What's in YOUR build queue?
 

I behaved myself for a while, buit now my backlog of projects is starting to grow again. I ordered a Dr. Zooch Little Joe kit last night. This is a project I'm looking forward to because not only do I love the looks of the Little Joe, I've also heard that the Dr. Zooch kits are a kick to build. As I mentioned elsewhere on here, I also bought a couple of rockets from Scott "Beer Skunk" McCrate's overloaded kit coffers, those being an Estes Strikefighter and Estes Wildfire. The Strikefighter is one that I've always been a fan of, and the Wildfire was one of the very first "OOP" kits that I won on Ebay. I used the nose and tail cone for a Satellite Interceptor clone, then built the rest of the rocket and subbed in a different nose cone. It was one of my favorite B6-4 Field fliers, but got treed one afternoon and was gone by morning. (I also wanted to scan the kit for YORP if they're still needed.) Scott was also kind enough to loan me some scale data on the Pershing Missile. His data is for a BT-80 bird, but I can scale it down for BT-60 and BT-70, which happen to be the size of the two cones that I bought from Sandman this spring. I'm REALLY looking forward to getting one of those going. The PD Rocketry U.S.S. Atlantis is ready for final assembly and the new decals are on the way, so that should be flying shortly. I also picked up another Holverson Wicked Winnie, only this one is a balsa bird. Since I was feeling too lousy to fly on Sunday, I put the time to good use and finished construction on the ARG Black Brant IVB bird that I picked up at NARCON back in 2005. Nice project once I could sit down and actually concentrate on it, and it really turned out to be a great looking bird. I've got nekkid pics that I'll post tonight, but they're still in the camera. Well, that's my story. What's yours?

Well,

I still have to finish my Estes Saturn V, Semroc SST shuttle, and Estes Outlander.

Next to start:

Thrustline Gyroc, Sprite

Semroc X21, Marslander

Estes Argosy, Big daddy, Deep space transport, Renegade,

Fliskits Stingray

I'm sure I'm missing some.

Mark

Estes SR-71 given to me by my kids Xmas '05
several scratch builds...one 3 24mm cluster, one 24mm 3 stage, 1 13mm 3 stage
a clone Centuri mini dactyl BG

Need to get some time from chores and sports (kids).

Joe W

Well, my signature on TRF claims that I have 40+ kits still in the packaging, and there's no reason to doubt that.
:rolleyes: :eek:

Meanwhile, I hope to actually *paint* my Rokitflite Odyssey this evening if I'm not asked to take my kids to the Y to go swimming.

I'm also working on a Quest Zenith II payloader that I bought 2 years ago. The mnotor mounts and stage coupler are assembled and installed, with the fins, payload section and nose cone, and recovery system still to go. Oh, and painting, etc.

Um, I just bought an ASP V-2 from Romie Lucas and an Estes Trident clone kit from the newly renamed PD Rocketry.

I have a balsa Holversion Designs Wicked Winnie kit that I bought from John Arthur of jonrocket.com at NARCON this spring, but I still haven't decided if I'll open it and build it or not.

Plus a bunch of parts and pieces that could be assembled into who knows what?

Be careful what you wish for, I broke a small bone in my wrist a month ago. No chores and I can't work (three cheers for workmans comp!), but it's my right wrist so no rocket building :( ! Talk about a dull month.

Mark

Centuri Mini Dactyl
 

Your clone of the Centuri Mini-Dactyl might end up being better suited for display; every
model of this type I've seen flown (including my own) has always met with pod separation
before it even clears the launch rod. If you can build with two Mini-Dactyl on the same pop
pod, it'll probably balance out and will work. I built my original Centuri with a single glider
for NAR B/G competition purpose, but have yet to see it fly safely. Don't remember where
the kit materials are for the second glider (got lost somewhere over the years I've had
this, like 20+ years...).

Wallyum, a 4" Goblin with a SANDMAN cone (not the one in this picture).
http://mailman.thegeek.nu/~dahanson...blin_990911.jpg

I've built both the single and double glider versions and have flown them several times. The only pod trouble I ever had was when I used it for a 1/2 A BG contest flight last year and I got TWO red barons in a row! I had launched the exact same one at the same site the previous month and it worked perfectly three times. This is my 5th or 6th clone in the last few years.

Joe W

I need to finish a half dozen or more projects that I've started over the years. Some are complete except for filling, sanding and finishing. Others are in various stages of construction. I made a promise to myself that I'd finish a rocket or two for every new rocket project I start, but I hate filling and sanding so it's going to be hard to keep my word.

I don't guess half-finishing two rockets for every new one you start helps much, does it?
;)

That's great! My Mini-Dactyl has suffered pod separations each time I've flown it, and last
year at the Tex Regional meet in McGregor, TX (Father's Day launch), I think long time rocketeer and NAR member Andrew Condors (from the Dallas area) attempted to fly his
and the very same thing happened.

That's why I usually stick with something that has proven to be reliable and a consistent
winner, such as my original CMR Buzzard, Orbitron, and Manta (those names ring any bells?!).

That's pretty close to what's got me in this cluttered up room full of unpainted rockets situation. :p

Yes they do. I've got all the stuff together to clone a Buzzard one of these days.

Joe W

And An Upscaled Buzzard
 

Plus, I have what amount to an upscaled CMR Buzzard that's used for the 18 mm B/G & R/G
competition flights that's been a consistent winner. All of the CMR gliders I mentioned in my
previous posts (except the Orbitron) were built way back in the mid to late 1970's and have
managed to survive the unknown number of flights (and crashes) as well as the various
relocations (moves) I've made through the time I became a BAR in late 2003 (yes, they
laid in storage for some 20+ years). You would think because gliders look fragile (and they
are), they'd have gone through the balsa recycling center long, long ago...

In the Q
 

Well, where to begin :rolleyes: Currently working on a Scout III (final primed, ready for last sanding before paint). Also, the Quest Force 5 (ready for first prime coat). I've got the fins cut and filled for a cloned Scorpius from PD Rocketry and will be starting to attach them tonight. After those three, and probably in this order, there's the A-20 Demon from PD Rocketry and then a Canaroc Black Brant III. In between, complete the spiral filling on my Estes Voyager II and get it primed. By then, I hope Phred has come through for me and I'll start building the rest of his Goonies line :eek: Got all these Baby Berthas begging to be something. The problem here is the humidity. Probably have to wait till fall to get any final paint done. :( But heck, I've got plenty to do. Winter projects.....1/30 scale Little Joe from Sheri's Hot Rockets and Sandman's Vostok (if I get those two done, I'll start on his LTV Scout, yes there really was one in the box :) )

Don
NAR 53455

I have maybe two-dozen major projects I started and abandoned through the years, some big, some small. Notables include rebulding an original Estes Saturn Ib (waiting for Semroc fins), an original Mars Lander, and two SF-ish "Triplanetary Patrol" frigates.

Plus maybe a dozen newer kits I'd like to build . . .

And maybe half a dozen repair projects . . .

What I'm working on right now: Two BT-80H based sport flyers with boat tails, fake nozzles, and giant fiberglassed balsa fins. I'm waiting for a day when my neighbors are away to run my belt sander on the balcony, to smooth the fins in preparation for the next layer of fiberglass.

Hmm, the next ye olde build would be a bomarc clone. Picked up the parts at narcon, just can't decide whether to build the glider or chute version.

-Paul

I know that John Thro is probably going to be all over this like pigeons on popcorn since I've kidded him enough about not painting his Rokitflite Odyssey after having it built for a year. :rolleyes:

I've got an Estes Skydart and an Estes Shrike that are built, sealed and only need painting and have been that way since 1972. :eek: I need a set of decals for the Shrike but it's the same ones used on the Astron Constellation so I can get a set from Excelsior.

I've decided to paint them next and fly them this summer. I mentioned the Skydart at a CMASS launch earlier this year so I get asked if it's done and ready to fly at every launch now. ;)

After them, I have a Sirius Rocketry Refit Atlantis that is 90% done, an Art Applewhite saucer half done and a Semroc Jaguar that is half done. I have a backlog of about 50 unopened kits and enough parts for perhaps 25 more.

I have a Sandman Vostok :cool: for when I think I'm ready for the challenge. :rolleyes:

Huh? Pigeons like popcorn?
;) :eek:

Pigeons are like flying goats.

Sorry about the picture quality. A lot of the detail washed out in the flash. I'll see if I can get a daylight pic tomorrow.

Well, except that their horns are much smaller.

And btw, I *did* paint my Odyssey this evening. It's in the garage drying overnight. The Krylon Bahama Sea paint didn't seem to want to dry shiny, so I also clearcoated the rocket with Krylon Crystal Clear. That seemed to help somewhat.

Next (this weekend?), on to the decals!!

Hey, when you guys paint a rocket where the body and the nose cone are the same color, how do you deal with that?

Aw man. You let all the magic dust out! Mine is still nicely sealed tight so that none of it escapes. :D

I use the same color paint. :confused:

"And I'm stickin' to it..."
 

Less building. More writing.


Building:

Tau Zero Prototype II. :cool:

Maybe the Mid-Power Interrogator from Sirius Rocketry (Thanks, Dave!), if I can squeeze it in for review purposes.

Prometheus Prototype II for gift/display? (unidentified recipient in desert Southwest?) :eek:

*Way* at the back: OOP Shrox Icarus. (*Drool.*) :cool:


Writing:

EMRR review for "TZ."

Instruction sheet for potential Semroc kit release of same.


(holding head in hands) Dear God in Heaven, am I actually going to create a Semroc Large Scale (SLS) version of every single one of my original designs? :eek:


Slinking off to bed,

Ah, yes, but do you paint the rocket with the nose cone on or off? And if on, how do you remove it from the body tube at the appropriate time?

I painted it with the nose cone on, which is why I'm asking. I was too... lazy? ... to try to figure out the right way to handle it with the nose cone off, since it's already installed with the shock cord and everything.

A Skydart, cool. I haven't seen one of those in, oh, 30 years. When can we expect pics of the completed bird? :)

-Paul

Unless the nose cone is glued in place, I usually paint them apart. A nice straight edge razor could be used to cut the paint if you've painted them together. When I do paint them at the same time (mainly to make sure the paint matches), I put masking tape on the shoulder of the cone then insert it into the body tube just enough to keep it from falling out.

Don
NAR 53455

Thanks, Don. That's the same advice I got over on TRF, so it must be right!
:)

Ding! Ding! Ding!
 

DING! I think that may be the first time.....

Don
NAR 53455

Somehow, the phrases "I behaved myself for a while" and "I've got nekkid pics that I'll post tonight" just don't seem to go together... :eek: :rolleyes:

My build pile includes a Tau Zero for my start-from-scratch project, but it also includes a bunch of "finish-ups" from as far back as 2002...

One "finish-up" is the Cherokee Double-D prototype, which is about to get its launch lugs and a coat of Kilz. I had been needing a bulkhead for the payload section.

I finally took it out of the box where it's been sitting for the last 34 years so it's at least getting closer. :rolleyes:

Now if I can just get a decent day for painting, I "might" be able to have it ready for our next launch on July 22.

Originally Posted by A Fish Named Wallyum
Since I was feeling too lousy to fly on Sunday, I put the time to good use and finished construction on the ARG Black Brant IVB bird that I picked up at NARCON back in 2005. Nice project once I could sit down and actually concentrate on it, and it really turned out to be a great looking bird. I've got nekkid pics that I'll post tonight, but they're still in the camera. Well, that's my story. What's yours?




Very nice, even if it is nekkid :) That's a pretty large kit too!


I have zero experience with ARG kits but the prototypes I'm working on (and need to finish) for Taras use the same basic materials and they are very strong rockets. The 1.72" diameter tubing he uses on the larger Brants is a pretty cool and unique size. Not sure if you realized it or not but an Estes BT-60 is a perfect slip fit into that size airframe and Taras uses BT-60 for couplers in the SR1720 Sounding Rocket prototype I have. You might consider that if you should ever damage it and need to fit a piece of tube inside the airframe to repair it.

Your ARG Black Brant IVB seems like it would be a challenge to finish unless some of the white areas are decaled since they overlay the red on the airframe. Did the kit come with decals?

I just recently got off crutches after almost two months and pulled all my rockets in my queue down from the top shelf to get started building again. I'll have to try to get a picture of the stuff in my build queue posted and have you guys get a good laugh at all of my half finished projects .....

Oh boy... this is gonna be ugly....I am great at starting kits/projects, but terrible at finishing them....I have been trying to finish some of the many project that are lying around.... Let see:

Spev clone/upgrade w 24mm mount and 6 fins. I finally have this painted all gloss white, but haven't gotten around to masking and painting the black sections....

Restoration of my vintage Centuri V2: again, now it is all gloss white.... I am daunted byall of the masking it will require...

Restoration of two Vintage K-29 Sat 1bs. 1 needs two fins and a capsule, the other needs all fins, capsule, many setails, and a full paint/decal job.

Restoration of my original ESTES V2maxi Brute: It puked its innards last flight. I have replacement plywood fins, and a heavy duty engine tube.

An Alway ARCAS: painted, but I have been working on custom decals for the past three years!!

An Alway Sat V ... started, but never finished.

An ESTES Canadian Arrow converted to a V2 Blossom.... in primer.

An ESTES Canadian Arrow converted to a V-2... needs fins sanded. I hate sanding!

BT-70 upscale of the old Mini Brute Hornet. 24mm built for E motors. Needs a fin and finishing.

BT-70 upscale Saros w/custom 'Sandman' nosecones. Needs innards...

A couple of Goonys: Mercury Goonstone... working on it for 2 yrs, and Der Alte Fritz Triplan Goony: working for 3 yrs...

A rear ejection, short stubby 'lander' type scratchbuild based on a BT-80 Big Bertha NC . Needs a test launch, then paint.

I have a few vintage kits that were partially built up, and I will finish: farside X, Streak, Gyroc.

Venus Rocketry Giblet... about 1/2 built.

A pile of upscales: I have the cones, and need to order the slotted tubes and laser fins from Semroc: BT-80 Citation Patriot, BT-70 Wolverine, BT-70 Cherokee E, BT-70 Blue Bird Zero, BT-70 Constellation.

Scratch models:

'Super Mario' for my Niece: Big Bertha based... will eject a mario figure with a small 'chute'.

'Hell A Copter' I started with a Gyroc... enlarged to BT-50 added an extra fin-set, larger flaps, and ejects motor mount with a string to the NC.

'Attack Craft Deuce' A combination of the Deuce's Wild and the old ESTES Strike Fighter.

Well, that is all I can think of now...

Phred

Interesting you should ask this, Bill. Just the other day, after LDRS, I made out a list of what I want to get done next.

Having just gotten my L2, my next goal for that rocket (the Doug-1b) is to fly it with two air-started RoadRunners at a launch soon.

I also drew up a couple L3 concepts in RockSim, but it's all pie-in-the-sky right now. However, a Taurus-like shape has a strong appeal.

Thridget (BT-70, 3xC6 to 3xC6 clustered stager) on its last flight only lit two, came off the rod and turned horizontal, then lit two sustainers before power pranging in a plowed field. But I think I can fix it :) ("My old man is a television repairman, he's got this ultimate set of tools.") I've cut a new piece to splice on, but gotten no further. I expect to make more progress this weekend.

I'm also building an upscale Super Thridget with BT-80. It will fly on 3xD12-0 to 3xE9-8. Got one fin glued on last night.

Pro-Cluster. I had rings made (BMS) for this years ago, but only just now getting going. It's a 29mm MMT surrounded by six 18mm outboards. It will user timers to progressively light the outboards in pairs. The fin can is almost done with the last fin glued in last night. Next comes the electronics bay. (The fins were salvaged from an abortive L1 cert rocket destroyed by an I69 cato at LDRS in 2002. The Pro-Cluster's chute bay and nosecone were salvaged from those remains as well.)

Also need to repair my Bidget (BT-60 upscale Midget). When it staged during its last flight, the forward airframe of the booster tore open. I guess the pressure from the C11-0 burning thru was too much. The tear spans the entire valley between two fins, so it's not a simple patch. Looks like I'll have to cut the fins off and glue them to a new tube.

Hoping that N2O will be the theme at NTHP in Sept, so I expect to fly my Avenger-SRS on a Skyripper J and my HiTech H45 on a Skyripper H. Need to get the lower section of the Avenger painted and build an electronics bay for the HiTech H45. Wanna try a dual-deployment with the H45, too, although not necessarily on the same flight.

Want to build a 1.7x or 1.9x upscale Sprint with e-bay & DD, then fly F32, G37, G55 in it. I have an AT 1.9" tube and a nosecone, but need some couplers (and more time :)

Hoping to soon fly ST-20 upscale (2x) Midget with electronically airstarted sustainer soon. E28 to D12. Rocket is prepped. Just need a calm day and a charged NiCad.

Want to build and fly 6" Midget (sustainer only). Have one fin built up using 1/64" ply skin over truss structure with foam fill. Also have a nose cone. Goal is to reduce weight by a couple pounds versus previous 10 pound incarnation lawn-darted in Oct, 2004. (Additional goal is to not lawndart the new one :)

Want to build 2-stage HPR Midget, maybe 2.25" booster to 3" sustainer. Trick is squeezing electronics bay into sustainer. Anular space around motor tube is consideration, but exposes vent ports to turbulent air between fins.

Need to finally finish and fly Ecee Thunder RC.

Need to put last color (white) on Apogee 2 / ApoThree and fly it.

Doug
Needing a sabbatical from work for about 12 months to do it all...

Now THAT sounds like a plan! Especially if they pay for the time off!
:)

It comes with decals, but I think I'm missing some. The paint isn't that daunting because, like you said, it's a big bird. I got some other pics last night that will hopefully show the details a little better.

I have the bag opened on mine, but never got very far. I mighta glued the feet and legs up...or was that for the TP3.9" ML?

I guess I need to add these two to my list of started stuff that needs finishing....

Doug

That kit is begging for a 24mm motor mount. I bashed a Big Betty into a quasi-Sprint which is not far from the WW. I was amazed at how well it performed. I guess it's the boat tail that really reduces the drag because it seemed to go much higher on a C motor than I expected, based on Big Bettys and Berthas on the same motor.

Anyway, I set my Betty-Sprint up to use an F32, but I don't think I've ever put anything in it bigger than a C or D. Nevertheless, the WW can easily handle D12's. And E9's, too, with some extra eyes and a shiny streamer.

Doug
Sometimes, when the rubber meets the road, I get wimpy...

A Fish Named Wallyum posted ARG Black Brant IVB pics

http://forums.rocketshoppe.com/atta...tachmentid=3025


So the step in the airframe in the middle of the fin chord is a scale feature? Looks kinda odd.

Doug