#1
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back to 1961 catalog - K-cover
When I built the last of the kits in the 1961 Estes catalog, I was shared some information about a kit made of the rocket on the cover of the catalog. It turns out that Semroc, and by extension eRockets, carries a kit based on that rocket.
To officially complete the kits in the 1961 Estes catalog, I ordered and built that kit. (Officially based on arbitrary rules that appeared in my head. They were loud, so I'm sure they are correct. ) |
#2
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It's basically a modified V-2, with a long nose, boat tail, and short body section. The fins have been modified to look line aeroplane fins, largely based on the Luna rocket in the Destination Moon movie.
The build starts with the boat tail. I had not previously encountered a rocket in which the Kevlar is simply glued between the engine mount and balsa boat tail. Three knots at the end of the Kevlar, and some glue, are all that hold it in place. So long as the glue holds, I expect the Kevlar to stay in place. Those pointy-looking-things-at-the-end-of-the-fins/wings-which-were-de-rigeur-in-the-era are simply launch lugs. The fins have a neat tab cut into them to hold the launch lugs in place for an easy assembly. |
#3
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Very nice. How you gonna paint it?
__________________
If it flies, I can crash it! |
#4
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To make sure that I got the fins right, I cut a fin alignment guide to match the instructions. I almost never tack on fins any more without a fin alignment guide. Eyes which have lost their youthful luster, and all that entropic nonsense. Actually, the vertical stabilizer didn't exend back to the body tube, so the guide didn't reach it. I did have to eyeball that fin.
To get the points onto the launch lug thingys on the ends of the fins, the instructions suggested mixing balsa with glue and forming them by hand, or gluing on scraps of balsa and shaping them. I did the latter, using my trusty Stanley hobby/whittling/construction knife and an emery board. The nose requires 15g of clay, sealed off like an Egyptian king behind a plywood disk. |
#5
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To finish it, I really wanted to do some super shiny Alcatel type job. I read of a build in 2008 which was done that way, with layers of thinned epoxy to provide a really automotive quality surface to paint.
I opted differently. I put on several layers of build up primer, sanding between dried coats. That's kinda my technique. I still like it better than finishing the balsa fins with aircraft dope like I did on the earlier K-kit builds I just did. Instead of super shiny metal, which I assumed would amplify any blemishes and even those that physically don't exist, I opted for a brushed nickel paint. Rustoleum nickel. A couple light coats, followed by three wet coats, followed by one light coat. I found that the wet coats of this paint allow the metallic components to settle, causing an uneven paint.. The final light coat solved that. Then, I clear coated it. That was for two reasons - it gave a glossy finish without fighting the properties of metallic spray, and it gave a good base for the decals. I fully expected the decals to not sit smooth on the metallic paint. I made decals to evoke a space ark rocket, and not quite the Destination Moon rocket. I liked the suggestion of round portal windows, and a large cockpit window. Then, a coat of clear over the decals. I could have added more clear coat, wet sanded to smooth out the edges of the decals, and then used floor polish (or a desert topping, I'm not sure which it is) for the final effect. But I opted differently. Thus, the rockets of 1961 are completed. |
#6
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Nice work David. (Maybe some day I'll build mine!)
__________________
Paul If we weren't all crazy, we would go insane - Jimmy Buffett NAR #87246 www.wooshrocketry.org |
#7
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Quote:
Shimmer! I get it. |
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