Mach 1 Mini Black Brant BT50 Build

base890 said:

Another little hitch with the motor mount is not really trouble with the tube diameter so much as a complaint about the Q-Jet motors... the label wrap on the plastic makes the diameter too large to fit. Try to remove the label and you get into a sticky mess of tearing paper and glue. Tried some solvent on the goo and melted the casing!

Does anyone know a good way to remove these labels without affecting the plastic underneath?

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Isopropyl Alcohol works great for the stickers...
Did you use the mini buttons on this kit ?

I am going with the mini buttons, I’ll try the isopropyl thank you!

base890 said:

Another little hitch with the motor mount is not really trouble with the tube diameter so much as a complaint about the Q-Jet motors... the label wrap on the plastic makes the diameter too large to fit. Try to remove the label and you get into a sticky mess of tearing paper and glue. Tried some solvent on the goo and melted the casing!

Does anyone know a good way to remove these labels without affecting the plastic underneath?

Click to expand...

Goo Gone should work. Whatever solvent it has shouldn’t be near aggressive enough to have any effect on a plastic motor casing. I’ve used it on all kinds of plastic without any problems. It’s readily available at home stores, hardware stores, online...

I built one of these and have a couple of thoughts.

First, the decal is really surprising since it is nowhere near accurate. The goose graphic part is nice but the roll pattern is too short and the fin placement on the decal is wrong. I appreciate that someone went to the effort to create a Black Brant-like decal but if you are putting in that effort, why not make it accurate? There is a ton of data out there and it shouldn't be that hard.

Second, there is no way you should fly this rocket with the included streamer. It just descends way too fast. Same goes for the other two Mach 1 small diameter rockets I've built.

That being said, the kits are novel, parts are good. Definitely worth a try.

Any tips on mounting these mini/micro buttons on these small FG rockets ?, I'm working on a Razor-50 now and not really sure whats the best way to go

These Mach1 kits sure are cool...you may have convinced me to pick one up after I finish my scratch Bt60 payloader. And my redshifted Indicator. And...

you get the idea lol.

Toothless said:

Any tips on mounting these mini/micro buttons on these small FG rockets ?, I'm working on a Razor-50 now and not really sure whats the best way to go

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My first instinct is JB Weld, the cold steel version. I'm thinking drill a small, slightly oversized hole, patch with JB weld, then drill/tap the JB weld for the screw. There's probably easier ways but that seems like it would be solid.

I'll try that and post how it goes

base890 said:

I'll try that and post how it goes

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Keep in mind I haven't done many buttons (actually a total of 2 builds with buttons so far, and neither are completely finished)....but my next build will do this (or something similar). Just want to be clear that I'm far from an expert on button installation.

I'd definitely try to attach them to some solid structure though. I actually drill my holes immediately next to the centering rings on my stuffer/motor tube. Usually just forward of the aft ring, and just aft of the most forward ring.

Good luck!

I just received some 24mm fly-away rails from Apogee.. I'll try and get one put together this weekend and post a pic and thoughts

I drilled the holes to match the diameter of the nylon screw shafts, tapped the fiberglass and tried out the fit - very secure. No need for epoxy here. The forward button is only in the body tubing - just 0.05-0.1mm but not pulling out even after shortening the screw to make it smooth on the inside (for the piston I added ~ not part of the kit). The aft button is into one of the G10 centering rings 2-3mm. I added a tiny drop of CA to the screws before driving down tight.