Shear Insanity: a build thread

[neil_w]

Here's another picture of the roll decal, rotated around and in slightly different light. You can see in this picture that the white background blends in with the white paint pretty well. I don't think it's a big deal. The black is another story. We'll see how it looks at the end, after Future is applied.

 

[lakeroadster]

At some point in the future, we will see the effect of the Future

 

[jqavins]

He'll have to get back to that.

 

[neil_w]

He'll have to get back to that.

We need more variety of reaction emojis to handle situations like this.

 

[icyclops]

So here are my laser and inkjet decal prints, compared (please ignore the dust specs)
View attachment 524012
As you can see, the laser print is a deeper black than the somewhat mottled inkjet print. In the past the situation was exactly reversed.

And here is the roll pattern wrap applied to the rocket. Dealing with the un-clearcoated laser decal is *so* much easier for a large decal like this. I might well switch over to laser decals completely, because I'm just sick of the drama with the inkjet stuff (unless someone can point me to a true solution).
View attachment 524013
You can see that the laser black still does not look nearly as dark as the black paint (the white doesn't match that well either, for that matter). This will get better after many coats of Future are applied to gloss up the decal and match the paint better, but it'll never be perfect. Nothing I can do about the white.

By the way, roll pattern decals are a huge pain, in case anyone wasn't already aware of that. Wetting down the body tube beforehand so the decal can slide around a bit for final positioning is essential.

One thing to note about most inkjet printers that have a print black and text black feature….true black can be made by using your RGB colors. Try using a black that consists of 15% magenta (red), 15% Cyan (blue), and 10% yellow along with 80-85% black. This will give you a deeper black if your printer or graphics software you made the artwork in allows this. You can then adjust the black (80-85%) lesser or more to match your painted black much closer. I have tried using laser printers in the past for decal paper with various results….as it applies toner on top of the paper which can flake even with clear top coat….while inkjet sprays color dyes that seem to absorb deeper into the decal paper and provide better tooth/stick when top coated with Krylon clear…just what I have used very successfully in the past.

 

[neil_w]

Here are the logo decals, as they are in the present (i.e., pre-Future):

Cutting the middle piece exactly to size was a bit tricky, as I had expected. The black/white border had to match the paint mask line, so I really couldn't pre-measure it in the artwork. I could have used a skosh more length on the black end, but all in all I'll take it.

Alignment was also a bit of a challenge. I ended up using the reflection on the body tube from the overhead light, and leaving the rest to my eyeballs. Looking at it now, I think the "ANITY" decal might be a touch crooked (too low on the right side), but it's a small error and given all the confusing angles in the rocket it will be absolutely un-noticeable.

Here you can also see that the white decal paper is not totally opaque; the stuff on the left (with black paint underneath) is a bit less than pure white.

I think the design came out OK.

Fins next, and some Future.

 

[neil_w]

One thing to note about most inkjet printers that have a print black and text black feature….true black can be made by using your RGB colors. Try using a black that consists of 15% magenta (red), 15% Cyan (blue), and 10% yellow along with 80-85% black. This will give you a deeper black if your printer or graphics software you made the artwork in allows this. You can then adjust the black (80-85%) lesser or more to match your painted black much closer.

I have heard about this before... regrettably the software I use doesn't support this.

I'm mainly annoyed that this new printer is apparently so much worse at printing decals than my old one, despite being very good at everything else I've thrown at it.

I have tried using laser printers in the past for decal paper with various results….as it applies toner on top of the paper which can flake even with clear top coat….while inkjet sprays color dyes that seem to absorb deeper into the decal paper and provide better tooth/stick when top coated with Krylon clear…just what I have used very successfully in the past.

I have not had any flaking problems with laser paper. My biggest problem is the mottled surface finish, even after multiple coats of Future. That's mainly a problem when I'm trying to do black backgrounds to match with black paint.

I also noticed tonight that Micro-sol does not penetrate the black toner very well (or maybe at all).

 

[lakeroadster]

Here are the logo decals, as they are in the present (i.e., pre-Future):
View attachment 524477
Cutting the middle piece exactly to size was a bit tricky, as I had expected. The black/white border had to match the paint mask line, so I really couldn't pre-measure it in the artwork. I could have used a skosh more length on the black end, but all in all I'll take it.

Alignment was also a bit of a challenge. I ended up using the reflection on the body tube from the overhead light, and leaving the rest to my eyeballs. Looking at it now, I think the "ANITY" decal might be a touch crooked (too low on the right side), but it's a small error and given all the confusing angles in the rocket it will be absolutely un-noticeable.

Here you can also see that the white decal paper is not totally opaque; the stuff on the left (with black paint underneath) is a bit less than pure white.

I think the design came out OK.

Fins next, and some Future.

Looks great Neil.

 

[BABAR]

Looking at it now, I think the "ANITY" decal might be a touch crooked (too low on the right side), but it's a small error and given all the confusing angles in the rocket it will be absolutely un-noticeable.

.

Am I the only one that sees the irony in a rocket of this shape and particularly with this name, the creator of which is concerned that one of the decals is a little “off”?

(Obviously not as you the creator note in your post, but I found it amusing. I need to get out more.....)

nice job, Neil, it is fun to see that in a hobby that has been around since 1954*, there are still some uncharted waters .

*https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Model_rocket

 

[jqavins]

Cutting the middle piece exactly to size was a bit tricky, as I had expected. The black/white border had to match the paint mask line, so I really couldn't pre-measure it in the artwork. I could have used a skosh more length on the black end, but all in all I'll take it.

Alignment was also a bit of a challenge. I ended up using the reflection on the body tube from the overhead light, and leaving the rest to my eyeballs. Looking at it now, I think the "ANITY" decal might be a touch crooked (too low on the right side), but it's a small error and given all the confusing angles in the rocket it will be absolutely un-noticeable.

I don't know how far back the camera is; I'd say the alignment is more than good enough for a one foot finish, on both counts.

I'm mainly annoyed that this new printer is apparently so much worse at printing decals than my old one, despite being very good at everything else I've thrown at it.

Please forgive me it this seems like an insulting question: are you sure you didn't mix up the packs and put laser decal paper into the inkjet printer? Did you double check?

 

[neil_w]

Please forgive me it this seems like an insulting question: are you sure you didn't mix up the packs and put laser decal paper into the inkjet printer? Did you double check?

Yes.

 

[neil_w]

Here's the remaining decal work.

After two (I think) coats of future:

It's better, but you can still see that mottled appearance in the black part of the decal. I've since applied at least a couple more coats and it will keep getting better but never achieve full uniform blackness.

Here's the first fin decal. I trimmed around the design fairly closely but did not try to go so far as cutting away all the black. I probably could have done better than this. Anyway, once again the contrast between the laser black and the black paint is fairly stark before Future.

Here's the logo decal after a few coats (3? 4? Who can keep track) of Future plus one wet one. Everything always looks great when the Future is still wet.

Here's a view of the fin can, with a wet second coat of Future on the decals (wet Future => looks great):

The angle of light is also pretty favorable here.

Beauty shots up next, as soon as I get the chance.

 

[Sandy H.]

Wow. I think I would have just put the rocket in the closet and gone to bed when I saw the 'before future' result. After your work applying future, I am amazed. I may need to learn to persevere more often!

Sandy.

 

[neil_w]

BEAUTY SHOTS

All finished with the finish, although there might still be a bit more Future in the future.







Still have to figure out what to do with the shock chord, but otherwise this build is basically done. Was a fun one.

 

[neil_w]

FINAL WORD ON DECALS

After some additional coats of Future, I am *done*.

Here is the roll pattern after initial application, and then after a billion coats of Future:


The black never achieved full perfect blackness, and you can still see the contrast against the black paint, but it looks more than satisfactory to me. Certainly a million times better than how it started.

Here's the logo:

Against the white background, it looks completely black and pretty uniform.

The fins:

Depending on the light angle, pretty good. You can still see the edge of the decal reflecting a bit of light at the top of the picture. *Really* hard to get rid of that. Possibly I should have taken the time to trim the decals closer to the white stripes.

Final assessment: the laser decals can do the job just fine, if you're willing to apply enough coats of clear. Doing it with Future is actually not very difficult, just a quick wipe with a Q-tip. But still, *many*. On the other hand, working with the laser decals is a breeze, and not needing to clear-coat is really nice.

The color rendition is more than good enough for this particular rocket.

 

[lakeroadster]

Think this bird will get some air under its wings anytime soon? Looking forward to a launch report.

 

[neil_w]

Sometime in the fall I hope. Not flying has really suppressed my enthusiasm for building. I need to get out there and light some candles.

 

[Blast it Tom!]

I'd lost track of this, but wow, I'm impressed! Hope she flies as pretty as she looks! I love the gradient-shaded negative image roll pattern!

 

[neil_w]

I'd lost track of this, but wow, I'm impressed! Hope she flies as pretty as she looks! I love the gradient-shaded negative image roll pattern!

Thanks, I tried about a hundred different things before I settled on that.

 

[neil_w]

Today was finally launch day for Shear Insanity. This design caused some confusion and consternation among onlookers, most notably my father, who was trying to grasp why I would build something like this.

Here's a photo of a random handsome man I pulled off the street to pose with the rocket:

Here it is on the pad:

And here's a crappy video of "up" part of the launch on a C11-3:
View attachment IMG_2636.mp4

Those who were concerned that this rocket wouldn't fly right needn't have worried. Flight was nominal in all respects. I'll leave the "why" and "how" to others.

I had hoped to get the rocket up again but by the end of the day the wind was kicking up a bit and we eventually just ran out of time. But it flew!

 

[boatgeek]

Yay for getting it into the air and a straight flight!

I feel your pain about familial onlookers. While I was building a recent one, my wife looked hard at it and asked, “Is that normal?”

 

[lakeroadster]

What did you end up using for a parachute, plastic or nylon? Any recovery issues?

The launch photo, with all those fuselage slices, makes my eyes try to autofocus .

 

[neil_w]

I went with plastic, and it worked perfectly. Easy recovery, no damage. Although I have mostly switched to thin-mil nylon, I really have had nothing but success with plastic over the years. So I didn't really want to take any chances with chute packing on this flight.

 

[Daddyisabar]

Yes Mr. RSO, it's a normal, safe 3-4FNC with nothing to worry about. Just a tad "CHOPPY."

 

[BABAR]

. While I was building a recent one, my wife looked hard at it and asked, “Is that normal?”

Normal is probably over-rated and definitely under-fun.

You can carve another notch in your ”Wonderful and Successful” column. Really, have you ever built anything that DIDN’T fly reasonably well?

i am guessing you didn’t have an altimeter . Did it eyeball close to the OpenRocket prediction (beyond the fact that it was obviously stable, which is the most important thing anyway)?

 

[jqavins]

This design caused some confusion and consternation among onlookers, most notably my father, who was trying to grasp why I would build something like this.

Confusion about why? The answer is there in big letters right on the side of the thing.

 

[neil_w]

Normal is probably over-rated and definitely under-fun.

You can carve another notch in your ”Wonderful and Successful” column. Really, have you ever built anything that DIDN’T fly reasonably well?

i am guessing you didn’t have an altimeter . Did it eyeball close to the OpenRocket prediction (beyond the fact that it was obviously stable, which is the most important thing anyway)?

Eyeball... yes. The flight wasn't notably low, as if drag were extremely high. No altimeter though, and the OR model really is pure fantasy, so it's all guesswork. It was a very decent flight on the C11-3; next step up would be a Q-Jet D16-4, and then a D12-5. Unfortunately we were kind of flying into the sun, so I was having a hard time evaluating ejection timing all day.

Overall, it behaved like a normal, draggy rocket.

Confusion about why? The answer is there in big letters right on the side of the thing.

At one point I just said "drugs", which fortunately was taken with good humor.

 

[BABAR]

Overall, it behaved like a normal, draggy rocket.

sounds about like the ACME SpitFire.
i was expecting a bit of corkscrewing. maybe you just had absolutely perfect alignment.

funny, I wonder how rockets like the old Odd’L Rockets corkscrew, no longer available per website

https://jonrocket.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1_38_64maybe @hcmbanjo or @jadebox can confirm, I guess it wasn’t a big seller,

anyhoo, I EXPECT them to corkscrew, I always wonder how the rocket ”decides” which way it will start the rotation, clockwise Or counterclockwise. I think it is too fast to be Coriolis effect.