Brief:
D-powered rocket glider

Construction:
T' parts list:

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

T' downloaded plan set includes images o' t' printed material from t' original kit, matey, It includes additional photos o' t' collection o' kit parts, t' round balsa parts, matey, matey, t' flat balsa parts, shiver me timbers, and an aftermarket part sheet that describes part details and dimensions for a win' segment. Begad! T' photographs give a good idea what each part should look like. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! This is quite important for t' round parts because none o' these parts are off-the-shelf items. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty! T' original kit printed instructions include an exploded drawin' o' t' entire model, shiver me timbers, a set o' assembly drawings, me bucko, and step-by-step instructions for each assembly drawing. Aye aye! T' instructions are quite clear, matey, and t' assembly drawings illustrate what needs t' be done in each step fairly clearly, however, arrr, me bucko, 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. Ya scallywag! Blimey! First, 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. Arrr! 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, shiver me timbers, NOT a BT-20 tube. Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Second, t' lengths o' t' BT-50 and BT-55 body tubes are possible, shiver me timbers, me bucko, 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). Avast! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! From assembly figures 5 and 14, t' correct BT-50 and aft BT-55 tubes can be deduced t' be 14" long, NOT 18". Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! From t' model specs and figure 5, t' forward BT-55 tube must be 11" long, matey, shiver me timbers, NOT 8". Third, arrr, t' dimensions for Win' Part A on t' aftermarket parts list are nay consistent. Ahoy! Blimey! That is, shiver me timbers, thar are too many dimensions and they don't add up. I recommend disregardin' t' 10-5/16" dimension while keepin' t' others.

I used a plastic "toy lathe" t' turn t' balsa nose cones, me bucko, baffle plug, and blow-out plug. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' lathe is a Toymax Toolmaster Workshop that, unfortunately, has been OOP since around 1997. Ya scallywag! Without a lathe, me hearties, you should be able t' order t' nose cones and baffle plug from Balsa Machinin' Services. Begad! Well, blow me down! T' blow-out plug should be doable too, if you figure out t' dimensions t' specify.

Instead o' usin' 3" wide flats, matey, me bucko, shiver me timbers, I used 4" wide balsa flats for t' wings and rudder. T' do this, I drew t' full-scale outlines o' t' completed win' and rudder, based on given patterns, ya bilge rat, then divided them up into 4" strips. Well, blow me down! 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 was straightforward but still posin' some interestin' challenges. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Matchin' duct slots had t' be cut into different caliber 14" tubes, then had t' be carefully sealed together with glue joints and fillets. Avast! Blimey! T' win' and rudder parts needed careful trimmin' for precise fit.