Dr. Zooch Saturn 1b build thread

[Owen Eldridge]

I was there back in April, but no one mentioned a bus tour

The bus tour started up again last year after being discontinued due to increased security at the arsenal after 9/11.

 

[NJRick]

I am hoping your 1b's sell better....if not, I may have to buy about 20 ASTP's to stock up!

Owen, yes, I have designed a Saturn I, Block I to go with the other Saturn I rockets in the series- in fact there is one sitting right next to me. I simply have not brought the kit to market yet. I solved the issue of the "Clover Leaf" boat tail way back in 2007. It will not, however, be coming out anytime soon. I'm really loaded down right now on all of the other kits in the line and, to be quite frank, the Saturn Is are very slow sellers. So, I have to assemble and send the kits that my retailers demand the most.

 

[AlphaSigOU]

I was there back in April, but no one mentioned a bus tour

May have been curtailed because of sequester.

Murphy, huh? Used to live in 'Wide-Awake Wylie' before I shipped out to Kwajalein.

 

[Owen Eldridge]

Yeah, Murphy/Wylie has really changed over the past 8 years. What part of Wylie?

May have been curtailed because of sequester.

Murphy, huh? Used to live in 'Wide-Awake Wylie' before I shipped out to Kwajalein.

 

[AlphaSigOU]

Yeah, Murphy/Wylie has really changed over the past 8 years. What part of Wylie?

Far west side of Wylie, almost on the border with Murphy.

 

[Owen Eldridge]

Really? Cause I live really near to the border of Wylie/Murphy/Sachse. Hey, you didn't happen to live on McCreary Rd?

Far west side of Wylie, almost on the border with Murphy.

 

[AlphaSigOU]

Really? Cause I live really near to the border of Wylie/Murphy/Sachse. Hey, you didn't happen to live on McCreary Rd?

Just off McCreary Road and McMillen, on the other side of the Southfork mobile home park.

 

[Owen Eldridge]

Its a small world...

Just off McCreary Road and McMillen, on the other side of the Southfork mobile home park.

 

[NJRick]

OK....for the past couple of weeks I have been checking out some images and stuff . I want to make the Dr. Zooch Skylab version of the 1b. The Skylab versions include the all white fuel tanks. Personally, I like the all white tank version of this rocket. Dr. Zooch makes every version of the Saturn 1b and they all fly great! I have built them all previously, but since then I have learned some new tricks from the gifted builders on this Forum and ts my intention to make everyone of them again!

OK....here is the Skylab version of the Zooch kit with the neat box art.


I am going to try to make the last Skylab mission..SA-208 Skylab 4. I am going to try to add some extra details to the kit, but as in the Apollo 7 build earlier in this thread, the goal is to try to use low cost stuff in an effort to add just a bit of extra detail to this kit. The Zooch 1b is my favorite kit of all time. Building it stock from the box gives you a great looking rocket that flies great for about $25. I think just a little bit of extra work with a little bit of patience, can make this kit look even better!

 

[NJRick]

I have recently ordered some CD disks from a company called Retro Space Images....they have photo CDs of all the US manned missions. I have purchased all of the disks that involve later Saturn 1b versions (Skylab and ASTP) (I am currently waiting for Al Bean's Skylab 3 disc to come) I will attach a link in case you want to check them out. https://www.retrospaceimages.com/ all of the following pictures are from the Skylab 4 disk from Retro Space Images. There are a lot of images that I have never seen before and they make a great reference for builders.

so...lets set the stage for this cool looking beast!!

 

[NJRick]

I remember watching these missions go up when I was in 4th grade. I fell in love with this rocket at that time....gosh I wish I could have seen one of these in person (or a Saturn V).... sigh....I will have to settle for the video and images I guess...but damn, this is one sexy looking machine.

OK...time to go roll some tanks. I will post some pictures later. I have already made the engines and the fins are drying in the paint shop as I type this (the garage....) Thanks for following!

 

[NJRick]

OK..another production run of fuel and lox tanks up here.....once you get the hang of rolling the tanks, you will find that you can zip thru these little rascals pretty quickly...I rolled 27 tanks in a little over an hour up here...I already had tanks rolled previously when I made the Apollo 7 1b....so I only need to pull one or two from this batch....I am in good shape for future builds here!



as I described earlier in this thread...you have to be careful when lining the tank up for the initial roll...getting a good tank is all dependent upon getting a good straight initial roll...if you do that, then the lettering should be reasonably vertical...like below


if you are the slightest bit off when you make the initial roll...in that the paper is not lined up square with the rolling dowel , then you lettering will not be vertical...the tank below was rejected!:no:



the tanks not selected for this build will be carefully stored away in a temperature controlled environment that will keep them ready for the next build.....umm...they will be placed in a plastic baggy in the closet down here in the man cave....:eyeroll:

 

[luke strawwalker]

Looking good... nice tips! OL JR

 

[Owen Eldridge]

Yes! This is going to be an awesome build!

 

[DeWain]

Has anyone tried using BT4 tubes for the tank tubes? The BT 4 is 0.448" OD, so it should work well with the 1/152-ish ant scale. Not sure if this would make the model too heavy or cause other problems.

If you print out the shrouds on regular bond paper and put a *thin* (really thin) layer of white glue, you can put the paper wraps around a body tube.

 

[NJRick]

OK...spider beam assembly is complete....this will go into the paint shop for a coat of black paint...that will hide the assembly... after the tanks are installed, it won't be as easy to see the interior structure.




next up will be some sanding...here is the SLA, Apollo capsule and the LES...we will sand these nice and smooth and then get them ready for paint.

 

[NJRick]

thanks Luke.....I will be posting pictures as I go along...this build is intended to be a supplement to the original build thread....kinda why I attached it here. over the past year since I wrapped up the Apollo 7 SA-205 build...I have had some time to look over pictures etc and I had some ideas to add to this neat little kit.

Looking good... nice tips! OL JR

 

[NJRick]

thanks Owen!! I hope that you will enjoy it! You did a great job with your build of this 1b!

I love building and I really enjoy detailing this kit. Of all the Dr. Zooch kits, and I have made many...not all of them (yet), but many, but the Skylab/ASTP Saturn 1b is my favorite kit. There is a lot of detail that can be added to this kit, that won't cost much money, and I think it really adds to the kit.

Yes! This is going to be an awesome build!

 

[NJRick]

DeWain....my tanks roll out to be about 11 mm in diameter...so those tanks would probably be pretty close...but I suspect it might throw the balance off. These tanks are rolled card stock. I have a mini scale on order (another great suggestion by Luke Strawalker...thanks Luke..but you have great suggestions...cost me like $6 on flea bay) but I don't have it yet and can't give you the weight of my tanks.

Honestly, rolling the tanks with this kit is not that difficult. I find these tanks to be much easier to roll than the Zooch R-7 tanks (its those witch hats.....) But, once you get the steaming trick down, you will find yourself shooting the 1b tanks out like nothing. I would love to try the Semroc or Apogee 1b..but honestly, I don't have any place to put it once its completed. The Zooch kits store right in their box and for me at least, that's just ideal.

Has anyone tried using BT4 tubes for the tank tubes? The BT 4 is 0.448" OD, so it should work well with the 1/152-ish ant scale. Not sure if this would make the model too heavy or cause other problems.

If you print out the shrouds on regular bond paper and put a *thin* (really thin) layer of white glue, you can put the paper wraps around a body tube.

 

[NJRick]

can't forget our S-IVb stage and our service module....these will also get a couple of coats of filler.

 

[Owen Eldridge]

I see you already have fins prepared in the background. They look really smooth.

 

[NJRick]

thanks Owen....I usually start my 1b builds by doing the engines and the fins before I break the seal on the box....The fins are ready. I have made probably about 6-7 different engines up here...not sure I like them yet and will probably do them over. Tonight I'll paint the S-IVb stage and attach the thrust structure to the spider beam assembly. Its so darned cold up here....its tough to get the garage heated up where its warm enough to paint....I miss those nice warm summer days where you can put a coat of paint down and let it outside in the sun and its dry in an hour or so!

I see you already have fins prepared in the background. They look really smooth.

 

[NJRick]

OK...sorry I don't have any pictures to post but its been a busy night on the 1b up here! I finished painting the S-IVb stage. The Apollo capsule, LES tower and the SLA transition are in the paint show right now. I was able to glue the thrust structure onto the spider beam assembly. With a little luck, we may be able to hang some tanks tomorrow!

 

[NJRick]

OK....time to assemble our S1-b stage.....first we take our completed spider beam and thrust structure assembly


then we begin to hang the tanks...always a momentous occasion!!:horse:




after putting some glue on ring #3....we gently use the shock cord on the kit to let the tanks dry....later tonight I'll put a thick glue fillet around ring #3 (the centering ring immediately above the tanks) and then let that dry thoroughly. she is starting to come together!

 

[NJRick]

OK...this morning the S-IVb stage was mated to the S-1b stage! fit perfectly!

 

[NJRick]

and Houston...we've had a problem up here....

[video=youtube;eco_xvkEQlg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eco_xvkEQlg[/video]

Ok...when I went to trim the wraps that would cover the thrust structure I noticed that the wrap is 1" wide while my thrust structure tube is 1 1/4" wide.

 

[NJRick]

I have decided to organize some Tiger teams up here to work the problem..I am reaching out to my support team (Dr. Zooch) as well...I think the thrust structure tube is supposed to be 1" wide and that I will have to trim 1/4" off of the upper section of this tube (very carefully I may add..). I have looked at my other 1bs and I think this tube is the incorrect length....but before I do anything I want to think it through...lets work the problem! we don't want to make anything worse by guessing!
[video=youtube;OHB7hU_r8mc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHB7hU_r8mc[/video]

 

[NJRick]

OK...talk about customer service, took Wes less than an hour to respond to my email. This was just a miss cut tube, it should be 1.0 inches as suspected. He has offered a replacement but I declined, I think I can save this up here. I will do some cutting later this afternoon. The Tiger team is getting in gear!

I have to add this.....this is my 30th Dr. Zooch build....I have built most of his kits....and this is the ONLY time I have ever had an issue with either a missing part or a miss cut tube etc. Truthfully, considering the fact that he assembles these kits personally by hand..I would say his accuracy rate is pretty darned near perfect!

 

[NJRick]

OK...the thrust structure tube has been repaired..piece of cake for the Tiger team....I used the wrap to draw a nice straight edge on the tube,

then using a tip I learned from Mushtang...it was a process of gently scoring the line around the body tube...not trying to stab it like a bayonet..but gently scoring it over and over until we cut through the tube. (thanks Mushtang!!)


I didn't want to cut the paper tanks underneath it...then I cut a vertical line and began to peel the unwanted portion of the tube away



problem fixed!

 

[NJRick]

OK....its time to attach the wraps for the S-1b thrust structure, the S-IVb and the IU. I am using the awesome wraps that Rosko Racer has made for the Dr. Zooch Saturn 1b....Rosko's wraps now encompass ALL of the Saturn 1b missions....just a great job! Thanks Rosko!!


After spraying a light clear coat on these, just carefully trim them from the sheet using a straight edge and attach. I try to line the edges up on one side of the rocket. A black roll band on the S-IVb wrap should be directly over a fuel tank.



as I mentioned earlier in this thread...when you attach the thrust structure wrap make sure to start the wrap where a fuel tank (tanks with the lettering) meets a LOX tank (plain white tank)....the wrap is also a fin guide and will help you line up where the fins will attach to the stage. She is starting to look like a 1b!