Banshee fighter build

[Lee Reep]

Well, I couldn't think of a name until I dug up some bright orange engine block paint -- and Banshee it is ...

This is a project started a month or so ago. Decided to steal nose cone and engine mount from an Astrosat LX kit. I think this kit had one of the coolest nose cones (a modern version of an Interceptor style cone), but was one of the most boring kits otherwise.

I decided to just build a rocket without any sketches. I knew the upper body needed to be BT-56, but wanted a bigger main tube. I soaked a BT-60 in water for a few minutes, and "squished it somewhat oblong so that it was nearly the BT-56 diameter, from top of fuselage, to bottom. I glued the BT-56 into the BT-60, added a few strakes at the intake end, which had been cut at an angle on a bandsaw.

I sketched some fins and wings, helds them up, made a few adjustments, cut some BT-20s for engine pods, and started gluing. For all the tacking of fins, I used CA, and then went back with a thin swipe of epoxy to fillet the fins.

I used AeroGloss sanding sealer on balsa, Rustoleum primer for tube filling and final wood filling, and then shot the orange color. I didn't have any white, so I decided I would experiment with the top coat directly over gray primer. This one has 5-6 coats to give it good color depth.

The engine intake are plastic nose cones cut at an angle on bandsaw, and the same is true for the engine nozzles, but cut straight, and short. These cones are the PNC-20Y cones, the stubby conical taper cones. I think they work great for nozzles. I spray painted them with Testors Silver, and then handpainted the interior of them with flat black. Finally, the motor cap was painted silver. For those unfamiliar with this, the Astrosat LX kit had a motor mount/fin can of plastic. I eliminated the fins, and epoxied the unit into the end of the BT-56. I am somewhat worried that it could melt over time, but this was an experiment from Day 1.

The cockpit was an experiment, and a bad one. I decided to try a silver paint pen, but it was a little thick. I then ended up wet sanding, and using a tiny brush to recoat it with paint from the pen. Not great, but it looks OK. I should have shot it silver, masked, and then painted the orange over it.

Next step -- decals.

View attachment banshee-01.JPG

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[Indiana]

Good job. That is a nice design. I'm looking forward to a flight report.

 

[Micromeister]

very Nicely done lee!
Cool looking model, reminds me of a firebee target drone, nifty design.

 

[Stormbringer]

Neat design, I'm interested in how it flies also.

 

[Stymye]

really nice and sleek !

 

[Lee Reep]

Thanks to all of you for the compliments. I am hoping to go to an Oktoberfest launch in a few weeks here in Colorado. I dropped out of high power a few years back, so I'll say "Hi" to some old friends, and go hang out with the kids at the Estes racks!

Seriously though, it is really encouraging to see so much interest in low power now. I haven't really had this much fun since I was a kid, when I was building Estes stuff for the first time.

I'll throw some decals on it this week, and report back when I fly it.

And I am now thinking I'll do a whole series of Duplicolor Engine Paint models. I've done Chevy, now it is time to check out Ford, Chrysler, Euro brands, the Asian models ...

 

[matthew]

Great looking rocket! Orange looks awesome on fighter style models.

 

[geof]

Very nice, and I look forward to seeing it on the Pawnee.

I'm interested in your soaking method. I'm surprised it works. The tube doesn't disentegrate or get blisters or irregularities? How do you finish it afterwards? How long to soak? How to form it? How to dry it?

Geof

 

[Lee Reep]

Very nice, and I look forward to seeing it on the Pawnee.

I'm interested in your soaking method. I'm surprised it works. The tube doesn't disentegrate or get blisters or irregularities? How do you finish it afterwards? How long to soak? How to form it? How to dry it?

Geof

Geof -- dittos, , regarding your projectand looking forward to meeting you.

"Soak" may be overstating just how wet I let the tube become. I ran water inside the tube, and rotated it to completely wet the inside. I tested it to see when it became pretty easy to deform - -more so than the standard "Estes" tube normally would deform. But I never let it start to feel soggy.

I then placed it in a woodworker's vise, with "jaws" of 1X4 lumber that were longer than the tube, giving uniform pressure along the tube. I rolled the vise closed until the tube was deformed to the size I wanted. Then I just let it dry overnight. It did spread back out a little, but I left it as it was, deciding not to resoak it for fear of really making it too soft, or to come apart. I suppose the next time I try this, I would deform it a little more than desired, and let it spring back to desired size.

The tube looked fine, and I finished as usual, several coats of primer, sanded all the way down, to leave the spiral seams filled. Normally I'd do a white base coat, and color top coat, but in this case, I had no white, and too lazy to go buy some, so I just gave it many coats to give good color.

Finally, my standard practice is to use super thin CA to soak the inside of the tube at both ends, usually about 1" in. A light sanding with rolled up sandpaper knocks off the roughness, and allows the nose cone to pretty much fit as intended. And if a nose cone is loose, the CA gives it a little better fit.

 

[geof]

I just saw this rocket in person last night, when I met Lee and borrowed some hardware from him.

The photos don't do it justice. He is really a perfectionist when it comes to finishing. The surface was very smooth, almost silky. I was almost afraid to touch it.

Plus, he's got a huge workshop and a lot of projects laying around in various stages of development. I'm jealous!

Geof

 

[Lee Reep]

I just saw this rocket in person last night, when I met Lee and borrowed some hardware from him.

The photos don't do it justice. He is really a perfectionist when it comes to finishing. The surface was very smooth, almost silky. I was almost afraid to touch it.

Plus, he's got a huge workshop and a lot of projects laying around in various stages of development. I'm jealous!

Geof

Oh gosh, you're making me blush ...

Thanks for the compliments -- but I gotta admit, your "racer" o the "Captain Electric Saturn Screamer" -- did I get that right? -- it is way cool! This has got to be one of the most unique rockets I've ever seen.

If weather holds, and I heard it is supposed to be nice -- I'll get to see it fly on Saturday at Oktoberfest here in Colorado, on the incredible Pawnee National Grasslands. And a Level 1 certification also. A really cool way to get your HPR cert flight, Geof!

See you Saturday. Hey,the rest of you ought to come out and see it fly! Hmmm, I probably should have posted this in your build thread!