Northrop SM-62 Snark Model

CAIR67

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Hi,
First of all this is my first time posting anything in the forum. I wish I found out about this sooner as it is such a wonderful gathering place for aviation enthusiasts and information.
I recently acquired this huge Snark model it's 76"in x 44"in wingspan made out of wood and fiberglass. It was originally painted grey and than someone repainted it with a spray can silver. However they did mask around the markings. I plan on making a base for it and restoring it to possibly the red with white test scheme.
I am currently looking for photos of larger Snark models to see what type of base they might have had to give me ideas. I am also looking to see if there was a painting guide to what the different schemes were for the snark. I found a lot of pictures of the smaller snark models but not larger ones. I was told by the previous owner it sat on a pole at Hill AFB, but thats all I know about this one.
Hope I can get some help and that this constitutes an appropriate topic for the forum!!
Thanks CAIR
SilverSnark2.jpg


SilverSnark.jpg
 
Artwork by Chuck Kuderna from a 1958 Northrop ad.
 

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Stargazer2006 said:
Artwork by Chuck Kuderna from a 1958 Northrop ad.

Thanks for the kind words.
I've seen this scheme and another one with 4 or 5 closely spaced horizontal lines white lines. I wonder what the difference between the two are. Since my model has the parachute box on the tail I am looking for a matching Red/White scheme. Also I am hoping to find painting blueprints for how wide the lines were and their placement. I have the Lindberg model but I don't know how much I can rely on it for painting.

Thanks
David
 
Here's a poor quality photo that might help...
 

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From Bill Gunstons "Encyclopedia Of Rockets & Missiles"
 

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A couple more images...
 

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2 more
 

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Hi Folks,
Thanks for the pictures. I think I'm going to repaint my Snark like this one. I like how the scheme uses my particular model of Snark and it has all the features one thinks of when they picture one of these missiles. Now to just scale down the scheme to my missile. Oh and the headache of figuring out how to display it :-\.

3353616236_17537b1717_b.jpg
 
The Lindberg 1/48 Snark model is available again, uses the same paint scheme. Might come in handy for painting reference & practice.
LI91001.jpg


http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=LI91001
 
Orionblamblam said:
The Lindberg 1/48 Snark model is available again, uses the same paint scheme. Might come in handy for painting reference & practice.
LI91001.jpg


http://www.squadron.com/ItemDetails.asp?item=LI91001
Scaling up the launch trailer might make for a good display base, too. Somewhere, amidst other work-related material from my time on "Army TSSAM", I've got a copy of the Norrhrop rigging procedure for properly orienting the RATO exhausts on the Snark. The exhaust vectors need to go through the cg or you get "interesting" problems; I acquired this procedure while dealing with the boosters for this TSSAM variant.
 
CAIR67 said:
Hi Folks,
Thanks for the pictures. I think I'm going to repaint my Snark like this one. I like how the scheme uses my particular model of Snark and it has all the features one thinks of when they picture one of these missiles. Now to just scale down the scheme to my missile. Oh and the headache of figuring out how to display it :-\.

3353616236_17537b1717_b.jpg

Would love to get a high res scan of this photo.
 
The RATO's are located near CG located with thrust line direct through CG/CP location. What was the main propulsion system turbine or ramjet? Unable to get view of inlet to determine if it was subsonic or supersonic design. Any good inlet photo's? Main wings appear to use the NACA droop LE extensions for increased swept wing camber and stall stability.
 
Main propulsion system was a straight turbojet (final production one was the J57, though the J71 was used eaerlier with problems). A good write-up can be found at the usual source: http://www.designation-systems.net/dusrm/app1/sm-62.html

As a side-note, according to T.V. Jones, the trouble Northrop had in tracking the test vehicles on radar started their initial studies into low observables.
 
My God, this missile is enormous!

It is a cruise missile in the modern sense. But at the time it was designed, its role could be described as an "unmanned intercontinental expendable bomber carrying a heavy nuclear bomb". In that sense it had to be a huge sized vehicle.
 
CAO 700 said:
My God, this missile is enormous!

I understand your reaction, I was also surprised when I saw that pic, I never realized the Snark was THAT big!!!
 
Stargazer2006 said:
CAO 700 said:
My God, this missile is enormous!

I understand your reaction, I was also surprised when I saw that pic, I never realized the Snark was THAT big!!!

Yeah! Length pretty close to a B-17. Also notice lack of horizontal tail.
 
of curse its enormous Aircraft
SM-62 Snark has to fly from US to Eastblock !

its has big W-39 (4 MT) H-bomb, J57-P-17 Engine, flight electronic and fuel for 9650 km (6000 miles)

by the way
Wat is this Story about a SM-62 Snark get lost and found in Brazil as UFO wreck ?
 
Michel Van said:
...
by the way
Wat is this Story about a SM-62 Snark get lost and found in Brazil as UFO wreck ?

Yes but the little alien pilots ran away!
They were later found on the Brazil beaches cavorting with the Brazilian bikini babes!
 
Amazing... I cannot start to thank you enough, Justo, these paintings are especially brilliant! :-*
 
Isn't it amazing that Snark was a Strategic Missile (SM) - an early prefix used for the SM-65 Atlas, SM-68 Titan and the SM-80 Minuteman - all hard core ICBMs...
 
Some great photos Justo. A lot of views of the underside wings which I was looking for. Also love all those shark mouths or should I say "Snark" mouths. That reminds me of this link to restoration photos of the Air Force Space and Missile Museum's Snark http://www.afspacemuseum.org/Snark%20Restoration.htm When I finish this big snark I have the Lindberg kit and will paint that one with a snark mouth.
As far as the big Snark goes I started taking measurements and roughing in the markings to see what they will look like. All I can say is if it all comes through this model is going to look impressive. Everything has been sent to my decal maker/artist and awaiting the proof sheets. In the mean time I have started to lightly sand the paint and fix up the dings. The few original markings left will not be touched and just painted over. That way if the missile ever needs to be restored again, the next person will see what scheme the this model was. I also take plenty of photos along the way. Once again great photos and info, let's see what else surfaces!!

Thanks
 
does anyone know how landing was effected? it wasn't autonomous, was it? there must have been a man in the loop...
 
It didn't land. The warhead separated from the missile body and hit the target. The missile body crashed or broke up in flight.

See Justo's post from yesterday for a photo sequence of this.
 
Quite the contrary. Some of the test versions of the Snark did land on skids and thus landed on Cape Canaveral's wait for it.......Skid Strip. Just look at the photos above of some of the Snarks sitting on there skids. Although thats if the Snark made it off the launcher as most of them crashed in the Atlantic. The old saying goes they were going to put signs up on the Cape's beach saying "Danger, Snark Infested Waters". Also as one of the earlier posts commented the Snark has no tail just a vertical fin, a trait of Mr. Northrop and his tail-less designs. I have heard the story too of the Snark being the start to Northrop thinking about stealth technology. I have also heard of there flying wing designs not being able to be tracked on radar, which seems a lot more plausible. About the control of the Snark, as far as I know the Snark could be controlled in flight and landed by a director plane, Northrop used the F-89 in this case. The director plane would have the pilot or a navigator in the back control the missile by using a primitive joystick box like a giant radio controlled airplane. The Snark would blast off and would be flown by the on board guidance computers until the F-89 would be directed by a ground radar operator to the join up with the missile. The F-89 would fly in formation with the snark all the way down to the landing the snark would land and the f-89 would go-around. From what I have seen and read on a similar method used on the Regulus missiles you could fly the missile 50ft off the ground accurately. For the actual operational version of the snark an inter stellar guidance system would be used to guide the missile to its target, all automatically. Looking up the SACs of the Snark it is interesting to see they were considering a reconnaissance version with cameras in the nose.
 
CAIR67 said:
Stargazer2006 said:
Artwork by Chuck Kuderna from a 1958 Northrop ad.

Thanks for the kind words.
I've seen this scheme and another one with 4 or 5 closely spaced horizontal lines white lines. I wonder what the difference between the two are. Since my model has the parachute box on the tail I am looking for a matching Red/White scheme. Also I am hoping to find painting blueprints for how wide the lines were and their placement. I have the Lindberg model but I don't know how much I can rely on it for painting.

Thanks
David


I'm not sure that you'll find one document with exact marking specifications. I'm presenting these three cropped images in one frame to show the variations I've noticed in the striping on the Snark.

I hope you find this useful.

Mike
 

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CAIR67 said:
I have heard the story too of the Snark being the start to Northrop thinking about stealth technology.

I've heard it from T.V. Jones own mouth that the troubles they had tracking the Snark on radar during testing were what inspired the modern study of low-observables at Northrop. The B-2 seems to be a combine the experience of the earlier wings with the knowledge they gained from their more recent efforts initially inspired by what they saw with the Snark.
 
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