O well, I’m old school,, what can I say,,,,

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ENGINE COSTS ARE " OUT OF SIGHT " .....

The old Estes TA-6070 (balsa) adapter had a horribly short shoulder (anywhere from 1/2” to 5/8”) . It really should have been about 1” long. I found a bag of them at a hobby store, so I still have several to modify before using. The first time I used one, back in the early 90s, I drilled holes into the shoulder base, to a depth about the length of the shoulder, at the edges of the base. I then glued 3/8” dowels into the holes. I didn’t have a nose block or coupler, but this method worked very well. I was lucky that the holes were drilled pretty accurately and the dowels provided very good fit and alignment. In recent years I have used a coupler, and I reinforced the joint with epoxy inside the coupler, next to the base of the shoulder. This method works pretty well. For alignment, I put little bits of wood glue inside the coupler, spaced evenly around the perimeter, then slid it into the body tube using the balsa adapter, and held everything upside down until the glue ran down against the shoulder, and cured. Then it could be removed and epoxy added for reinforcement.

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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

Watching this with interest! That looks like a lot of aft weight, any idea how much nose weight will be needed?

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Paul
If we weren't all crazy, we would go insane - Jimmy Buffett
NAR #87246 www.wooshrocketry.org

Not my design, it's copied from the 1960's TV series.
I have a good supply of 50/60 rings but they're plywood and too thick for this application.

I didn't know there were that many different models.
Mine is just loosely based on the info I've accumulated over the years.
After reading that link it appears that my model will most closely resemble the type K variant.

I put it on the scale last night and as shown the motor mount is only 1.5 ounces. 3.5 with an E12 installed.
The fins will surely add another ounce or two. Total length is just under 14 inches.
Once I determine total nose weight needed, I'll either fill the cone tip with lead shot or cast a thick washer.
It's flight profile will most likely resemble that of my R2D2 model.
The 24mm mount should give it enough power options for stability.

Yes, I figured as such. Again, I’m just old school and not up anymore on newer things ( tho yours is an oldie, ha). Still,, you did a really good job. I used to do similar things like this. My last project was the vintage Estes Black Hole kit, it’s finished , but only primered white,,, and unpainted etc. Nice work and while I have no set price, it is for sale. Decal was old, so I made a good copy. Comes with instructions, face card, etc.
Keep up the good work…..

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ENGINE COSTS ARE " OUT OF SIGHT " .....

I finished up the paint and decals on the Centurion last night.
Wrinkling in the final coat of white required a full sand down and repaint.
No easy task as it has been weather roulette around here lately.
We got hit with four inches of snow at lunchtime Monday, and today it's in the low eighties.

Base colors are Krylon Fusion spray.
The stripes are a mixed media of vinyl, paint, and label stock.
Greek helmet decal was done with Photoshop.
The motor mount is painted red just for fun.
I stocked up on engines last week, so I'll see if I can get it airborne soon.

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I didn’t believe this myself until I got an informative booklet from Testors once. Wrinkling can easily happen if you wait mire than 2 hours to apply additional paint. Too hard to explain, but it said afterwards to be safe, must wait 24 hours. I experimented with this for some years and found it to be true. For what it’s worth…

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ENGINE COSTS ARE " OUT OF SIGHT " .....

I think this time it was just a bad batch.
That model sat next to the furnace for two weeks before I had time to apply the second coat.
Years ago I painted a Semroc Start model and three weeks later it was still tacky.
Eventually it did cure, about two months later.
Thanks for the tip.