Estes Space Ship One, Kit # 2191, Build Part 3, Engine Mount Fitting

GOTCHA: Notice the engine mount tube was white and in this post is now brown. I ruined the kit supplied brown tube after gluing the centering rings in the "compromised" position before rounding out the tail cone hole so the ends could be even.

The rings were removed from the white tube. A new brown BT-20 tube was cut.

   

I had to round out the oblong hole using a half round diamond file.

When the hole was wide enough, some 220 grit sandpaper was wrapped around a used engine casing until a scrap BT-20 finally fit.

This took too much time to fix. I wonder how many of these kits were tossed in frustration or incorrectly assembled with the engine mount in the wrong position. 

This might be why so many were unstable before the extra 1/2 oz. of clay weight was added? (Remember, four pats of clay nose weight were included in the revised kits.)

For a better fit of the rings in the sloped tail cone, the edges were slightly angled using a sanding block. Notice I'm sanding both rings at the same time for consistent angles.

TIP: On the right - don't remove the turned over outside edges. This will leave you with a wider gluing edge.

TIP: When gluing in an engine mount you can slide in an expended engine for more support in the thin wall BT-20 tube.

Here's a correct fit of the engine mount, all the way through with the BT-20 engine tube and tail cone ends even. Whew!