Brief:
D-powered rocket glider

Construction:
T' parts list:

• 1 nose cone, arrr, me bucko, BT-55, tangent ogive, me hearties, 3.125" length, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, me bucko, 3/8" tenon (BNC55AA-ish)
• 1 nose cone, matey, me hearties, BT-50, tangent ogive, me bucko, 3" length, 3/8" tenon (BNC50K-ish)
• 1 body tube, me bucko, arrr, BT-55, 14" length
• 1 body tube, ya bilge rat, matey, BT-55, matey, 11" length
• 1 body tube, BT-50, 14" length
• 2 launch lugs, 1/8" diameter
• 1 motor block for 24 mm motor
• 1 retainer ring, matey, 1/8" slice o' TC-55 tube coupler
• 1 elastic or rubber band, about 1.2 mm wide, 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, 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. Begad! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Rear 3/4" fits BT-55. Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Middle 1.25" fits into TC-55 coupler. Forward 1/2" tapers t' 1" diameter.
• 2 elevon hinges, 4-1/2" x 1", ya bilge rat, 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, t' flat balsa parts, and an aftermarket part sheet that describes part details and dimensions for a win' segment. Well, blow me down! T' photographs give a good idea what each part should look like. Avast, me proud beauty! This is quite important for t' round parts because none o' these parts are off-the-shelf items. Avast! Begad! T' original kit printed instructions include an exploded drawin' o' t' entire model, shiver me timbers, a set o' assembly drawings, and step-by-step instructions for each assembly drawing. Avast, me proud beauty! T' instructions are quite clear, and t' assembly drawings illustrate what needs t' be done in each step fairly clearly, however, 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. First, t' descriptions o' t' "blow-out plug" in t' round-part photo and in t' aftermarket parts list specify a taper that cannot work. Avast! Avast! T' forward end o' t' plug must taper t' 1", ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, NOT 0.75"! This is because t' elevon hold-downs mounted on t' plug must straddle a BT-50 tube, NOT a BT-20 tube. Second, t' lengths o' t' BT-50 and BT-55 body tubes are possible, 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). Begad! From assembly figures 5 and 14, t' correct BT-50 and aft BT-55 tubes can be deduced t' be 14" long, shiver me timbers, NOT 18". Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! From t' model specs and figure 5, arrr, me hearties, t' forward BT-55 tube must be 11" long, arrr, shiver me timbers, NOT 8". Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Third, me bucko, t' dimensions for Win' Part A on t' aftermarket parts list are nay consistent. Begad! Ahoy! That is, matey, thar are too many dimensions and they don't add up. Begad! 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. T' lathe is a Toymax Toolmaster Workshop that, unfortunately, me bucko, me bucko, has been OOP since around 1997. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Without a lathe, arrr, shiver me timbers, you should be able t' order t' nose cones and baffle plug from Balsa Machinin' Services. Begad! Arrr! T' blow-out plug should be doable too, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, if you figure out t' dimensions t' specify.

Instead o' usin' 3" wide flats, shiver me timbers, matey, I used 4" wide balsa flats for t' wings and rudder. Aye aye! Ahoy! T' do this, I drew t' full-scale outlines o' t' completed win' and rudder, matey, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, based on given patterns, matey, then divided them up into 4" strips. 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! Matchin' duct slots had t' be cut into different caliber 14" tubes, me bucko, ya bilge rat, then had t' be carefully sealed together with glue joints and fillets. T' win' and rudder parts needed careful trimmin' for precise fit.