Last night I started a "tuffie", the North Coast Star Wars X-wing fighter, #NCR 3540.

My question is, what is the best adhesive for the vacu-formed parts. CA? Epoxy? Tenax-7r? Ambroid?

Thanks!

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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

It depends on what you are gluing on the model.

Use epoxy for all the paper/ply joints. We did not use Tenax on the vac-forms, though that should work. We used Medium CA with good results.

Matt

Also ... pick up a tube of "Squadron Putty" (either white or green) to use to fill any gaps in the plastic as you build the model.

-- Roger

You can't beat Tenax-7R on fitted joints. You can fill gaps with it in a pinch by adding scrap styrene and allowing it to melt it into the gap.

Looking forward to the the finished X-Wing. Show your wife the old painting thread about how to add aging and battle damage. Who knows, she might give it a whirl!

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I love sanding.

Something doesn't seem right. although the instructions don't quite show it, it seems like the shoulder of the plastic rear cover should register under the vacu-formed fuselage skin. I have a feeling the center spruce rib was longer than 9.75" and that I should have measured it to verify.
If that's the case, I'll need to extend the wings slots in the lower fuselage forward and shorten the center spuce rib the correct amount to make the shoulder of the rear cap lay under the vacu-formed skin. Since this will move the wings forward, I'll need to patch the slot in the rear.

Sound about right?

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

I just went and looked at photos of the X-Wings I built and in both cases, the rear cover was not covered by the fuselage skin - just as in your case.

BTW ... you probably know this already but the motor tube included in the kit is slightly too small. I replaced it with a LOC tube.

Also, the rocket is very prone to breaking its nose off on landing. You should beef up the spar in the front to avoid this. I extended the spar into the nose and added short lengths of wood glued to each side in the front to make it stronger.

Finally, be sure to carefully follow the instructions for packing the parachute and shock cord. If you wrap them around the motor tube, there's a good chance the parachute won't deploy.

There's barely enough room for the parachute and shock cord. So, I replaced the parachute with a thin-mill Top Flight one and the shock cord with Kevlar. This made the 'chute and shock cord fit easier. (But, thin mill parachutes are really slippery, so it was still a challenge to pack.)

-- Roger

When attaching the vac-formed parts to the same material, I would reach for Tenax-7R, which actually melts/welds the plastic together. A weld is always stronger than a mechanical bond such as with CA on a non-porous material. CA however would probably be more strength than ever needed.

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When in doubt, WHACK the GAS and DITCH the brake !!!

Yes, there is such a thing as NORMAL, if you have to ask what is "NORMAL" , you probably aren't !
Failure may not be an OPTION, but it is ALWAYS a POSSIBILITY.
ALL systems are GO for MAYHEM, CHAOS, TURMOIL, FIASCOS, and HAVOC !

You've probably already seen this but I found this thread while looking for pics of this rocket. It has some construction photos in it:

http://www.rocketryforum.com/showth...-X-Wing-Fighter

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SAM #0354

Thanks for all the good advice!

Hopefully I can get back to the X-Wing tomorrow night. I'm on a job in central Florida this week.

Remembering the instructions, the graphics show the rear plastic cap without a shoulder, so it's possible that the shoulder line IS supposed to register to the end of the vacu-formed fuselage. First I'll razor saw the central spuce rib to the correct length and then see how forward the rear cap REALLY comes. I'll also have to recut the fuselage sides so the wings can protrude further forward.
This is a TOUGH build!

__________________
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

Me, too. But, it's true for me every week!

Watch out for Isaac. :-)

-- Roger