Coincidence but I am just now ready to paint my detail also. I will test fly mine primed in about 2 weeks and plan to post video !!
Multi Stage Saturn V
- Thread starter lakeroadster
- Start date
Also, there is a guy in Cleveland. Galactic manufacturing, that supplies a beautiful 3d printed sturdy escape launch tower scaffold one piece fits perfectly if you ever need one.
Thanks.
I've never tried the Micro Mask Liquid Masking Agent from Microscale.
Micro Mask is masking tape in a bottle. Just apply it with a brush, let it dry, and cut it to any shape you want with a sharp-pointed knife. Peel out the part where you want to paint, leaving an outer stencil mask, and paint with the method you prefer.
Tim talks about it at the 39:05 mark on this video: Saturn V Project Disk 3
Clear Coat Prior To Decal Application
I thought the LEM adapter needed some more details so I took a pencil and laid out the individual sections.
Then used Rustoleum Crystal Clear Gloss on the entire rocket. It was another windy and cool day... so I had to use our woodshed as a windbreak.
It doesn't have the fine detail that store bought kits have, but for a hand / scratch build, she wears her colors proud.
I thought the LEM adapter needed some more details so I took a pencil and laid out the individual sections.
Then used Rustoleum Crystal Clear Gloss on the entire rocket. It was another windy and cool day... so I had to use our woodshed as a windbreak.
It doesn't have the fine detail that store bought kits have, but for a hand / scratch build, she wears her colors proud.
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Looks great.
Thanks... Being a child of the 1960's & a rocketry fella... I almost had to build a Saturn V, right? All those hours, pouring over every bit of information available, hanging onto every broadcast. It was so exciting even Mom, Dad and my sister thought it was cool.
While I'm the only one of the family still around, I think this one's got enough "adventurous innards" to make it a lasting memory too. "To the moon, Alice, to the moon— You're going soon, Alice, to the moon."
Are you seriously saying that you took your beautiful rocket "out to the wood shed"?
Hell yes, it does.
Aha, that's it! Call the rocket "Alice".
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Nice, doing my Saturn V, used a fine point black flair pen for capsule detail. Will post
soon
I've had varied success with markers. Sometimes the clear coat eats the marker and leads to gnarly runny looking results. Proceed with caution.
Indeed... tough love. Spare the rod, ruin the launch.
Mylar Streamer R&D
I bought some "Scare Tape" to use as streamers for the 3rd and 4th stages. The tape reminds me of "Spectrum Tape" that was available in the late 1970's.
I took a short piece of the tape outside and clipped it to a tree branch to see how well it reflected the sunlight. Holy schnikeys... this should be just the ticket to help track those small stages.
The plan is to Z-fold it, as previously discussed. The tape is Mylar, 0.001" thick x 2" wide. Folding it over you can easily burnish the fold with your fingernail and it sets the fold line into the Mylar.
I bought some "Scare Tape" to use as streamers for the 3rd and 4th stages. The tape reminds me of "Spectrum Tape" that was available in the late 1970's.
I took a short piece of the tape outside and clipped it to a tree branch to see how well it reflected the sunlight. Holy schnikeys... this should be just the ticket to help track those small stages.
The plan is to Z-fold it, as previously discussed. The tape is Mylar, 0.001" thick x 2" wide. Folding it over you can easily burnish the fold with your fingernail and it sets the fold line into the Mylar.
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I'm going to have to grab some of that. Growing up, a handful of the dirt track racers in our area used a similar material for the numbers on the car. Some had the 'engine turned' squares about 1", while others were 1/4". The effect of the smaller pattern on the track under the lights was great.
Additive Aerospace's decal has some prismatic method that is so small that I can't see the prismatic element at all, just all rainbow. Pretty cool looking.
Can't wait to see the flight!
Decals
The decal set I used, as previously discussed, is from Tango Papa: set #251-0405. It is a scaled up version of the decal set from Estes Industries PN 37038.
To locate the decals I used the Estes decal placement instructions, as well as the Apogee Components 1/70 Apollo Kit instructions, and the data that @Ez2cDave provided.
I had to make one change, due to the 2nd stage vent hole locations. I located he "UNITED STATES" decals 45 degrees from the fins, not aligned with the fins. Most folks wouldn't notice this... but I'm betting a bunch of Saturn V fanatics on this site will. I would have caught this if I had added the paint scheme to my CAD model.... lesson learned.
The decal set I used, as previously discussed, is from Tango Papa: set #251-0405. It is a scaled up version of the decal set from Estes Industries PN 37038.
To locate the decals I used the Estes decal placement instructions, as well as the Apogee Components 1/70 Apollo Kit instructions, and the data that @Ez2cDave provided.
I had to make one change, due to the 2nd stage vent hole locations. I located he "UNITED STATES" decals 45 degrees from the fins, not aligned with the fins. Most folks wouldn't notice this... but I'm betting a bunch of Saturn V fanatics on this site will. I would have caught this if I had added the paint scheme to my CAD model.... lesson learned.
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I've learned in using scare tape for a lot of streamers that it very often cuts itself in flight. It's highly visible, but I've often seen two sections of it gradually drifting apart and have to guess by the decent rate which one has rocket parts attached to it.
I still recommend it, because it's extremely easy to spot when you launch a rocket down-sun, but I now consider each streamer I make with it to be a single use item.
Thanks for the 411. That seems to be a characteristic of Mylar (PET) with a cut edge. Any imperfections, nicks, and it tears easily.
Questions:
Are you using the factory width or cutting the strip width yourself?
What type of scare tape are you using?
I was initially going to cut my own streamer from a Mylar space blanket, but it tears so easily I abandoned that for the raw material.
The "UGold" Scare Tape I purchased has very smooth edges, likely cut with a hot knife. It's also thicker (0.001") than the Mylar (PET) blanket material (0.0007" ish).
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I'm using the same Ugold tape as you, as it was the widest I could find easily on Amazon. I'm not cutting it laterally, just using scissors to cut it to length.
4th Stage Motor Add-Ons
I picked up a pack of 1/2A3-4T motors today. I had planned to go with 1/3A3-3T.. but these will work just fine.
The 4th stage is rear eject with streamer recovery. I glued a piece of BT-3 to the motor, added an upper spool ring and added masking tape to the bottom of the motor to adapt it to the 3rd stage BT-20 CHAD staging tube.
I did a mockup of the streamer and test fitted the sub-assy into the 4th stage and 3rd stage.
Looks like it's going to work well.
I picked up a pack of 1/2A3-4T motors today. I had planned to go with 1/3A3-3T.. but these will work just fine.
The 4th stage is rear eject with streamer recovery. I glued a piece of BT-3 to the motor, added an upper spool ring and added masking tape to the bottom of the motor to adapt it to the 3rd stage BT-20 CHAD staging tube.
I did a mockup of the streamer and test fitted the sub-assy into the 4th stage and 3rd stage.
Looks like it's going to work well.
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Are you going to launch with any subset of stages and work up to the full stack, or are you going for it on the first flight?
The 1st flight will be all the stages, with all the motors.
boatgeek
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Light the candle!
That will be exciting.
RSO: You should always start out with a tiny scale model and work your way up.
Space Cowboy: But this here is the tiny scale model! Got the biggin' in the semi trailer.
Space Cowboy: But this here is the tiny scale model! Got the biggin' in the semi trailer.
boatgeek
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I was going to say it's either going to be a good flight or a great flight, but this is really a great flight either way.That will be exciting.
(From a local rocketeer: A good flight is when your rocket does what it's supposed to. A bad flight is when your rocket doesn't. A great flight is when someone else's rocket doesn't do what it's supposed to.)
Without the first stage it doesn't have the spin.That will be exciting.
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It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing.
It can't fly and win
If it ain't got the spin.
If it ain't got the spin.
Dern the spin, it's got the base drag hacks! Yackety Hack, don't talk back.
The swing tests don't lie. It's a zoot suit riot. Long live the King of Swing!
The mountain man knows the stability of the Minie ball. Can take down the elk at long range. Good eatin'! Good flyin'!
The swing tests don't lie. It's a zoot suit riot. Long live the King of Swing!
The mountain man knows the stability of the Minie ball. Can take down the elk at long range. Good eatin'! Good flyin'!
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Jeremiah told me "Go Hawken, or go home"
