A few questions about the "Goose"

[OGJ]

( 1 ) From checking around on the internet I understand the first (approximately) 12 aircraft were classified as model G-21, which had according to Grumman's first add, about what they called The Grumman "G-21" Amphibian, which appeared in the Aero Digest, Jan. to June, 1937 edition on page 68, of March, it states: Gross weight: 7500 lbs., Engines: Pratt & Whitney Wasp Junior R-985, rated 400 h.p.

The G-21A came with an increase of 500 lbs. giving it a gross weight of 8000 lbs., 50 more horsepower for a total of 450 hp per engine. I have also seen a lengthened hull and minor hull design change, listed with the G-21A, did it come with anything else, compared to the G-21?

I also understand that a number of the first 12 aircraft were upgraded to G-21A specs. before leaving the factory and some were returned to the factory for the upgrade. Does anyone know the numbers of the 12 that were upgraded and the number that were not upgraded?

( 2 ) It appears that Canada's RCAF ended up with 31 of these aircraft, 2 Mark I's and 29 Mark II's. What is the difference between a Mark I and Mark II ?

Thanks for any info, Dennis

[Kiwithrottlejockey]

Do you have access to a copy of Air Britain's excellent book, “The Grumman Amphibians — Goose, Widgeon & Mallard” by Fred J. Knight with Colin R. Smith, published in 2013?

All the information you seek is contained in that book, including details of the original G-21 Goose examples in the Appendix 1: G-21 Goose Production List, which contains a comprehensive individual listing for every airframe produced.

[OGJ]

Unfortunately I do not have a copy of it, I tried earlier this year to get a copy, Amazon, Chapters Indigo, etc. here in Canada and in the U. S. but no luck, all out of stock. I did see one place in England that had it for sale but did not proceed with checking on it as I figured with the shipping, duty?, taxes etc., it would be more than the price of the book. I may contact them and see what the final price would be shipped to Canada.

Thanks for the reply,
Dennis

[Kiwithrottlejockey]

You can still purchase a copy of the book directly from Air Britain, which is where I purchased my copy from when it was published (I live in New Zealand).

https://www.air-britain.co.uk/actbooks/acatalog/GrummanAmphibians------14.html#SID=13

[OGJ]

You can still purchase a copy of the book directly from Air Britain, which is where I purchased my copy from when it was published (I live in New Zealand).

https://www.air-britain.co.uk/actbooks/acatalog/GrummanAmphibians------14.html#SID=13

Yes, that is the place I saw and as I type this reply, mastercard is converting Canadian dollars into British pounds and it should be here in a week. I may have to have an extra beer or two tonight to get to sleep, as I'm already counting the seconds & minutes that have gone by since ordering it. Shipping is almost the same price as the book, oh well you have to bite the bullet once in awhile, eh.......that last part is for "dogsbody"

Again, thanks for the reply
Dennis

[Kiwithrottlejockey]

I can absolutely guarantee you won't regret purchasing a copy of that book.

It literally is the Grumman Goose, Widgeon and Mallard bible.

An absolute mine of information about every single airframe produced, including also the SCAN Widgeons.

And in the preface at the front of the book, it mentiones that the author is likely to produce a volume 2 covering the Grumman Albatross.

I will definitely be purchasing a copy of that book too when it eventually (hopefully) appears.

[WhyMe]

Do you know if and how detailed the "Petulant Porpoise" is covered in this book?

[OGJ]

First word………….Yahooo!!, its arrived, the book "The Grumman Amphibians - Goose, Widgeon & Mallard" After just thumbing through it I only have three words to describe it: Absolutely Astounding & Mindboggling.

The biggest surprise was the delivery, ordered it on Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018, (they ship on Mondays, I didn't read the fine print), Monday at 4:30am (my time Chilliwack, B. C., Canada) I received an e-mail that it was approved and would be going out. Today, Sept. 20, 2018 at 1:30pm (my time) a notice was in my mail box that a package too big to fit in the community mail box and to come to the Post Office to pick it up. Package states shipped on Sept. 18, 2018 and was delivered on Sept. 20, 2018………….another Absolutely Astounding & Mindboggling situation as we have mail from Vancouver, which is approx. 55 miles or 88kms away take 4 / 5 or more days to receive it, Even the woman at the Post Office couldn't believe a package could leave Tonbridge, England and arrive in Chilliwack, B. C. Canada in 3 days. My hat is off to "Air-Britain (Trading) Ltd".

And a big thank you to "Kiwithrottlejockey", you were 100% right about "I can absolutely guarantee you won't regret purchasing a copy of that book"
You wouldn't absolutely guarantee a winning lotto ticket number, here in Canada, would you?.......I'll split it with you

I will need a few or more day to read it over and then maybe I will be able to answer the questions I asked at the beginning of this thread, if I can I'll post it here.

Dennis

[dogsbody]

Ah, good ol' Canada Post. Takes 10 days for a letter to cross town, 4 days to cross the country and 2 days from the UK.

So now you'll be our leading expert on all things Goose related.

Enjoy the read.


Chris

[Kiwithrottlejockey]

It always amazes me how quickly mail from the UK (including parcels) reaches New Zealand, literally on the opposite side of the world. Mail from Australia (just a short hop across The Ditch aka the Tasman Sea) generally takes three-to-four times as long. Ditto mail from the USA, unless I pay for priority mail.

Something else I've noticed ... mail from, say, the USA sent via priority mail (with online tracking provided by USPS) will generally reach NZ and clear customs within only a handful of days. Then, it takes NZ Post several days to shift it from Auckland down to Masterton where I live. Often, the journey from Auckland to Masterton is considerably longer than the journey from wherever it was posted in the USA to being cleared by NZ Customs. Unless the mail comes from the UK, in which case it seems to be delivered by NZ Post with lightning speed. Kinda makes you wonder, eh?


However, I'm glad you like the book. As I already stated, it literally is the Grumman Goose, Widgeon & Mallard bible. There is only one other book I'd recomment on this topic, but it is much more focused and is also a lot more difficult to get hold of a copy. “Grumman Mallard — The Enduring Classic” by Fred W. Hotson & Matthew E. Rodina Jr. (published in 2006 by Robin Brass Studio and Fred W. Hotson). The book is out-of-print, but if you are interested in the Mallard, I'd highly recommend trying to track down a copy, but good-condition examples tend to be expensive (see this search at Biblio.com). I did for a time have two copies (the bookshop in Wellington, NZ I purchased the first copy from was closing down and slashed the price of their stock, so I grabbed the sole remaining copy of the book they had in stock at half-price), but I later swapped the second copy with somebody for another book.