So, I was wrapping up the paint on my current project and I noticed that I chipped off the very tip of the nose cone. Maybe the first quarter inch is broken off and is a jaggedy mess. Any ideas on how to remedy the problem?
Chipped nose cone
- Thread starter Che
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did it break off in one piece? if so try gluing it back - if you do that after back and sanded reasonable might want to use thin CA and apply a layer(it will soak in) over the top third or so of the cone. you could cut it reasonable smooth, drill a small hole, add a small dowel , toothpick or wire and then build back up using epoxy clay then sand to shape. or if you are good at getting things even you could sand it down to new shape. if it is soft balsa the thin CA trick would still be a good idea. or you could see if semroc or balsa machining or perhaps other vendors has a replacement for a few dollars
Nope, I think this one is the cat's fault. I don't recall any incident when this could have happened, so I do not have the piece or pieces that came off the tip of the nose cone.
I think my best bet is going to be to sand it down and round over the tip to the best of my ability. I thought about about building it back up, but I am really not good at working on really small stuff and my skills for such a task are a bit lacking.
I figure the nose cone (in my hands) will get dinged up anyhow, so might as well roll with the punches.
My question now is, "How the heck am I supposed to prep it for paint?" or should I not worry too much about it?
balsa sanding sealer, thinned down elmers wood filler are often used. coating the whole cone with thin CA works too but then you will have to sand a bit more than the first 2 options - you can use several coats of primer, sanding most off between coats works too. I am sure others will chime in but those are a couple of popular methods listed here all the time
Being a cabinet maker, this would be a simple fix. Chuck it in a lathe, reshape the tip, sand, seal, repaint.
Or cut it off square to the verticle centerline and glue on a small round piece of balsa and sand it down.
If ya don't have a lathe;
I've made several repairs by thinning down TiteBond II about 20% and mixing in 50% (all by volumn) of fine and medium sawdust. Use a craft (popsickle) stick and add a little at a time letting each gob dry for a few hours. Once it's a little oversized, sand to shape, seal, repaint.
As a side note, first thing I do on paper tubes is block w/320 grit, 3 coats thinned TiteBond II, block w/220 grit, (bad tubes get an additional 2 coats).
On Balsa fins, before I even cut them out, I block sand w/ 220, triple coat w/Titebon, block out again w/220 then remove the fins, bevel edges, mount, triple coat bevels, block, add lug, prime.
Balso nose cones gets chucked and spin applied thinned TiteBond.
TiteBond can be sanded after 24 hours of dry time. Keep the presure light when sanding and the paper clean using a scrap piece of blue jeans. Or your pant leg.
Or cut it off square to the verticle centerline and glue on a small round piece of balsa and sand it down.
If ya don't have a lathe;
I've made several repairs by thinning down TiteBond II about 20% and mixing in 50% (all by volumn) of fine and medium sawdust. Use a craft (popsickle) stick and add a little at a time letting each gob dry for a few hours. Once it's a little oversized, sand to shape, seal, repaint.
As a side note, first thing I do on paper tubes is block w/320 grit, 3 coats thinned TiteBond II, block w/220 grit, (bad tubes get an additional 2 coats).
On Balsa fins, before I even cut them out, I block sand w/ 220, triple coat w/Titebon, block out again w/220 then remove the fins, bevel edges, mount, triple coat bevels, block, add lug, prime.
Balso nose cones gets chucked and spin applied thinned TiteBond.
TiteBond can be sanded after 24 hours of dry time. Keep the presure light when sanding and the paper clean using a scrap piece of blue jeans. Or your pant leg.
Sounds good, I will start with the reshape, sand, seal, and repaint. I'm going to assume that I will not be terribly successful at blending to the existing paint and let it be a war wound to some extent.
Thanks for the help.
Thanks for the help.
There lies the problem, this is a long rocket where the nose cone is glued to the first body tube which makes up the first section of the rocket. If it were just the balsa nose cone, it would be a no brainer, but I'm not digging the idea of replacing the body tube and tube adapter and starting over.
You can always use a tape line at or just below the nose cone to add a 1/4" stripe around the rocket of a different color used on the rocket at a different location for contrast. I've done this before to repair damaged tube ends where I had to cut off a bit of the tube and redo the shock cord mount and repair cracked paint. Especially when you have to deal with decals aready applied.
