Radical Rocketry F-104 Starfighter Build

[KenECoyote]

Launch Report:
Rocket lifted up with quite a lot of flame (whoa! Lol), then weathercocked overhead, had a good ejection; however, the nose cone line got tangled in the fish line (my fault for not packing more carefully).

Still, everything came down nicely nearby and the body landed flat with the boat tail hitting first as planned. No damage.

Here's a link to the launch video:

 

[KenECoyote]

Eagle has landed!



The nose cone was really tangled with the fish line! I had to unhook it to unravel everything.

Now that the flight was proven (and amazing!) I could proceed with finishing the rocket.

Additionally, the flight seemed nearly perfect, so I decided to keep this one flying on the C5-3...cheap thrilling flights! If I get another BT60 one, I may build that one for 24mm.

 

[lakeroadster]

Congrat's and thanks for posting the video.

 

[KenECoyote]

Congrat's and thanks for posting the video.

Thank you sir! More to come!

Edit: No other videos on hand yet and next launch may not be until March with METRA (which I'll video); however...

 

[KenECoyote]

If you haven't guessed yet, I was going with the F104G "Jabo" black bird scheme...



I really liked it and it's definitely unique! I thought about doing this scheme on the Fat Cat 3" kit, but figured it'd be much easier on a small build like this.

From what I recall reading, this scheme was for a German fighter to commemorate the last flight before they retired their F104s.

 

[KenECoyote]

So how to go about replicating this scheme?

I could try either masking and painting everything (intricate and possibly painful) or simply find a model kit with this scheme, enlarge the decals and print onto decal paper. Even in the first case having decal to reprint is a great step.

So I found that there were kits of this! There was a 1/32 scale kit, which is very close to the BT60 scale; however, this kit is costly (~$80+).

Example of 1/32 kit


I found a few Monogram 1/48 scale kits that were made in the 80s available and got an opened kit shipped for $25 back in April of last year (was considering using this scheme for the Fat Cat kit).

 

[KenECoyote]

Back to the rocket!

So with the rocket flight worthy, I continued to finish it.

First I added fillets to the tail section to further strengthen it. Wood glue for the top for easier breakage repair...


...and epoxy for the bottom for "I'm giving it all I can, Captain!" hold.



Oh, I had forgotten to mention the launch lug earlier (I rushed it the night before the first launch). I saw that a plastic launch lug was included and not knowing what the plastic is made of (some plastics don't like most glues), I used a nice big epoxy fillet on both sides. Now I also spread some on top as well.

 

[KenECoyote]

Prime time!

As part of my usual rocketry regimen, I primed with Rustoleum Filler Primer.

It went on nicely!

I then sanded the nose and canopy using a fine detail sander.

Nothing too crazy...maybe 20-30 minutes. The primer filler did a good job and all the small canopy nooks slowed it down.

Now time to try some yellow paint on the nose to see how it looks.

Looks great!

Then it was time for the ever "controversial" spiral fill.
I used my old trusty CWF.

 

[KenECoyote]

Some light sanding with a older fine sanding sponge...

I also did some very light touch up sanding on the nose in preparation for one more coat since one section was uneven.

Time for moah paint!

BTW - I think I deserve some extra credit for spray painting outdoors in NY in the winter when temps were at times in the teens. I was actually a bit concerned as to if the freezing temps would adversely affect the paint or even the CWF filler, but everything seemed fine.

 

[KenECoyote]

Decals!

Once I had the decals on hand, I estimated how much I'd need to scale them up since the rocket is larger. I had to experiment since the model is to scale and the rocket is semi/sport scale.

I measured the model (minus the sharp nose tip) and the rocket as well and came up with about 151% enlargement, but ended up with 145%.

I then made a copy of the decals to that size on my printer, cut them out and did a test fit.

The test fitting is especially important because not all of the scheme is decal and the instructions noted to paint large sections in black.

 

[Daddyisabar]

Zipper concerns?
View attachment 561808

Many anti zipper mods if needed. Strengthen top of tube with CA, foam or tape on kevlar, etc.

 

[Daddyisabar]

Decals!

Once I had the decals on hand, I estimated how much I'd need to scale them up since the rocket is larger. I had to experiment since the model is to scale and the rocket is semi/sport scale.

I measured the model (minus the sharp nose tip) and the rocket as well and came up with about 151% enlargement, but ended up with 145%.

I then made a copy of the decals to that size on my printer, cut them out and did a test fit.
View attachment 561864
The test fitting is especially important because not all of the scheme is decal and the instructions noted to paint large sections in black.

Gonna be soooo purdy!

 

[KenECoyote]

Many anti zipper mods if needed. Strengthen top of tube with CA, foam or tape on kevlar, etc.

Yes! I was planning on CA on the inner bt edge and possibly even thinned epoxy since the nose fit was originally loose.

If I was planning to keep the nose attached, I would use elastic as well.

Luckily this is low power and the delay seems good to avoid a zipper even if the stuff tangles up.

The extra attachment to the tail also likely plays some part in redistributing the deployment force in different directions.

 

[KenECoyote]

I almost forgot (actually I did forget)...

The kit includes a twist lock retainer that somewhat replicates the exhaust nozzle, which is cool. However that part may get hot and discolored, so I sprayed it with a few heavy coats of high heat metallic silver paint I had on hand.

 

[KenECoyote]

Time for moah Starfighter pics!

 

[Paul Howard]

Cool Rocket and a really cool thread to look at, Thanks! -PTH

 

[KenECoyote]

Cool Rocket and a really cool thread to look at, Thanks! -PTH

Thanks Paul, I very much appreciate the appreciation!

 

[KenECoyote]

Here I'm marking off the sections to paint black and then using fine hobby masking tape at the edges and blue tape elsewhere (more on that orange hobby tape later).

 

[KenECoyote]

So I actually went to Hobby Lobby to pick up some Tamiya paint masking tape, which I heard was very good, but had never used. I normally use regular blue tape for most masking jobs and when fine masking is required, I've used Scotch tape with good success as long as the edges are burnished down.

Unfortunately Hobby Lobby only had their own generic hobby masking tape, so I picked that up figuring it was better than what I was using and would be good for the canopy.

Boy was I wrong! (Results coming later.)

 

[KenECoyote]

One of the most difficult parts of building an airplane model to me is painting and masking the canopy.

Here I applied the orangey tape and did a lot of trimming to get it just right. Took me over an hour.



Sure I could've just painted the whole darn thing one color, but..

 

[KenECoyote]

Here's the Rustoleum gloss black being applied (I don't bother with Tamiya paints since this isn't a model and it'll look great from a foot or more away.

 

[KenECoyote]

For the canopy, I had a hard time deciding on what color to paint the "glass" portion.

Here's a bunch that I considered including a blue tint spray.


Eventually I looked at one of the original pics and decided that it looked almost gray, so I chose gloss gray!

 

[KenECoyote]

"You buy cheap, you get cheap." -KEC

Remember that cheap masking tape? Ugh.




I had burnished the edges down repeatedly, however I think the adhesive is poor and it lifted up in a lot of spots.

Oh well, I went about cleaning it up by scraping lightly and repeatedly with an Xacto blade and it came out pretty good. I may touch it up at the end with a fine brush.



Good news is that I think the gloss gray looks great!

 

[KenECoyote]

Some more good news is that the black paint came out nicely.

 

[KenECoyote]

Next will be the decal work. It has been years since I've done customized decals, so I had some learnings and stumbles along the way. Stay tuned!

 

[billeblurzz]

This is beautiful! Is this an available kit? If so I want one!

 

[KenECoyote]

This is beautiful! Is this an available kit? If so I want one!

Thanks and yes... it's available as a builder's kit from BigMacDaddy here (info and link to the kit thread on my Post #1).

There's also a website (however, it doesn't look available right now):
https://radicalrocketry.com/shop/
And you can also send him a message: BigMacDaddy

Again, this is a builder's kit so you need to supply your own tubes and the kit has the 3D printed parts.

@BigMacDaddy - anything to add and what's the best way to order this kit?

 

[Greg Furtman]

I grew up in Duluth, MN and when I was a kid there a large Air Force Base there. So there were always jets flying over and I learned what they were. The F-104 was my favorite.

A few summers ago I was outside and I saw 2 F-104s overhead flying north towards Duluth. About 20 minutes later they flew overhead again heading south. Brought back good memories.

 

[KenECoyote]

Decal details detailed.

Ah finally... the decals! Tbh it's a helluva lot of work and hair pulling, but I enjoy figuring things out and doing something challenging. I find that I'll often get back more than I put in and I end up with a rocket that's different... because I was the only one crazy enough to do it!

Well, the decals definitely were a challenge because:

• As they were, they don't quite fit (scale jet model vs. sport scale rocket).
• Some decals need to be on white decal paper (ex. Bird face); while others need to be on clear decal paper (ex. "Jabo").
• There are freaking sections cut out of the darn decals for the model builder to account for open hatches!

I figured out some workarounds including using a black sharpie to fill in big sections or to add to the decal for a better fit...


(Sharpie fills)

And even adding the cutout section wet on top of the spot it belongs in.

(Wet section over dry main decal... I may do this on the originals for better print... will see.)

 

[KenECoyote]

Now, I did have some goofs.

It's been many years since I've worked with printing custom decals and I forgot some things...

1) Most printable decal paper needs a clear spray to be used after printing.

Grrrr.

2) DON'T spray the clear coat after you've cut out the decal because it will fuse the edges to the backing and cause tearing as you try to take off the backing.



So because of these mistakes, I actually used up some of my first print and will need to print again, but in the meantime...