Awareness

Next up are the fins. Again, I'm using 1/4" birch plywood from Michael's, bought with a 40% off coupon, of course! I had printed the fin template from Open Rocket on card stock. I cut it out, then traced the fins onto the plywood. I cut out the fin "blanks" on the bandsaw, then drilled and pinned them with 1/4" dowels. That allows me to cut and sand them all at once. They turned out a bit rough. My bandsaw blade is just a tad too wide for the radii on the fins. But it's too much of a hassle to change the blade, so I did the best I could. I suppose I could have used the scrollsaw for the tight curves, but I would have had to clear it off!

The cleavage needed a bit of work, so I very carefully smoothed it out with the bandsaw. I sanded the curves of the fins with my 1" belt sander. I'll tell you, that has turned out to be the handiest little sander! I use it much more often than I ever thought I would.

I must say, these are the best boob fins I've ever made!

I marked and drilled the baffle and bulkhead for the 1/4" u-bolts. I cut the center holes in the centering rings with a 1-3/16" hole saw. I also cut out discs that will be the half moon baffles in the motor tube, and trimmed them to size.

I sanded the center holes in the centering rings to size with a sanding drum in the Dremel; drilled 3/16" holes in the aft centering ring for the tee-nuts; epoxied blocks on the centering rings for the tee-nuts and rail buttons; and finally filled the holes in the half moon baffles with epoxy.

It's been too long, Cap'n, too long. I needed another one of your build threads, and this one came just in the nick of time- I was about to go back and dig up an old one to read though! Also, my dad has an old lathe that probably still works. Thanks for the idea to try'n fire it up some time soon for use with CR's!

Nate

nute said:

It's been too long, Cap'n, too long. I needed another one of your build threads, and this one came just in the nick of time- I was about to go back and dig up an old one to read though! Also, my dad has an old lathe that probably still works. Thanks for the idea to try'n fire it up some time soon for use with CR's!

Nate

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Thank you, Nate, it's good to be back. But I will say, I sure didn't need another rocket! You need to get that lathe fired up. You can start turning nose cones on it. Do you know what kind it is?

It's good to see you back at it captain!


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I drilled out the tee-nut holes with the 3/16" bit, and drove the tee-nuts in with a hammer. I trimmed the rail button blocks on the centering rings with the bandsaw, and cut the half moons in half (well, not quite half).

rocketgeek101 said:

It's good to see you back at it captain!

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Thanks, RG!

qquake2k said:

I was inspired by matthewdlaudato's "Let's all fly pink rockets for Breast Cancer Awareness Month!" thread, to design and build an all pink rocket. This is what I came up with. I'm calling it simply, "Awareness". I'll use LOC 3.1" tubing, it will have a 29mm motor mount, and 1/4" plywood fins. For the elliptical nose cone, I'll either turn one from basswood, or order a fiberglass cone. I haven't decided which yet.

This will be a relatively simple build, that I should be able to finish in time for October Skies at TCC.

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My Wife has been cancer free for 20 years this year,great project Jim.

qquake2k said:

If you mean the over-the-shoulder-boulder-holder, then no, I just ordered the two chutes yesterday. Rocketchutes.com is very fast though, I'll probably have them Monday or Tuesday.

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+2 on rocketchutes! Very happy customer of then for a while. You can even have the chute embroidered with your e-mail addy!

qquake2k said:

The cleavage needed a bit of work, so I very carefully smoothed it out with the bandsaw. I sanded the curves of the fins with my 1" belt sander. I'll tell you, that has turned out to be the handiest little sander! I use it much more often than I ever thought I would.

I must say, these are the best boob fins I've ever made!

Click to expand...

I would have been tempted to do this part by hand.

There is a parachute malfunction called a "May West" A shroud line crosses the canopy and causes a central "cleavage", with two separate domes.
Results in something similar to what you have here.
When I first saw the fins, I though this would make a good two stage! I guess the upper stage engine would effectively "lift and separate".

BABAR said:

There is a parachute malfunction called a "May West" A shroud line crosses the canopy and causes a central "cleavage", with two separate domes.

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Minor nit: Mae West


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cjp said:

My Wife has been cancer free for 20 years this year,great project Jim.

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Thanks Carl. Kudos to your wife!

Got the chutes already. Man that was fast! Now we'll see if my idea pans out. Got the half moon baffles epoxied into the motor tube. The forward centering ring needs to be 4-1/2" from the forward end, so I made a simple jig. As you can see, it didn't work very well. But it shouldn't affect anything.

Nice - great BCAM project!

Got the motor mount epoxied in. I marked the fin locations with the wrap printed from Open Rocket, and drew the lines. I cut the fin slots, then couldn't resist a dry fit.

You guys missed my stove, didn't you? :lol:

I had to cut small notches out of two of the fin tabs to clear the tee-nut and rail button block on the aft centering ring. Using my fin alignment guide as always, I got the fins epoxied on. Then applied my messy external fillets with Titebond no drip molding glue. I'm liking it so far!

Another fine build under way Captain. I did miss the stove by the way.😀

I've decided to turn the nose cone. I have this one that I turned for a 4" upscale Baby Bertha, but as you can see, I really screwed it up. Not only is the shape wrong, but the base is too small where it goes into the body tube. And I absolutely butchered the shoulder. So I'll re-purpose it, and hopefully be more successful.

I mounted the bad nose cone to a smaller faceplate. This faceplate fits inside 3.1" tubing. The piece of 3.1" body tube will be a sizing guide for both the base and shoulder of the nose cone. As you can see in the video, I didn't get the faceplate exactly centered, but it won't matter. The wood will become centered as I turn it smaller.

[YOUTUBE]Vnsa-_CLfXM[/YOUTUBE]

It feels good to be behind my lathe again! As you can see from the progression of photos, I'm slowly turning it towards its final size. It's getting close. I'll turn it a bit smaller, turn the rough shape, then sand it to final size and shape with 80 grit sandpaper. I'll need to cut it shorter before I start shaping it. It will be 4.25" long (or so) plus a 2" shoulder.

Love the bewb fins.

I must be too busy... I need to keep abreast of what's going on around here.

Nice work Capt.

I wonder if this nice pair of t**s will take flight when your rocket does...



The Audubon Society might not approve

I had drilled a 1" hole in the bottom of what was to be the 4" Baby Bertha nose cone, for the nose weight and eyebolt. Awareness won't need either, but I had to make sure the hole didn't go too far forward. Open Rocket called for the nose cone to be 4.3" long, and I wanted a 2" shoulder, so I cut it off at 6-1/2". Then I cut the shoulder, and did pretty good this time.

I started to shape the nose cone, then decided I wanted it a bit shorter. One of the benefits of turning your own. I cut off a small piece, then started shaping it again. I used several chisels, and 60, 80, 100, and 220 grit sandpaper.

More shaping with sandpaper. The best part of turning nose cones for me, is watching the shape emerge from a rough piece of wood. Very rewarding.

I couldn't resist. :tongue:

Okay, I'm not ashamed to admit that I giggled again, just not like a little girl this time. I like it! I like it a lot! I had serious doubts about turning this nose cone. It's been a while since I've turned one, and like any skill, if you don't use it you can lose it. But the grace of God saw me through another (for me) masterpiece.