I finally got my Semroc Mars Lander in the mail last week. Back in the mid eighties I had gotten 2 Estes Mars Landers from a distributor who sold Estes and Centuri products in Germany at that time. I was asked to build them for him and I enjoyed it very much. The Mars Lander is a great looking model rocket. To this day I could never figure out why I didn't have a kit of my own. Maybe it was due to the high price.
Original mint Estes Mars Lander Box with Semroc parts enclosed just for nostalgia reasons
Nonetheless, lets get back to the present.
Upon opening the kit you notice how well the components of the Semroc Mars Lander are made. The quality of the parts are first class and I'm looking forward to building this kit.
I have decided to build the Mars Lander exactly as it was designed with maybe one exception and that being how to mount the shock bands so that they can be replaced.
This thread is my step by step construction. I have kits that I started 20 years ago and are yet to be finished. I hope this build will be shorter
So lets begin
Step 3 and 4:
As described I sanded the balsa sheet on both sides and then removed all the fins from the sheet, afterwards carefully sanding each of the fin edges.
Step 5:
Finished the gear housing. Next step is to seal the inside and give it a white coat of paint.
You gotta love the smell of burnt balsa wood. It's making me all woozy
