Rube Goldberg Lander

[JAL3]

The top and bottom of the main BT were then sprayed with green again.

 

[JAL3]

I mentioned the spreading of the AD fins a few posts back. I have also been concerned about their stiffness in flight. They are only 3/32" thick and unsupported by are core along much of the upper and outer length. I wanted to stiffen them. I decided that some "heat radiation fins" would form a part of the solution. With that in mind, I purchases some 3/8" and 5/8" triangular balsa.

 

[JAL3]

3 vertical lines were drawn on each side of the fin at 3" intervals from the outer edge.

 

[JAL3]

Three pieces of 5/8" triangle were then miter cut to lay along the lines.

 

[JAL3]

At this point, I unmasked where the lower green had been painted.

 

[JAL3]

It was promptly remasked for gold.

 

[JAL3]

The gold was then sprayed.

 

[JAL3]

For the outer edge of the fin, I decided to add one more cooling vane. This one was cut from 3/8" instead of 5/8".

 

[JAL3]

The outer edge of the fin was scuffed up and then Titebond II was used to glue the small vane in place. Clamps were applied.

 

[JAL3]

The masking was removed from the tail.

 

[JAL3]

A file was used to remove the paint from the inboard ends of the boom struts.

 

[JAL3]

The balls were replaced on the struts and then they were glued into the mortices but not to pods.

 

[JAL3]

A tube coupler was glued into the BT50 protruding from the transition.

 

[JAL3]

The clamps were removed from the outboard cooling vane.

 

[JAL3]

The next vane in was then glued into place and clamped.

 

[JAL3]

And that's all for today.

Now I catch some sleep so I can go bother the patients at NE Methodist tomorrow.

 

[VonMises]

The top and bottom of the main BT were then sprayed with green again.

JAL3, what's with all the tin foil? Saving up for a hat

 

[JAL3]

JAL3, what's with all the tin foil? Saving up for a hat

Masking, of course!

Don't get me started on hats. I'm one of the few people I know who still wears them. I don't mean ball caps and stetsons, although I do wear those. I mean fedoras, homburgs, boaters, etc. My wife says I can't have any more. If she read this and thought I was really using it for a hat, rocketry would cease to exist for me!

 

[JAL3]

It's been a crazy few days with little sleep and only slight progress on this project but here it is:

The cooling vanes were sequentially applied to the fin.

 

[JAL3]

A file was used to remove the paint at the point where a boom strut was to intersect a lower pod tube.

 

[JAL3]

Titebond II was used to glue the end of the strut to the tube. A piece of cord was wrapped around the tube and transition and an epoxy brush was used to twist the cord to take up slack and hold everything in place as the glue dried.

 

[JAL3]

TMT was used to fillet the rings in place on the tube and sandwich the strut.

 

[JAL3]

The fin was flipped over and the cooling vanes were applied to the opposite side.

 

[JAL3]

The other boom struts were glued into place like the first one.

 

[JAL3]

A BT55 balsa plug had Titebond III smeared over one end to form a protective coating.

 

[JAL3]

Some Titebond was then smeared around the interior of one end of a BT55.

 

[JAL3]

The plug was then glued into the end of the BT55.

 

[JAL3]

In a similar manner, a hollow BT70 coupler was glued into the end of a BT70. In this case, however, only 1" was inserted into the tube.

 

[JAL3]

And that's all that as been done in the last few days. The next few are not looking too great either but something should get done.

 

[JAL3]

A little, not much, has been done since the last post. I have just not had the time to do anything.

Sorry.