg)
Loaded weight: 5,400 lb (2,448 kg)
Powerplant:
2× Turbomeca Bastan IV turboprop engines, rated at 650 shp (485 kW) each
Performance:
Maximum speed: 345 mph (300 knots, 556 km/h) at 15,000 ft (4,600 m)
Never exceed speed: 518 mph (450 knots, 834 km/h)
Cruise speed: 247 mph (215 knots, 398 km/h) at 25,000 ft (7,600 m)
Stall speed: 69 mph (60 knots, 111 km/hr)
Endurance: 2.5 hr
Service ceiling: 30,000 ft (9,145 m)
Rate of climb: 1,900 ft/min (9.7 m/s)
Armament:
2x underwing hardpoints for a total load of up to 1.000 lb (454 kg)
2x optional wing tip tanks
The kit and its assembly:
The final entry for the 2016 "In the Navy" Group Build at whatifmodelers.com, and a close call since I started work on this conversion only 5 days before the GB's deadline!
The original inspiration was the photoshopped picture of a private TT-1 in all-blue USN markings, created by artist "Stéphane Beaumort" in 2010 (check this illustration originally posted at AviaDesign: aviadesign.online.fr/images/temco-buckskin2.jpg).
A slightly bizarre aircraft with the tandem propellers and the twin tail booms, and IMHO with some fishy details in the CG rendition, e.g. including the idea of driving both propellers with a single engine through shafts and gearboxes. But the concept looked overall feasible and Special Hobby offers a very nice TT-1 Pinto kit, which I was able to procure from Poland an short notice. As a bonus, this kit comes with markings for this specific, blue aircraft (“13/S”), actually a re-constructed, privately owned machine.
The Special Hobby kit became the basis for my personal interpretation of the T2T, and it underwent some conversions, being outfitted with a variety of donation parts:
- The front engine once was a cut-away Merlin from a Hobby Boss Hawker Hurricane
- The tail booms and fins come from a Revell Focke Wulf Flitzer
- The stabilizer was created from two Hobby Boss He 162 tail elements
- Propellers come from a vintage, box scale Revell Convair Tradewind
- In order to attach them, styrene tubes were implanted and the props mounted on metal axis’
- The front wheel also belongs to a Hobby Boss He 162, longer than the OOB parts
- The main wheels are bigger, from a Matchbox Folland Gnat
Work started with the central fuselage, the added front engine and conversions for the rear pusher engine. Once the wings were in place and the propeller diameter clear, attachment points for the tail booms were scratched from styrene tube and added to the wings' upper sides (leaving the lower surface free, so that the OOB landing gear could be used). Then the tail booms and the tailored stabilizer were mounted, as well as the wing tip tanks.
The landing gear came next; the main struts and covers were used, but slightly bigger wheels chosen from the scrap box. For the front wheel well, a "hole" had to be dug out of the massive new nose section (consisting of 2C putty and lead beads) - the OOB covers were used, though, and a longer and more massive front wheel was mounted.
Sounds simple and conclusive, but things evolved gradually and the job involved a lot of body work - under dire time pressure. The fact that the kit fell from my workbench after day #2 and hit the floor in a nasty angle, so that the tails suffered severely and needed repair, did not help either...
Another issue became the canopy. I am not certain where the problem lies, but the canopy turned out to be 2mm too short for the fuselage? Could be the result of the massive rhinoplasty with the added front engine, but I am also a bit worried about the position of the cockpit tubs – when I mounted them, the appeared to be in the correct position, but once the fuselage was closed both seat positions appear to be too far to the back – even though the dashboards seem to be correct?
Painting and markings:
I used the CG drawing as benchmark, also because the Special Hobby kit came with the right decal set for an all-blue USN livery, which historically was about to be changed in the late Fifties to brighter schemes.
The interior surfaces, both cockpit and the landing gear, were painted in a very light gray (FS 36495, Humbrol 147), just as on the real world TT-1. All outside surfaces became Sea Blue FS 35042 (ModelMaster). Very simple, and some panel shading with was done for a more dramatic look on the otherwise uniform airframe.
The silver leading edges on wings and stabilizer, as well as the yellow canopy framing, were created from decal strips. The propeller spinners became, as a small highlight, bright red, and some of the OOB sheet’s red trim for “13/S” were used, too. No more weathering was done, and, finally, everything sealed under a coat of gloss acrylic varnish, except for the propeller blades and the black anti-glare panel, which became matt.
An odd creation, and taking into account the four and a half days time frame from sprues to beauty pics (including background research and text), as well as the body work involved in the building process with the new front engine and the tail booms, I am quite happy with the result. Could have been better, sure, but it was finished in time, just as planned/hoped for. ;)
Anyway, the T2T looks interesting; my build slightly differs from the benchmark CG renditions, but remains true to Stéphane Beaumort’s basic idea. Cheers!