Brief:
D-powered rocket glider

Construction:
T' parts list:

• 1 nose cone, arrr, BT-55, tangent ogive, 3.125" length, 3/8" tenon (BNC55AA-ish)
• 1 nose cone, BT-50, tangent ogive, me hearties, me bucko, 3" length, me bucko, 3/8" tenon (BNC50K-ish)
• 1 body tube, me hearties, BT-55, 14" length
• 1 body tube, BT-55, 11" length
• 1 body tube, BT-50, 14" length
• 2 launch lugs, arrr, shiver me timbers, 1/8" diameter
• 1 motor block for 24 mm motor
• 1 retainer ring, shiver me timbers, me hearties, 1/8" slice o' TC-55 tube coupler
• 1 elastic or rubber band, ya bilge rat, arrr, about 1.2 mm wide, 6" length
• 2 spruce pieces, 1/8" x 1/2" x 1-1/16"
• 2 spruce pieces, shiver me timbers, matey, arrr, 1/8" x 1/2" x 2-1/16"
• 2 balsa sheets, me bucko, 1/8" x 4" x 36"
• 1 "baffle plug" - 2" length o' solid balsa cylinder t' fit inside BT-55
• 1 "blow out plug" - Made from 2.5" length o' solid balsa cylinder t' fit inside BT-55. Well, blow me down! Begad! Rear 3/4" fits BT-55. Middle 1.25" fits into TC-55 coupler. Avast! Aye aye! Forward 1/2" tapers t' 1" diameter.
• 2 elevon hinges, matey, 4-1/2" x 1", cut from a Tyvek envelope

T' downloaded plan set includes images o' t' printed material from t' original kit, It includes additional photos o' t' collection o' kit parts, t' round balsa parts, me hearties, ya bilge rat, t' flat balsa parts, and an aftermarket part sheet that describes part details and dimensions for a win' segment. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' photographs give a good idea what each part should look like. This is quite important for t' round parts because none o' these parts are off-the-shelf items. Avast! T' original kit printed instructions include an exploded drawin' o' t' entire model, me hearties, a set o' assembly drawings, and step-by-step instructions for each assembly drawing. Aye aye! Avast! Blimey! T' instructions are quite clear, me bucko, and t' assembly drawings illustrate what needs t' be done in each step fairly clearly, shiver me timbers, however, matey, t' assembly drawings are generally nay drawn t' scale.

There are some serious "gotcha's" with t' downloaded plans that must be taken care o' durin' initial parts fabrication. Well, blow me down! Blimey! First, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, t' descriptions o' t' "blow-out plug" in t' round-part photo and in t' aftermarket parts list specify a taper that cannot work. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' forward end o' t' plug must taper t' 1", NOT 0.75"! Blimey! This is because t' elevon hold-downs mounted on t' plug must straddle a BT-50 tube, me bucko, NOT a BT-20 tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Second, arrr, t' lengths o' t' BT-50 and BT-55 body tubes are possible, shiver me timbers, me hearties, but they can't yield t' model shown by t' original kit insert or in t' Kopter catalog (found at Sven Knudson's Ninfinger website). Well, blow me down! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! From assembly figures 5 and 14, t' correct BT-50 and aft BT-55 tubes can be deduced t' be 14" long, ya bilge rat, NOT 18". Begad! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! From t' model specs and figure 5, arrr, me bucko, t' forward BT-55 tube must be 11" long, me hearties, NOT 8". Third, t' dimensions for Win' Part A on t' aftermarket parts list are nay consistent. Begad! Blimey! That is, matey, thar are too many dimensions and they don't add up. Begad! Blimey! I recommend disregardin' t' 10-5/16" dimension while keepin' t' others.

I used a plastic "toy lathe" t' turn t' balsa nose cones, baffle plug, and blow-out plug. Begad! T' lathe is a Toymax Toolmaster Workshop that, unfortunately, ya bilge rat, has been OOP since around 1997. Blimey! Without a lathe, me bucko, matey, you should be able t' order t' nose cones and baffle plug from Balsa Machinin' Services. T' blow-out plug should be doable too, shiver me timbers, matey, if you figure out t' dimensions t' specify.

Instead o' usin' 3" wide flats, I used 4" wide balsa flats for t' wings and rudder. Ahoy! T' do this, I drew t' full-scale outlines o' t' completed win' and rudder, based on given patterns, arrr, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, then divided them up into 4" strips. Avast, me proud beauty! I feel that this lead t' simplified assembly by reducin' t' number o' joints that needed fittin' together.

Once all o' t' parts had been fabricated, followin' t' assembly instructions be straightforward but still posin' some interestin' challenges. Well, blow me down! Matchin' duct slots had t' be cut into different caliber 14" tubes, then had t' be carefully sealed together with glue joints and fillets. Ya scallywag! T' win' and rudder parts needed careful trimmin' for precise fit.