Like so (pic 1)? I wonder if the side plates would provide guidance to make the hinge stay in-plane rather than torquing? Plus the tubing provides some alignment flexibility, right?

Not sure of dimension the hinge...I was using Mk1.0 eyeball from the web picture and scaling against the thumb But it looks like you'd have to trim the length the hinge "legs" to fit in the given space.

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David Stribling
NAR 18402 SR
But it is rocket science!
Get yer Barrowmans here

When I tried the Robart hinges in my Outlander, one broke on the first flight, so avoiding them is the right approach, IMHO.

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A dark night in a city that knows how to keep its secrets. But high above the quiet streets on the 12th floor of the Acme Building, one man is still trying to find the answers to life's persistent questions. Guy Noir, Private Eye.

Fox Valley Rocketeers: http://www.foxvalleyrocketeers.org

I know my photos are gone thanks to the new owners of Photobucket, but I think the best way to build the ML is to use the included ball and tube hinges and make the rear bulkhead removable. I did mine that way so that I would have access to replace rubber bands. Sometimes springs end up stretching too, so I'd still make the bulkhead removable. Mars Landers should have four balls.

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I love sanding.

I have built at least 5 Mars Landers and I second what tbzep said just above.
Robart hinge points are great at their intended usage, but lousy for this application.
Not designed to handle the direction of stress from Mars Lander legs.

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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, and HAVOC !

All you guys are great!

Thanks for all the advice.

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If it flies, I can crash it!

I was wondering which size hinge you used?

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If it flies, I can crash it!

After seeing Tim’s photos “way back when”, I did the same mods to my Semroc Mars Lander. And I did mine after it was built. I waited until it crashed, and one leg had broken. I did not have any damage to the flex tube or dowel, the break was below that. I did use a new rubber band since it was opened up. I have another kit, and will build it with the standard hinge system like the first. I’ll also leave it 18mm, since I fly my currect lander on the D13 reload in the 18/20 RMS.

I converted my Outlander to 24mm,and the hack is not too bad, but not worth the effort in my opinion, since the D13 reload works so well. And the Q-Jet Ds should work well, though they only have about 2/3 the N-s of a D13 reload.

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Lee Reep
NAR 55948

Projects: Semroc Saturn 1B, Ken Foss Designs Mini Satellite Interceptor
In the Paint Shop: Nothing! Too cold!
Launch-Ready: Farside-X, Maxi Honest John, Super Scamp

And we now have the C5-3 which should be good for smaller fields.

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I love sanding.

I ordered 20 paks of C5-3s not long ago.
I'm NOT going to run low on those again. EVER.

__________________
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, and HAVOC !

Me neither.

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I love sanding.