Bruiser
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- Jun 7, 2018
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Some of you may have seen my GAR-1 build going on over in the "Low Power" forum. I mentioned in there that I have designed several Falcon models in OR and was having trouble deciding which to build so I decided to start at the beginning of the Falcon program with the first build. This build is of the last AIM-4 model, the "G". There are some well know spin-offs of the Falcon program, notably the AIM-54 Phoenix and the AGM-65 Maverick, but those are stories and perhaps builds for another day.
My build is going to use most of the parts from a Super Big Bertha kit. Even though I won't be using the parachute or the fins, it's more cost effective than buying everything separately.
I started with filling the spirals in the body tube then moved on to the motor mount. I did use the cardboard centering rings because they will be plenty strong when combined with the thru the wall fins. I did cut slot in another of the centering rings so that both the forward and aft fin tabs would index into the rings.
I like to start off by gluing the forward ring into the body tube first. The tape on the motor tube is there so I can use the motor tube to push the centering ring in. At this point the centering is not glued to the tube. The other centering is not glued either, it's just there the keep the tube aligned.
I use a long stick to smear the glue around inside the body tube then I push the forward centering in with the motor tube and leave it to dry. Once dry I remove the motor mount
Next step is to glue the mid centering ring to the motor tube and let it dry. I also chose this time to cut the slots for the fins.
Once the centering ring is dry on the motor mount it is time to install them into the body tube. So once again I'll use something long to smear the glue inside the body tube. I also run glue around the outside of the motor tube where it slides into the forward centering ring. Then it is time to slide it into the body tube and forward centering ring. With glue there's not much time to mess around so line it up with the fins slots and get the depth adjusted right away.
Last thing (or so I thought) was installing the aft centering ring. Fairly simple to run a bead of glue inside the body tube and the motor mount then slide the centering ring in place while setting the slots to line up with the fin slots and setting it to the right depth. Mine came out looking like this.
Let me mention fitment. Before putting glue to anything make sure it will fit where it needs to go. When I did this step I found that the centering rings on this kit are very loose in the body tube and very tight around the motor tube. I sanded out the inside of the centering rings for a nice fit but I couldn't do anything for the looseness in the body tube. That created a problem because my nice fillets "leaked on thru to the other side" and I had to go back and redo them. It also made it take longer for the glue to dry. You can see the gap in the last picture
I was happy with the progress and I broke for lunch. I also wanted to go out and get a screw eye and hardware to install in the laundry shelf. While out driving I realized that I forgot about the aft rail button mount. It should have gone between the mid and aft centering rings. I have a fix in mind but I also just remembered I did not get around to ordering blind nuts...
-Bob
My build is going to use most of the parts from a Super Big Bertha kit. Even though I won't be using the parachute or the fins, it's more cost effective than buying everything separately.
I started with filling the spirals in the body tube then moved on to the motor mount. I did use the cardboard centering rings because they will be plenty strong when combined with the thru the wall fins. I did cut slot in another of the centering rings so that both the forward and aft fin tabs would index into the rings.
I like to start off by gluing the forward ring into the body tube first. The tape on the motor tube is there so I can use the motor tube to push the centering ring in. At this point the centering is not glued to the tube. The other centering is not glued either, it's just there the keep the tube aligned.
I use a long stick to smear the glue around inside the body tube then I push the forward centering in with the motor tube and leave it to dry. Once dry I remove the motor mount
Next step is to glue the mid centering ring to the motor tube and let it dry. I also chose this time to cut the slots for the fins.
Once the centering ring is dry on the motor mount it is time to install them into the body tube. So once again I'll use something long to smear the glue inside the body tube. I also run glue around the outside of the motor tube where it slides into the forward centering ring. Then it is time to slide it into the body tube and forward centering ring. With glue there's not much time to mess around so line it up with the fins slots and get the depth adjusted right away.
Last thing (or so I thought) was installing the aft centering ring. Fairly simple to run a bead of glue inside the body tube and the motor mount then slide the centering ring in place while setting the slots to line up with the fin slots and setting it to the right depth. Mine came out looking like this.
Let me mention fitment. Before putting glue to anything make sure it will fit where it needs to go. When I did this step I found that the centering rings on this kit are very loose in the body tube and very tight around the motor tube. I sanded out the inside of the centering rings for a nice fit but I couldn't do anything for the looseness in the body tube. That created a problem because my nice fillets "leaked on thru to the other side" and I had to go back and redo them. It also made it take longer for the glue to dry. You can see the gap in the last picture
I was happy with the progress and I broke for lunch. I also wanted to go out and get a screw eye and hardware to install in the laundry shelf. While out driving I realized that I forgot about the aft rail button mount. It should have gone between the mid and aft centering rings. I have a fix in mind but I also just remembered I did not get around to ordering blind nuts...
-Bob
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