4.15X Explorer finally done.

[jimzcatz]

Its just too purty to fly.

https://www.hooverae.com/upload/files/100209/0219914.jpeg

 

[kelltym88]

That looks awesome!! Well done.

 

[Kaycee]

That's a beautiful bird, Jim. Can you give us a few specifics--size, weight, motor configuration?

I sure hope you bring that beauty to Southern Thunder this year.

 

[ben_ullman]

Its just too purty to fly.

https://www.hooverae.com/upload/files/100209/0219914.jpeg

not even for a free motor?

Ben

 

[BB-ROCK]

very nice work of art you got there!!

 

[jimzcatz]

Ben....maybe!!
Central tube is Loc 5.5" surrounded be 18 Loc 3" tubes. Main MM is 3" with 2 38's. Empty weight is 35 pounds.

 

[Kaycee]

Jim, the vote is unanimous and there will be no further discussion on this subject...


You -WILL- come to the sod farm.

You -WILL- launch your rockets.

We -WILL- take pictures and video.







Southern Thunder '09. See you there!

Launch information--

HARA
MC2

 

[Brent]

Looks good Jim. When will she fly? LDRS?

 

[jimzcatz]

I forgot to give props to Sandman. He did the nose. I really doubt I will attend LDRS or ST2009. I will be at Spring WELD in Bayboro the 28th of March.

 

[sandman]

Thanks, I did a one post pictoral (sorta) on how I made the cone on RP.

I can post it here if the audience requests it.

 

[ben_ullman]

I forgot to give props to Sandman. He did the nose. I really doubt I will attend LDRS or ST2009. I will be at fall WELD in Bayboro the 28th of March.

You mean spring WELD. I'll see if I can hook you up for LDRS research days

Ben

 

[jimzcatz]

Yea,Spring WELD,aint that what I said??

 

[b33n]

Wow, just wow... That thing looks awesome.


Sandman, that is one hell of a nose cone.

 

[stickershock23]

Thanks, I did a one post pictoral (sorta) on how I made the cone on RP.

I can post it here if the audience requests it.

Requested...LOL very nice.

Just a minor suggestion.. you need a website. Unless I've missed it somewhere

 

[sandman]

Requested...LOL very nice.

Just a minor suggestion.. you need a website. Unless I've missed it somewhere

BTW my web site link is in my signature.

OK, here it is.

First CAD drawings. (that it coverted to pdf) I took measurements of an original cone (thank you very much, Christine at Estes! When you talk nice to her she responds very well! )

I then blew them up with a scale factor of 4.18 (5.54 / 1.325) with 2 views 90 degrees apart. [pdf 1 & 2]

Then I did them full size but printing them in sections 'cause my printer only does 8.5 x 14 max. Notice that the full drawing has 2" incraments. for the 2" thick foam. Oh yea...I also had to make a giant caliper. [pic 1]

I used the full size drawing on pic 1 to measure and cut the foam.
The foam was glued and stack with a 3/4" ply base plate. I glue the foam together with gorilla glue.
The foam was then turned on the lathe to the shape. Sounds easy but it's not! [pic 2]

Like how do you carve an elephant? Just start with a big piece of marble and remove everything that doesn't belong on an elephant.
It's just what I do.

Next was the hard part...cutting the eye socket. That took some head scratching to figure out but I got it. I used a broken band saw blade with duct tape on each end as a saw to cut the foam. [pic 3]

Then came the eyeball, that was turned seperately (it's good to have more than one lathe ) That was then Gorrila glued on. Now I tried to make the eyeball itself out of pink foam but I only had a small piece of pink left. Get it..."pink eye" ..... so I had to make it out of blue foam.

 

[sandman]

Next, The really messy part ...fiberglass cloth and epoxy! Another couple of layers of epoxy with sandable filler (that's the pink stuff) then final coats of epoxy. Lots and lots of sanding!

The last picture is a sander that my daughter got me at Sears. MAN! is that a great tool! variable speed and each disc is on a universal mount and swivels indipendently!

The finish was grey auto primer but I forgot to take pics of that.

Ya gotta have good sanding equipment, good sand paper and most important! A good face mask and a 2 HP dust collector!

 

[Pem Tech]

Magnificent!