Why you should finally finish that Cosmodrome Vostok kit sitting in your build pile,

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Daddyisabar

Oddroc scum. Mindsimmer.
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Finally got around to my second high power launch using the mighty H242 T in a Cosmodrome Vostok. Built it stock, no glass or fancy motor retention and used a Dynastar 58?€? parachute to bring the booster section down nice and soft. Just paper and glue with a few metal parts and I maxed out all the weight restrictions at our launch site. With some expert advice on chute packing and delay drilling it was close to a perfect flight. The Gods were with us as the weather was calm, the chutes deployed and it landed in a nice spot in between the big boulder, rocket eating trees and the swamp. This little piggy sure soaks up all the quick power a motor can put out off the pad and slows down fast. With a little embellishment it looks good to.

Vostok 2.jpgVostok 3.jpgVostok 4.jpgVostok 6.jpgVostok 8.jpg

Video:

[video=youtube;6Uwgw8dqUcU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Uwgw8dqUcU[/video]
 
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More Pics. Vostok pre-flight inspection by the crew and the last moments on pad lookin' purdy before the button is pushed. Booster section avoided all landing zone obstacles and hazards by the hairs of its chinny-chin-chin!


Vostok group.jpgVostok landing.jpgVostok pad.jpg
 
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That is BEAUTIFUL! :cheers: Great job! Fantastic craftsmanship and the patience of a saint! How many hours do you have into her?

It's always been one of my favorite (real) and (kit) rockets but I know I would never finish building one.
 
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That is BEAUTIFUL! :cheers: Great job! Fantastic craftsmanship and the patience of a saint! How many hours do you have into her?

It's always been one of my favorite (real) and (kit) rockets but I know I would never finish building one.

Thanks. I did not count the hours but I would say it takes seven to ten times as long to build a Vostok than an ordinary HPR rocket. I built it on and off as I did other projects over the past two years. Nothing is overly hard to construct, although you need to know how to boil water to steam the shrouds. If you build the Zooch and then a Noris you are ready for the Cosmodrome. I added a few cosmetic embellishments but otherwise it is built stock and that makes things a lot easier. I used Excelsior decals and the kit provided CCCP sticker. I did go through about three big jars of sanding sealer on the shrouds and that dope really stiffened them up while providing a nice finish base. Epoxy here, tacky glue there, HPR technique on some, LPR technique on others, the Vostok is a real nice "builders" kit.
 
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Come on by! We had a flying Sumo wrestler, 2 Bomarcs, a High power Mega DRM, Go Pro videos, a tapeworm, a tiny Saturn V, an AT Sumo, and a four motor scratch cluster all before the wind came up.

Sure. Rub it in! I was prepped and ready to go but 4 year old twins got in the way... Hopefully next time.
 
That big rock gives me the creeps. After landing so close to it I would either find a way to move it pile a mound of dirt over it. That is one beautiful build!
 
Finally got around to my second high power launch using the mighty H242 T in a Cosmodrome Vostok. Built it stock, no glass or fancy motor retention and used a Dynastar 58” parachute to bring the booster section down nice and soft.
Looks good! What length of delay did you use on the motor? Any damage to the paper on the boosters? I really really need to finish mine... :(
 
Looks good! What length of delay did you use on the motor? Any damage to the paper on the boosters? I really really need to finish mine... :(

All that was available when I bought the motor was a medium delay so I hacked it down to a short with the Xacto knife. This kit needs a short delay as the weight and drag slow it down real fast after the nice kick of the 242. No damage at all as I use a 58” chute on the booster section. On the nose cone I used the recommended cute that came with the kit, it was OK, I got a very tiny chip on the hardened balsa nose cone. For the next launch I will use the bigger chute that came with the kit on the nose. This is a calm weather bird for sure, needing the biggest chutes possible if built stock. No fancy Nomex heat shields either. Just a float paper and dog barf sandwich for wadding.
 
That big rock gives me the creeps. After landing so close to it I would either find a way to move it pile a mound of dirt over it. That is one beautiful build!


The park moved in big boulders as part of an erosion control program and they left a few spare ones lying around. Out West there aren't that many rocket eating trees or swamps but ya have to look out for the occasional Rocky Mountain Rocket Crushin' Boulder.
 
Indeed, I couldn't agree more.

Do you have any closeups of the details you added to the boosters?

Here you go!

Vostok 9.jpgVostok 10.jpgVostok 11.jpgVostok 13.jpgVostok 14.jpgVostok 15.jpgVostok 12.jpg

Some of the capsule parts are left over vacuform from the Das Model – Noris - Soyuz kit. The corrugation is model rail road styrene, the nozzle is one that broke off the old Estes Rubicon kit; other bits are carved balsa. The little thingy on the end of the Conduit in the inter-stage is a left over paper bit from the mighty Leduc kit. I needed to use micro sol to set the decals better on the green, bad technique will get you with the green back ground. The paint is all gloss covered with Testers flat. Chrome monocoat for the booster heat shields. I could have hacked in a capsule but with the lead nose weight and all the balsa it was to mush hassle for what I wanted to do. Oh the pain and suffering of the scale builder. The embellishment is just for looks, no scale accuracy.
 
I'm assuming, though I have never build a scale model, that you paint BEFORE finally assembly?

How did you get such clean lines?
 
Yes, you do have to paint and decal the nose cone, main body and boosters separately. Then you have to hack holes in the boosters to epoxy to strakes on the main body tube. Then you have to paint the little rack thingy leaving spots to glue to, put it on and secure, and then paint again! Such are the perils of building and finishing a Vostok.


For the sharp lines use Tamya Yellow tape. You can also use the softer edge tapes like blue or Frog Tape, but I like the yellow tape if I can afford it.
 
I like the chute. How did you like using it? I hear they pack nicely and tight

It is a great chute for this application. Fold it up, tape the nosecone chute inside one of the folds, slide it down the cavernous lower body tube and you have plenty of room up top for the shock cord. Give a little pull test and you are ready to fly.
 
Looks good! What length of delay did you use on the motor? Any damage to the paper on the boosters? I really really need to finish mine... :(

On mine, I cut the delay down to 4 seconds, which is probably not recommended. It has, however, resulted in ejection right at apogee. Unfortunately, the last flight saw the top section land on the asphalt. Balsa nose cones do not like landing on asphalt. :mad:
 
BEAUTIFUL WORK Mr.Daddy !!!!!! :handshake:

I would be plenty proud of having that in my stable ,love the details !

I suppose I should dig mine out some day and just do it !

Thanks for the inspiration and thanks for posting those great pictures.

Take care

Paul T
 
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BEAUTIFUL WORK Mr.Daddy !!!!!! :handshake:

I would be plenty proud of having that in my stable ,love the details !

I suppose I should dig mine out some day and just do it !

Thanks for the inspiration and thanks for posting those great pictures.

Take care

Paul T

Thanks! Inspiring just one Sodmeister build thread would be enough for a lifetime on TRF. I can just see it now. After a two week building time and all clustered up she lifts off the pad, the boosters separate to form a perfect Korolev Cross as the main motor burns on to the the staging. The upper stage rips off with the bright CCCP emblazoned on the side. The Vostok capsule ejects and then for the final surprise Yuri dual deploys with his own parachute at 500 feet. The extra mission points require scientific notation. Golly, I sure hope my expectations are not too high! It's easy, just shake open the bag and hundreds of parts fall out. Then you say "well, I will never get them back in the bag so I have to build it." Fun with the Cosmodrome Vostok!
 
Wickedly good!!! Bet that chute raise a few brows. When you say hacked did you drill or cut? Cut sound scary without the proper delay spacer.


In any case a nice rocket comrad.
 
Wickedly good!!! Bet that chute raise a few brows. When you say hacked did you drill or cut? Cut sound scary without the proper delay spacer.


In any case a nice rocket comrad.

In Russia we have no fancy drill for delay. We just take out Xacto knife and "Cut" a cone in the center of the delay grain down deep enough to where we think it will work. Then more hacking around the edge, yes, much more hacking than cutting. One time I fling little bits of G 64 W delay grain up with knife and one of our Cessaroni fliers saw what I was doing and I got an "Oh my God" response. Reasonable hacking has always worked for me, unlike some of the drillers who seem to complain the setting on the drill was not what they got. Always remember to put hacked end towards motor!

We must use old Dr Rocket case borrowed from friend and use lots of grease in right places for our AT motor. Looking at the date on the case we can party like its 1999! I did not use the plastic cap or that disk thing included with the motor, just capped off with masking tape to hold the powder in. I'm so happy with all the left over parts; a nice red plastic cap, a great 1/4" launch lug, and a round sticker that will come in real handy on a future rocket.

It was a big chute but the somewhat "piggy" and non-bullet proofed rocket needed it. Just had to wipe off a bit of dust on the fin that hit the ground first and thank the Party it did not land on the rock.
 
In Russia we have no fancy drill for delay. We just take out Xacto knife and "Cut" a cone in the center of the delay grain down deep enough to where we think it will work. Then more hacking around the edge, yes, much more hacking than cutting. One time I fling little bits of G 64 W delay grain up with knife and one of our Cessaroni fliers saw what I was doing and I got an "Oh my God" response. Reasonable hacking has always worked for me, unlike some of the drillers who seem to complain the setting on the drill was not what they got. Always remember to put hacked end towards motor!

On AT motors I use a drill and calipers. I have absolute trust in my calipers.
 
Daddy,

I did indeed take the kit out of the bad several years ago !


It now resides in a large box........cause I cants get it back in the BAG !!

Me thinks the packaging department over at Cosmodrome is an ex watch maker and mosquito milker ! LOL


Paul T
 
Daddy your Vostok looks awesome!! I like the "frost" scheme! and cool video!! that baby flew perfectly!!


Finally got around to my second high power launch using the mighty H242 T in a Cosmodrome Vostok. Built it stock, no glass or fancy motor retention and used a Dynastar 58” parachute to bring the booster section down nice and soft. Just paper and glue with a few metal parts and I maxed out all the weight restrictions at our launch site. With some expert advice on chute packing and delay drilling it was close to a perfect flight. The Gods were with us as the weather was calm, the chutes deployed and it landed in a nice spot in between the big boulder, rocket eating trees and the swamp. This little piggy sure soaks up all the quick power a motor can put out off the pad and slows down fast. With a little embellishment it looks good to.

View attachment 154425View attachment 154426View attachment 154427View attachment 154428View attachment 154429

Video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Uwgw8dqUcU
 
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