Pershing II build ?

I started this build back in June ,but never really got it started until recently due to work and what have you.

Polecat ,5.5" Pershing II fiberglass over cardbord tube ,1/4" plywood fins ,fiberglass nosecone (this thing is pretty big).

Lots of pics comming.

Paul T

A few shots of the aft fins.These are 1/4" plywood ,pre-beveled ,but they need some work.

Overall ,nice quality.

Paul T

These are the forward fins.These are also pre beveled ,and go through the nosecone (TTW)

Again ,the quality is very good ,and only need some sanding to get things looking nice.

I did however sand the fins with 220 then sealed them with SIG sanding sealer and final sanded with 320.This is pretty much typical when finishing plywood fins ,or at least with me ,not withstanding the usual primer coat and sand....but that`s later on.

Paul T

OK ,the boring part (one of many perhaps) but non the less ,the attachment part of the shockcord.

I use (as always) Kevlar to the main U-bolt ,as opposed to tying directly with the nylon shockcord provided....just me perhaps.

Paul T

Just a note. Not that I don`t trust paper/card motor tube ,but I always swap out the kit MMT for PML phenolic tube.I just think it`s a little more durable ,but I suppose it depends on how many flights you plan on having on the thing.
If I had some spare fiberglass MMT ,I would have used that (but I need that for a different project ) More on that later !

Paul T

Here is the aft body tube ,and the fins being inserted.It`s nice having a bigger 5.5 BT to add epoxy fillets to the internal fins.

Paul T

One thing about these fins ,nice and easy to align.......I like that.

I made a jig (not shown) that always makes the next fin 90° to the other ,but a good glass eye will do the same .

Paul T

Here`s a shot of the fins on and ready for some external fillets and the Aeropack retainer JB welded on.

Paul t

This is the huge nosecone.It is a well made piece of craft no doubt ,but it did have a soft spot near the tip.I had to patch it up with some cloth and epoxy and a bunch of sanding ,but when you think of it ,nobody even thinks of making this missile never mind in kit form ,so stuff like this is only a minor bother.

PaUl T

Thanks for the build, I almost got one of these, but decided on ordering a 4" and 7.5" cone from wildman and do a scratchbuild pershing 1A 29mm and 54mm instead. I got the decals from stickershock23 and they look great.

Looking forward for the rest.

Frank

burkefj said:

Thanks for the build, I almost got one of these, but decided on ordering a 4" and 7.5" cone from wildman and do a scratchbuild pershing 1A 29mm and 54mm instead. I got the decals from stickershock23 and they look great.

Looking forward for the rest.

Frank

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Now that`s a project I want to see. !

One day ,I want to do a Pershing IA in 6" BT.

But alas ,my plate (more of a smorg) is pretty full !

Cheers

Paul T


PS- I plan on a 6" AIM-4 Falcon (probably a D)

Things are comming along nicely.Nosecone and main body tube and then aft end filletedand primed.

Paul t

Well, you know me, I had to add some detail to the nosecone.I found some good detail pics of the real Pers II and had to add the following details to base and tips of the forward fins.

I used matte board and epoxied the parts to the NC then soaked them in superthin CA.

Looks good enough.

Paul T

Oh well ,just better pics of the nosecone details I added.I know.....boring ,but I hope it gets better

Paul T

Love the added details!

How much noseweight does it require?

-Kevin

sodmeister said:

Oh well ,just better pics of the nosecone details I added.I know.....boring ,but I hope it gets better
Paul T

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Boring? No!
I'm enjoying the build.

troj said:

How much noseweight does it require?

-Kevin

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I`m not too sure Kevin ,but a fellow rocketeer (vtrockin ,who also did a very nice Pershing build here on TRF not too long ago) told me he needed over 2 pounds.

He shared his SIM with me (thanks Jason) ,so I`ll know when I get this thing together.You should check out his rocket builds folks, good info there.

Paul T

hcmbanjo said:

Boring? No!
I'm enjoying the build.

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Thanks Chris.Now I know,this is one you don`t have on your blog :wink:

My window of oportunity as it pertains to painting is comming to a quick end ,so I best get at it and hope for the best.


Paul T

Good looking build, I have always liked the Pershings and plan on doing a 7" scratch Pershing 1A soon.

Now off topic....... Is that 50BMG ammo I see in the background? I have an ArmaLite AR50 and it is by far my favorite rifle.

Ok back on topic.

sodmeister said:

Well, you know me, I had to add some detail to the nosecone.I found some good detail pics of the real Pers II and had to add the following details to base and tips of the forward fins.

I used matte board and epoxied the parts to the NC then soaked them in superthin CA.

Looks good enough.

Paul T

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Yes it is 50 BMG.That would make a cool looking upscale rocket

I agree ,Pershings are great looking rockets.

I would love to see a 7" scratch build.


Paul T

Big `ole nosecone painted using Krylon satin Italian Olive green and the radome was done in Duplicolor ColorMatch lacquer Arctic White ,which is more of an off white rather than a bright white.This matches the actual radome on the real missile better.

I`ll then paint the radome tip Chrome Silver.

MAN ,I`m running low on paintable weather as winter is comming in these parts ,so things are in high gear (I type this in between drying time between coats and colors)
I spray outside ,then run into the basement of the house and let things dry/cure .Very hard on the knees and getting tired ,but good exercise I suppose

Cheers

Paul T

that looks more than good! :wink:

What engine you think the first flight will be?

We always the pictures too!

[POW]Eagle159;251832 said:

that looks more than good! :wink:

What engine you think the first flight will be?

We always the pictures too!

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I`m not really sure yet.I`ll have to balance and weigh it first ,then go from there ,but I`m thinking maybe a large H then an I (a Sparky I me thinks)

But alas ,thus will have to wait for our next HP event ,some time in spring.Our club just barely got a HP event last week ,due to high winds and was cut short ,but good flights were had !


Cheers

Paul T

Well ,while the rocket dries after paint (talk about a mad rush to beat the weather ,up & down basement stairs to get the darn thing to dry properly between coats......OH DONE !!) I made a second bulkhead for the nosecone.

The kit came with a smaller bulkhead that fit down into the nosecone near the forward fins,this was where the shockcord was to be attached.

I was not crazy about this ,as the SC would be way inside the NC ,hard to get a quick link off and on easily ,and also the SC would be comming in contact to the sharp edges of the fiberglass.

I made my own bulkhead ,glued in a U-Bolt for SC attachment and added an access hatch so as to be able to add nose weight when /if needed.The larger bulkhead should also be stronger ,better safe than sorry

I hope to get the detail vinyl and monokote on in the next couple of days ,then plenty of pictures......IF all goes well of course.

Thanks for looking !


Paul T

sodmeister said:

I`m not really sure yet.I`ll have to balance and weigh it first ,then go from there ,but I`m thinking maybe a large H then an I (a Sparky I me thinks)

But alas ,thus will have to wait for our next HP event ,some time in spring.Our club just barely got a HP event last week ,due to high winds and was cut short ,but good flights were had !


Cheers

Paul T

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Yeah, I don't think it will like high winds.... a sparky will look really cool with its missile shape! :wink:

sodmeister said:

Here is the aft body tube ,and the fins being inserted.It`s nice having a bigger 5.5 BT to add epoxy fillets to the internal fins.

Paul T

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That's a very creative use of the angled aluminum.

I've seen the aluminum angle used to align fins going up the air frame, but I haven't seen it used to go across the air frame.

Very nicely done!

bradycros said:

That's a very creative use of the angled aluminum.

I've seen the aluminum angle used to align fins going up the air frame, but I haven't seen it used to go across the air frame.

Very nicely done!

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It just so happened the fins bypassed the aft BT a half inch ,so it worked out nicely.This is one of the few rockets I`ve built,where the fins could be aligned this way.

The vinyl decals/detail will go on this weekend.Just waiting for the paint to harden a little more.Better safe than sorry !

See you later T

Paul T

Really nice project.
Bet that will be a hoot on a sparky.

MaxQ said:

Really nice project.
Bet that will be a hoot on a sparky.

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Thankyou.It is a nice kit ,it`s my 3rd Polecat.

The rocket does look impressive when it`s all put together.Should look better when it`s all "dressed" up.

And indeed......a Sparky is exactly what I had in mind


Paul T