Zephyr Jr Build Thread

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

Good evening TRF

Here I go with my Zephyr Jr build. I will be documenting as much as my process possible as I go with this project

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

Started off with using super glue applied to the body tube ends. I used a cotton swab and swapped the inside circumference as well as the rim of the body tube (BT), Motor tube, and launch lug.

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

After allowing the superglue to dry (dries very fast), I will hit it with either 220 or 400 grit to smoothen the super glue

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

Before fitting the fin pieces together, I used 220 grit to sand down connecting pieces ensuring the pieces fit well together. Using Titebond original wood glue, i put the pieces together. The fins will be allowed to dry at least 24 hrs per instructions

I did use a dab of super glue on the joint pieces to hold them together while the wood glue cures

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

The body tube was slightly damaged, almost as if someone accidentally dropped the rocket kit after unoackaging it from its box… hmm hmm. In order to address this issue, I did go ahead and swab some super glue on it and will be sanded down along with the tube ends previously glued as well

 

[86mustang408w]

Your doing a good job, doesn't hurt to put a large amount of superglue at the very top of your body tube where the nosecone shoulder goes, really will help with zippers. A longer shock cord and pressure reliefs holes are a must, if you go to high power. Great job so far!!

 

[mh9162013]

Looking forward to the rest of the build.

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

Your doing a good job, doesn't hurt to put a large amount of superglue at the very top of your body tube where the nosecone shoulder goes, really will help with zippers. A longer shock cord and pressure reliefs holes are a must, if you go to high power. Great job so far!!

Thanks ! Definitely did superglue the shoulder. The shock cord that comes with this kit is pretty long, I haven’t had any problem with past launches

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

Looking forward to the rest of the build.

Thank you, will update soon

 

[86mustang408w]

Thanks ! Definitely did superglue the shoulder. The shock cord that comes with this kit is pretty long, I haven’t had any problem with past launches

Got you, how long if I may ask? Kevlar? Just curious. My recent L1 cert flight, a freak ejection happened about 2 seconds after ignition. It was bad, but the damage was low. A longer shock cord isn't bad(too long is just a waste of materials at one point), as well as putting your chute at the end of the shock cord, instead of the nosecone. Just some personal info, good luck and keep us updated! I love good build threads and they are a great reference down the road. Thank you.

Michael B.

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

Got you, how long if I may ask? Kevlar? Just curious. My recent L1 cert flight, a freak ejection happened about 2 seconds after ignition. It was bad, but the damage was low. A longer shock cord isn't bad(too long is just a waste of materials at one point), as well as putting your chute at the end of the shock cord, instead of the nosecone. Just some personal info, good luck and keep us updated! I love good build threads and they are a great reference down the road. Thank you.

Michael B.

Michael, yes it is a Kevlar cord. The cord itself is about 8 ft and is mounted to the motor mount.

I do indeed tie my chute 1/3 of the way down from the nose cone to prevent any tangling in the chute shroud lines.

Are you an L1 now or are you working towards the cert?

 

[86mustang408w]

Michael, yes it is a Kevlar cord. The cord itself is about 8 ft and is mounted to the motor mount.

I do indeed tie my chute 1/3 of the way down from the nose cone to prevent any tangling in the chute shroud lines.

Are you an L1 now or are you working towards the cert?

L1 now, going for L2. I was just curious about the build, and what motors you were thinking of using. They seem to be really nice rockets.

My apologies too. I saw it was the Zephyr Jr i TOTALLY misread this.... I thought you were going for the Jr L1 cert. Sorry about that, I'll butt out. Lol...

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

L1 now, going for L2. I was just curious about the build, and what motors you were thinking of using. They seem to be really nice rockets.

My apologies too. I saw it was the Zephyr Jr i TOTALLY misread this.... I thought you were going for the Jr L1 cert. Sorry about that, I'll butt out. Lol...

Yeah I should have clarified haha. This is my third kit of the Zephyr Jr, but my first MPR. Now that you mention it, I am thinking about making the jump into the Zephyr next

With MPR, in my experience, they do tend to go high, even on 24 mm. I might experiment with adding a dual deploy bay to this rocket in the future to start getting some experience as I don’t feel comfortable going past 1500 feet on this rocket. As of now I’m only sticking to D and E engines on the zephyr jr

 

[86mustang408w]

Yeah I should have clarified haha. This is my third kit of the Zephyr Jr, but my first MPR. Now that you mention it, I am thinking about making the jump into the Zephyr next

With MPR, in my experience, they do tend to go high, even on 24 mm. I might experiment with adding a dual deploy bay to this rocket in the future to start getting some experience as I don’t feel comfortable going past 1500 feet on this rocket. As of now I’m only sticking to D and E engines on the zephyr jr

Oh absolutely! Again I apologize! I read it the wrong way but its cool. DD would be great to play with and that rocket. The Jollylogic Chute Release is also a very good tool to have. I myself plan in doing the same thing, playing around a little with smaller rockets and DD. I really had no idea they made a Zephyr Jr! Lol, ugh. I've been out of rocketry for about 10 years(I started with low power in 1990 at 7 and I still love these), got back into it in May this year with an Alpha III kit. Next thing you know I'm ordering parts for a scratch built L1. I fell back a bit, flew some low and mid power stuff then decided in September to go to URRG in NY just to watch and learn. After seeing a Jr member get his cert withna Zephyr. I said its time to go for it...

Long story short made it(Mjne wasn't a Zephyr though)! The Zephyr is definitely a good rocket. They fly great on even a G80-10 with an adapter. And then they are 38mm so you have a wide range of motors. It would actually be a great rocket if your gonna go to high power. You can fly it without an H or I for shakedown flights. Then H/I for a the cert, then J for L2 if your daring...lol. Using high power build techniques on low and mid has been priceless for me, you are going the right direction for sure.

Seriously though very nice and good luck, I'll keep watching for updates. I really love build threads.

I've also been having luck flying some 24mm rockets with an 18mm adapter for they are light enough, and they had successful flights too not super high. 29mm with 24mm too for smaller fields/areas with the same thinking. Making them heavier too helps.

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

Oh absolutely! Again I apologize! I read it the wrong way but its cool. DD would be great to play with and that rocket. The Jollylogic Chute Release is also a very good tool to have. I myself plan in doing the same thing, playing around a little with smaller rockets and DD. I really had no idea they made a Zephyr Jr! Lol, ugh. I've been out of rocketry for about 10 years(I started with low power in 1990 at 7 and I still love these), got back into it in May this year with an Alpha III kit. Next thing you know I'm ordering parts for a scratch built L1. I fell back a bit, flew some low and mid power stuff then decided in September to go to URRG in NY just to watch and learn. After seeing a Jr member get his cert withna Zephyr. I said its time to go for it...

That’s awesome ! Congratulations

Long story short made it(Mjne wasn't a Zephyr though)! The Zephyr is definitely a good rocket. They fly great on even a G80-10 with an adapter. And then they are 38mm so you have a wide range of motors. It would actually be a great rocket if your gonna go to high power. You can fly it without an H or I for shakedown flights. Then H/I for a the cert, then J for L2 if your daring...lol. Using high power build techniques on low and mid has been priceless for me, you are going the right direction for sure.

This is what I’m currently looking to achieve. This has been my 3rd zephyr kit and I’ve grown in technique after every build. This is why I wanted to start a thread, to document my process and aid others !

Seriously though very nice and good luck, I'll keep watching for updates. I really love build threads.

I've also been having luck flying some 24mm rockets with an 18mm adapter for they are light enough, and they had successful flights too not super high. 29mm with 24mm too for smaller fields/areas with the same thinking. Making them heavier too helps.

If I do add DD in the future, the extra tube length and bay would add some weight, so I would be able to diversify my motor usage

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

I then started to tape off my BT (Body Tube) spirals with gamita masking tape. The reason why I tape off my spirals are because I use CWF (carpenters wood filler) to fill in the tube spirals. This prevents unnecessary CWF to dry on the body tube where I did not intend to add CWF to.

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

I ran out of Elmer’s CWF, which was unfortunate, however I did have Fix It Epoxy clay which I decided to use for the first time.

I found it slightly difficult to apply as it is quite thick and had to be smeared into the spiral carefully without pulling the epoxy completely out once applied

I used a razor blade to scrap any excess clay off the spirals

BTW, the launch lug has also been taped, filled with epoxy clay and sanded just like the body tube. Since the lug is on the body tube, my goal is to also make it look smooth

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

Here is the peeled off results after applying clay epoxy

Here is the sanded result. I did sand with 220 grit to remove excess epoxy, then sanded smooth with 400 grit

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

I forgot who mentioned a genius ‘sanding block’ they have been using from pipe insulation tape. It was someone here on TRF

anyways, this is my first time using a sponge block to sand my body tube and WOW. Using a sponge black made it easy to apply even pressure while sanding and in fact, enabled me to sand a bit faster

I used a razor blade to cut off and stick sandpaper onto the tape

I got this tape on Amazon for $10 (as of Nov. 2023)

 

[Angel_of_the_Skies]

next using 220 grit sand paper, I sanded my fins smooth and once smooth, went onto adding an airfoil to my lead edge of the fins

I decided to not do the same to my trailing edge as I feel that the design of the fins make for a weak trailing edge which could cause a break upon ground impact

As to minimize weakening the trailing edge, I did not airfoil the trailing edge

I did use the apogee components sanding tee to complete this task

 

[RiffD]

Awesome thread for a great rocket! Looking forward to seeing how you complete it. I built one this summer and love putting it up on E12-6's, seems almost built for them.

 

[Jimbooregon]

Really enjoy your build thread. Your air foil leading edge is awesome!
I'm thinking about this kit. I plan a full size Zephyr towards summer for certification. Right now I've got an Amarok In the mail as a way to work on some of the techniques that are similar, such as the motor mount.
Keep up the good work.

 

[PaddyDaddy]

I then started to tape off my BT (Body Tube) spirals with gamita masking tape. The reason why I tape off my spirals are because I use CWF (carpenters wood filler) to fill in the tube spirals. This prevents unnecessary CWF to dry on the body tube where I did not intend to add CWF to.

View attachment 614901

Oh that's a really smart technique