They are from an Apogee and Madcow kit.What brand of tube?
They are from an Apogee and Madcow kit.What brand of tube?
Thanks so much and for your input. Nice rockets yourself right there! I’m working on a Snarky right now and I also have a Flying Machine in the build pile!Really nice job on those rockets. Fun and creative too. (I don't think there are a lot of Devo rockets out there!) I have a few of those kits too, but don't think I did quite as good a job.
If I need to get something together quick for a Club event or holiday, I may not fill the spirals. If I am trying to get a project to look as nice as yours, I take the time, using Minwax filler (the stuff in a tube that's about the consistency of toothpaste). I do the balsa fins too to get rid of the grain. Then 1 or 2 coats of filler primer.
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Thanks so much!I fill them too! BTW Nice job on the rockets and enjoy your retirement.
LOL I would think it would be easier at least on the fill part.Nothing like a 5.5" rocket 8' long to make you reconsider filling spirals.
Doesn't make me stop, but dern.....
It's easy enough. The time and sanding curl my hair.LOL I would think it would be easier at least on the fill part.
Indeed that look freaking amazing!Then there are sometimes that the spiral just adds to the effect!
I have never filled spirals, or heard of it before my third Born Again Bar experience this year. I tried CWF, what a bumpy piece of work and lots of sanding into the tube/glassine. I have and will try the Timbermate. If that doesn't work, this is my path forward-->Absolutely, now that I'm using the water based wood filler called "Timbermate" I don't mind it anymore. Thinned down with distilled water to a heavy soup consistency, it sands to baby powder.
Every time I try to fill a spiral, the out come is that it just makes the spiral more visible. I now give them a quick spray with a sandable primer and call it quits!
In the jar it has the consistency of peanut butter witch is really too thick so the guy who turned me on to this @Wrightme43, and my experience, is you take some distilled water to thin it down to like a medium consistency of soup, not too runny but when you apply it with artist brush or any kind of a smaller brush, so that it will stick and stay where it's at, but it will still flow easily.I have and will try the Timbermate.
Genius poetry
I have a severe allergic reaction to that stuff, can't use it anymoreI don't mind filling spirals, and my medium of choice is Bondo Spot & Glazing putty.
Does it matter which Timber Mate type, such as Walnut, Maple/Beech/Pine, Red Oak, Mahogany, Natural, etc, you use... or do they all fill and spread the same?Yes sir, just mix it with water. It flows like microwaved peanut butter.
I use that way to do grain filling on open grain woods. If you want a slick finish on oak, or walnut or many other woods the grain pores need to be filled. Stuff like cherry and maple are closed grain and will finish slick with just a hand plane, card scraper or sanding.
I tried it since balsa is such a open grain wood and I wanted slick fins. I had left over and tried to fill the spirals. It sands so easy and comes out so slick I thought others would like it.
On the fins I just thin, paint it on, and clip them up to dry with both sides exposed to air so they don't want to warp from more moisture on one side than the other.
Also you can dye it, or get all sorts of wood colors. It looks cool in oak with the grain filled with walnut or cherry colored filler. It accentuates the pores, but finishes very smooth instead of having dimples in the finish.
I hope this helps.
Steve
yes, just tinted differently ,and I use distilled water.Do all types of Timber Mate spread the same (thinned with distilled water)?
John, That's a beautiful smooth finish!I don't mind filling spirals, and my medium of choice is Bondo Spot & Glazing putty.
Ernie:Thank you, Hobie1dog.
I'm getting back into building after a long time and your advice is greatly appreciated; your advice saved me money, and from having too much stuff.
I've used Elmer's Carpenter Wood Filler (many years past), as well as rattle can primer, and primer/filler, to fill spirals. I'm interested in seeing what you use, and how you use it, so I can get back up to speed making rocket with nice finishes.
I'll likely use Bondo Glazing and Spot Putty mentioned by John Brohm, but maybe not to fill cardboard tube spirals. I will likely use the Bondo on primed parts (like a styrene nose cone) to fill imperfections.
Decades ago I used 2-part Bondo auto body material for big dings in materials like plastics, wood, and MDF (Medium Density Fiber board), along with a filler called Nitro Stan, when I made product (industrial designed) models (not rockets). The auto body materials are great for rocketry.
I have a 3M Half Face respirator with organic vapor cartridges. I want clear air because I don't want vapors getting in my eyes...some products have harmful chemicals, and the damage they produce is cumulative.
Thank you, Hobie1dog
Ernie:
just find out what works best for you as far as filler materials....
John, That's a beautiful smooth finish!
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