Gluing G10 fins to cardboard body tube

[SolarYellow]

Did a little searching, didn't quite land on on-point discussion.

I've bought some 0.5-mm G10 that will be the fins for my 18mm C-powered sport rocket. Will use either this or some 1mm thick stuff on a future 25mm rocket if I go there. Is there a consensus on what's the best glue for G10 to cardboard?

I've seen someone in the high-powered forum advocating for the excellence of Aeropoxy ES6209, but I'm not going to spend $70 on glue for this thing.

What about CA?

Is standard Bob Smith Industries 15- or 30-minute epoxy workable stuff? I'm assuming it will soak in and be stronger than the cardboard.

I want to also use it for the fillets. I used to have some micro balloons, but am sure I don't anymore. What do rocket people use for filler on epoxy fillets, if anything?

 

[tsmith1315]

Is standard Bob Smith Industries 15- or 30-minute epoxy workable stuff? I'm assuming it will soak in and be stronger than the cardboard.

Yes and yes.

I use it for fillets, too, but I don't make big ones like some folks do.

 

[Tractionengines]

Skuff up the G10 and tube surface with 220 sand paper. You can use a few VERY SMALL spots of CA to position them, so you don't have to hold them. Then the 15 min epoxy fillets.

 

[Back_at_it]

I built a Blobbo that had G10 fins attached to card board. BSI 30 min worked great.

I sanded the area that went through the body tube and about a 1/4” of the fin where it meets the body tube with 80 grit.

 

[SolarYellow]

I'm thinking I'll pre polish the fins before mounting them (black, not PC board color) and then put a 120 scuff on the tube-facing surfaces and 1mm out from there. Get them glued on with just a tiny bit, let it harden. Then go back and mask 1mm up the fin and away from the fin on the tube. Go back with a 2mm dia. drill bit to form nice, round 1mm fillets. That gives 2.5mm contact with the tube total, and a fillet that's 4 percent of the root chord.

I'm kit bashing a Hi-Flyer into something better, so no through-the-tube fins here.

I like that you can get 1mm thick G10 panels in the whole rainbow of colors shipped cheap from China all day long on fleabay. So you can pick your color and just polish it. Or depending on how polished it comes, just don't scuff it up when fabricating, and you may only need to polish the rounding/airfoiling. But the point is, no additional painting or anything required. Have only found 0.2-0.5mm in black, so far, but the 1mm color panels would be useful for bigger models.

Just to save someone the warning, I do have experience working with G10. I wear gloves and only ever wet sand to control the dust.