Generic E2X (maybe Wizards - we’ll see) bulk pack on sale

[Grant_Edwards]

An hour should be enough if the kits are well-prepped.

I recommend pre-cutting the slot in the engine mount tube and pre-cutting the extra plastic from the nosecone. That way no X-Acto knives will be involved. I would also pre-mark the body tubes and engine mount tubes.

Pre-assembling snap swivels to the parachutes also helps.

I'd also recommend having something like Titebond quick & thick for the launch lug, but something like Titebond-III for the joints where you're sliding things into/onto other things.

If you can, try to get everybody to dry-fit each step and have it checked by an adult, then take it apart, apply glue, and re-fit.

Having pre-assembled samples of sub-assemblies (engine mount, fin-can-assembly) to hand around is also really nice.

One way to make the launch lug easy is to have a 11-12" chunk of 1/8" launch rod (roughly the same length as the body tube) for everybody. Put the glue on the body tube, put the rod through the launch lug, and then lay the rod+lug on the side of the rocket and tape down the ends of the rod. If the rod is a bit longer than the body tube, it almost guarantees nobody will end up with the lug lined up with a fin.

Then you can stick the launch rod into a hole in the middle of a 3" piece of 1x4, and you've got a display stand.

It's a good idea to have an extra kit or two for spare parts. If you've got example sub-assemblies, you can always give those to the kids who manage to glue things together in new and unexpected ways.

Good luck!

 

[PDawg]

This is the best kit for your needs, you’ll be fine.

 

[PDawg]

Wait until you guys see how many modified versions of this kit I can make.

 

[dhbarr]

I'll be leading the build of this bulk pack for my son's Webelos den this Saturday. And then we'll fly them the following week.

This will be my first time leading a group build. We have a little less than an hour, so I've prepped some steps. Wish me luck! These kids can smell fear.

Cutting the 1/8in slit in the MMT is definitely the one that requires the most supervision unless you get some of the NCs that had a busted mold.

The big plastic blob was extremely challenging. I would recommend a drill or pin vise for that scenario -- the amount of force applied with a hobby knife was uncomfortably high.

 

[JSW]

I did this with my sons Webelos group, but with the Estes Red Diamond. I did some prep steps like install the shock cord and pre-cut the holes in the body tube for the launch lug.

It was still hard to get it done in one hour. I had myself and another adult helping a group of 8 webelos. It would have been nice to have at least one more adult.

One thing I did that worked well: I printed out labels with their names (in a Star Wars font) and also printed labels of various logos (webelos, nasa, spaceX, blue horizon, etc). They decorated their rockets with the labels. The body tube was white. The labels were clear mailing labels. Worked perfectly.

 

[Grant_Edwards]

One thing I did that worked well: I printed out labels with their names (in a Star Wars font) and also printed labels of various logos (webelos, nasa, spaceX, blue horizon, etc). They decorated their rockets with the labels. The body tube was white. The labels were clear mailing labels. Worked perfectly.

I did something similar for a girl scout troop build of E2X Generics. I bought some 8.5 x 11 Avery clear gloss sticker "paper" (IIRC I had 14 sheets). I printed BT-50 wraps in various patterns and colors, girl scout logos, troop number "logos", and various colors and styles of stripes. [The rainbow stripes ran out first.]

Hint: it takes a _long_ time for those to dry after coming off an inkjet printer. Don't try to stack them up until they've air-dried for a day. Then a light spray of clear acrylic (and another day of drying time) is needed to keep them from smudging.

Those extra stickers were very popular. I had made hardwood display stand bases (maple or hickory, I forget) with beveled edges — nicely sanded with a buffed wax finish. Even though I knew it was going to happen it was hard to keep smiling as the wood got covered with stickers. One of the girls actually asked me if it was OK to put stickers on the wood bases, and I told of course it was.