Curiosity and Experimentation

In another thread, someone spoke of soaking blue tube with sanding sealer to strengthen it.

I've been using minwax wood hardener to strengthen balsa. It penetrates using ketones. It hardens with resins. Anyone ever tried it in paper tubes? I'm wondering how it would do.

I'm thinking of trying it in some loc tubes. What do you think?

Lacquer or sanding sealer will moisture proof it.
If minwax does same, then fine.

But LOC tubes have a glassine layer on the outside,[blue tube does not] don't know if any of the above will penetrate that.

Hmm the glassine could be an issue. Could always sand off the glassine. Heard of one guy peeling it off in a single continuous strip. Guess I'll just have to experiment.

I routinely strip the LOC tubes of the glassine. Kids love that part. Hand 'em an airframe or MMT and tell them to go nuts!


Later!

--Coop

It's difficult to get it in just one strip. I do find it helpful to use an Exacto knife to pilot a thin peel layer at one end of the tube and also remove any little "islands" of glassine that don't come off in peeling.

This thread takes the credit for the rocket I built in my dreams last night.
It will just be a lpr job, but it will be a white body tube with stained wood fins and nosecone.

Leave the glassine layer on and soak the tube from the inside. Never done it, just a thought.

455 Buick said:

Leave the glassine layer on and soak the tube from the inside. Never done it, just a thought.

Click to expand...

I've used CA and thinned epoxy to coat the insides ends of paper tubes. It keeps the insides in good shape where the couplers fit. It usually takes some sanding afterwards, but I don't see any reason you couldn't do the whole tube like 455 Buick suggested.

455 Buick said:

Leave the glassine layer on and soak the tube from the inside. Never done it, just a thought.

Click to expand...

...and a great thought! This is why I love this forum! I wonder how it would penetrate...

Once I get my rocket lab back, I'm going to try this on some scrap tubing I've got floating around...


Later!

--Coop

Other than for paint, what does the glassine actually do?

Kruegon said:

In another thread, someone spoke of soaking blue tube with sanding sealer to strengthen it.

I've been using minwax wood hardener to strengthen balsa. It penetrates using ketones. It hardens with resins. Anyone ever tried it in paper tubes? I'm wondering how it would do.

I'm thinking of trying it in some loc tubes. What do you think?

Click to expand...

I'm glad you brought this up...my memory of the body tube & lacquer sanding sealer was from this thread/post:

Binder Design said:

Lacquer sanding sealer. One coat, sand smooth, second coat, sand smoother. Easy to sand and not only provides a smooth finish, but seals the wood to keep it from future warping/checking. Something rattlecan primer and paint won't do. Makes it virtually waterproof. One can goes a long way.

Here's another tip for those with cardboard rockets....You can apply it to the insides of your tubes to seal the paper. It seals it and strengthens it at the same time. i will be flying a 4" diameter paper and wood rocket on a 75mm M motor with a rocket treated in this manner.

Click to expand...

I've been meaning to contact Binder, to find out, how the heck do you get it on the *inside* of the body tube? I just experimented with my Big Dog body tube, and applied it to the inside via a kludged "tamping" rod, but there must be a better way.

Incidentally, I was just at the old rocketmaterials.org website, at the archive.org "way back machine" and at the bottom of his tube crush test, he remarked that "Note that (in both cases) the PML failure was at the spiral grove. You guys that fill in your spirals with glue my have an added benefit you didn't even realize you had" so there definitely seems to be some logic behind filling and sealing paper tubes.

I always soak the inside of body tubes with super thin CA. It prevents the black powder residue from building up and drawing moisture into the tube.
Yes, it takes a lot of CA, but it is worth it in my opinion.

TopRamen said:

I always soak the inside of body tubes with super thin CA. It prevents the black powder residue from building up and drawing moisture into the tube.
Yes, it takes a lot of CA, but it is worth it in my opinion.

Click to expand...

The other option that I use once in a while is to spray the inside of a finished rocket with the $0.98 Walmart rattle can paint. It puts enough of a coating on the inside that it will lengthen the life of the cardboard some whether it is moisture or ejection gases. This will also work for MMTs if they are longer then some of the motor ejection motors you fly. Like Hobbyline motor in a rocket with a 8" long 29mm MMT . You do have to be careful not to put it on too thick or get any drips in there or the motor won't want to fit.