Question about Whee II construction
 

I want to build an Estes Design of the Month from 1965 called the Whee II. http://www.spacemodeling.org/jimz/eirp_34.htm

It calls for "splitting" a nose cone and hollowing it out to make a tail cone. I'm curious as to how you would cut it in half. I thought of a saw of some type, but wouldn't that remove enough wood to alter the shape when glued back together.

What do you think?

Thanks,

Alan

It would seem one could hollow out that size nose cone and 'bob' the tip without having to cut it in half. I think I'd try that first before sawing in half.

Earl

https://www.balsamachining.com/#

Balsa Machinging Services has a tailcone with predrilled BT-20 size hole. OD is 1.673" and ID od the shoulder is 1.590. Easier to sand down to fit an Estes BT-60 instead of splitting a nose cone. Not sure of total length. You could contact Bill to see if they are available.

Chas

Instead of splitting a cone could it be bored with a Forstner bit?

You want to use an X-acto knife to split a balsa cone. If you cannot cut all the way thru, start with X-acto and then go to sharp kitchen knife or pocket knife. The blade should be thin enough.

Find the grain line of the nose cone. Mark your cut line aligning it with the grain. It will make the cut much easier. Use a razor blade or hobby knife to make several passes in the wood to split it in two. Mark the areas to be hollowed out and use the tool of your choice: carving blade, gouging blade, chiseling blade, whatever. A regular hobby knife can be used by making long parallel cuts in the wood then "chipping out" the material. Then glue back together.
I did it to a much smaller Astron Streak nose cone when I was 13 yrs. old. If I can do it anyone can.
Good luck.

There used to be a blade that was about 3 inches long that fit the #5 X-acto handle. That's what one would have used to do this in 1965. Being aware of the grain as BARGeezer says is also a good idea, even without the great big blade.

The BMS BMS60V2B that Chas suggested would probably work. The V2 nose/tail cone isn't quite the same shape as the BNC-60L, but it would be pretty close, particularly if you use a Semroc BNC-60LV, which is much closer to the original BNC-60L shape than more recent ones.

That’s the blade I used to do this - worked reel good!

If you have a Dremel, there a several tips that would do this job.

Cut it along the grain from both sides (180 degrees opposed) using a regular thin X-Acto blade. Meet roughly somewhere in the center. This doesn't have to be pretty since after scooping out the core you're going to glue the two halves back together. Someone mentioned a Dremel, and I would recommend one for the job. Handiest tool ever...........you'll find yourslf using it for all kinds of jobs, not just hobby work.



Joe