Scratch Stiletto Original Design / Scratch Built
Scratch - Stiletto {Scratch}
Contributed by Jim Senecal
| Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
| Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
| Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
| Published: | 2012-05-22 |
| Manufacturer: | Scratch |
Brief
This is an upscaled clone o' t' Estes Stiletto. This is one o' me favorite rocket designs, it looks fast even standin' still. Blimey! This version uses BT-55 body tubes rather than t' BT-50 o' t' original and is approximately 29" tall. Ya scallywag!
Components
T' parts list for this rocket includes an 18" Estes BT-55 body tube, matey, an additional 6" section o' BT-55, and a tube coupler. Blimey! Avast! T' nose cone came from t' Estes NC-55 nose cone set, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and be t' pointed straight cone. Avast! Also used was some 3/32" balsa stock for t' fins, a small section o' 1/8" balsa strip used t' make t' raceway and forward thrusters, shiver me timbers, an Estes 18mm engine mount, me hearties, an Estes 18" parachute, 1/8" launch lug stock, arrr, shiver me timbers, and some 1/8" elastic fabric cord for t' shock cord. Decals came from me stock o' leftovers from other kits. Avast, me proud beauty!
Construction
For intructions I downloaded t' original Estes instructions from t' JimZ website. I made fin patterns by upscalin' t' JimZ patterns. I then cut out t' fins from t' 3/32" balsa stock. Blimey! Blimey! I added a section t' t' root edge o' t' main fins as I intended t' make through t' wall fins. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I rounded t' fore and aft ends o' t' main fins as well as t' small secondary fins. Avast! Blimey! I built t' engine mount in t' standard fashion, arrr, and added centerin' rings cut from some cardboard stock. T' two body tubes were glued together with t' coupler. Avast! Blimey! I inserted t' engine mount into t' body tube and allowed t' glue t' dry. Arrr! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Once t' glue be dry I cut slits into t' aft o' t' tube large enough for t' main fin mounts. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I glued t' main fins on and allowed them t' dry. Well, blow me down! Blimey! I then lined up t' seconday fins above t' main fins and glued them on. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Glue fillets were applied t' all t' fins. Blimey! Blimey! I then created t' raceway out o' t' 1/8" balsa strip and glued it on, me hearties, filletin' it as well. Aye aye! Blimey! T' forward thrusters were also made from 1/8" stock, shiver me timbers, and glued on in line with t' fins. Blimey! Blimey! I cut two launch lugs each about 3/4" long, and mounted them on some thin cardboard. T' lugs were then glued t' t' side o' t' rocket as well, shiver me timbers, me hearties, spaced along a side away from t' raceway. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' final bit o' buildin' on t' body was t' create t' three raised bands around t' body. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Blimey! One band goes directly t' t' aft o' t' small secondary fins, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, another directly t' t' aft o' t' foward thrusters, shiver me timbers, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and t' last just above t' fore end o' t' raceway. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I made t' bands from t' facecard frome an Estes rocket kit. T' bands are about 1/4" wide and wrap around t' circumference o' t' body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' wraps were glued on with white glue. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Finally I added a shock cord usin' t' standard tri-fold method, substitutin' fabric elastic for t' typical rubber cord. Begad! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! For a rocket this size I have had fair winds with this type o' cord. Constuction went well, arrr, proceedin' without any problems.
Finishing
I sealed all o' t' balsa with thinned Elmer's wood putty, me hearties, then sanded this smooth. Ahoy! One thin' I should have done was t' fill and sand t' fins prior t' addin' t' body wraps. Ya scallywag! Sandin' t' aft end o' t' secondary fins and thrusters be complicated by t' position o' t' wraps. Arrr! Several coats o' primer followed, sandin' betwixt coats. Well, blow me down! T' final color was simple, I used Walmart gloss white on t' entire body. T' nose cone and t' upper inch o' t' body tube were then sprayed with Walmart gold. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! Once all t' paint be dry, I added t' decals. Well, blow me down! I searched me stash o' old decals and decal stripe stock t' make t' markings on t' rocket. Well, blow me down! Luckily t' markings are fairly simple so it was possible t' do this. Ahoy! If you really want t' go crazy you could buy decals from one o' t' aftermarket companies. Avast, me proud beauty! I really had no issues overall with t' paintin' or decaling.
Flight
This model has been flown twice usin' Estes B6-4 motors. T' rocket performs very well on this motor, ya bilge rat, and would really go on a C6, but at me flyin' field it would probably be lost. Avast! On both flights, t' rocket flew very straight.
Recovery
T' rocket was equipped with a standard 18" Estes plastic parachute. Ahoy! Blimey! Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! On both flights t' parachute ejected normally without issues and t' rocket be recoverd with no damage.
Summary
Overall this is a great rocket design. Well, blow me down! It is only slightly more complicated than an ordinary 3FNC design, shiver me timbers, but really looks sophisticated. It also has t' look o' a real Air Force missle with t' markings and t' raceway. Begad! It also flies excellent.
 |
 |