Model Rocket Building Blog
Estes Saturn V Build Part 1 PartsHere's all the parts from the latest version of the Estes Saturn V kit, # 2157. The box is plenty big for what was inside. The length of the box accommodates the long BT -101 tube. These are some of the more interesting pieces. The wrap shows the detailing of the vacuform process. There was an ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 3 StandThe instructions suggest making a stand from what's left over from the centering ring card stock. Estes suggests a piece of wood 4" wide X 15" long for the base piece. I opted for thick cardboard. The base piece should be a little over 4 1/2" wide to fit the side pieces. Before cutting it out, ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 4 Tube Marking and Engine MountYou are directed to draw a line down the entire length of the BT-101 tube. The instructions show a line drawn using a door frame. This tube is wide! I found it hard to fit the tube into a door frame. This wouldn't be any problem with a 1" diameter tube, but this thing is 4" in diameter! I had ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 5 Engine MountThe instructions say to recess the mount inside the lower end of the BT-101 by 3 3/8". Many forums posts think this is too far inside and may cause the Krushnick Effect. Here's an explanation I found online for the Krushnick Effect: "Krushnic Effect: A very dramatic phenomenon where your rocket ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 6 CouplersThe card stock centering rings were a loose fit on the inside of the couplers. Once again I built up the outside diameters with a bead of white glue on the outside edges. These were "press-fitted" into the couplers on the flat surface of my cutting board. I wanted to be sure they were flush so I ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 8 Seam FillingWith all the tubes I knew I'd better get started on the tube seams. I started with my new method of laying the filler into the seam using a dull hobby knife blade. This will keep the filler only in the seam where you want it to be. The blade is dipped into the filler and the back side of the blade ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 9 Seam FillingNote: This is how I currently fill body tube seams. It's presented as another possible way to get the job done. Your results may vary! After the filler in the seam is dry, sand it down ALMOST to the body tube surface. Enlarge the drawings to better understand the sequence. Carpenter's Wood Filler ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 10 Seam FillingHere's how George Gassaway suggested to fill the body tube spirals. Masking tape is set down just to either side of the seam. Primer is shot, concentrating on the seams. I sprayed the primer a little thick. With the tape removed you are left with primer in and just to either side of recessed seam. ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 7 CouplersSorry this blog entry is out of sequence. I do most of my blogs in draft form, sometimes two weeks in advance. I skipped right over this entry, Part 7. After this post, scroll back down to Part 8 to get back in the build. I decided to make the other coupler assembly from the next step before ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 11 Reinforcement RingIn Step 4 you glue a reinforcing ring inside the lower end of the BT-101 tube. For too long, I tried to get it to slide in. It was too tight! I didn't want to ruin the BT-101 or reinforcement ring by forcing it in. When trying to force a tight ring over a bead of glue, it could get stuck in the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 12 ShroudsI scanned the two large shrouds and printed off two extra copies of each. Print the extra shrouds on 110 lb. cardstock. The cardstock I buy has a smooth side and the backside that is slightly rougher. I print on the rough side so when the shroud is formed, the ink lines are on the rough inside. ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 13 ShroudsCut a piece of masking tape a little shorter than the height of the shroud. I set the tape on my jeans pant leg. Press and lift, press and lift. This leaves small thread fibers on the tape and reduces it's stickiness. If the tape were used at full adhesion, it could tear the shroud when you remove ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 14 ShroudsDon't wait to long to remove the outside tape. Remove it just as the shroud is setting up before any glue can seep through the seam and into the masking tape. Remove the masking tape from the outside and towards the seam. Once again, this is to prevent tearing the card stock material. I like to ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 15 WrapsHere's one of the more demanding parts of the build, cutting out the vacuform body wraps. The older Centuri kit used these same vacuform wraps except theirs were die cut to shape. From reading the forums, it seems these cuts weren't very accurate. The body wraps didn't meet when wrapped around the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 16 WrapsWhile you can cut the tops and bottoms of the wraps closer to the corrugations, leave the right and left sides long so they can be trimmed to fit when wrapped around their body tubes. The instructions are a little vague about how much "edge" to leave on the wraps. I probably cut mine closer than ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 17 WrapsThe body wrap reduction piece will take some extra consideration. You can see initially I've cut it a bit oversize. It was set on the third stage wrap and the corrugations centered. Pencil tic marks were drawn at the shroud edges. The distance from the end of the corrugation line to the tic mark ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 18 WrapsThe wraps with more details were saved for last. This way I could practice cutting on the less complex ones. I found it easier to make some "wedge" cuts around the complex raised areas. Again, use a sharp knife. TIP: Be ready, the higher the vacuformed area, the thinner the plastic will be at the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 19 FinsThe fins are all on one vacuform sheet. There is enough room between each fin to cut them with a straightedge guide. I did leave 1/16" around each fin half when cutting them out. Before sanding and gluing, only the root edge "flash" is cut off. The 1/16" edge plastic "flange" is sanded against a ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 20 FinsIn a nutshell, here's how I glued the fin halves together: After lining up the halves, tape the leading edge closed and use that as a "hinge". The rear of the fin is opened and only the back edges are glued. Take off the tape and open the front edges, the glued back is the new hinge. Apply glue to ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 21 FinsSanding these fins is a touchy operation. You want to remove the glued flanges, but not sand through the thin plastic sheet. First cut off most of the flanges, leaving a lip to be sanded off. Don't carve the flange off, use a straightedge and take it slow with a few passes of a sharp knife. Don't ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 22 Gluing WrapsI had an old can of Elmer's Craft Bond spray adhesive, #E-428. The can says "Extra Strength" and Permanent Bond. I'd had good luck with it in the past so I tested it on some scrap vacuform plastic from the kit. The test looked promising, the plastic didn't react or melt from the spray. I started ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 23 Gluing WrapsHere's the tough one, the Interstage Wrapper. All the S-II LOX Tunnels were taped in hopes the spray adhesive would hold them down. From there, you draw tunnel alignment lines up from the Interstage Wrapper. These should align with the Upper Second Stage Wrap. I decided to start sticking that wrap ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 24 Tower PrepSorry there wasn't any blog entries this morning, Blogspot was down! While you could visit the site, I couldn't post anything. A few things are still messed up, hopefully it'll all come together soon. After working with all the body wraps, I wanted a little vacuform break before working on the fin ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 25 TowerTo get that curve out of the tower side plastic, heat it in water. Heat water in a pan until it just starts to boil. You should practice with a scrap piece of plastic to check how pliable it'll be once heated. Here I'm using a piece of scrap plastic from the tower tree. Hold the plastic in the hot ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 26 TowerThe side pieces took a little time to coax into position. The fit was pretty good after running a sanding block over the sides. After they were set and flush, CA on a toothpick tip glued everything into position. The central support ring was too small a diameter to make contact with the inside ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 27 NozzlesTo the left, here's the nozzles bells cut right off the plastic trees and dry fitted together. On the right how they'll fit after cleaning up the edges. Like all plastic parts, one side has alignment pins and the other alignment holes for the pins to fit in. On the side without the pins, sand the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 28 NozzlesSlightly flatten out the molding lines on the bottom of the supply tube base . Don't take off any height from the molding seams trying to get them too flat! Later, When gluing on the supply tube, I found the two top gluing nubs were different heights! Here, the supply tube is standing on the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 29 FairingsCut the fairings off the vacuform sheet and leave 1/16" all the way around. Before cutting off the bottom ledge, trace over the edge with a pencil. It's easier to see the line instead of just blindly cutting. The cut was made just to the outside of the pencil line. Just like the fins, I'd rather ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 28A Nozzle BulkheadThis isn't part of the Estes Saturn V build, but it's something you might like to add to the display nozzle assembly. Raul (RoskoRacer) and RockItDad came across a carded model Saturn V model and posted the links on TRF. You can add a paper print to the visible nozzle side of the bulkhead. The ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 30 FairingsI didn't trim the sides of the fairings, the 1/16" border edge was sanded off. 220 grit sandpaper was wrapped around the open area of the BT-101 and the fairing was moved up and down over it. Stay away from the back ledge of the fairing you formed in the last blog entry. It'll get caught and make ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 31 Fin SlotsIt surprised me how accurate the fin slot mold lines were. I purposely cut inside the lines making the fin slot smaller. I figured I'd trim to fit the width of the fins. In the end, after fitting the fin, the slot was pretty much cut to the mold lines. You do have to check back and forth against ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 32 Fin GluingOn the forums, there have been concerns about the strength of the fins and fairings. I wanted to make this joint stronger than just plastic cement on the thin vacuformed plastic. I decided to glue just the fin root edge first with liquid plastic cement. The fairing is slipped over it to help ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 33 Glue Fairings and FixIn step 12, you are to apply a reinforcing coating of liquid cement to the fin joints. I was apprehensive about this, thinking it would leave melted plastic and glue trails. It didn't! I would just recommend going light with the glue until you get a feel for how it flows from the cement bottle ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 34 Trim FairingsAt the end of step 12, you "cut away the areas on the tube where shown." Like before, a pencil line was drawn. It's easier to see the line you want to cut against the white plastic. For consistency, a strip of paper was cut and taped to the inside of the tube as a height guideline. This was moved ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 35 TunnelsDon't cut the half dowels to length yet! You'll be trimming to the length needed after getting them to right height. The half round dowel tunnels won't butt up against the lip on the vacuform wraps. Enlarge the picture and you can see I cut off the lip up to the raised vacuform tunnel. When set ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 36 TunnelsHere you can see the difference in height before and after sanding. The half round on the left is the original, the right tunnel has been reduced in height to match the vacuform wrap. I've yet to round out the top of the right tunnel. The ends of the vacuform tunnels are not at a true 90 degree ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 37 Wood TunnelsIn step 16, my plastic shim ended up being closer to 2 7/8" long instead of the 2 1/2" long suggested in the instructions. I cut it wider than what was needed. It was glued on, and then trimmed and sanded to match the width of the tunnels. You won't have to make a very deep notch to have the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 38 Nozzle FixEarlier I had glued the supply tube to the nozzle. Looking at the picture you can see the top of the supply tube is lower than the gluing nub on the nozzle top. If left like this, the nozzles wouldn't glue in straight to the bottom plate. I'll have to lengthen the supply tube. Using the rotary ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 39 Parachute HookThere is a short piece of brass wire in the kit. This is bent into a hook to be attached to the 18" upper body parachute. The hook allows the upper section to hang at an angle, reducing the chance of damage to the tower in a hard landing. While the instructions don't say so, the illustration is ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 40 Parachute HookYou can see the original Centuri Saturn V plans HERE It's a fascinating read. There are scans of the vacuform wraps as supplied in the Centuri kit, #KS-12. The wraps and fin edges were die-cut. Check out the rough edges and the plastic lip surrounding the interstage wrap. This scan also includes ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 41 ParachutesHere's a corner from the parachute sheet. It's a copy of the older Centuri Saturn V kit parachutes. While the sheet corner directions show a shroud line simply looped under a tape disk, the supplied disks have a center hole. As I've explained before, lift the disk off the backing using your knife ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 42 Shock Cord MountNothing too special here, the classic Estes tri-fold mount. I do set the shock cord at an angle so the finished mount isn't too thick. This way the rubber lays beside itself in the folds instead of two or three layers of rubber and paper. I pre-scored the mount folds before gluing. The end of the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 43 Launch LugsThe lugs are glued to leftover tunnel wood standoffs. A slight curve was sanded to match the body tube. This shows the difference in the fits, unsanded on the left and contour sanded on the right. I didn't glue the lugs centered on the seam line, but a little to the left. The 3/16" rod would run ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 44 One Last Fix!Take a look at the box cover picture. There is a pretty substantial gap at the rounded front of the fairing. The fairing tip is raised from the height of the lowest wrap. I thought about filling the gap with scrap plastic from the vacuform sheets. I took a simpler route. It took two fillets of ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 45 White BasecoatI didn't take any pictures of the model sprayed with gray primer. It always amazes me how many flaws show up when sprayed gray. Suffice to say, I had a bit of sanding to remove some glue spots and rough edges. After the gray primer was sanded the overall white followed. TRIVIA : I found it ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 46 MaskingOh boy - here comes the fun! The first mask should be the easiest - the upper 2nd stage wrapper. I'll be doing each masked section separately. If I were to mask the entire rocket in one sitting, some of the taped areas might come loose after sitting too long. This is a big hard project to mask! ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 47 Third Stage WrapAfter spraying, here's what I was left with. I pulled the tape before the paint had totally set up, maybe 15 minutes after spraying the black. So far, so good. There was glitches, a few small bits of black had got underneath the tape. Before the paint sets up, you can usually push the paint back ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 48 Masking ReductionThis is a tough part of the mask. Those raised nubs on the reduction wrap are rounded and not very high. Trying to get tape to adhere to the angled sides will take some extra consideration. First, a thin band of Scotch tape was tried. No luck. I ended up using a strip of standard masking tape cut ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 49 Masking TouchupAfter removing all the tape, there was some expected rough edges. It didn't turn out badly, considering I used a generic masking tape. Some touch up was done with a fine point Sharpie. Around the nubs, I went back with some white paint sprayed into the can cap. The Rustoleum Painter's Touch takes ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 50 RCS Nozzle GuideI know, my build is a little out of sequence. After you've built a dozen rockets, most builders veer away from the order of the instructions. The R.C.S. nozzle marking guide is cut from the instruction sheet. I wrapped it as directed and marked the tube at the arrow locations. The first picture ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 51 RCS Nozzle DrillThe instructions suggest using a scribe or sharp pencil to make a gluing hole for the R.C.S. nozzles. A sharp pencil? Don't try it, you'll never get it through the body tube wall. I started the hole with a small awl. The hole diameter was widened by twirling a #11 blade in the hole. The i ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 52 RCS NozzlesThe center of three R.C.S. nozzles had a molding dimple in them. I filled the hole with thick super glue, placed with a toothpick. After drying, the glue was sanded flat using 400 grit on a sanding block. The nozzles were sprayed white while still attached to the molding tree. The small nozzles ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 54 Interstage Mask!NOTE! Just like the reduction wrap, the mask measurements for the interstage section are incorrect! The first picture shows one of the masking lines molded into the corrugation of the wrap. The 9/16" height of the upper horizontal strip should be 15/32" tall. The height of the wide vertical ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 55 Interstage Mask!After the tape was removed, here's the result. I still have some touching up to do, but overall the results were good. Next up - the final black areas around the fins and fairings.[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 56 Low Wrap and Fin MaskAgain, I used Scotch tape for the flat surfaces. The edges were marked with a black Sharpie pen and new straight edges were cut with a strait edge. Pencil lines were drawn for reference and the tape edge set down on those lines. I'm sure some are asking: "Why would you use regular masking tape and ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 57 Low Wrap and Fin MaskAfter masking the root edges of all the fins, a paper cover was made to entirely cover the fin sides. In the back of the BT-101 tube, rolled paper was taped to the inside to keep out the black paint. I did my best to cover the rest of the fairings that will remain white. Maybe I should have used ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 58 Cleaning Up The MaskOne tool used to clean off over spray is this cheap, white eraser. Beneath the end of the eraser is a little over spray on the back of the fairing. Before shot: The same fairing - After shot: The eraser friction will remove a lot of over spray without scraping. Use an eraser only after the paint ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 59 Service Module WrapI had to take a break from the masking! Since the upper section of the Saturn is painted, I wanted to add silver areas of the service module. NOTE: In the Estes instructions, Step 23 Part D, you are told to cut out the masking guide for the Service Module. There is no masking guide in the kit box ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 60 Service Module WrapAfter laying down the wrap, I noticed a difference from the Centuri instructions: The Centuri RCS nozzle locations are not the same as marked from the Estes RCS marking guide. This is not a big concern there isn't any location "Xs" printed on the Monokote wrap I made. The two holes that are ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 61 Fin/Fairing MaskThe last, lower end mask isn't quite as complicated as the last one. Silver will be the last color. It goes on both sides of he fins and the lower third of the fairings. Once again, use the raised line molded into the fairing for the color separation there. A thin strip of clear Scotch tape is set ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 62 Build Up Until NowTime to take a breather before the decals and final assembly. Before decals, I did have to go back, mask and re-spray the white section. Lots of handling and it got dirty. This is just another reason to think about painting it with gloss paint, then go back and hit it with a dull coat. TIP - hit ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 63 DecalsInstead of bouncing around, I'd recommend start from the top and working your way down. You'll have less chance of the decals shifting while they dry if you are working away from the ones already positioned. Starting with the top, these are the smaller decals. Use tweezers to help with the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 64 DecalsBe careful with these! One came off after I thought it was set down. After a minute of looking, I found it folded over on my fingertip. I set it back into the water dish to get it to open up. Notice every other raised decal area is smaller. Around the tube they go from square to rectangular, ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 65 DecalsTake a look at the "I" in UNITED STATES. It's off center! When setting something up vertically, that "I" should be centered like the vertical line in the "T" below it. I worked for years in a print shop on a photo type setting machine. After all those years setting type, this kind of thing drives ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 66 DecalsYou are not given any measurements to set the American flag decals in place. It simply says: "Align with white of roll pattern." I used the T.L.A.R. method (That Looks About Right) to figure out the placement height. A strip of paper was wrapped around the tube to give the same horizontal ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 67 DecalsThere is a smaller, extra set of decals included with the kit. Apparently some decals were printed without the white backing. Working from the top down, these are the last decals to be placed. I'd recommend going back to the Centuri instructions again for the Fin Letter Decal Guide. This will make ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 68 'Chute Tie InI waited until the model was painted and decaled before tying on the parachutes. The instructions have you permanently tie the parachute to the upper section in Step 22, before finishing. Even though you can disconnected the snap swivel and line, the shock cord and parachute would still be tied to ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 69 'Chute Tie InTie a long length of shroud line string to the snap swivel. Connect the snap swivel to the U shaped hook. Lay this string down the upper section and below the coupler. Mark this point on the line below the coupler. While holding the model like the first picture in Part 68, find a point where the ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build Part 70 'Chute Tie InStep 21 has you loop the shroud lines over a double knot tied in the shock cord.I had concerns that this loop could loosen. I upgraded to snap swivels. It did take a little time to get all the eight shroud lines through the small eye, but I felt much more confident in this connection. This was ...[Read More]
Estes Saturn V Build FINISHED!Oy! Its finished! Definitely one of the longest builds and build blogs I've ever done. Lessons learned along the way: Take extra time sanding the fin fairings to the body contour, otherwise they won't fit high enough on the lower wrap. Use a better grade of masking tape for masking the tricky ...[Read More]
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