sl98
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- Dec 27, 2012
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I’m surprised there hasn’t been a build thread yet on the Astron Explorer. I will attempt to document my build. Be forewarned...I rarely build a stock kit. There will be a mod or two along the way. Recommended engines are D12-3 and E12-4. Although E qualifies as mid power I'll post in LPR. I won't be flying E12's. I foresee flying this kit on 24/40 hobby reloads.
Here are a few pictures of the parts:
The kit includes 8 nose cones. There are also templates for aligning the body tubes together.
Thumbing through the instructions, this kit looks very similar to the Trident. The ejection gases will vent from the motor mount tube, through the 3 side tubes and into the top tube.
Directions have you building motor mount first. I’m going to skip that step and come back to it later. NOTE: See Post 13 below and consider adding a length of coupler above the motor mount to reinforce the bottom tube.
Next steps are to cut slots in all tubes where ejection gases will vent. I photocopied the templates from the instructions instead of cutting them out of the instruction book. You also get a second copy of instruction in German so you could always cut up that copy if you don’t have a copier handy.
I used a straight edge and hobby knife for all cuts. The ends align to the ends of the body tubes so you want straight cuts. I tried using scissors but couldn’t get a straight cut.
First up are the 3 BT20 side tubes. One slot is needed in each end. Instructions call for drawing a straight line with a door jamb. Aluminum angle is my substitute for a door jamb.
The slot cut out template is place on the tube and lined up with the reference line. The slot in the paper does not lay flat and wants to bulge up. I pressed the sides of the slot down with my spare hand and drew traced the slot. I then slid the template to the other end. The slot started to distort when I drew my second slot. I tried using a little strip of tape in the center of the slot to hold the slot together. This didn’t work very well.
I ended up printing out another templates. This time, I put a piece of scotch tape on the slot before I cut it out. This helps keep the edge of the slot from tearing. I was able to trace decent enough lines. I then used the aluminum angle to cut my slots. I inserted used 18mm motors to have something firm to cut against.
The templates for cutting the slots on the BT-55 tube are not intended to be reused like the BT20 template. I think I will reprint them and not cut out the slots. I will then tape them to the tube and use my aluminum angle to cut the slots.
Here are a few pictures of the parts:
The kit includes 8 nose cones. There are also templates for aligning the body tubes together.
Thumbing through the instructions, this kit looks very similar to the Trident. The ejection gases will vent from the motor mount tube, through the 3 side tubes and into the top tube.
Directions have you building motor mount first. I’m going to skip that step and come back to it later. NOTE: See Post 13 below and consider adding a length of coupler above the motor mount to reinforce the bottom tube.
Next steps are to cut slots in all tubes where ejection gases will vent. I photocopied the templates from the instructions instead of cutting them out of the instruction book. You also get a second copy of instruction in German so you could always cut up that copy if you don’t have a copier handy.
I used a straight edge and hobby knife for all cuts. The ends align to the ends of the body tubes so you want straight cuts. I tried using scissors but couldn’t get a straight cut.
First up are the 3 BT20 side tubes. One slot is needed in each end. Instructions call for drawing a straight line with a door jamb. Aluminum angle is my substitute for a door jamb.
The slot cut out template is place on the tube and lined up with the reference line. The slot in the paper does not lay flat and wants to bulge up. I pressed the sides of the slot down with my spare hand and drew traced the slot. I then slid the template to the other end. The slot started to distort when I drew my second slot. I tried using a little strip of tape in the center of the slot to hold the slot together. This didn’t work very well.
I ended up printing out another templates. This time, I put a piece of scotch tape on the slot before I cut it out. This helps keep the edge of the slot from tearing. I was able to trace decent enough lines. I then used the aluminum angle to cut my slots. I inserted used 18mm motors to have something firm to cut against.
The templates for cutting the slots on the BT-55 tube are not intended to be reused like the BT20 template. I think I will reprint them and not cut out the slots. I will then tape them to the tube and use my aluminum angle to cut the slots.
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