First Build Thread......Estes Semi Scale V2

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Chuck

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After lurking around for the past few months I feel that my building skills have improved enough to warrent a worthwhile build thread. So, after sorting through all of my kits I decided to start the Estes V2.

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Here is the layout of all the parts. I ditched the stock parachute and shock cord. I replaced them with braided kevlar and a 24" ripstop nylon parachute.

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This is the MMT test fitted together.

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This picture has the fins test fitted into the boat tail.

Next step is to start glueing everything together!
 
Per the instructions I first assembled the MMT. I am using Elemer's wood glue for this portion of construction.

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While that was drying I determined where the launch lugs needed to be placed and glue them into their correct locations.

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The inital glue was dry on the MMT and after I filleted the edges of the centering rings I taped down the excess kevlar shock cord to the back of the forward CR.

DSCN1035.JPG

At this point everything was going together great. I let it dry for a few hours (my wife and I went to see Guilt Trip, if you havent seen it is funny!). Upon my return I decided to glue the MMT into the BT and attach the boat tail. I used wood glue to attach the upper two CRs to the BT and I used a bit of Locktite instant epoxy to attach the rear CR to the plastic boat tail.

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More to follow shortly.........
 
This is a great kit, I must get another. Lost the first one to the tree monsters on it's maiden voyage.
 
The following two pictures show everything test fitted together. Please note that the MMT and Boat tail are already glued into place.

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Next is to attach the fins. Up to this point I have not toched the fins, other that to test fit them into the boat tail. Tomorrow I will sand them down and attach them. As of right now I am planning on using polyurthane glue (Gorilla Glue) to attach the fins to the plastic boat tail. Any thoughts or recommendations?

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I have enjoyed the build up to this point and look forward to finishing it this week. Hopefully, the weather will stay warm and sunny so I can paint! I am not sure what colors I will end up using but I will post pics as I get to that point.

More to follow tomorrow evening!
 
This is a great kit, I must get another. Lost the first one to the tree monsters on it's maiden voyage.

That to bad. What motor did you fly? I'm thinking about using a C11 as an inital flight motor.

I agree, this is a great kit!
 
Stay away from the gorilla glue., It expands as it cures and is foamy and a mess to work with and paint.
I would just stick with a good quality epoxy or whatever the instructions recommend.
 
Stay away from the gorilla glue., It expands as it cures and is foamy and a mess to work with and paint.
I would just stick with a good quality epoxy or whatever the instructions recommend.

There is a gorilla wood glue... it doesnt foam... i use it for any paper tube builds i do and it holds up fine... in the case of op he is better off with epoxy for the fins to tail cone...
 
I have this kit at home, and I'll be building it after I finish my Mini Red Max (painting stage), replacement SR-71 (decals stage), and a replacement Mega Mosquito (still in the package).

I don't have a fin guide like the one in the picture you posted, and having never used one I have some questions about it. Why would you need to use it on this kit since the fins are TTW? I'd think that the slots would make sure the fins are aligned properly. Also, does your launch lug mess up the alignment since it looks like it's keeping the top from sliding down and touching the tube?
 
I have this kit at home, and I'll be building it after I finish my Mini Red Max (painting stage), replacement SR-71 (decals stage), and a replacement Mega Mosquito (still in the package).

I don't have a fin guide like the one in the picture you posted, and having never used one I have some questions about it. Why would you need to use it on this kit since the fins are TTW? I'd think that the slots would make sure the fins are aligned properly. Also, does your launch lug mess up the alignment since it looks like it's keeping the top from sliding down and touching the tube?

Good questions. I dont know if you have looked at the boat tail, but the modeler has to cut out the slots for the fins. When I cut them out I cut two that are good and two that are okay. One of the "bad" sets is pretty big allowing the fin to flop around while the second "bad" cut is a litter narrower than the two "better" sets. I probably could get away with out using my fin jig but since I have it why not use it. If you follow the directions fins come out perfectly square every time.

The fin gig is called the Guillotine Fin Jig. I bought it from Apogee Components for $85 plus shipping.

A word of advice, pay extra attention when you go to cut out the slot for the fins. I was sitting in front of the TV hanging out with my wife while I was working and that is why a couple of my cuts are sloppier than I would like. However, when it comes to final glueing, I think that even if I did not have the guillotine fin jig I would make one using the fin guide tool found on payloadbay.com.

Regarding your questions about the launch lug placement. I think that what you are seeing is a bad picture. The NC sits flush with the BT and the rocket sits on my launch rod perfectly fine.
 
Regarding your questions about the launch lug placement. I think that what you are seeing is a bad picture. The NC sits flush with the BT and the rocket sits on my launch rod perfectly fine.

I meant that it looked like the top of the fin jig was resting on the launch lug and wouldn't close all the way onto the BT, but as you said it might have been just the angle that the picture was taken.

I'm watching this thread with interest since I'll be building one.

What are your painting plans? What pattern will you go with?
 
Mushtang,

You are correct. The launch lug was between the BT and the top of the fin jig hole. However, it doesnt matter. The fins are tall enough and the jig held the fin in the proper place. I am planning on posting more pictures tonight as I continue to build.

I am not sure about paint yet.......
 
More development

This morning I went to home depot and picked up this DSCN1044.JPG and spraied it onto the fins. I went to the gym and upon my return all of the fins were extremely warped beyond my abilities to repair. I am thinking that I spraied to heavy of a coat. I bet if I would have done lighter coats it might have worked to seal the balsa.

After finding my warped fins I took the best one and used it as a template to make more. I made a total of six, the first two were a little rushed because I was frustrated. After I cut out four usable fins I started to sand them down. They are close to the original but not perfect. However, I think that they will fly fine.....only time will tell.

When I sanded the fins, I sanded them down to be a uniform size and shape and then rounded the leading and trailing edges.

Here are a few pictures for ya'lls enjoyment.

DSCN1047.JPG

I used a coupler and extra piece of tubing to extend the BT so the launch lugs would no longer get in the way.

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I am using 15min epoxy to attach the fins to the MMT and to the boat tail. For those that are unaware the fins are TTW.

DSCN1049.JPG

For being a pretty loose in the slot I think I did a good job getting the fin square.

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As of now this will be the paint scheme I am going to use for this model. I would like to get the 4" LOC and the ESTES kit has been a way to test the water. I'm not 100% set, I might switch it to one of the camo paint schemes.
 
Stay away from the gorilla glue., It expands as it cures and is foamy and a mess to work with and paint.
I would just stick with a good quality epoxy or whatever the instructions recommend.

It is even worse if you make a mistake. Sanding it is a bear.
 
Thanks everybody for the heads up about the gorilla glue. I would never have guessed about it being foamy and hard to sand. I attached the remaining fins today. I continued to use BSI 15min epoxy. Tomorrow I am planning on completing the fillets. I will post pictures once everything is ready for paint.
 
Update....

Today I filleted all of the fins. Tomorrow I will prep and prime the V2. I am not planning on posting any pictures until it is primed and masked off for the final coats of paint. The wife and I have planned a trip for the long weekend so I am guessing that I will not have the rocket completed until early next week. We will see and I will post updates as they become available.

For everybody following and watching, thanks for the support!

~Chuck G.
 
Looks awesome so far!! you are doing a great job on her!

More development

This morning I went to home depot and picked up this View attachment 112747 and spraied it onto the fins. I went to the gym and upon my return all of the fins were extremely warped beyond my abilities to repair. I am thinking that I spraied to heavy of a coat. I bet if I would have done lighter coats it might have worked to seal the balsa.

After finding my warped fins I took the best one and used it as a template to make more. I made a total of six, the first two were a little rushed because I was frustrated. After I cut out four usable fins I started to sand them down. They are close to the original but not perfect. However, I think that they will fly fine.....only time will tell.

When I sanded the fins, I sanded them down to be a uniform size and shape and then rounded the leading and trailing edges.

Here are a few pictures for ya'lls enjoyment.

View attachment 112748

I used a coupler and extra piece of tubing to extend the BT so the launch lugs would no longer get in the way.

View attachment 112749

I am using 15min epoxy to attach the fins to the MMT and to the boat tail. For those that are unaware the fins are TTW.

View attachment 112750

For being a pretty loose in the slot I think I did a good job getting the fin square.

View attachment 112751

As of now this will be the paint scheme I am going to use for this model. I would like to get the 4" LOC and the ESTES kit has been a way to test the water. I'm not 100% set, I might switch it to one of the camo paint schemes.
 
UPDATE:

Today I primed the V2. I have two heavy coats of prime. I am going out of town this weekend, so I will most likely sand the prime and apply the first coat of paint either Monday evening or Tuesday. Of course all of the depends on weater. Hopefully, it will be warm and sunny next week. I am planning on flying the V2 at the Bayboro, NC launch next weekend.

Once I have the whit coat down and masked for the black layers I will post pics. I will also post a final picture once it is complete. After its first flight, I will post a brief launch report.
 
Any updates?!? I'm looking at pickin one of these kits up and I can't wait to see yours with the original paint job. Btw it looks great so far, even with the fin mishap, that's tragic haha I feel your pain!
 
that is a great rocket mine has many flights. Are you going to include the Frau in Mond decal that goes with that paint scheme as well? some one else recently posted the artwork on the forum. If you can't find let me know I think I still have the file, you'll have to resize it as it is on a large scale V2. If you haven't found it yet v2rocket.com is an excellent V2 resource.
 
Machet_Man: I think you should pick up one of these kits. It is a great rocket and alot of fun to fly. My only flight was with an aerotech E20-4. It went pretty high but landed around 100 feet from my launch pad. However, the nose and body did seperate during the decent. I am not 100% sure what happened. The body has a little bit of cosmetic damage while the nose cone is fine. The rocket is still primed. I have been focusing on a Madcow 4" Phoenix which I am building for a level 1 attempt. Since you are interested, I'll try to fnnish it up soon and post pictures. I have 6 LPR that need paint, I just enjoy building and flying more than painting.....

mjennings: I am not planning on any form of decals........

Thanks for the interest, I'll finnish her up soon and post completed pictures!

~Chuck
 
Oh take your time on the kit! I don't want you to rush on it, it's too cool of a kit to rush haha. I may pick one up from hobbylinc along with some other misc. things for a scratch build I have in mind!

Look forward to seeing it complete:)

Tripp
 
I'm not gonna rush anything.....I just need to paint which is what I hate doing!
 
Oh I gotcha, painting is kinda a chore but once it turns out amazing its worth the patience and time. Ive learned that over the course of many rushed rocket projects that got a coat of primer looking semi-decent and then after a crappy paint job looked well...crappy haha
 
Afterburners, the kit does not come with a nylon chute or the kevlar. I dont like the plastic trash bags chutes so i swapped it out. Also, I prefer kevlar for the shock cord.
 
I have this kit ordered and it looks like it's well made. It actually comes with Kevlar? Correct me if I'm mistaken, but it looks like a nylon chute in the first post?

My example did not come with Kevlar. It came with the standard Estes rubber band. I replaced it with Kevlar and an elastic shock cord.
 
I can't wait to start mine, I've had it for some time. I picked up a longer body tube, and a baffle for mine. Yellows my favorite color, I'm not sure though if I want that and black or white/black..your doing a great job, cannot wait to see the final pictures...good luck on the launch!
 
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