Routed Airframe Hatch

I have just posted an article (not a video!) on cutting in an airframe hatch using a router jig:
jcrocket.com/routed-hatch.shtml

Wow, that looks so much better than the work I do!!! I'm much more of a measure twice, cut twice kinda guy. I have never made a jig in my life and am still learning how to use my plunge router and router table after 2+ years. Thanks for posting the article.

I think I'll just send my BT to John with a case of beer and a $20 bill.

Nice work John. Your ideas are so incredibly elegant.

Great job John;
wonderful on HUGE models. a bit of overkill on Standard or MPR model (at least the router part). but cutting an interior setting flange is always a good idea.

Very clean. I like the fact that parts become interchangable as opposed to custom fit.

Is there a benefit to cutting the inner mounting flange off the coupler tube other than weight? Would leaving it in strengthen the body tube or will glassing take care of that?

Soon after becoming a BAR I started gathering information for the Aerobee 150A as a long term project. I discovered your project page back then. Good to see some progress happening. I will be following with great interest.

Holy Molly! Nice jigs. Your are very talented.

BrAdam said:

Very clean. I like the fact that parts become interchangable as opposed to custom fit.

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Well, not really, you have to assume the rockets, and thus the hatches, will be different colors. All other pieces are permanently mounted in the airframe.

True, but you can cut many at once and have them on hand for future projects and not have to worry about fit. Maybe I used a bad choice of words. More production part than having to custom fit each one. In any event, very cool.

Mr. Coker, that looks suspiciously like a Festool OF1400. Nice!

Rocketeers really need to take a router 101 course. You can make everything with a router and a jig.

Very elegant! Did you make the template shapes on your CNC router? I'll bet ya did....

N

BrAdam said:

Is there a benefit to cutting the inner mounting flange off the coupler tube other than weight? Would leaving it in strengthen the body tube or will glassing take care of that?

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Well, I actually cut the mounting plate from a scrap of body tube, but if you used a coupler you could double the wall thickness in that area.

botscott08 said:

Mr. Coker, that looks suspiciously like a Festool OF1400.

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Yep, love that dust collection, not to mention the great way the collet works.

Wingarcher said:

Did you make the template shapes on your CNC router? I'll bet ya did....

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Absolutely. I cut everything that I can with it. Draw once, cut many times!

JohnCoker said:

I have just posted an article (not a video!) on cutting in an airframe hatch using a router jig:
jcrocket.com/routed-hatch.shtml

Click to expand...

Nice, I never thought to use a square jig on a round tube. Which then begs the question why not use the same type jig for the actual lid/hatch cover? I would guess that you could put it on one of the two "empty" side of the main jig. Or did I miss a dimension some where?

Airobert said:

Nice, I never thought to use a square jig on a round tube. Which then begs the question why not use the same type jig for the actual lid/hatch cover? I would guess that you could put it on one of the two "empty" side of the main jig. Or did I miss a dimension some where?

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I suppose you could, but it's hard to keep a part clamped and guide the router around a cutout part, especially as you're nearing the end of the cut. (The biggest problem with this sort of thing is chattering, so you want things firmly mounted during routing.)

For things like this, I love that you can draw it and produce it... the idea and the object are the same. No more ideas frustrated by trying to gnaw them out of wood with a dremel and hacksaw. From a profit standpoint, it sure is slick........ :wink:

N

Wingarcher said:

For things like this, I love that you can draw it and produce it... the idea and the object are the same. No more ideas frustrated by trying to gnaw them out of wood with a dremel and hacksaw. From a profit standpoint, it sure is slick........ :wink:

N

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Some of us completely lack hand-eye coordination. I even worked for Dremel and I can't cut accurately with one to save my life. Routers and interesting jigs make up for that.


John, you could solve the tube holding issue and get this to work on airframes of different sizes by designing it like Apogee's fin slotting jig. I'm a big believer in modular instead of one-off jigs. I think I spent more time on jigs than actual rockets though. I've got the OF 2200...I love having the dust collection come off the top so the hose is out of the way. Yes, I'm addicted to the green Koolaid.

JohnCoker said:

I suppose you could, but it's hard to keep a part clamped and guide the router around a cutout part, especially as you're nearing the end of the cut. (The biggest problem with this sort of thing is chattering, so you want things firmly mounted during routing.)

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That's the dimension I missed-inners vs. outers... I suppose you could built the jig with tabs, but that takes the fun out....
To do temporary clamping/holding I have been using a hot glue gun. A little dab here and there it holds well and is fairly easy to remove. (At least from none raw paper...)

Absolutely impressed! What else would you expect from Mr. Coker. Made me come up with a joke (which I do quite often but for everyone's sake, I rarely share).

Chuck Norris can cut a hot knife with butter but when he wants to fly a rocket, he has John Coker build it!
No comment on the quality of my jokes...
-Ken

Thanks for the kind words all.

Unlike the majority of my recent how-to efforts, this was text/pictures instead of video. Do you like article/blog style more or less than video?

JohnCoker said:

Thanks for the kind words all.

Unlike the majority of my recent how-to efforts, this was text/pictures instead of video. Do you like article/blog style more or less than video?

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My learning style leans toward reading and visuals versus listening and visuals, so yes for me. But I'm sure others have input.

I like both depending on what topic is being covered. This one was good with the photos. Rolling FG around a tube and the way you spread the epoxy for example, video was better. By the way, tried that, it worked great.

John Coker should be considered the patron saint of all launch sites! I've incorporated at least one of your ideas into every rocket that I've built since returning to the hobby. Thank you so much for taking the time to share so many excellent techniques with us!

Cheers,
Michael

Cheers,
Michael

JohnCoker said:

Thanks for the kind words all.

Unlike the majority of my recent how-to efforts, this was text/pictures instead of video. Do you like article/blog style more or less than video?

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I greatly prefer text and pictures to video. Text and pictures are more concise and I have terrible aural skills.

JohnCoker said:

Absolutely. I cut everything that I can with it. Draw once, cut many times!

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Add a fourth axis to your CNC and you don't need to fiddle around with jigs. Just put the tubing in the rotary axis, pull up the file and hit start.

Micro, you can do the same thing on a smaller scale with a Dremel tool. I've worked down to the BT 60 size, however, as nice of a hatch that can be made is not worth the effort to do the "set up". I got lazy and just used an Exacto to cut it out . The other problem I found was some of the BTs couldn't support the spiral bit and just "frayed" when being cut...

Probably the most important lesson learned was to use, as you said, an internal flange. The best was a continuous flange as opposed to just scabbing pieces on each side of the opening.

JohnCoker said:

Thanks for the kind words all.

Unlike the majority of my recent how-to efforts, this was text/pictures instead of video. Do you like article/blog style more or less than video?

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Both. I can print it and read it over and over but a video shows you. You see how it can be done. The way you do it, how you hold it which is not easy to word. I'm dyslexic and I always find I learn everything and anything better if shown more than reading. Plus it's nice to put a face to it all. John I think I found your site back in 1999 onwards. Now I'm 29 it's my bible for my current project.


Sent from my iPhone using Rocketry Forum

JohnCoker said:

Thanks for the kind words all.

Unlike the majority of my recent how-to efforts, this was text/pictures instead of video. Do you like article/blog style more or less than video?

Click to expand...

I like the text versions for basic info-it allows me to skim the stuff I know and re-re-re-read the stuff I don't. If it is a complex mechanical maneuvering then the video is worth a million words.