Estes Airborne Surveillance Missile Build, #0867, Part 2, Parts Prep

The nose cone shoulder seemed long.

I might need an extra 3/8" for the upper section parachute compartment.

A single 5/20 centering ring goes outside the lower BT-5 tube and is visible on the finished model.

On the left is the ring right out of the bag.

To start, sand the sides flat on a block with 220 grit sandpaper.

Rub some wood glue into both sides and let it dry.

Sand the dried glue sides with 400 grit. The glue will seal the flat sides so the paint won't soak in. You'll end up with a glossier, smoother finish on the top and bottom surfaces.

The seam on the outside of the ring was filled with some CWF and smooth sanding.

Estes Airborne Surveillance Missile Build, #0867, Part 1, Parts

The Airborne Surveillance Missile was introduced in the 1983 Estes catalog on the Mini-Brutes section. The first time around it was available until 1985. The reissue showed up again in 2018. 

While it looks like a two-stager, it uses a single 13mm engine.

I bet there are a few who picked this one up in the last Estes Cyber Monday sale.

All the parts seem to be of good quality. 

There are two sets of instructions. I'll use the set in English. (Hang on to the other set of instructions.)

Parts of interest:

You rarely see 1/16" thick balsa in a kit anymore.

I didn't know what size the yellow parachute was. I went to the Estes website to find the yellow print chute is 9" in diameter.

The nose cone has a really long shoulder. That'll have to be cut down a bit. I understand Estes had a lot of these "Midget" style balsa nose cones in their inventory. Five of those nose cones were used in each of the Estes SLV kits.

The decal sheet is all white! It's a good thing they are printed on a light blue backing sheet.