EXPANDING foam ??

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AfterBurners

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Can you use a syringe to inject expanding into a fin can for internal fillets? Or do you have to pour it directly into the fin with the aft ring off? Never worked with it which is why I'm asking.☺.

Thanks in advance
 
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Yes you can. Mix it in cup first, then suck it into syringe and inject. Just have to be quick about it!
 
Yes you can. Mix it in cup first, then suck it into syringe and inject. Just have to be quick about it!

You better let Afterburners know what brand you use. The stuff I use has about 15 seconds or so after I mix it, before it takes off, and I mix it fast and furious.
 
I use Proline (Rocketry Warehouse) and it starts foaming at about 1 minute. I tend to delay installing the aft centering ring, mix it, pour it in and trim it down to fit once dry...
 
I'd be worried that if you inject it into a sealed fincan, and you put too much, that it would damage something... Better to leave the aft CR off to give the excess somewhere to go.
 
I use PML adjustable density as well, however I have found it starts to thicken or expand somewhere around the one min mark. Bottom line is that the two part foam options will provide a small window so you have to be organized.

I foam all my fin cans, I just foamed three 3" builds, 1 with a 38mm MMT and 2 with 54mm MMTs...limited space in the 54mm, but workable. As recommended on the PML instructions, I usually foam in small sections. One thing that I have done to help this is to make a paper shroud/funnel. Covering the MMT as the shroud and the funnel on the outside of the BT. This way you can just pour around the outside and let it drip into the cavity. Where you will have issues with this technique, is where it drips down it will start to expand out and block the cavity. So I usually use one spot, per cavity, to pour the first batch letting gravity settle the liquid before it starts to expand. Then when it expands I still have room to pour the subsequent batches, normally 3 at most.

One other thing about the PML adjustable density foam. When they say add a drop of water, they mean a drop or whatever number of drops depending on the density you are trying to obtain. I casually added a splash of water on my first batch and what a mess. I essentially ended up with a cavity full of foam that had no structural integrity at all. I had to remove it all and start again. I now just use it full strength.
 
You changed it. My work here is done.
 
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Dan, I'm gonna ask the question. Why use foam and not have epoxy fillets? Is the base plate already installed?? It can be tricky stuff but we all have to play with it sometime. Shoot us a pic of what your doing..Bill
 
Dan, I'm gonna ask the question. Why use foam and not have epoxy fillets? Is the base plate already installed?? It can be tricky stuff but we all have to play with it sometime. Shoot us a pic of what your doing..Bill

My friend wants to do it and I told him it wouldn't be a good idea for the obviously reasons stated above. He was looking at the instructions for the DarkStar and I told him they are using regular two part epoxy not expanding foam..... I would only use that if I had the aft ring off and I would pour it in and not use a syringe.
 
As the foam is an epoxy product will cooling the components allow a longer working time?

Edit: I should have said epoxy-like since its a two part and does generate some heat when curing, at least the urethane casting resins I've used do, and cooling works on them.
 
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Just an FYI!
I needed nose cone weight, to stay under our waiver (at the time 4500' AGL) in a 3" fg Little John and a 5.6" LOC I-Roc already built rockets, so I drilled a 1/4" hole in the nose cone added BB's and the PML foam, waited for the cure, epoxied the hole, finished the nose cone, perfect weight and no visible evidence of the modification.
So as said, be prepared to move quickly, and it can be done successfully!
 
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I thought the foam was polyurethane not epoxy.
I haven't tried it, but cooling slows most chemical reactions so that would probably help. Don't know how much difference it would be though.
 
The foam is urethane not epoxy. The best would be to do internal fillets and foam. Foam best done before after centering ring, but should be ok with reasonable sized hole to inject and to let excess expand through.


Mark Koelsch
Sent from my iPhone using Rocketry Forum
 
The foam is urethane not epoxy. The best would be to do internal fillets and foam. Foam best done before after centering ring, but should be ok with reasonable sized hole to inject and to let excess expand through.


Mark Koelsch
Sent from my iPhone using Rocketry Forum

Agreed...originally missed the part about the Afterburners' friend wanting to use foam instead of fillets. I do both, yes overkill but I proudly overkill all my builds :grin:
 
A word about expanding foam -

This stuff works great for doing stuff like fincans, nose cones, etc. That said, it's mostly for use in FIBREGLASS construction, or other such materials that are stiff and "solid". I've used it for rockets made with LOC tubing and/or other similar paperboard construction - but you really need to be careful when you do so. If there's ANY give whatsoever in your materials, the foam can very easily push against it and create nasty bulges and such that you didn't expect. Be forewarned.

s6
 
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