It's time for another build thread. I'm going to do things a little bit differently this time. Instead of doing updates daily, I'm going to document the work being done over several steps then update the thread.
When Estes announced they were releasing a ProSeries of the Der Red Max I was excited. I was hoping that it would be a re-release of the mega version in 4 inch diameter. When I learned that it was a 3 inch diameter was still interested and got in line to pick up a few of them as soon as they were available. When they arrived I was eager to tear into the rocket and do a build immediately until I got to the fins. By now we all know that the fins included with this kit are a three piece balsa design and no one is really happy with them. I immediately threw everything back in the box and set it aside. My plan was to hand cut my own fins but as luck would have it I found the Vanderburn upgrade kit and ordered one for each of the kits I purchased.
Let's jump right into it. Below we have the kit laid out with the plywood upgrades. It's unfortunate but the only thing I'm really going to use from this Is the nosecone, body tube, motor Tube, and the motor retainer. Everything else will be replaced with better parts.
Getting started with the motor mount. I first started by sanding the exterior of the motor tube. The included green spacer is designed to set the location of the lower centering ring. After placing the green ring on the bottom of the motor tube you can locate the first centering ring. Be careful not to glue the green ring to the tube as it will be removed for the next step.
Next the instructions Give you a measurement and tell you to install the center ring with the slots. I placed this ring in the location and tacked it in place with some instant set CA. I then used a fin to verify the center ring was in the correct location. The green ring was then slid down on top of the center ring and glued in place. I then let this dry completely before moving on.
Using the fins as a spacer, I slid the fins into place then dropped the upper ring into place and tacked it in place with some instant set CA. The fins were then removed and fillets were applied using TBII. This was left to dry overnight.
I decided to take a page out of the high-power rocket book And build the fins and motor mount completely outside of the tube. The slots in the center ring allow you to correctly align the fins. It's just a matter of making sure that they are parallel with the centerline of the motor tube at that point.
Over the course of the next day I continued to assemble the fin can. Below we see the completed unit with fillets. I'm going let this dry Then add another set of fillets before moving on.
When Estes announced they were releasing a ProSeries of the Der Red Max I was excited. I was hoping that it would be a re-release of the mega version in 4 inch diameter. When I learned that it was a 3 inch diameter was still interested and got in line to pick up a few of them as soon as they were available. When they arrived I was eager to tear into the rocket and do a build immediately until I got to the fins. By now we all know that the fins included with this kit are a three piece balsa design and no one is really happy with them. I immediately threw everything back in the box and set it aside. My plan was to hand cut my own fins but as luck would have it I found the Vanderburn upgrade kit and ordered one for each of the kits I purchased.
Let's jump right into it. Below we have the kit laid out with the plywood upgrades. It's unfortunate but the only thing I'm really going to use from this Is the nosecone, body tube, motor Tube, and the motor retainer. Everything else will be replaced with better parts.
Getting started with the motor mount. I first started by sanding the exterior of the motor tube. The included green spacer is designed to set the location of the lower centering ring. After placing the green ring on the bottom of the motor tube you can locate the first centering ring. Be careful not to glue the green ring to the tube as it will be removed for the next step.
Next the instructions Give you a measurement and tell you to install the center ring with the slots. I placed this ring in the location and tacked it in place with some instant set CA. I then used a fin to verify the center ring was in the correct location. The green ring was then slid down on top of the center ring and glued in place. I then let this dry completely before moving on.
Using the fins as a spacer, I slid the fins into place then dropped the upper ring into place and tacked it in place with some instant set CA. The fins were then removed and fillets were applied using TBII. This was left to dry overnight.
I decided to take a page out of the high-power rocket book And build the fins and motor mount completely outside of the tube. The slots in the center ring allow you to correctly align the fins. It's just a matter of making sure that they are parallel with the centerline of the motor tube at that point.
Over the course of the next day I continued to assemble the fin can. Below we see the completed unit with fillets. I'm going let this dry Then add another set of fillets before moving on.
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