Look great to me. Can't wait to see the finished product here.
Fliskits Spitfire - Beer Can Version - Build Thread - FINISHED
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Beer can wraps on the sections time!! Once again I'll give a big thank you to Kcobbva for his great work for me to make this build possible. Thanks Kevin!
Here are the three wraps for the tube sections that Kevin created. Fosters, Busch, and Duff.
I cut them all out and you can see how the bottom and top curves match up.
I did a dry fit on the Duff wrap and it fit perfect. It reminded me that there's a small sliver of tube visible between the Duff and Coors wraps and I need to do something about that.
A black sharpie later and it looks like a mess. But that's okay because when the wrap was dry fitted again it looked good. Nothing could go wrong with the Duff wrap now!! Right?
So. Um. Glue and... the paper was... it didn't really go as planned.
Good thing I had two sets of wraps printed.
Here are the three wraps for the tube sections that Kevin created. Fosters, Busch, and Duff.
I cut them all out and you can see how the bottom and top curves match up.
I did a dry fit on the Duff wrap and it fit perfect. It reminded me that there's a small sliver of tube visible between the Duff and Coors wraps and I need to do something about that.
A black sharpie later and it looks like a mess. But that's okay because when the wrap was dry fitted again it looked good. Nothing could go wrong with the Duff wrap now!! Right?
So. Um. Glue and... the paper was... it didn't really go as planned.
Good thing I had two sets of wraps printed.
... as if you don't know they look amazing
Thanks guys! I hope it turns out well too. Ha!
Tips for the folks that are papering a tube:
1) Don't spread glue all over the back of the wrap and then try and pick it up from a cutting mat. You'll end up with a ball of paper that doesn't fit on the tube anymore. See previous picture.
2) Don't spread glue lightly all over the tube and then apply the wrap onto the glue. It works better than my first attempt, but still not great. My Duff wrap has a few raised spots and was a little wrinkly. It's still acceptable.
3) The way that worked best was to put a little glue on the tube where the edge connects, then I pressed the wrap down on the edge to set it. After that I put a little glue on the tube where the edge of the wrap will go, but not the middle, I smeared the small amount of glue out for the edges and then finished wrapping the paper tightly into place. I did that for the Busch and Foster's wraps and they looked better.
I expect that I'll cover the finished rocket with several layers of clear paint which should help protect the paper.
Check out the stacked up rocket body. No fins glued on and no nose cone yet, but I'm in the home stretch.
1) Don't spread glue all over the back of the wrap and then try and pick it up from a cutting mat. You'll end up with a ball of paper that doesn't fit on the tube anymore. See previous picture.
2) Don't spread glue lightly all over the tube and then apply the wrap onto the glue. It works better than my first attempt, but still not great. My Duff wrap has a few raised spots and was a little wrinkly. It's still acceptable.
3) The way that worked best was to put a little glue on the tube where the edge connects, then I pressed the wrap down on the edge to set it. After that I put a little glue on the tube where the edge of the wrap will go, but not the middle, I smeared the small amount of glue out for the edges and then finished wrapping the paper tightly into place. I did that for the Busch and Foster's wraps and they looked better.
I expect that I'll cover the finished rocket with several layers of clear paint which should help protect the paper.
Check out the stacked up rocket body. No fins glued on and no nose cone yet, but I'm in the home stretch.
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oh man, these look better than I could have imagined!!! this is going to be a launch favorite!!!
Because all the fins are different they each have an assigned location on the rocket. I suppose it's possible for the fins to be glued into other places, providing they fit, but I wouldn't advise trying it. I'm sure deviating from the instructions would jinx your build or something. Fin number 3 actually connects to the tail cone AND section 2, so there is an angle on the fin and it pretty much has to be glued on that spot. Anyway, I'm following directions on this build and putting them where they go.
I've used the fin cutting guides to keep them straight instead of writing the numbers on the fins. I could have written a number on the bottom of the fins I suppose. This works too.
The place where fin 1 glues is the seam, but it straddles the seam and won't fit flush because the seam is a glue tab and not card stock butted up edge to edge. I can't remember how I did the first one of these I built, and I'm not sure how big of a deal it would be, but dry fitting it left me thinking a little alteration might help.
I decided that sanding off a little bit of one side of the root edge would help. First I tried laying a piece of sandpaper on the table and running the fin root edge along the side, but that didn't work because I couldn't keep the fin aligned. Then I tried a couple of other ways before finding a better way. I held the end of an emery board as shown and was able to remove half the edge. It only needed to be one sheet of card stock thickness deep.
I tried to take a picture of the edge to show the step, but had a really hard time keeping it in focus and at an angle where the step was lit up in a way where it would show. This is the best I could do.
Test fitting it showed that it was a good fit.
I've used the fin cutting guides to keep them straight instead of writing the numbers on the fins. I could have written a number on the bottom of the fins I suppose. This works too.
The place where fin 1 glues is the seam, but it straddles the seam and won't fit flush because the seam is a glue tab and not card stock butted up edge to edge. I can't remember how I did the first one of these I built, and I'm not sure how big of a deal it would be, but dry fitting it left me thinking a little alteration might help.
I decided that sanding off a little bit of one side of the root edge would help. First I tried laying a piece of sandpaper on the table and running the fin root edge along the side, but that didn't work because I couldn't keep the fin aligned. Then I tried a couple of other ways before finding a better way. I held the end of an emery board as shown and was able to remove half the edge. It only needed to be one sheet of card stock thickness deep.
I tried to take a picture of the edge to show the step, but had a really hard time keeping it in focus and at an angle where the step was lit up in a way where it would show. This is the best I could do.
Test fitting it showed that it was a good fit.
Yep, it actually turned out well. Your graphics look great man!!
To attach the fins I'm using the double glue method as I do on all the fins I glue. I put a bead of glue down the root edge of fin 1, pressed it into place, pulled it off, set it down leaning on something so it could dry(ish), and then did the same for the other three. Here are a couple of the fins drying.
After about 10 minutes the first fin was ready. So another bead of glue was applied to the root edge and pressed into place. When this is done the fin grabs and nearly sticks in place instantly. A little bit of adjustment was made to lean the fin to make sure it was perpendicular to the motor tube and then it is in place. Here's fin number 1.
After fin 2 was glued on I used the lines on my cutting mat to verify the alignment. It might not look right in the picture, but that's just because the rocket is so screwy and the top section is off center so much. I had to lift the rocket so I could see down the motor tube and center it on the crossing of two lines. Then those lines beyond the rocket could be used to align the fins with the motor tube.
Here it is from another angle. The fins are correctly aligned, I promise.
Eventually all 4 fins were glued on, with fillets on each side for added strength.
One of the fins sticks down beyond the bottom of the rocket, so while they're fully drying it's sitting on the edge of the table to let that fin hang down.
It's looking like a rocket... made out of beer cans.
After about 10 minutes the first fin was ready. So another bead of glue was applied to the root edge and pressed into place. When this is done the fin grabs and nearly sticks in place instantly. A little bit of adjustment was made to lean the fin to make sure it was perpendicular to the motor tube and then it is in place. Here's fin number 1.
After fin 2 was glued on I used the lines on my cutting mat to verify the alignment. It might not look right in the picture, but that's just because the rocket is so screwy and the top section is off center so much. I had to lift the rocket so I could see down the motor tube and center it on the crossing of two lines. Then those lines beyond the rocket could be used to align the fins with the motor tube.
Here it is from another angle. The fins are correctly aligned, I promise.
Eventually all 4 fins were glued on, with fillets on each side for added strength.
One of the fins sticks down beyond the bottom of the rocket, so while they're fully drying it's sitting on the edge of the table to let that fin hang down.
It's looking like a rocket... made out of beer cans.
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Ok. So, the name of this rocket is what? "Hold My Beer"?
Looks Great! (and less filling) :wink:
Looks Great! (and less filling) :wink:
The next step is to make the nosecone. For this one I selected a Budweiser can because it's one of the most recognizable beer labels around. The template has two copies and kcobbva edited them slightly different.
I selected the one with the most red and cut it out.
It had to be curled into a cone and I wanted to avoid any crimps or folds, and this was way too big to hold in the palm of my hand while I curled it, so I used a stack of napkins and a short dowel to roll across the back. When curling a cone or shroud with a dowel you always have to keep one end of the dowel towards the center of the curve.
After a few light passes it's starting to curl correctly.
Then I picked up the cone and breathed hot moist air slowly into the cone for several minutes. I made the cone tighter keeping focus on the tip of the cone and the bottom of the seam.. I wanted to make sure I wasn't curling it incorrectly.
Here's a dry fit looking down into the cone at the tip.
The opening at the tip is nearly unavoidable, but I wanted to make it as small as possible.
I think I'm ready to glue it now.
I selected the one with the most red and cut it out.
It had to be curled into a cone and I wanted to avoid any crimps or folds, and this was way too big to hold in the palm of my hand while I curled it, so I used a stack of napkins and a short dowel to roll across the back. When curling a cone or shroud with a dowel you always have to keep one end of the dowel towards the center of the curve.
After a few light passes it's starting to curl correctly.
Then I picked up the cone and breathed hot moist air slowly into the cone for several minutes. I made the cone tighter keeping focus on the tip of the cone and the bottom of the seam.. I wanted to make sure I wasn't curling it incorrectly.
Here's a dry fit looking down into the cone at the tip.
The opening at the tip is nearly unavoidable, but I wanted to make it as small as possible.
I think I'm ready to glue it now.
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A very slight amount of glue on the tab and a bit of pressure, and the nosecone is formed.
The point still had a small opening, but that's okay.
I put a single drop of white glue in the tip from the inside to seal it in preparation for the next step.
After the glue dried I placed the nose cone on the rocket to see how it looked. Unfortunately something must have gone wrong again. Dang it.
I might have to call the Tiger Team to help me figure this one out too.
The point still had a small opening, but that's okay.
I put a single drop of white glue in the tip from the inside to seal it in preparation for the next step.
After the glue dried I placed the nose cone on the rocket to see how it looked. Unfortunately something must have gone wrong again. Dang it.
I might have to call the Tiger Team to help me figure this one out too.
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Turns out I only had the nose on upside down. Crisis averted.
The next step is to coat the inside of the nosecone with epoxy to give it strength. I'm using 5 minute epoxy because it's the only epoxy I've ever used. My mixing cup is the bottom section of a dixie cup that I cut the bottom off of, and my stirring stick is a thick piece of balsa that was leftover from a previous model. I've used that stick a number of times and it's built up a nice smooth bulb on the bottom.
My method for measuring epoxy is to squeeze both bottles at the same time into the cup and watch each puddle grow, and change how hard I'm squeezing to keep the puddles the same size. After I get what I think is enough in the cup I cap the bottles and mix the epoxy together really well with my stick.
Because this procedure and the application all have to happen within just a few minutes I didn't bother trying to take pictures for this thread. That would have been a sure way to screw this up.
Here's the nose right after application of the epoxy.
I'm holding it as it cures and rolling it slowly to try and distribute the epoxy as evenly as possible until it's too thick to spread.
This stuff gets REALLY hot when it sets up!!!
The next step is to coat the inside of the nosecone with epoxy to give it strength. I'm using 5 minute epoxy because it's the only epoxy I've ever used. My mixing cup is the bottom section of a dixie cup that I cut the bottom off of, and my stirring stick is a thick piece of balsa that was leftover from a previous model. I've used that stick a number of times and it's built up a nice smooth bulb on the bottom.
My method for measuring epoxy is to squeeze both bottles at the same time into the cup and watch each puddle grow, and change how hard I'm squeezing to keep the puddles the same size. After I get what I think is enough in the cup I cap the bottles and mix the epoxy together really well with my stick.
Because this procedure and the application all have to happen within just a few minutes I didn't bother trying to take pictures for this thread. That would have been a sure way to screw this up.
Here's the nose right after application of the epoxy.
I'm holding it as it cures and rolling it slowly to try and distribute the epoxy as evenly as possible until it's too thick to spread.
This stuff gets REALLY hot when it sets up!!!
The nose cone has a CR with a hole that lines up with the motor tube, and a plug gets glued into the hole flush with the bottom. Glue was added around the edge of the balsa plug and pressed into the CR. I twisted it around a little to get the glue in between the CR and plug to spread.
After that dried I turned it over and put more glue on the plug at the CR. The instructions say to do this in order to strengthen it further. You really don't want this plug pulled out of the nose cone at ejection!
When that dried it looked fairly strong.
I did a dry test fit of the CR into the nose cone. Be very careful here and make sure the angle of the CR and the cone matches the instructions. I remember my first Spitfire was messed up because I didn't glue it right. Pulling the cone off that CR is not easy. But I did this one correct. Using a sharpie because a pencil wouldn't mark the epoxy, I drew on the cone where the CR would glue to. Then I added a thick ring of glue on the drawn circle.
When I put the CR in place a little glue showed between the cone and CR. If I left it like this the glue would run down inside the cone and be useless, so I had to turn it over to dry. I didn't want to put it into the motor tube just in case the glue got onto the plug. I definitely didn't want to glue the nose cone permanently to the rocket.
I sat the nose cone on a piece of tubing for a few hours.
In this position the glue would (hopefully) run down to the intersection of the cone and CR to glue it in place. More glue will be added after it was allowed to fully dry.
After that dried I turned it over and put more glue on the plug at the CR. The instructions say to do this in order to strengthen it further. You really don't want this plug pulled out of the nose cone at ejection!
When that dried it looked fairly strong.
I did a dry test fit of the CR into the nose cone. Be very careful here and make sure the angle of the CR and the cone matches the instructions. I remember my first Spitfire was messed up because I didn't glue it right. Pulling the cone off that CR is not easy. But I did this one correct. Using a sharpie because a pencil wouldn't mark the epoxy, I drew on the cone where the CR would glue to. Then I added a thick ring of glue on the drawn circle.
When I put the CR in place a little glue showed between the cone and CR. If I left it like this the glue would run down inside the cone and be useless, so I had to turn it over to dry. I didn't want to put it into the motor tube just in case the glue got onto the plug. I definitely didn't want to glue the nose cone permanently to the rocket.
I sat the nose cone on a piece of tubing for a few hours.
In this position the glue would (hopefully) run down to the intersection of the cone and CR to glue it in place. More glue will be added after it was allowed to fully dry.
I looked at the motor tube sticking up and decided to check the fit of the now dry nose cone. Boy am I glad I did.
I saw that the nose cone wouldn't fully fit down onto the rocket far enough. The gap was too large because the motor tube extends too far.
While I decided what to do I went ahead and put glue on to the bottom of the CR and let it set aside and dry.
I pulled the previous Spitfire off my shelf to compare motor tube lengths. Measuring showed that the Beer version motor tube was 1/4" higher. I also saw a little zippering on the old one. I'll have to fix that soon.
I cut a 1/4" wide strip of card stock and used it, wrapped around the tube, to mark a line where I should cut.
I saw that the nose cone wouldn't fully fit down onto the rocket far enough. The gap was too large because the motor tube extends too far.
While I decided what to do I went ahead and put glue on to the bottom of the CR and let it set aside and dry.
I pulled the previous Spitfire off my shelf to compare motor tube lengths. Measuring showed that the Beer version motor tube was 1/4" higher. I also saw a little zippering on the old one. I'll have to fix that soon.
I cut a 1/4" wide strip of card stock and used it, wrapped around the tube, to mark a line where I should cut.
To cut the tube I just scratched the marking over and over slightly. It took about 5 or 6 rotations of the rocket to get the tube cut completely off.
Not too difficult. And hopefully the nose cone fits now. The glue on the nose cone was drying so I didn't want to check it yet.
I used some sandpaper to clean up the end of the tube and it now matches the existing Spitfire in length.
Remembering the zipper damage I'd seen tonight on the first Spitfire I decided to reinforce the end of the tube a little. I smeared CA down the inside of the tube. That might not help any, but I felt a little bit better about it.
Not too difficult. And hopefully the nose cone fits now. The glue on the nose cone was drying so I didn't want to check it yet.
I used some sandpaper to clean up the end of the tube and it now matches the existing Spitfire in length.
Remembering the zipper damage I'd seen tonight on the first Spitfire I decided to reinforce the end of the tube a little. I smeared CA down the inside of the tube. That might not help any, but I felt a little bit better about it.
Thanks. All the glue on the nose had dried when I looked at it this morning so I did another test fit of the nosecone and it looked GREAT! Shortening the tube really did the trick. I didn't take a picture but I'll be sure and post some updates tonight.
Sooner Boomer
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Seems like you could take that 1/4" of tube you cut off, slit it, and glue it on the outside of the top of the main tube to reinforce it. Since this is not seen when the nosecone is on, it won't affect appearance. Just a thought...
Oooh, that's a good idea! Do you think that would eliminate zippering?
Because of the wide tail and nose cones sticking out past the body tubes, the launch lug needs a standoff. Here's the one for my first Spitfire.
The pattern for the standoff somehow got lost. Probably thrown away with various other trimmings. But it wasn't hard to measure the existing rocket and cut one the same size.
To continue the theme, I decided to put a pull top tab on the standoff. I found this image online and since my personal image editor was busy this week I did this myself. Utilizing PowerPoint I made a red background (to somewhat match the Duff section) and filled it with pairs of variously sized tabs. When I got home with it I used the cut out standoff and found the pair that would be as big as possible and cut them out.
I applied glue around the edges of the surfaces. I didn't put glue all over the entire surface because wrinkles.
Ta dah! I also cut strips to go on the top and bottom edges.
The lug itself is long and the instructions say to cut one of them at angles to match the standoff.
Like so.
To get the best connection between the lug and the standoff I wrapped some sandpaper around the lug so I can sand a curve into the edge.
It's impossible to take a picture while sanding, but this pretty much shows what I mean. The edge of the standoff is now slightly concave and will fit better against the lug.
The pattern for the standoff somehow got lost. Probably thrown away with various other trimmings. But it wasn't hard to measure the existing rocket and cut one the same size.
To continue the theme, I decided to put a pull top tab on the standoff. I found this image online and since my personal image editor was busy this week I did this myself. Utilizing PowerPoint I made a red background (to somewhat match the Duff section) and filled it with pairs of variously sized tabs. When I got home with it I used the cut out standoff and found the pair that would be as big as possible and cut them out.
I applied glue around the edges of the surfaces. I didn't put glue all over the entire surface because wrinkles.
Ta dah! I also cut strips to go on the top and bottom edges.
The lug itself is long and the instructions say to cut one of them at angles to match the standoff.
Like so.
To get the best connection between the lug and the standoff I wrapped some sandpaper around the lug so I can sand a curve into the edge.
It's impossible to take a picture while sanding, but this pretty much shows what I mean. The edge of the standoff is now slightly concave and will fit better against the lug.
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Might not eliminate zippering, but it couldn't hurt.
I need to get some paint for the lugs. Until then I can move along to the next step.
The instructions say to cut the toothpick 1/2" long. I've marked the toothpick to see how one that long would fit.
The purpose is to stick up past the edge of the tube and into the nosecone CR as a way to stabilize it. Unfortunately 1/2" doesn't go past the top of the tube. Here is where I will deviate from the instructions for the first time and cut it longer. I doubt Jim Flis would object.
I put some glue on the inside of the tube right at the seam opposite the motor tube.
And the toothpick sticks up slightly.
I've found a spot to lay the rocket down to dry.
The instructions say to cut the toothpick 1/2" long. I've marked the toothpick to see how one that long would fit.
The purpose is to stick up past the edge of the tube and into the nosecone CR as a way to stabilize it. Unfortunately 1/2" doesn't go past the top of the tube. Here is where I will deviate from the instructions for the first time and cut it longer. I doubt Jim Flis would object.
I put some glue on the inside of the tube right at the seam opposite the motor tube.
And the toothpick sticks up slightly.
I've found a spot to lay the rocket down to dry.
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My friend, this is looking totally awesome! No doubt I will be referring to this over and over when I finally get to build mine!!!!
Sooner Boomer
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I don't know. You already have the part - why not use it? If you're really worried about zippering, a wrap or two of fiberglass packaging tape around the top of the inner tube should really help. Again, this portion is not seen when the NC is on. It's dang near impossible to tear across fiberglass tape.
It seems like a good idea, and I doubt it could hurt anything, so I cut the ring as suggested to glue it around the top of the motor tube to add some protection against the damage that was done to my first Spitfire.
Glue was spread around the top of the motor tube. Some additional glue was also added to the toothpick, just to be sure.
And the ring was added to the tube.
When it dried the motor tube was INVINCIBLE!!
The next step is to put the weight on the top of the rocket body. I'll diverge a little from the instructions here and just put it on like this. That should work out okay, right?
Glue was spread around the top of the motor tube. Some additional glue was also added to the toothpick, just to be sure.
And the ring was added to the tube.
When it dried the motor tube was INVINCIBLE!!
The next step is to put the weight on the top of the rocket body. I'll diverge a little from the instructions here and just put it on like this. That should work out okay, right?
On second thought I guess I'd better press pieces of the clay in place until it's all in place.
I screwed the eyelet into the center of the balsa plug and then unscrewed it.
Some glue was added to the hole and it was screwed back in place.
I screwed the eyelet into the center of the balsa plug and then unscrewed it.
Some glue was added to the hole and it was screwed back in place.
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You said invincible but failed to draw batman on the tube!
