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