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rharshberger
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Nice!
Doing another look at aft centering rings and thinking about balsa fences around the TTW fin tabs. They will hold some epoxy in place as I inject epoxy through the fin slots to form internal fillets.
Scott (Dragon Rocketry) did an awesome job cutting and marking tubes. The centering ring locations are all pre-marked on the motor mount tube, facilitating easy assembly. The forward end of the MMT came with the baffle plug pre-installed and baffle slots cut. Very convenient… and should prevent someone from installing the motor retainer on the wrong end.
Scott (Dragon Rocketry) did an awesome job cutting and marking tubes. The centering ring locations are all pre-marked on the motor mount tube, facilitating easy assembly. The forward end of the MMT came with the baffle plug pre-installed and baffle slots cut. Very convenient… and should prevent someone from installing the motor retainer on the wrong end.
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There are many ways to mount rail guides. In this case I used what I had on hand in my box-o-parts… wood screw inserts for 8-32 screws. Again, using parts I already had, I glued three 4” centering rings together and cut them in to segments. The end product was nicely contoured to epoxy or glue inside the mid-airframe and the reducer transition.
As a bonus, I have 6 more rail guide mounts left over for future 4” airframes… tossed back in the box-o-parts.
As a bonus, I have 6 more rail guide mounts left over for future 4” airframes… tossed back in the box-o-parts.
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Interesting! Are you able to do this because the baffle eliminates/moves the laundry that might catch on it?
The rail guide mounts are inside the booster section of the airframe (aft of the baffle bulkhead). Shock cord/parachute connect to the U-bolt on the forward side of the baffle and to the nose cone.
It will be more clear when I get further along in this build. In the meantime, here’s some pics of another one of my designs using a zipperless baffle. You can see where the rail guides are mounted on the booster section… laundry is in the forward airframe tube. The nose cone is epoxied to the forward end of the airframe. The ejection charge blows the forward tube/NC off of the baffle coupler, releasing the parachute. For a zipperless baffle, I pack shock cord in first, nearest the NC, and chute immediately in front of the baffle. The baffle eliminates the need for parachute protection.
It will be more clear when I get further along in this build. In the meantime, here’s some pics of another one of my designs using a zipperless baffle. You can see where the rail guides are mounted on the booster section… laundry is in the forward airframe tube. The nose cone is epoxied to the forward end of the airframe. The ejection charge blows the forward tube/NC off of the baffle coupler, releasing the parachute. For a zipperless baffle, I pack shock cord in first, nearest the NC, and chute immediately in front of the baffle. The baffle eliminates the need for parachute protection.
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Last 2 remaining sub-assemblies that comprise the booster section. I painted the upper part of the baffle coupler with CA glue, to make its surface more durable, leaving the bottom portion bare so it will bond better with epoxy (or wood glue) when inserted into the booster airframe.
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Last booster section sub-assemblies epoxied in place. All that’s left to complete construction of the booster section is to install the fins. Waiting on my next order from Dragon, which includes a 4” airframe fin alignment jig… and components for my new Aether Breather design. Having more fun building than I’ve had in many years. Thanks Scott.
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First fin installed. BSI 30 min epoxy, with milled fiberglass mixed in, was injected through the fin slots into balsa wood troughs to form internal fillets.
There was a small amount of warpage toward the forward tip of the fin, thus the clamp at the forward end (to align the fin tip within the markings on the tube). That should be expected with fin root edge that are 23” long.
There was a small amount of warpage toward the forward tip of the fin, thus the clamp at the forward end (to align the fin tip within the markings on the tube). That should be expected with fin root edge that are 23” long.
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BSI bottle says “sets in 30 minutes. Item can be handled in eight hours full bond strength in 24 hours.” I forgot how long this takes…
Fully assembled and ready for primer. At this point, the ringtail is dry fit. I intend to paint the booster section and the ring separately. Beginning to think about paint schemes and graphics.
Now is a good time to solicit recommendations for paint and graphics. Your thoughts and comments would be appreciated. Snarky comments will be enjoyed.
Now is a good time to solicit recommendations for paint and graphics. Your thoughts and comments would be appreciated. Snarky comments will be enjoyed.
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