T' Big Daddy is a 3" dia. Aye aye! kit that stands 19" tall. Begad! Begad! I figured that if I got an extra nose cone, ya bilge rat, cut off t' end and stuck it onto t' back o' t' rocket, it would work as a nice tail cone. All I would need t' do is slot t' cone for t' four fins and modify t' engine mount.

Although I didn’t set out t' make a perfect scale model o' a V-2, I wanted t' come as close as practically possible. I found a set o' scale plans for t' old Estes Maxi-Brute V-2 on JimZ’s website. Ahoy! Arrr! (kit# 1267) These plans also included t' actual dimensions o' t' real V-2 rocket. Arrr! Since t' body tube diameter is fixed at 3", me hearties, I divided t' actual V-2 Diameter o' 65" by 3 and came up with a factor o' 21.67:1. Dividin' t' length by that factor, me bucko, I came up with 25.5".

In order t' get a template for t' fin shape, I took t' plans I got from JimZ and blew them up on a copier until t' body tube diameter was 3". Begad! Avast! I then traced t' fin shape from t' photocopy. Arrr! Begad! I added a fin tab on t' root edge o' t' fin that would pass through t' side o' t' tail cone and attach t' t' engine mount.

I also measured t' body diameter at t' tail from t' photocopy and got 1.75". Begad! I eye-balled t' cone and decided that cuttin' it about 3.25" from t' tip would give me a 1.75" diameter. Aye aye! This makes t' exposed part o' t' tail cone 5.75" long. Ahoy! Since t' nose cone is 9" and t' tail is 1.25" off t' ground, shiver me timbers, t' body tube would need t' be 9.5"

I purchased a Big Daddy kit on eBay for $14.95, ya bilge rat, and started checkin' hobby shops for an extra nose cone. Begad! Apparently, me bucko, that particular nose cone isn’t available by itself. Begad! I called Estes intendin' t' purchase t' nose cone. Ya scallywag! They ended up mailin' me two nose cones free o' charge. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! (What a great company!) I also bought a sheet o' 3/16x4x36 balsa ($2.99) and three 18" BT-50's for ($5.99). I wanted a longer engine mount t' go through t' length o' t' tail cone and into t' body. T' mount that comes with t' Big Daddy is pretty short.

While waitin' for t' Big Daddy t' arrive, I cut out t' fins, arrr, me bucko, leavin' t' tang on t' root edge extra long, me bucko, and sanded them t' t' proper shape.

When t' Big Daddy arrived in t' mail I was disappointed t' see t' four huge slots in t' body tube for t' Big Daddy’s fins. Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! I have already built a Big Daddy but had forgotten about those slots. Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! I went ahead and started workin' on t' tail cone anyway.

I first marked t' lines I wanted t' cut for t' fins t' go through t' tail cone. I used t' mold marks on t' cone as guides for two o' t' fins and measured halfway betwixt for t' other two. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Suddenly, t' slots in t' body tube weren’t as bad as I originally thought. Begad! I used them t' help line up t' lines on t' tail cone. Begad! In order t' keep t' construction simple, I cut 1/8" slots in t' cone and then shaved t' edges with a sharp exacto knife while sightin' along them t' t' four slots in t' body tube. Aye aye! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! I widened them until I had a nice friction fit when insertin' t' fins. I made t' slots about 3.25" long, leavin' about 1.25" o' tail cone in front and back t' give it strength. Ahoy! I cut t' slots before cuttin' off either end o' t' cone so t' ends would add strength t' t' structure as I worked with it. Blimey! Ahoy! After t' slots were done I cut 3.25" off t' tip o' t' cone and then cut off t' back o' t' cone leavin' about 0.5" t' glue inside t' body tube.

T' tube supplied with t' Big Daddy is 10" long. Arrr! Arrr! Since t' body tube is slotted and I was more interested in ease o' construction than t' build a model perfectly t' scale, me bucko, I decided nay t' cut t' body tube back t' 9.5". Blimey! I epoxied a strip o' 1/16 balsa about 3/8" wide behind each o' t' fin slots. Then I cut a thin strip o' balsa and epoxied that inside each slot. Well, matey, blow me down! After t' epoxy cured I sanded t' balsa flush with t' body tube. I then applied a coat o' CA t' give t' balsa some strength. Blimey! I finished fillin' t' gaps with Bondo Spot Putty.

Thinkin' I wanted t' do a really good job filletin' betwixt t' fins and t' engine mount I decided t' glue t' engine mount and fins into t' tail cone before I glued on t' body tube. I cut a BT-50 t' 11" long and attached t' engine mount hardware. Avast, me proud beauty! Then I glued one o' t' centerin' rings into t' body tube, just in front o' t' balsa I had used t' cover t' fin holes. Arrr! T' other centerin' rin' I cut down and glued it inside t' tail cone about 3/8" in from t' bottom. Aye aye! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! After it cured I glued t' engine mount into t' tail cone centerin' rin' and friction fit t' body tube onto t' other end o' t' engine mount t' keep it centered. Aye aye! After that cured, arrr, I took t' body tube back off and trimmed t' fin tangs and glued them t' t' engine mount. Well, blow me down! When I had finished gluin' and filletin' t' fins, I glued on t' body tube. Then I put a bead o' epoxy around t' engine mount at t' front centerin' ring.

Havin' done it this way, I wouldn’t recommend puttin' t' fins on before t' body tube. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! After fittin' t' fins, I had moved t' engine mount off center slightly and when I put t' body tube back on, thar was a gap betwixt t' body tube and t' tail cone o' about 1/32 o' an inch on one side. Blimey! It's no big deal, me hearties, t' rocket is still straight, but it is another gap t' fill and I don't think I gained much fin strength over just stickin' them in from outside t' body tube.

All other construction details pretty much mirror what is in t' Big Daddy’s directions. Well, me hearties, blow me down! I finished it usin' a camouflage color scheme. Well, blow me down! Avast! Includin' paint and glue, shiver me timbers, I have less than $40.00 invested in this rocket, and that’s about what t' out o' production kits cost, ya bilge rat, arrr, just for t' kit. I have another Big Daddy kit that I am also goin' t' make into a V-2, ya bilge rat, only I’m goin' t' use a 29mm engine mount and Basswood fins, so I can try flyin' it on larger engines. Avast! If anyone has any better ideas on how t' fill those pesky slots in t' body tube, me bucko, please let me know.