Did you get the L1115 yet? I am eying that up for my Mega Nuk. Hoping Ken can get me one.
NAT
JUST A GREAT JOB. IS THE NOSE CONE ON THE COW FW WITH A COUPLER?
The nose cone is fiberglass but it is hand-laid fiberglass, not filament wound. The nose cone and shoulder are a single part so there is no separate coupler. The bulkhead is 1/2" plywood. Even though it isn't FWFG it is well made. There were seams up both sides from the mold that required filling with Bondo putty and sanding.
My initial estimate from weighing components was 55 lb but I need to weigh it again now. Those 11 coats of paint added some weight (actually most of the primer and probably half of the clear coat got sanded off).Lovely work as usual. What is the pad weight going to be?
-Matthew
That look fabulous! I finally got a sense of the size of the behemoth with you holding it.
Sorry if this is in the thread already, but how does the stability margin? Did it need nose weight?
I am so excited for Higgs Farm to open this year! Keep hoping I’ll hear something...
Again, really amazing work! How does that Ice Pearl stuff work (in terms of mixed with what)?
As with any dry flake or pearl, you just mix it with clearcoat and spray. If you want to get fancy they sell special intercoat carrier that you can use instead of normal clear but clear works fine for me. I mixed a tablespoon of pearl in 750 ml of clear lacquer. When spraying flake or pearl you have to be careful to evenly overlap passes and maintain a steady speed and distance because you only get one chance to get it right. You also need to be sure to remove the filter from the gun otherwise it will instantly get clogged with flakes (yeah I've done that).
As with any dry flake or pearl, you just mix it with clearcoat and spray. If you want to get fancy they sell special intercoat carrier that you can use instead of normal clear but clear works fine for me. I mixed a tablespoon of pearl in 750 ml of clear lacquer. When spraying flake or pearl you have to be careful to evenly overlap passes and maintain a steady speed and distance because you only get one chance to get it right. You also need to be sure to remove the filter from the gun otherwise it will instantly get clogged with flakes (yeah I've done that).
What gun do you use for it? I have an Iwata RG-3L with a 1mm needle. I'm a novice when it comes to spray equipment.
Though this behemoth is far from short or stubby, I think short and stubby stability rules apply. You'd most likely be fine with as little as an 8-inch margin.I didn't add any nose weight. But the chute deployment system that I added is forward of the CG so that increased stability a bit. Stability in OpenRocket is about 0.8 cal with a big motor and than is fine for a rocket with this much base drag. I'll be careful to only fly it with motors that get it plenty of velocity off the rail.
Though this behemoth is far from short or stubby, I think short and stubby stability rules apply. You'd most likely be fine with as little as an 8-inch margin.
1mm is too small. I used a TCP Global gun with 3mm tip. For standard size flake you would need an even bigger tip.
My mistake, I meant 1.3mm tip, not 3mm tip.
I probably could have done the polishing in one day since I do that by machine (Porter Cable 7424). What takes me forever is the sanding which I do all by hand. Especially the 1000 grit. As you can see in that sanding photo a had quite a bit of orange peel in the clear coat to sand out this time. Once I get it smooth the 2000 grit goes pretty fast.
My mistake, I meant 1.3mm tip, not 3mm tip.
I probably could have done the polishing in one day since I do that by machine (Porter Cable 7424). What takes me forever is the sanding which I do all by hand. Especially the 1000 grit. As you can see in that sanding photo a had quite a bit of orange peel in the clear coat to sand out this time. Once I get it smooth the 2000 grit goes pretty fast.
My initial estimate from weighing components was 55 lb but I need to weigh it again now. Those 11 coats of paint added some weight (actually most of the primer and probably half of the clear coat got sanded off).
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