WAC Corporal w/ Tiny Tim booster (24mm)

[tnrocketman]

I have been slowly working on this ASP rocketry kit for some time. I bought it at NARAM 45. What I had noticed was I was spending an inordinate amount of time prepping motors, double checking recovery, ignitors, even waiting in line at the 1/4 inch pad line-- I wasn't having as much fun! I decided to try some mid-power projects just to get back to flying. This looked like a good kit for me.

I started with the booster per the kit instructions. Fot the most part the instructions are clear and straight forward-- except for the unique upper stage coupler mechanism. I say unique because it uses a piece of 18mm telescoping tube at the end of 3 tiny wooden dowels. I must confess it took me a few minutes to figure out how this all had to fit together to work. This kit so far is very challenging, and the construction steps can be time consuming-- short cuts are not recommended. (My wife commented on how long I was taking with this one, which shows how much craftsmanship is required compared to a 3fnc type model). The only real issue I had was stupidity on my part -- I always measure from the 1 inch mark, not trusting the ruler imprinters to be consistent on where the scale should start. I forgot to add an inch before I cut one of the styrene strips for the booster. (DUH!) Andy was kind enough to mail me a replacement strip (plus a spare) .

Anyway, I am now glueing the first fin on the booster. For the most part, I have used yellow glue for paper/balsa joints throughout-- except on that complex and fragile feeling transition, where I used a small amout of 20 minute epoxy paste to really stick the dowels to the telescoping tube. I also glued Tyvek to the booster balsa fins. I will post a pic when the first fin is comfortably dry.:kill:

 

[tnrocketman]

Click HERE to see a picture of the Tiny Tim booster with first fin attached...

 

[Stewart32]

Hey tnrocketman,

I'm in the prime/sand stage of construction on my 18/18 WAC. I really have enjoyed the construction so far and look forward to flight. I thought the dowels were something of a challenge beyound 3FNC.

Nice job so far. I don't recall a shroud in my plans/instructions. Was the shroud included in your plans or is that a custom detail on your behalf. Nice!

 

[tnrocketman]

Yes, the shroud was part of the stock kit instructions. I found it tended to be warped by the dowels coming up, so I tried to cut little notches to relieve the pressure and get the shroud more conical. One notch was not perfectly placed but it was not noticable until too late.

I have some concerns about getting a firm bond between the booster BT and those big fins during recovery. We'll see...

 

[EMRR]

Hey, here's my experience on this kit: CLICK HERE

I look forward to either of you (or both) submitting a full review to EMRR.

The GAP staging is fun and if you take your time, this is a nice looking kit. Watch that motor selection though.

Nick

 

[Zack Lau]

I have two (18/18) with sealed balsa, ready for priming. The booster fit too tightly, so I decided to just build another one with parts optimized to fit right.

I'm planning to put a streamer on the nose cone and recover it separately.

The best engine combo seems to be B6-0/A8-5.

I'm thinking of putting in a Teflon streamer with kevlar to attach it
to the booster and sustainer (taped, so it comes apart after being pulled out of the booster).

Neat rocket, but this summer I'm trying to finish a Mars Lander

 

[Stewart32]

Zack,

I didn't have any trouble with the booster/sustainer fit. But I did reinforce the coupling with CA and then sanded for smooth action.