What did you do rocket wise today?

Started on my BOMARC. Roughed the engine pods, stuffer tube, and sketched out the wing placement. Contemplating a single D in the body tube and camera in one pod, altimeter in the other or two As in the pods and a D or options to do either. Redesigning the NC ejection system to a kicker to accommodate the length of the BT60.

Cut fins for the Gooney version of the NASA Pegasus... [emoji16]


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Beveled and cut 6 fins (for a five-finned rocket) on the CNC. I took lots of pictures. I'll post some details of the process to the "techniques" forum a little later -- because it looks like more than a few of the folks posting here have access to CNC routers.




Ordered some Q-jet A3-6 composite motors from Quest --because... just because.

A bit delinquent....

Got some goodies in the mail.
And finished my Higgs Farm

les said:

A bit delinquent....

Got some goodies in the mail.
And finished my Higgs Farm

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Your taste is impeccable. Hoping you show your build of the UFO Invader, that one has me interested but I'm hesitant about the fiberboard fins...

Oversanded one of my Semroc kits after applying too much CWF. TTW fins wouldn't fit in slots.....tried to fix....now fins are uneven and the edges that go up against the tube are slightly curved. (This is some of the softest balsa I've handled in a long time!) Oh well, put it aside and started another kit. This one is going much better! (I don't know what it is with me, I just seem to always mess up TTW fins, at least on low power stuff.)

Finished up analyzing the data from 4 sugar motor burns done yesterday. One was a failure that nearly popped my 60mm case. Gonna have to re-drill the bolt holes and hack an inch off the case. It was a very special motor construction experiment that got away and burned off in about half the time desired. Drawing board - back to it.

MichaelRapp said:

Oversanded one of my Semroc kits after applying too much CWF. TTW fins wouldn't fit in slots.....tried to fix....now fins are uneven and the edges that go up against the tube are slightly curved. (This is some of the softest balsa I've handled in a long time!) Oh well, put it aside and started another kit. This one is going much better! (I don't know what it is with me, I just seem to always mess up TTW fins, at least on low power stuff.)

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Just build it..... Only you will be able to see it. Maybe try a finer grit next time.

Started a scratch 1/11 Nike Cajun 2 stage scale rocket, 24mm to 18mm using Eggtimer Quantum for ignition of upper stage. Cajun airframe is built up with wraps of 1/16" balsa and self adhesive label paper to create a fat payload bay and the fin attachment ring. Eventually I will order another conical nose cone to make a BT50 sized payload bay so I can fly my JL3.

Shot primer on the booster section of my Broken Arrow. Against my better judgement (and the great advice of AeroAggie), I'm using rattle cans again.

Primed the rest of my BA54 and ran a bunch of drag separation numbers. 11 days until first flight.

AeroAggie, how's that Quicksilver paint coming?

Worked some more on the Nike Cajun,

Centering rings cut, top of Av-bay assembled, interstage transition shroud test fit. Shroud is made from posterboard. AvBay will be for the Eggtimer Quantum airstart and possibly booster apogee ejection.

Am attempting to press flat a couple of long skinny 1/16” basswood pieces. Applied Windex and now have them clamped.

I’ve had good luck bending balsa in the past, but I dunno if this is gonna work. Can always make new pieces if these get ruined.

neil_w said:

Am attempting to press flat a couple of long skinny 1/16” basswood pieces. Applied Windex and now have them clamped.
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I’ve had good luck bending balsa in the past, but I dunno if this is gonna work. Can always make new pieces if these get ruined.

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Usually on thinner balsa like 3/32 and 1/16 the wet glue is enough to soften it somewhat, then I use tape as a temporary backer on the opposite side to keep the material from breaking as its bent. Lots to be learned by reading books on making bent wood furniture.

rharshberger said:

Usually on thinner balsa like 3/32 and 1/16 the wet glue is enough to soften it somewhat, then I use tape as a temporary backer on the opposite side to keep the material from breaking as its bent.

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In my experience, wood glue is indeed enough to soften up the wood (sometimes annoyingly so, since it tends to bend away from the joint), and the lamination will cause the assembly to hold its shape pretty well. These guys, however, are not being glued together; they are simply being clamped together to dry.

Opened a box full of fun, which included an Estes Eggscaliber. Yes, yet another rocket. :lol:

Base coat on the booster section.



Also, I learned to not paint a mist of Rustoleum silver metallic plus a full coat of clear over a dried coat of regal red. They're all from the Rustoleum Stops Rust line, soooooo.....boo! Maybe the piece of plastic underneath contaminated the red base coat. It was just the back of a $0.99 "keep off grass" yard sign they had at Home Depot that I cleaned with some alcohol. Hmmm.

GrouchoDuke said:

Base coat on the booster section.

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Also, I learned to not paint a mist of Rustoleum silver metallic plus a full coat of clear over a dried coat of regal red. They're all from the Rustoleum Stops Rust line, soooooo.....boo! Maybe the piece of plastic underneath contaminated the red base coat. It was just the back of a $0.99 "keep off grass" yard sign they had at Home Depot that I cleaned with some alcohol. Hmmm.

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My secret to Rustoleum rattle cans:
"All in an hour, or at least 24 hours between coats" The 24 hours between coats extends to at least 72 hours between coats if it is on plastic (takes MUCH longer to cure).. so nosecones etc tend to get second colours the next week...

I have had great success in the "everything in an hour" - when I am blending colours (doing gradients etc) I can get two coats of the ultra fast drying auto primer I use (not rustoleum). The clock starts when I move to white then grey (or grey then white, depending on the final colour) Rusto primer coats, followed by two to three (or more) colour coats, all within the hour... I find 15mins between coats is normally fine for my use...

Failing to do that always gives me crazing/peeling/cracking/horrible mess...

That being said, I live in a warm and humid part of the world, but not "Jungle" warm and humid...

snrkl said:

The 24 hours between coats extends to at least 72 hours between coats if it is on plastic (takes MUCH longer to cure).. so nosecones etc tend to get second colours the next week...

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Awesome, thanks. The cans I have say less than an hour or 48. I waited 48, so it sounds like the painted plastic might have been in no-man's land. I sprayed those test pieces the same time I shot the primer on my rocket -- the rocket did fine with white over the primer. I didn't prime the plastic parts, so that may be a contributor. It sure looks like incompatible paint though. I didn't expect that since they're all from the same line.

I'd really like to add a dusting of the silver metallic to my rocket, so I'm hoping I can figure it out. I'll find some fiberglass to test on tomorrow and try again.

(Or I could have listened to AeroAggie & used a proper spray gun & paint.)

Thanks!

GrouchoDuke said:

Awesome, thanks. The cans I have say less than an hour or 48. I waited 48, so it sounds like the painted plastic might have been in no-man's land. I sprayed those test pieces the same time I shot the primer on my rocket -- the rocket did fine with white over the primer. I didn't prime the plastic parts, so that may be a contributor. It sure looks like incompatible paint though. I didn't expect that since they're all from the same line.

I'd really like to add a dusting of the silver metallic to my rocket, so I'm hoping I can figure it out. I'll find some fiberglass to test on tomorrow and try again.

(Or I could have listened to AeroAggie & used a proper spray gun & paint.)

Thanks!

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Dang it Groucho.


The only time enamels have let me down is every time...particularly when I have a deadline approaching. If you must use a rattle can, lacquers are more forgiving.

GrouchoDuke said:

AeroAggie, how's that Quicksilver paint coming?

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S l o w l y.

I'm done with silver, need to mask for blue next. Progress is interrupted by house hunting and another snap of cold weather, so maybe next weekend I'll get something done. Tomorrow we're going to look at a house with a huge garage and heated workshop....fingers crossed that it's not a POS.

AeroAggie said:

Dang it Groucho. The only time enamels have let me down is every time...

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AeroAggie said:

S l o w l y.

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Get 'er dun!

Paint mask is cut...

Finding out that the tail 'cone' of the Nike-Hercules sustainer is not conical. (Regardless of it being shown that way on every scale drawing.) Now trying to figure out a good estimate for its non-conicalness and how to model it.

Not today but this week: decals...

I’m very happy how these have turned out. I’m getting MUCH better at putting the damn things on now.

Build thread is here:
https://www.rocketryforum.com/showt...Companion-Pod-quot-SCR-Quake-L1-Build-Thread&

Decal Pics:

I love the warning signs and the snrkl labs logo!


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BDB said:

I love the warning signs and the snrkl labs logo!


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Thanks! I’m just psyched that the rocket actually looks like the design I made in OR... [emoji12]

snrkl said:

Thanks! I’m just psyched that the rocket actually looks like the design I made in OR... [emoji12]

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That is a weirdly great feeling, isn't it?

Got Drago parts all washed, realized an eye bolt on a centering ring just isn't going to be possible to attach the harness, and ordered a flat Kevlar harness from Teddy to glue to the motor mount. Since that is the first build step, no further progress was made.

Continued working on a new 4" booster with a 54mm MMT. Scratch built from my usual combination of Loc / PML odds and ends. Fins and airframe are glassed, with an extra tip to tip wrap on the fin can. Decided on Volkswagen pastel white this time with my often used Rover Pageant blue... not sure why. When finished it will be mated to the existing payload and NC assembly in the final pic. The existing black and white booster was built a couple of years back with a 38mm MMT. J impulse has become a sweet spot for me given the field I normally fly in, so I want to increase my choices - this is designed principally to take 3G Pro 54 loads.

Almost finished with the EAC Viper Upscale. Got tired of waiting for it to be dry enough to paint, so I am going with at the "looks good from far away" finish. Put the fins on and the motor-mount in. Doing the internal fillets now.