Monday, February 20, 2017

Nike Goon Build, Part 10, Added Paint Weight?

I'm a sport flyer and don't pay much attention to the weight of paint.
Daniel Petrie (The Rocket N00b) did some great articles about paint and how the weight can effect performance. To visit his blog and those write-ups: 
http://rocketn00b.blogspot.com/2016/11/the-weight-of-paint.html
http://rocketn00b.blogspot.com/2016/11/the-weight-of-paint-part-2-so-why-paint.html
http://rocketn00b.blogspot.com/2016/11/the-weight-of-paint-part-3-surface.html
http://rocketn00b.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-weight-of-paint-part-4-painting.html


This got me thinking about how much weight my paint jobs could add. I probably lay the paint on thicker than most. I paint my rockets for a few good reasons. They are stronger and sealed after proper painting. If you ever had a rocket waiting on a launcher and a rain shower rolls through, you'll be glad the model is painted.

The 12" parachute and shock cord are installed for the weigh-in.
The sanded primer and assembled Nike Goon weighed in at 1.56 oz.
Two light white coats were sprayed and smooth sanded. The final heavier coat was sprayed. Now the model weighs 1.63 oz, ready for trim.


After all the vinyl trim was in place the final weight is 1.70 oz.
So the paint and trim added just 0.14 oz. Not bad!
The Baby Bertha face card says it should weigh close to 1.90 oz. (Who knows if this Estes specification is the shipping weight, assembled "naked" weight or painted model weight.) 
My finished model came in 0.20 oz. less than the Baby Bertha. I would think it would have weighed a bit more.

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