Upscale 3in Vagabond Build

I decided to build a 3in upscale Vagabond a while back, but wanted to build a kit version first. I got that done, so today I started on the upscale. I was planning on using 3/16" birch plywood that I got from BalsaUSA for the fins, but it's crap. I decided to use some 1/4" plywood that I got from Michael's instead. The Michael's plywood was much flatter and much cheaper.

The multiplication factor for the upscale is 1.83x, but boy does the fin template look huge! I got the plywood blanks cut and the pattern marked.

As usual, I pinned the blanks with 1/4" dowels so I could cut and match sand all the fins at once. I cut the fins out with the bandsaw, and did the sanding with my 1" stationary belt sander. That sure has turned out to be a handy little thing!

The fins turned out really nice. I have to say, I haven't been disappointed yet with Michael's plywood. I sanded the sides of the fins with the 6" stationary belt sander.

I had already made centering rings, a baffle plate, and bulkhead for my Astrobee D build. But I decided to use 3.1" LOC tubing for it, so had to make new components. I'll be using the original components for the Vagabond. I've also decided to use an Estes retainer in it to see how it works. I already have tee nuts in the centering ring, so I'll be able to use either style of retention.

I used the miter saw to cut the lower body tube and motor tube to length.

Looking great Jim,Your using Estes motor tube with the retainer?I have been using LOC 24mm & 29mm motor tubes,when ever I drop by LOC,I always pick up a 34"motor tube.Would the estes retainer fit a LOC motor tube?I might try their retainers someday.Anyway that's a great scale to work with.Mybe I'll try to do the same in the near future.

Fire the subscribe cannon!

Alex

cjp said:

Looking great Jim,Your using Estes motor tube with the retainer?I have been using LOC 24mm & 29mm motor tubes,when ever I drop by LOC,I always pick up a 34"motor tube.Would the estes retainer fit a LOC motor tube?I might try their retainers someday.Anyway that's a great scale to work with.Mybe I'll try to do the same in the near future.

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Hey Carl,

No, this is actually 29mm BMS motor tube. I used 29mm LOC motor tube in the Astrobee, and it's identical to the BMS.

I flooded the coupler and inside of the body tube where the separation point will be. Mounting the coupler on the lathe, I sanded and polished it smooth. I hand sanded the inside of the body tube until it was smooth as well.

Got the half moon baffle discs epoxied in, and the forward centering ring epoxied to the motor tube.

I got the motor mount epoxied into the lower body tube, and got the fin slots cut. Using the fin alignment guide, I got the fins epoxied on.

Using Titebond molding glue as usual, I got the external fillets applied. It looks bigger than I thought it would next to the original. But I like it!

Jim,That looks very nice.Great job on those fins.That's a perfect scale size.oo

Damn Jim! That's a BIG rocket! I like!

Awesome job!!

Epoxied the baffle plate into the coupler, put a fillet around the forward centering ring, epoxied the coupler into the lower body tube, and epoxied the aft centering ring in place.

Drilled and installed the rail buttons. These are low drag rail buttons from Giant Leap.

Oh man Jim, this is a sweet build! Been watching and thought it was time to comment- can't wait to see the paint!!! op:

Here you go Jeff! Primer and the first coat of red.

And the final coats of red. It's not as smooth and glossy as the Rusto 2x red usually is, maybe because I sprayed it in the sun. I may hit it again after it cools off a little, and see if it's any better. I tell ya, there's a lot of surface area on those fins!

When you spray in the sun, especially when the temps are pushing into the 90's, the droplets dry a bit before they hit the surface. Consequently the paint doesn't "level" as it would normally.

Best thing to do is to spray in the shade on such days and perhaps apply a bit heavier than normal. If runs start to appear, carry the bird out into the sun and rotate it so that the runs dissipate as much as possible. If you're going to clear coat, you can always sand the runs out as clear hides a lot of surface issues because it's an enamel and levels very nicely.

This bird is looking very nice.

I tried spraying it with some clear coat. Should have left it alone. I also didn't think about putting a piece of tape on the exposed end of the motor tube. I'll need to sand it before I epoxy on the Estes retainer.

Got the upper body tube and nose cone primered. As I was painting the nose cone, a couple of bubbles appeared. I thought it might have been some soap residue from washing it, but a couple of bubbles appeared on the body tube, too. But as the paint dried, all the bubbles disappeared. Weird.

Some bugs landed on the paint but it was already dry. Ha!

I couldn't resist another comparison shot. I don't know why I like the Vagabond design so much, but I do.

What nose cone did you use?

JPVegh said:

What nose cone did you use?

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It's a PNC300K from Balsa Machining.

I feel bad for suggesting balsaUSA for the ply now. I always got nice straight stuff from them. Maybe you could send the a pic of the warped piece and they might send you another? Sorry man.

Good build. Now I want one!

Nice looking rocket and your builds are always fun to follow. I just started using the Rusto Ultra 2x coverage paint. It actually works good. I also use the Duplicolor. Where did you get the spray gun for the cans? That actually looks cool...how does it work?

qquake2k said:

I couldn't resist another comparison shot. I don't know why I like the Vagabond design so much, but I do.

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I never gave the Vagabond much consideration, probably due to the boring font and lame black lines above the fincan..... but now that I see your upscale version, tis is a very cool looking rocket! I gotta say, it looks like this one is gonna fly straight as an arrow- $5 bucks says I'm right. Love the wide fin span and nose shape. GREAT work! (I've come to the conclusion that your difficulties with paint are deserved: no man should have that much building talent AND be able to pint like Da Vinci!) Ha!

jeffgeraci said:

I never gave the Vagabond much consideration, probably due to the boring font and lame black lines above the fincan..... but now that I see your upscale version, tis is a very cool looking rocket! I gotta say, it looks like this one is gonna fly straight as an arrow- $5 bucks says I'm right. Love the wide fin span and nose shape. GREAT work! (I've come to the conclusion that your difficulties with paint are deserved: no man should have that much building talent AND be able to pint like Da Vinci!) Ha!

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True, the Font is boring, but there's alot of rocket to work with. And you gotta admit the Vagabond nose cone is worth the price of the kit!