Every time I think I may get out of the kit producing mode, it seems I have a thought that will not go away. I was just looking at the Jetco Shark 15 kit I just received in the mail thinking how much I like the look of that model and what a great job Lew McFarland did when he designed it.
The Shark 15 is now being produced as a laser cut kit by a couple of people. Walter Umland is offering it as a kit and according to personal e mail I received from John Brodak a couple of days ago, John is also going to be kitting the Shark 15 so that sized model seems to have adequate distribution.
In addition, John also manufactures the Shark 402 which is a .25 size model but is an entirely different look from the Lew McFarland design although it is a little bigger than the Shark 15.
Knowing that Eric at RSM has been offering the full fuselage Shark 35 and the Shark 45, I called him to discuss the possibility of him laser cutting for me a PROFILE version of the Shark 35 and after a good long conversation we worked out the details. Please let me state that this is NOT going to be a RSM kit offering, all Eric is going to do for me is laser cut the kits for me as I need them so all ordering will be done through me if you desire a kit. Eric has a full time job just keeping up with the 80 or so kits he has in his own inventory.
So, I am pleased to announce that after the first of the year, I will be coming out with the Profile version of the Shark 35 and if you want to see the numbers on the kit just go to RSMs website and look at the Shark35 full fuselage that he offers. The wingspan is 52".
Just for clarification purposes this will be called the Griffin Shark 561 because the wing area is 561 sq. in.. It will be perfect for a good strong .35 or 40 engine. I am thinking I will be putting my Tom Lay .OS35S on mine and a Brodak .40 would be great also.
What I will include in the kit will be all the laser cut components you will need to build the kit, plus the wire tricycle landing gear and full size plans. You will need to supply the wing spars and 1/16" sheeting where needed and the control hardware. This helps keep the price of the kit very reasonable.
At this point I have no idea what the finished cost of the kit is going to be because I have not had a test kit cut or built yet but I assure you it will be in the range of other profiles of that size.
I can actually start taking orders immediately for these kits but delivery would not be until sometime in January or February depending on how busy Eric is with laser cutting. If you want to get your name on the waiting list, I will need a $50.00 non refundable deposit. Again, I cannot give you a cost as of yet because I do not know how much laser time and material it is going to take to cut the kit. Just look at the cost of any Profile kit of this size and that will give you a really close estimate.
All further posts and updates will be posted in my section of Vendors Corner (Griffin's Model Service)
I am enclosing a picture of the full fuselage Shark 35 so you can get and Idea of what the model will look like. Everything will be identical to the full fuselage Shark only it will have a profile fuselage.
Thank you very much and Merry Christmas to you all.
Mike Griffin
Topic: A Shark for the New Year - The PROFILE SHARK 561 (Read 2478 times)