Constructin' t' THOY Phoenix

This is a high power rocket kit originally developed by Tiffany Hobbies O' Ypsilanti (Michigan?), me bucko, me bucko, and now produced by Rocket R&D. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! T' suggested motors run from G t' H, but unless you build very light, G’s might work only on absolu

tely calm days. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! I won this kit in an online raffle sponsored by Magnum Hobbies almost three years ago, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, but waited until this winter t' build it.

Components

T' included parts are o' very high quality. Avast! T' 4" body tube is thick-walled kraft paper, with marks showin' where t' fin slots and launch lug need t' go. You must cut t' slots yourself. Avast! Blimey! T' fins (8) and centerin' rings (2) are beautiful, arrr, made o' 1/8" plywood and cut perfectly. Begad! T' fins are through t' wall, ya bilge rat, and t' tabs go all t' way t' t' motor mount. Avast! T' top centerin' rin' comes with a braided steel shock cord anchor pre-mounted, matey, and needs only a spot o' epoxy t' finish it off. T' nose cone is from ACE, ya bilge rat, and interestingly enough has a screw cap located on t' bottom instead o' t' customary plastic loop. Aye aye! T' motor mount tube is 38mm. Blimey! Completin' t' kit is a ½" launch lug , ya bilge rat, a nine foot length o' nylon webbin' (1" wide) shock cord, me bucko, a 36" nylon parachute, a page o' self-adhesive decals for military style detailing, clay for nose weight, along with two pages o' instructions, matey, one o' which is a general guide t' paintin' and decal placement. T' instructions are basic but complete, me bucko, shiver me timbers, matey, and include some decent diagrams for assembly steps. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! It is assumed that you have some buildin' experience. Avast, me proud beauty! Apparently, me bucko, me hearties, at some point a different nose cone was supplied, me bucko, because t' instructions call for tyin' t' shock cord t' t' plastic loop on t' nosecone, which, as noted above, doesn't exist. T' decals were t' weakest part o' t' kit. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! I don't much like self-adhesive decals anyway, matey, but these were among t' worst I've seen. T' printin' be smudged in several places and peelin' in others (age may have been a problem). Ya scallywag! T' finished product is acceptable from 6 feet away, matey, which is good enough for me, arrr, me bucko, but t' decals really disappoint close up. A little effort t' re-create your own water slide decals t' match, or t' have them cu

stom made is an option t' consider.

Construction

For t' most part, me hearties, ya bilge rat, construction be straightforward. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! T' fin slots were cut usin' a new x-acto blade and a straightedge. Begad! Take your time and don't try t' cut all t' way through at once and you'll be done before you know it.

T' instructions give measurements t' sand t' fins t' their true scale shape, shiver me timbers, but after slightly goofin' up t' first fin, shiver me timbers, me bucko, I just rounded them all off. Blimey! Blimey! Elmers Fill ‘n’ Finish was used t' seal and fill t' grain on t' fins and t' fill t' body tube spirals.

To me, shiver me timbers, t' biggest worry about any Phoenix model are those aft fins. Ahoy! Avast! They just look like a pop off waitin' t' happen. Ya scallywag! T' further strengthen this area, I added a third centerin' rin' t' sandwich t' tabs o' t' lower fins. Begad! Begad! This extra rin' was made o' two thicknesses o' balsa, ya bilge rat, glued together with t' grains runnin' perpendicular, and then thin CA was soaked into t' wood. Avast, me proud beauty! Very light and strong.

One trick I've found w

henever workin' with fin tabs that go all t' way t' t' motor tube is t' trim a small bit o' t' corner where it's goin' t' meet a centerin' ring. This way there’s room for any glue fillet that might already be present. See t' illustration for what I mean.

T' instructions are very clear, arrr, and make assemblin' t' motor mount and fins a two-step process, matey, first t' motor mount, then t' fins. Avast, me proud beauty! I'll describe here how I did it, which be t' combine t' steps into one. Ahoy! T' reason I did it me way was t' strengthen t' bottom fin section usin' that extra centerin' ring.

Before doin' this, drill two small holes in t' balsa rin' and thread some strin' through them. These are your handles, ya bilge rat, and you'll see what they're for in a minute.

First thin' is t' glue t' front centerin' rin' into place on t' motor tube as indicated in t' instructions. Blimey! Blimey! When dry, arrr, I slipped t' balsa rin' over t' back end o' t' motor tube without gluin' it, shiver me timbers, just t' center t' motor tube correctly. Then I set t' rocket upright and drizzled more glue around t' joint where t' top centerin' rin' meets t' body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! Tilt t' tube slightly t' make sure t' entire edge o' t' rin' is glued t' t' tube wall.

Once dry, shiver me timbers, I turned t' rocket over again and, arrr, usin' those strin' handles, removed t' bottom centerin' ring. Well, blow me down! Now I glued t' forward set o' fins into place, me hearties, makin' sure that they were aligned correctly. Ahoy! Fillet well on t' inside where t' tab comes through t' slot and at t' motor tube joint.

At this point, me hearties, I had t' straighten t' forward fins, because two o' them had developed a slight bow from leadin' t' trailin' edge. T' way I did this be t' clamp a straight steel bar along t' length o' t' fin, which forced it straight. Aye aye! Next came punchin' small holes into t' body tube along t' fin root, matey, which allows t' epoxy t' flow into them and create ‘rivets’ as it cures. Blimey! Blimey! T' final step was layin' a good fillet o' epoxy along t' fin root. T' glue held t' entire fin root straight, which removed t' warp from t' plywood. Ya scallywag! Avast! Each side o' each fin was done t' same way.

Time for t' second centerin' rin' (the one made from balsa) and bottom fins. Begad! Avast! Place t' centerin' rin' on t' tube, ya bilge rat, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and let it slide down past t' bottom fin tab slots. Next, insert t' bottom fins through t' slots, shiver me timbers, mix up a small batch o' 5 minute epoxy, arrr, arrr, and use t' strin' t' pull t' centerin' rin' up tight against t' bottom fin tabs. Avast! Add small dabs o' epoxy betwixt t' fin tabs along t' body tube wall and motor tube, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, so that once t' epoxy cures t' rin' is in place. T' fins are still nay glued into place, me bucko, just t' balsa centerin' ring, shiver me timbers, which acts as a ‘floor’ for t' lower fin tabs (see t' picture).

T' bottom fins must be aligned with t' top fins before gluin' them into place. Aye aye! I used a straight wooden yardstick clamped along t' length o' t' upper fin, shiver me timbers, me hearties, then clamped in turn t' t' bottom fin t' get t' alignment needed. Arrr! Aye aye! Blimey! This lined up t' fin roots, ya bilge rat, arrr, me bucko, but t' ensure that t' two fins both were at t' same angle t' t' tube, ya bilge rat, arrr, I used an Estes 2-piece rod, me hearties, me hearties, and clamped one half on each side o' t' fins, runnin' with t' leadin' edge (see t' picture). Avast! Then I glued t' fin and fin tab into position. Begad! Blimey! Fillet everythin' well, inside and out. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Let it dry, ya bilge rat, then do t' next fin. Blimey! When you're done, you'll have a rock solid assembly for t' bottom fins, and they'll be perfectly aligned.

Once dry, I fastened t' bottommost centerin' rin' into place, and filleted it well. Begad! Blimey! Instead o' centerin' t' launch lugs betwixt t' fins as called for in t' instructions, me bucko, I offset th

em slightly closer t' one side, matey, so that I could install rail buttons as well.

On t' t' nosecone. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! After lightly sandin' t' remove t' mold seam, as well as t' provide some ‘tooth’ for t' finish t' hold on to, me bucko, I packed t' supplied clay into t' nosecone. Avast! Usin' a dowel as a ramrod, me hearties, t' clay be pushed as far as possible towards t' tip. Arrr! Ahoy! Next I drilled several 1/16" holes through t' nosecone at t' level o' t' clay. Avast! Coverin' these holes with maskin' tape, me bucko, I then poured a batch o' 15 minute epoxy into t' nosecone, me bucko, me hearties, on top o' t' clay. Begad! Once again, me hearties, t' epoxy ran into t' holes, me bucko, creatin' rivets as it cured and ensurin' that t' clay would stay right at t' top o' t' nose. Once cured, t' maskin' tape be removed, arrr, and t' holes and rivets were sanded smooth.

Finishin'

I covered t' entire rocket with 3 coats o' ruddy brown automotive primer, ya bilge rat, lightly sandin' betwixt coats. Begad! This primer has a high solids content, ya bilge rat, and filled t' last o' t' spiral grooves and wood grain. Read t' can though! T' brown primer that I used was leftover from some auto bodywork I did a while back, me hearties, ya bilge rat, and had a dryin' time o' 5 days, which I've never heard o' before for any other primer (and didn't think about until after I'd already sprayed t' first coat). Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! T' body o' t' Phoenix is pale dove gray, arrr, so – 5 days later – I next sprayed t' body with 2 coats o' Krylon white primer, sandin' betwixt coats. I was worried that t' gray would have a hard time coverin' t' brown primer, matey, so I chose t' white t' lighten t' final coat color even more. Begad! T' nosecone is white, so I used Krylon gray primer there, mainly so I could tell when I had good coverage on t' final color coat. Ya scallywag! Begad! Sprayin' white paint on white primer is tough. I set t' whole thin' aside t' dry for a week.

Final Details

T' markings guide provided in t' instructions is pretty general, ya bilge rat, and since this is just ‘scale like’, I didn't feel real obligated t' follow it t

o t' letter. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I opted t' simplify t' stripin' scheme, mostly t' cut down on t' difficult maskin' needed (probably me least favorite rocket buildin' step). Aye aye! Avast! Blimey! T' silver stripes are mylar tape. Arrr! Blimey! T' decals were added more or less where indicated, and t' tip was painted silver usin' a brush and Testors silver model paint from a jar. Ahoy! Blimey! Once again I set it aside for several days, me bucko, then clear coated everythin' usin' Future floor finish applied with a soft rag.

I didn't use t' supplied nylon webbin' for t' shock cord, arrr, preferrin' 20 feet o' 3/8" tubular nylon attached with a quick link. Aye aye! At t' nosecone end, ya bilge rat, I drilled two holes on either side o' t' screw cap – one on each molded half - and threaded more tubular nylon through both holes as a harness where t' shock cord can be attached with another quick link. There would have t' be massive structural failure o' t' entire base o' t' nosecone t' experience a separation failure at that point.

Motor retention clips were formed from strip brass stock, matey, fastened with cap screws fitted into blind nuts installed in t' aft centerin' ring. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! A Pratt heat shield be added as wadding.

T' final, shiver me timbers, full up, everything-but-the-motor weight is 43.5 ounces.

Flight

First flight was at Whitakers, N

orth Carolina on March 25, 2001, shiver me timbers, on an H180W with a medium delay. Arrr! At ignition she punched off t' pad straight up, movin' fast. Durin' t' coast phase, arrr, t' fins made a neat whistlin' sound, shiver me timbers, me hearties, and t' chute ejected just after apogee. Begad! T' chute brought t' Phoenix down t' a soft landin' less than 100 yards from t' pad.

Post Flight

T' Pratt heat shield did its job perfectly, without so much as a single scorch on t' chute or shroud lines. Aye aye! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' 36" chute is fine for near-calm days, but I think that on windier days I'll probably use a 32" or even 30" chute, ya bilge rat, especially since t' aft fins are reinforced and should be able t' handle a harder landing.

All in all, arrr, this is an impressive kit! T' Phoenix is a challenge t' build without bein' overly complex, and t' end result is a great lookin' rocket that attracts attention. Avast! There was a lot o' satisfaction for me in completin' this rocket, and t' fact that she flies like a dream just made t' whole experience that much better. Ahoy! Highly recommended.