luke strawwalker
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Hey guys! Well, having just returned from vacation, I've gotten permission to post a build thread on the Vanguard Eagle Beta Build I conducted for him while I was in Indiana at the MIL's house... First, a BIG thanks to Wes at Dr. Zooch Rockets for allowing me to build this neat rocket for him, and helping me to keep my sanity while the wife and MIL discussed quilts and other "girl stuff"...
SO, let's get to it...
First, this Vanguard Eagle is modeled after the Vanguard Eagle rocket designed for the X-Prize competition (which probably everyone knows was won by Burt Rutan's Space Ship One, but probably bears repeating). The model is an interesting build and creates a nice-looking, visually interesting rocket. It's rather novel for a Dr. Zooch kit, in that it uses a hollow cast-resin nosecone to replicate the complex shape and panel lines of the Vanguard Eagle nosecone/spacecraft, which is a first in a Dr. Zooch kit. The nosecone has lots of hatch and window details, and four raised hemicylindrical rocket engine fairings that made the capsule very difficult to render in Dr. Zooch's usually preferred balsa, and virtually impossible to mass produce in balsa. It's a REALLY nice looking nosecone! More on that later.
The kit contents consist of:
1) A series of tubes, from T60 for the first stage, to T55 for the upper stage, and a series of structural and detail T20 tubes.
2) The Alumilite spacecraft nosecone
3) A group of centering rings-- four CR2055, one notched CR2060, one CR5560
4) Balsa plugs-- one T55 ballasted, two T20 unballasted.
5) Kit bag- screw eye, snap swivel, engine clip, an 18mm engine block ring, launch lug
6) Extra engine clip for the second stage
7) Two 6x3 balsa fin sheets
8) Printed wrap sheets with assembly patterns/marking guides
9) Recovery kitbag-- trash bag chute, shock cord, kevlar leader, sticky dots, shroud line.
10) Stick on decals for the finished kit
11) Component/Detail kit bag-- four small wood nozzles, small dowel
12) Instructions with the usual Dr. Zooch artwork/sarcasm...
You'll need to come up with the usual paints/glues/hobby knife and other tools and building supplies, and a 3/32 drill bit.
More to come... OL JR
SO, let's get to it...
First, this Vanguard Eagle is modeled after the Vanguard Eagle rocket designed for the X-Prize competition (which probably everyone knows was won by Burt Rutan's Space Ship One, but probably bears repeating). The model is an interesting build and creates a nice-looking, visually interesting rocket. It's rather novel for a Dr. Zooch kit, in that it uses a hollow cast-resin nosecone to replicate the complex shape and panel lines of the Vanguard Eagle nosecone/spacecraft, which is a first in a Dr. Zooch kit. The nosecone has lots of hatch and window details, and four raised hemicylindrical rocket engine fairings that made the capsule very difficult to render in Dr. Zooch's usually preferred balsa, and virtually impossible to mass produce in balsa. It's a REALLY nice looking nosecone! More on that later.
The kit contents consist of:
1) A series of tubes, from T60 for the first stage, to T55 for the upper stage, and a series of structural and detail T20 tubes.
2) The Alumilite spacecraft nosecone
3) A group of centering rings-- four CR2055, one notched CR2060, one CR5560
4) Balsa plugs-- one T55 ballasted, two T20 unballasted.
5) Kit bag- screw eye, snap swivel, engine clip, an 18mm engine block ring, launch lug
6) Extra engine clip for the second stage
7) Two 6x3 balsa fin sheets
8) Printed wrap sheets with assembly patterns/marking guides
9) Recovery kitbag-- trash bag chute, shock cord, kevlar leader, sticky dots, shroud line.
10) Stick on decals for the finished kit
11) Component/Detail kit bag-- four small wood nozzles, small dowel
12) Instructions with the usual Dr. Zooch artwork/sarcasm...
You'll need to come up with the usual paints/glues/hobby knife and other tools and building supplies, and a 3/32 drill bit.
More to come... OL JR