Finishing

Finishin' should have been easy, arrr, matey, but somehow it was a lot o' trouble for me, but I can't blame Estes for that.  That be all me fault.

Sandin' t' finished model can be a bit challenging, because o' all t' fins, me hearties, wings and antenna's and pods make it harder t' get a sandin' block and your fingers in t' tight spots. Arrr! Blimey! I made some "special-shaped" sandin' blocks t' help me with t' process, me bucko, and it's a good thin' because I had a LOT o' sandin' t' do (read further and understand why).

I decided t' spray paint t' tailcone seperately before gluin' it on as Estes suggested, that worked fine.  But I should have finished and sanded t' entire model before attachin' it. Since I didn't, me hearties, I had several sandpaper vs. tailcone paint issues, matey, where t' sandpaper won, which left occasional spots o' white plastic where t' black paint be removed. Begad! Glue it on AFTER ALL t' sandin' is done.  I did remember t' mask off t' inside body tube area and t' outside o' t' tailcone where the glue was t' be applied.  This important detail be NOT mentioned in t' instructions.

Usin' that same logic, I decided t' spray paint t' win' pods before gluin' them on. Begad! That turned out t' be big problem #1.  First, I missed paintin' part o' t' exterior o' t' win' pods because BOTH sides o' t' plastic pieces have exposed white plastic.  I accidentally glued them t' t' rocket before I noticed it.  That mistake cost me an extra step maskin' and sprayin' t' pods after they were attached t' t' white rocket.

Compoundin' t' problem, I thought I was bein' smarter by nay gluin' t' two plastic halfs together until after gluin' t' one half t' t' wings.  I thought ahead and masked off t' win' tip balsa where t' glue was t' be applied, so thar was no balsa fillercoat or primer or paint on t' win' tips.  This allowed me t' get a really, really good glue joint because I used a seperate combination o' plastic glue, wood glue t' different parts o' t' surfaces t' be joined. On top o' that, I used epoxy. ONE o' those three glues should hold!  That part worked well, but what I didn't figure out at t' time was this:  T' alignment o' t' plastic pod assemblies t' t' win' tips is aided by t' internal geometry o' both pieces o' plastic. I didn't have that and discovered it was difficult t' align t' inner half only while attachin' it t' t' wing.  T' other problem was that when I finally did glue t' two pod half pieces together, shiver me timbers, they did nay fit exactly, matey, I had t' cut away some o' t' plastic inside t' pod.  Minor problem, ya bilge rat, a little plastic putty and some light sandin' fixed that.  But since me win' pods were painted already, t' green putty made a cosmetic mess o' t' finish.  T' flourescent orange spray paint (Testors) I used was very transparent t' this green putty when I tried t' paint over it, so I had t' mask, prime and then re-paint (a third time) t' pods with them attached t' t' rocket already.

But that wasn't t' worst finishin' problem for me. Problem #2: Tryin' t' use a cheaper Rustoleum primer, me bucko, paint and clearcoat.  I sanded t' model t' perfection.  After two or three coats o' balsa fillercoat I sanded t' perfection again.  I applied two coats o' primer and sanded lightly betwixt coats.  Then I went t' t' white Rustoleum "2X" paint.  T' surface o' t' rocket looked really good, but nay for a rocket. Ya scallywag! T' entire surface came out with a rough, "orange peel" type o' finish, which be quite awesome by itself - but considerin' t' decals I had t' add and t' desire for a smooth, me bucko, low-drag finish, it would nay do. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! I totally sanded off t' finish and tried again, arrr, maybe I was sprayin' it on too thick, but I didn't have any runs on t' model.  Second time around: just as rough.  So I sanded it all off again, matey, ya bilge rat, and probably much o' t' primer with it.

Meanwhile with another rocket, usin' t' same paint brand, I sprayed it on too thick - ordinary paint would have run all over t' place - but with this, matey, t' thickly sprayed areas came out t' a smooth, glossy finish, while t' lightly sprayed areas were rough and orange-peel-y. Well, blow me down! On that model, I emptied almost a whole can o' paint and t' finish is awesome - but t' rocket weights somethin' like a brick now.

With that lesson learned, I then sprayed t' Interceptor with a thick coat of Rustoleum 2X paint, me hearties, me bucko, matey, this time t' finish was good, ya bilge rat, but t' model was certianly heavy now.  I don't know exactly why, ya bilge rat, but for some reason I wanted t' put a clearcoat on t' rocket before applyin' decals, me bucko, and I'm glad I did.  I sprayed a moderate layer of Rustoleum (same brand) clearcoat on t' model and left it t' dry. Aye aye! T' next day, t' me horror, me hearties, t' finish krickled up in places and cracked down t' t' primer.  T' finish be basically ruined in places.

OK, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, so I had t' sand off t' damaged areas o' t' win' and body tube and try again.  This time I ditched the Rustoleum stuff and used t' expensive Testor's model paint.  T' white color didn't match, ya bilge rat, matey, and t' cracks still came through.  So yet another sanding, this time down t' t' balsa or paper and then some, before paintin' t' entire model with Testor's paint.  In t' process I gouged several areas o' t' balsa and could never get it t' be as smooth as desired.  But at least t' entire model be white, smooth and glossy, even if it weighed just shy o' a sumo wrestler.

T' next problem I had should have been obvious t' an experienced modeler. Arrr! I wanted t' avoid t' masking/paintin' process betwixt t' white wings and t' orange pods. But when I had them attached, me hearties, o' course t' fit wasn't perfect, and I had t' add some epoxy filler betwixt t' two (which I intended t' do anyways t' make sure they didn't break off).  T' net result: I had t' paint over t' epoxy fillets anyway.  O' course Mr. Avast! Murphy's rules applied: When brushin' some white paint on over t' orange areas, me hearties, it seemed t' disolve t' orange pigment and instead o' white paint, I was spreadin' pink paint all over.  It took several tries o' light coats and long dryin' times t' get a reasonable edge betwixt t' white and orange paint.

Again - all this finishin' trouble is nay at all Estes fault - just me own bad luck.  T' model was excellent, and I was just tryin' t' finish it with an equally excellent paint job.  But I did learn a few lessons for you:

1) Glue t' plastic pods together and fill and finish them first before attachin' them t' t' completely finished wings.  Or just glue them on before painting, ya bilge rat, fillet them, paint it all white and then mask and paint them whatever color you like after everythin' else is painted.

2) Don't try t' save loot and use t' Home Depot's 2X paint - your rocket will weigh too much or be all krinkly looking.  I went back t' usin' Testor's paints, me bucko, it's very expensive, matey, but it makes an excellent finish when it's all done, matey, and is rather lightweight.

3) Glue t' tailcone AFTER all t' other sandin' and paintin' is done, ya bilge rat, but don't forget t' mask t' glue surfaces first.