Estes Hy Flyer XL build

[YoMoma]

Getting back into the hobby after 30 years. Working on the Hy Flyer XL at this time. Watched a video on the tube that the builder says about the white tubing, that the spirals don’t need to be filled in as much as the cardboard colored tubes need to be. Since I’m getting back into the hobby I wanted to pay better attention to detail in my rockets.
For the people that have done this kit, if you have used filler in the spirals, did it seem to make a difference worth spending the time on?

 

[DigBaddy]

Getting back into the hobby after 30 years. Working on the Hy Flyer XL at this time. Watched a video on the tube that the builder says about the white tubing, that the spirals don’t need to be filled in as much as the cardboard colored tubes need to be. Since I’m getting back into the hobby I wanted to pay better attention to detail in my rockets.
For the people that have done this kit, if you have used filler in the spirals, did it seem to make a difference worth spending the time on?

I used lightweight spackle in mine. I think it was worth it.

Searching for filling spirals should return lots of reading on this topic.

 

[Back_at_it]

Getting back into the hobby after 30 years. Working on the Hy Flyer XL at this time. Watched a video on the tube that the builder says about the white tubing, that the spirals don’t need to be filled in as much as the cardboard colored tubes need to be. Since I’m getting back into the hobby I wanted to pay better attention to detail in my rockets.
For the people that have done this kit, if you have used filler in the spirals, did it seem to make a difference worth spending the time on?

DAP brand wood filler. Easy to spread and super easy to sand off.

 

[smstachwick]

Getting back into the hobby after 30 years. Working on the Hy Flyer XL at this time. Watched a video on the tube that the builder says about the white tubing, that the spirals don’t need to be filled in as much as the cardboard colored tubes need to be. Since I’m getting back into the hobby I wanted to pay better attention to detail in my rockets.
For the people that have done this kit, if you have used filler in the spirals, did it seem to make a difference worth spending the time on?

People seem to be wowed just by having working rockets in the home, and they always look pretty from 30ft out. I don’t bother. A lot of times I only color them for visibility and that’s it.

I make an exception if I’m making a scale model or something, but that’s rare.

 

[GlenP]

Primarily a cosmetic technique for rockets this size, if that is what you prefer to look at on the shelf, go for it. A good coat of primer with lots of sanding might even do the trick, or spray some primer in a cup and use a toothpick to apply it directly into just the spiral gaps. If thick enough that it does not run.

Flight performance (lower drag, higher speed, higher altitude) is more impacted by the fins (sanding round LE and sharp TE) and fillets, and total weight.

 

[KenECoyote]

... I wanted to pay better attention to detail in my rockets.
For the people that have done this kit, if you have used filler in the spirals, did it seem to make a difference worth spending the time on?

Yes.