Well, I wasn't going to mention it but the last time I even looked at her scissors she said, "You know those are my "Bobbitt" scissors, right?" Trust me, I don't even look at them anymore.

Randy
www.vernarockets.com
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HHJHOK6
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00O14ET8K
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Well, I heard that Lorena Bobbit was in a bad car wreck several years ago.

Some d**k cut her off.

__________________
Never trust an atom. They make up everything.

4 out of 3 people struggle with math.

Chemically, alcohol IS a solution.

NAR# 94042
SAM# 0078

But thank God 19 year old girls are well off the radar, especially with those scissors around.

__________________
Gravity is a harsh mistress
SAM 002
NAR 91005
"The complexity of living is eminently favored to the simplicity of not."

Now for a critcal alignment: the FWD and AFT fiber bulkheads.

Even after pencilling the alignment lines onto the bulkheads I won't trust them completely. I find that the only way for me to guarantee alignment of the (2) bulkheads is to sight them in. I first wrap a length of blue painter's tape around the stuffer tube at the 2" mark and register the large AFT bulkhead against it. The pencil lines of the large bulkhead I WILL align with the EH line on the stuffer tube. Then, using the pencil lines of the small FWD bulkhead only as a starting point, I align the FWD bulkhead NOT to the stuffer tube line, but to the AFT bulkhead--adjusting and readjusting as many times as necessary (approx. 300 times) beause once the epoxy sets, it's done--aligned or not. (note that the pencil lines end up not matching on the small bulkhead)

I then epoxy the bulkheads to the stuffer tube with a fillet on each one.
After removing the blue tape I'll run a fillet on the forward side of the rear bulkhead, but not the front one because the forward end of the stuffer tube is flush with the forward surface of the bulkhead. TBC

Attached Thumbnails

         

__________________
Never trust an atom. They make up everything.

4 out of 3 people struggle with math.

Chemically, alcohol IS a solution.

NAR# 94042
SAM# 0078

....new for me, that is.

I finally have occasion to try the Sand 'n' Seal that a YORF colleague sent me last year. I'll use it to seal the edges of the basswood parts that I cut last night prior to painting the edges black. If the stuff tanks--it's not the end of the world--I'll just cut them out again. TBC

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__________________
Never trust an atom. They make up everything.

4 out of 3 people struggle with math.

Chemically, alcohol IS a solution.

NAR# 94042
SAM# 0078

After an hour+ of drying, the Sand 'n' Seal sanded nicely. I then edged all of the basswood parts with a gloss black enamel paint marker to prepare them for lamination.

I'm out of ales and lagers. Time for a Scotch and a Scotch. Good night.

TBC

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__________________
Never trust an atom. They make up everything.

4 out of 3 people struggle with math.

Chemically, alcohol IS a solution.

NAR# 94042
SAM# 0078

Now for the lamination.

For the adhesive I've chosen Aleene's Super Tacky glue because it won't blister or pucker the (irreplaceable) preprinted paper and if any gets on the colored side it will clean off easily.

I apply it with a camel bristle 1/2" mop brush--first to one side of the wood, align and lay the cardstock part, brush the non-papered side of the wood, and then align and lay the obverse cardstock part. After all (7) parts are laminated I lay them down on the dead-flat Corian slab and then place another Corian slab on top of them until the glue dries completely. The coat of Alleene's was very thin, so it shouldn't take more than a couple of hours. TBC

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__________________
Never trust an atom. They make up everything.

4 out of 3 people struggle with math.

Chemically, alcohol IS a solution.

NAR# 94042
SAM# 0078

Speaking of irreplaceable....

After (2) days the world atlas has taken most of the curl out of the aeroshroud and "The Vixen" has cut it out perfectly. TBC

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__________________
Never trust an atom. They make up everything.

4 out of 3 people struggle with math.

Chemically, alcohol IS a solution.

NAR# 94042
SAM# 0078

Now for the (IMO) technically hardest part of the build: forming the aeroshroud.

First I roll and tighten the aeroshroud in my Samson-esque grip several times to train the shroud toward the general final shape. I now take this opportunity to pre-color the exposed cut edge of the aeroshroud with a black Sharpie so there won't be a white line on the seam after the edes are joined. After determining that the ancient adhesive strip is still good, I remove the white backing from the one side of the strip, leaving the brown backing on it. After the utterance of some choice naughty words--precipitated by the invasion of cat hair, dog hair, Jeff hair, and Triscuit crumbs onto snot-like stickiness of the exposed surface of the adhesive strip, I align and lay the adhesive strip onto the gluing tab of the aeroshroud and burnish it down.

TBC

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__________________
Never trust an atom. They make up everything.

4 out of 3 people struggle with math.

Chemically, alcohol IS a solution.

NAR# 94042
SAM# 0078

Now here's what separates the TALENTED whiskey-swilling incorrigible know-it-alls from the MEDIOCRE whiskey-swilling incorrigible know-it-alls: the (dreaded) JOINING OF THE CUT EDGES!!! (dun, dun, DUNNNNN!)



First I remove the brown backing from the adhesive strip and then using the panel line that's a few inches from the front end of the shroud for alignment, I begin joining the overlap from the front end of the shroud. I then carefully work the joint all the way to the rear. If it's initially joined with only gentle pressure it can be adjusted a little.

After the overlap is joined and aligned correctly I then use the kit's supplied 1" heavy walled aid tube to burnish the overlap from the inside of the shroud against my Herculean thigh. TBC

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__________________
Never trust an atom. They make up everything.

4 out of 3 people struggle with math.

Chemically, alcohol IS a solution.

NAR# 94042
SAM# 0078