Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 20, Nose Cone Fix

There was a recess divot in front of the canopy.

It looks like the kit assembler cut off a mold line. 

I'll fill it with medium Super Glue. Set a drop of glue in the recess. Let dry horizontally, the glue drop can run.   

After the glue dries,

Sand to follow the round curve of the cone. 

The recessed lines are lightly filed using a triangular diamond file. Don't go too deep!

The recess lines are back, not perfect but better than not having them at all.

A shot of filler primer showed areas that needed touchup.

The second photo shows another mold line to fill towards the tip.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 19, Filling The Tab Recess

The top picture shows the CWF on the tabs sanded down.

The sanded tabs were given a controlled shot of filler/primer.

The filled/primer is sanded down using 400 grit on a sanding block.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 18, Filling The Tab Recess

Here's the balsa plug fill on the upper end of the N piece.

Two fill pieces go into the L and M wing pieces.

After the glue dries, the raised fills are sanded to surface using 400 grit on a sanding block.

The T piece tab is a bit short. It'll also get a balsa fill segment.

The inset shows the tab before and after lowering the height of the tabs. 

Like on the wing, this allows for a thicker plug piece.

The T piece is fitted after the wing is glued on. 

For now, glue only the filler segment. 

With the T piece all the way in the slot, press in the filler piece until it butts up against the T piece tab inside.

Remove the T piece without gluing it in leaving the plug in place at the correct depth.

After the glue dries, sand the plug to surface.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 17, Filling The Tab Recess

I wish the tabs on the S pieces were longer! If the tabs extended past the flat face of the wing, they could be simply sanded to surface.

The tab recess is shallow and could probably be filled with CWF. I prefer something stronger. 

I sanded down the tabs so the balsa plug would have a deeper fit.

Some 1/8" wide stripes were cut from the leftover fin stock.

These were cut a bit long and sanded for a tight fit.

I've done this before when the tabs were short on the Super Orbital Transport.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 16, Filler/Primer On The Balsa Parts

Here's all the parts taped down to scrap cardboard for a shot of filler/primer.

Notice the thin masking tape strips over the gluing area slots on the Q pieces. There is tape over the glue tabs on the T pieces.

With the S braces dry fitted, this will mask the gluing contact areas.  

After the filler/primer shot,

the glue tabs have no spray.

The wing showing the clear glue areas for the S braces.

The end tip Q pieces had a measured strip of masking tape over the gluing area.

The open CWF strip isn't sealed and glue can be absorbed. The gray filler/primer seals the rest of the balsa.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 15, More Pre-glue Fitting

The low edges of the intake tube will set into the fillet joints of the wings.

Looking ahead, I checked how straight the sides were using an aluminum angle. This will require some sanding to get the sides straight. notice the pencil mark - 

The visible end edges of the intake can be cleaned up with a wipe of CA glue and light sanding. This removes the fuzz and sharpens the looks.

Don't wipe any CA glue where wood glue will follow.


 

I set the vertical brace in place to mask the gluing areas for the filler/primer shoot.

The underside tabs aren't tall enough to fully fill the notch! This will need more filling after gluing the braces in. No glue yet, wait until after sanding the filler/primer.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 14, Tube End Fitting

The main tube and the back of the intake tube will be glued even.

With the intake vanes in place - setting the intake tube to the low end of the main body tube, the edges are uneven.

Set the high end of the intake even with the main tube end. This will end up with a slight overhang of the intake tube sides.

Tape the intake tube sides down for stability when sanding.

Using 220 grit,

Sand the intake overhang even with the main tube end.

A dry fit of the assemblies -

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 13, Intake Vanes

Think about what will be seen on the finished rocket.

The intake vanes might float above the main body tube - 

The base of the vanes should contact the body tube. Any gaps at the top of the crescent pieces will be covered by the tapered intake tube.

Glue the intake ribs on one at a time and let them dry one at a time. Make sure all the bottom edges contact the tube.

A dry fit of the intake tube set over the intake assembly.

I'm in the middle of filling the seams on the tapered intake tube.

The raised intake tabs all touch the front of the curved intake tube.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 12, Intake Vanes Fit

Here's the laser cut intake vane cardstock.

The pieces aren't marked, they vary slightly in size and length.

The picture on the right side shows a dry fit. 

The long pieces are too loose when set in into the AA and BB part notches.

 

I like to seal the exposed edges with glue and sanding. It makes a big difference on the finished model.

The area below the pencil line is what will be exposed.

The right side pic shows a round bead of glue after removing the excess. There is only glue on the edge, not on the sides. The glue in the picture is already half dried.

Sanding with 400 grit smooths out any irregularities.

Hobby Room -

"Welcome to my dream Crafting Room."

To see the short video - CLICK HERE

This is how I feel after I finish 

a big Odd'l Rockets vendor order . . . 

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 11, Cutting The Intake Tube

Draw a centerline down the "K" tube.

The template is cut from the instructions and taped to the tube.

Line up the centerlines. Trace with pencil.

TIP: If you set the wide, rounded end of the template very close to the tube end - there is just enough to make a second intake fairing if you screw up the first attempt. 

The sidelines are straight and you can use a straightedge to cut them. Tape a metal ruler down the side pencil lines.

Or you can cut the lines freehand.

Don't cut through on a single pass! Use a new blade, cut slow and controlled. 

The edges are cleaned up with sandpaper on a block.

On the top is the rough cut,

Below is after sanding the edges flat an rounding the front and rear curves.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 10, Cleaning Up The Nose Cone

After the tie off lug is opened, there are some rough edges. These sharp points could wear through a shock cord.

I used some diamond files to take down the edges. You can find them cheap at Harbor Freight - CLICK HERE

There was a slight divot at the front of the canopy nose.

I rebuilt the round contour with a drop of Super Glue.

The thin glue can run, keep the nose cone horizontal while the glue dries.

After drying, sand the drop to match the curve of the nose cone.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 9, Joining The Tubes

The picture on the left shows a dry fit of the two tubes joined by the coupler.

Note the pencil reference line, drawn where the tube fit is best. There are still small gaps.

On the right is a better fit, sanding the tube ends square with a sanding block.

The coupler ends are beveled for an easier slip fit in the tubes.

The bevel also lets the glue pool up at the edge a bit.

If you use yellow or white glue, don't use too much. The dried glue could shrink the tube.

I'd recommend using epoxy for couplers and engine mounts. Epoxy won't lock up like yellow or white glue can.

After sliding the two tubes together, I use a burnisher to mold any raised areas.

CWF is brushed on the seam joint and sanded.

On the right you can see the high and low spots after sanding.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 8, Fitting The Fin Pieces

When fitting the O brace part with the angled end against the N part, it came up short in the back.

I cut new longer O pieces using some of the leftover balsa.

While dry fitting the S brace, the O piece was glued on. 

The O piece was a hair wide. Masking tape was applied to protect the S brace while the overhang was sanded down.

Here's the finished O piece, fitting tight against the M and N pieces of the wing.

The wing is then glued together on a flat surface with weights.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 7, Fitting The Fin Pieces

Here's the engine mount before and after painting gloss white.

Thin masking tape strips were set over the outside edges where the short tube (Part G) will be glued.

The yellow engine block spacing tube is set in the tube to keep out the paint overspray.

With Part S set into the notches (see picture below) check the joint alignment of the L, M, N, P parts.

It took very little sanding to get a better fit. 

Here's the Part S brace in place, no glue yet.

It's amazing how strong this assembly is.

Estes Cosmic Interceptor Build, Part 6, Balsa Prepping

I kept the glue fillets on the vanes small. Any excess glue was picked up with Q-tips.

Lots of laser cut balsa in this kit!

Four sheets of 1/8" thick wood.

This is part of one fin assembly.

On the left - I've sanded the edges with 320 grit on a block. This is about halfway through the edge sand. 

On the right - The finished edge sand, just a small bit of laser cut ash remains. Sand off just the ash, don't change the size or shape of the piece.

Another sand,

On the left - With the block held perpendicular to the fin face, you can see how the laser cut isn't cut at a true 90 degree angle. 

The fit will be better if the edges are true.

On the right - 

The ash is removed and the fin edges square.