Saturday, August 21, 2021

Quest Planet Probe #Q1022, Part 2, Fin Prepping



The fins and centering ring are die-cut on heavy cardstock, thicker than what you would normally find on centering rings.








After the fins are released from the sheet, there are still some cut "extensions" on the corners that should be trimmed off.






One one side of the die cutting there is some raised crimping. This is caused by the pressure of the blades cutting through the board.

Here I'm using my Sharpie pen burnisher to roll and compress down the raised edges.

2 comments:

  1. "Here I'm using my Sharpie pen burnisher to roll and compress down the raised edges."

    In all the years I've built rockets, I never thought of this simple technique on cardstock fins. I would have sanded the edges (and thus raised fibers) and would not have been happy with my fuzzy results. This technique will give a smoother, firmer edge; a tiny detail but important both aesthetically and aerodynamically.

    See, that's why you're such an important asset to the model rocket community; your shared building tips help everyone build better rockets. The devil is in the details and you're the exorcist...just without all the pea soup.

    Thank you.

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  2. "you're the exorcist...just without all the pea soup."
    That line should be on my business card (if I had a business card)
    Burnishing down die-cut fins edges may still leave a slight bump, but it is much less than what it looked like right off the sheet.

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