Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane on RocketReviews.com

I did a stop at rocketreviews.com to read the daily build review.
A few years back, Mark Fisher did a review of the Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane. HERE
Here's a excerpt:
"Don't believe the placement dimension given in the instructions for the stern (i.e., larger) bulkhead; fit it up last, after you make sure the bow bulkhead is even with the edge of the body wrap. Even with careful work, my X-30 looks like a golf shoe."

Well, it does look a bit like a golf shoe. That did make me laugh. It always gets attention at a launch. 

You can rig it to hang horizontal after ejection. It's all covered in the blog build HERE.
Scroll down a few posts to see how I did it. 
The instructions mention it can be done but don't give any real directions.
Take extra time packing the two parachutes. I've had only one eject on the first flight. The second flight I used just one chute. The model is heavy and does need both parachutes.

The X-30 is a Level 4 build but sometimes a change in materials and techniques is a good thing.
JonRocket.com has them available! HERE

Fixing the Aerospace Plane Canopy TIPS

I was prepping the recent Quest Aerospace Plane for an upcoming launch and the canopy popped off!
It was a clean separation, none of the paper shroud was torn telling me the bond wasn't good.

The bottom edge of the canopy still had some plastic glue on it.
The canopy bottom edge was lightly sanded giving a smoothed rough surface for better adhesion.

The aeroshoud had a glossy surface preventing the glue from soaking in.
The surface was scraped with the tip of my blade just inside the positioning line. Scrape enough to dull the surface but not thin the cardstock.

Plastic glue was applied and the shroud pressed back into position.

Thin CA followed. I just had to touch the end of the Teflon tube and the thin glue ran under the edge.
You don't have to squeeze out thin CA, turn over the bottle and it should run down the tube and "wick" itself under the seam.

Always have a paper towel handy when you use thin CA. It sometimes  runs where it shouldn't.

TIP: After using CA, hold the bottle up and squeeze the tip into a paper towel. This clears the Teflon tube and it will be clear the next time you use it.
TIP: Store your opened Super Glues in the refrigerator (not the freezer) and it will last much longer!

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Finished

The finished model is larger than you might think.
When Quest introduced this model in 1994 it was a level 4 "Expert" build. I didn't find it that hard to build, just time consuming.
Not a perfect kit, the air scoop paper stock was too thin and the intake fins weren't long enough.
The rear bulkhead required too much trimming for the internal tube to even fit close.
Still an interesting build. I look forward to seeing how well it flys with a C6-3.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 20, Inlet Fin Trim Fix

On TRF, JeffyJeep posted pictures of his X-30 Aerospace Plane build.
He covered up the exposed white areas behind the intake fins.

On the left is the model before covering the white areas. On the right is the fix.
I used small strips of the Contact paper Blackboard Covering. To make the transition a little smoother, the strips were cut long and actually roll from the white areas up and over the trailing edge of the fins.

Thanks Jeff, a good solution! 

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 19, Nose Cone Trim

The face card picture shows black windows on the canopy.
No decals are included in the kit. Time to pull out the Contact paper blackboard cover sheet.

Two small squares were cut.
The recesses in the canopy show rounded corners on the windows.

To imply the boxes are rounded it's easier to cut off small corners off the squares.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 18, Horizontal Descent

I used one of the bulkhead center disks for a reinforced tied down point.
This disk will spread out the line tension and prevent it from pulling through when the ejection charge is activated.

A hole was punched in the center and a length of heavy carpet and button thread tied on.

A small hole was punched in the shroud body between the rudders.

Before the line was run through the top two layers of Scotch tape were stuck down to strengthen the top.

It's hard to see the lines in the picture, but here's how the model should fall during recovery.
Two 12" parachutes are tied above the nose cone.

There could easily be tangles at ejection.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 17, What!!??

The face card shows the model hanging horizontally under dual parachutes.
The instructions mention it but are a little vague about how to tie it all up! There is nowhere to tie on the rear line. Even if you tied it to the engine hook the line would probably tear through the top of the body shroud at ejection.
The next blog post will give one solution.

Check out the "Estimated Maximum Altitude".
700 feet with the recommended C6-3 engine.
The instructions say it only reaches 275 feet with a C6-3!
I don't think I'd fly it with a B6-2 if the altitude is only 150 feet!

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 16, Air Scoop Fit

The inlet fins weren't long enough to cover the white areas on the shroud.
Oh well!

The two sides of the air scoop didn't to stay together.

I waited for the glue to set up a bit and held the two sides together with long smooth tweezers.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 15, Air Scoop

The belly air scoop pieces are cut from the printed sheets.

Use a razor blade and straightedge for the straight edges and sharp scissors for the curves.





I felt the belly scoop stock was a little thin so I laminated some 110 lb. card stock to the underside. It's much stronger now.

Just like any other shroud, pre-curl the card stock by pressing a dowel over the shroud in the heel of your hand.

The fins were glued on earlier using the Aileen's Super thick Tacky Glue.
The root edges needed a slight angle sanded in them for a better fit against the curved body shroud.


Glue the right side of the air scoop on first. It is slightly wider than the left side and allows for a glue overlap tab..

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 14, Fins Cover and Nose Fit

This is the rudder fin before the second side of the covering was trimmed off. The wings and fins edges were sprayed white.

The small interior tube is lightly glued into the nose cone bulkhead.
Before the glue sets up, check the fit against the body bulkhead.

After you are sure of the fit, add a small fillet at the tube bulkhead joint.
Keep the fillet small so it won't interfere with the fit against the main body.

The nose and canopy were sprayed gloss white.

Both were taped to a cardboard flat for painting.

One ounce of clay weight is supplied.

As directed in the instructions I pressed as much as I could into the nose cone tube. About .40 oz. of clay was left over.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 13, Covering Inlet Fins

The inlet fin overlay paper is black so the leading and trailing edges were blackened with a permanent marker.

The printed cover pieces are over sized and trimmed after gluing.
A glue stick works very well to apply the card stock.

Apply one side and trim the excess with a sharp knife.
Then apply the other side and trim.

After trimming the card stock overlay edges will be white.
Hit the edges again with the marker.

Polish the edges by rubbing with a paper towel.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 12, Fillet, Fit and Edge Paint

The instructions recommend Aileen's Super Tacky Glue for the shroud.
I've heard that Aileen's glue was G. Harry Stine's favorite for rocket building. The instructions state: "White glue will cause the paper shroud to wrinkle."
I could only find Aileen's Super Thick Tacky Glue. It worked fine without any wrinkles.

Here I'm applying a fillet on the rear bulkhead joint with a rounded dowel and a Q-Tip to pick up any excess.
The bulkhead is recessed too far in to smooth the fillet with a fingertip.

This is the nose cone fit as best I could get it.
You can see the soft molded corner at the nose cone base starting to flare out.

The fin edges were filled earlier.

A glove kept the paint off my hand while the primer filler was sprayed.
I aimed directly at the edge and no primer got on the flat surfaces.

The inset picture shows the launch lug ready for primer.
Two toothpicks gave me a short handle to hold while spraying.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 11, Bulkhead & Shroud Adjustments

Only the rear bulkhead was sanded to allow the central motor mount tube to move forward in the shroud.

While sanding the bulkhead edge is "crushed" and is now wider. This is okay, it gives a wider gluing surface and spreads the edge out inside the shroud. The wider bulkhead edge won't show through from the outside.

The smaller forward bulkhead isn't sanded. The size of the forward bulkhead is the same size as the nose cone base bulkhead. I want both the same size when the nose cone is slid in place.

After an hour of sand and fit the forward bulkhead has moved much closer to the front of the shroud edge. I've gone about as far forward as I'm going to get.

It's a compromise in the build, but this edge will be trimmed off even with the bulkhead making the model about 1/8" shorter.

When the trimmed shroud got close to the bulkhead, the edge was sanded off with 400 grit on a block.

While sanding everything even you could see how the bulkhead was bent back on the sides. This happened when the tube was pressed forward and the edges were pulled back against the end of the shroud.

Medium CA was applied with a toothpick and was sanded smooth. This hardened the rough end surface and removed any "fuzzies".

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 10, Bulkhead & Shroud Adjustments

Sand the bulkhead edge to the angle of the shroud walls.
You don't want the bulkhead edges visible from the outside of the shroud walls.

From the rear, this is the rear bulkhead pressed forward as far as it could go without deforming the shroud.
The instructions say the smaller forward bulkhead should now be even with the front of the shroud.

Here's the front bulkhead, obviously not even with the front edge of the shroud.
Careful rear bulkhead adjustments will have to be made.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 9, Shroud Forming

Before using the tape strip, pre-roll the aeroshroud stock into a smooth cone.
This is a big shroud so take it slow or creases could form.

This is the same kind of double sided tape used in the older Quest HL-20 lifting body kit.
Peel off one side of the tape and press it down on the tab area.
Lift off the brown side and the adhesive is left on the tab area.


Even with the kit being nearly 20 years old, the tape worked like it was new.
Carefully roll the shroud and match up the graphics before burnishing down the adhesive applied tab.

You finally use the thick tube to press the tab in place.
The narrow end of the shroud is too small for your fingers and the tube applies an even pressure all the way down the tab.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 8, Fin & Shroud Prep

The two wing pieces are glued together.
As the instructions showed, check to be sure the root edges are lined up with a straightedge. Sand the root edge with a block.

The edges of all the fins will be exposed, the printed fin covers don't wrap over the edges.
Just the edges were filled will CWF and sanded smooth. The picture shows the application of the CWF before sanding smooth.
After sanding the fins were stacked and the root edges sprayed with Grey primer filler.

After almost 20 years of storage, the main aeroshroud card stock had soft folds and wrinkles. Leaving it flat in a heavy book overnight didn't smooth the wavy surface.

I used a dry iron and it helped. The instructions say you could use an iron on a steam setting, but I wouldn't recommend it! I tried some steam and it made shallow dimples in the surface from the holes in the bottom of the iron.

After ironing there was still an uneven surface.
I can only hope these will smooth out when the shroud is rolled into it's final shape.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 7, Vacu-form Canopy

The canopy was molded with a much sharper edge.
Trace a pencil line around the edge for a cut line.
Cut just outside the line.

The rough edge was smoothed on a sanding block and 220 grit sandpaper.
Keep an eye on the molded edge line. Sand the bottom off the edge a little flat for a wider gluing surface.

Check the fit of the canopy against the oval drawn on the top of the  printed aeroshroud. It's easy to sand off too much.

Sand off any plastic that has rolled over the edge with 400 grit and a  light touch.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 6, Vacu-form Nose Cone

I cut the nose cone base off a little wide. There wasn't a definate edge and I didn't want to cut it too short.

The plastic was pretty thick and took a few passes to cut through.

The front bulkhead is pressed in place. Hold it up to the light to make sure it is level.

I drew a pencil line around the bulkhead joint. This gives me a straight line to apply the plastic glue in the right area.  

After the bulkhead glue dried, the lip was trimmed down with sharp scissors.
After trimming the plastic edge was sanded level with some 220 grit on a block.

Quest X-30 Aerospace Plane Part 5, Fin Prep

The curved front of the inlet fins were sanded with some 220 grit wrapped around an old engine casing.

I cut off the uneven front tips off the inlet fins. I probably should have left them long. But, the overlay sheet showed them with a squared off tip.
After sanding them square that front tip was too thin and not the same between fins.
Later I found out they weren't long enough to cover the white location area on the aeroshroud body.

TIP: These die-cut fins were chipping off the back root edge corner.
Sometimes you can place a drop of CA on this corner to keep the balsa in place. It'll sand off easily after the glue dries.