03-21-2018, 02:57 AM
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Master Modeler
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Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Fairbanks, Alaska
Posts: 6,507
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by neil_w
I confess my ambition stops short of casting my own pieces. Rather, I shall use a "found" piece of clear plastic and graft it on there. I've been scouring the world for items of the appropriate characteristics (hemispherical, clear, rigid, about 1" diameter) and have found a few. The best pieces I could use are these: https://kitkraft.com/products/1-25-4mm-clear-domes. The only reason I'm not jumping at them is the shipping charge, which would make it like $14 for just for that one part. Instead, I've found packaging for some toy items that should fit the bill. I think.  I will start experimenting with that stuff sometime soon, right now I'm still sand-sculpting a seemingly endless string of balsa parts. |
You could also vacu-form the entire nose cone in clear styrene (or maybe clear ABS plastic, if there is such a thing), then mask off the tip and spray-paint the remainder. Many PSS glider (and scale sailplane) builders do this, to create canopies (after vacu-forming, they heat the molded canopies moderately for a few minutes, so that the molding stresses are relieved; this prevents cracking of the canopies later). The IRIS-T's rounded nose would lend itself well to vacu-forming. |