Saturday, April 11, 2020

Estes MRN Orbital Transport Laboratory Build, Part 5, Fin Dowel Positioning





I did a test fit of the 1/8" dowel in the slot I just cut.
The instructions have you glue the small triangle fin after the main fin is attached through the "drilled" body tube hole. I decided to glue it on now for easier filling of the joint.

On the left is the glue joint before squaring up the edge. the right side shows a sanded square and better fitted joint.



The slotted fin was set against the instruction print to find how high up the drilled holds would be. From the back end of the body tube the holes should be around 1/2" up.

2 comments:

  1. Hi Chris!:

    Did you use the 3/32 balsa for the fins or did you switch to 1/8?

    Sincerely,
    J.W.

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    Replies
    1. Hi J.W.,
      I ended up using 1/8" thick balsa for the fins. I figured the fin thickness should match the 1/8" diameter dowel. They look fine. I did round the leading edges so it wouldn't look too "clunky".

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