USS Element

[les]

I was fortunate to get one of a very limited run of Newway's USS Element kit.
Unfortunately, Rick is no longer able to source his square tubes. Partly why he has branched into his Newway Oldway clone kits that use traditional round tubes
This kit is a bit of a hybrid, using a combination of round and square tubes.
The kit itself appears to be the offspring of the Estes Alien Explorer and their Andromedia.



And I have a confession to make. I started this several days ago. I will not be able to work on rockets for potentially 2 months starting Tuesday, 6/25. I wanted to ensure I would have the rocket complete before then before I started posting. I didn't want the thread to become stagnant...

Traditional shots of the parts. It comes with tons of greebles.

 

[les]

Used wood filler on the balsa and tubes. Went a bit heavy because I was in a rush that night. paid for it the next day when I had to sand them....


The kit comes with two handy tools, a tool for placing the motor block, plus a neat glue applicator

 

[les]

The two round tubes get glued together, side by side (sorry no pix). A little glue into the round tubes and use the tool to push it to the correct depth. Then use the tube to mark the outside and make a slit for the engine hooks.


I started gluing up the fins

You need to bevel the ends as they attach into the "V" joint between the two tubes. The fin tabs were a bit long so needed to sand, check fit, sand, check fit, sand.......


I changed the order of the next steps. The instructions call to attach the other side fin, then attach the "winglet". I attached the winglet first so I could finish the joint first before attaching the fin.

 

[Cape Byron]

Great looking kit.

 

[mjennings]

Bummer on the loss of the square tubes. That one looks neat. Does new way not have their own website anymore?

 

[les]

Bummer on the loss of the square tubes. That one looks neat. Does new way not have their own website anymore?

I'm not sure. Tried Google and can't find one...

 

[les]

Both main fins attached

There is a hole in the square body tube for a dowel. One side fit fine. The other side I had to fiddle with a bit to get it seated. Used clamps to center and hold while the glue dried.


Attached the T tail (fin + winglet)


Behind this fin is another dowel and a second fin. I wanted to make sure they were all aligned (especially since the second fin is on the corner edge.

 

[les]

When I did the other side, I decided I had gone overboard and just used a stiff ruler on one side.


I neglected to get pix or mention installing the two round tubes into the lower short square tube. Here are similar pieces for the top tube. On the top, one has a hole through it for the Kevlar cord. I'm using some clamps to hold the top one with the cord. On the bottom pieces, they were further away from the end so I used tape to hold them while the glue dried.



There is also the dowel from lower fin to upper common to both the Alien Explorer and Andromeda
There is a bracket that secures it at the top, You use the dowels to determine the placement of the bracket.

 

[neil_w]

Bummer on the loss of the square tubes. That one looks neat. Does new way not have their own website anymore?

The official website is exceedingly old and out of date. Next best thing is to look at the Newway section of eRockets.

 

[les]

GREEBLES! Rick either had a lot of left overs from other projects or was trying to justify his laser cutter...



Seriously, lots of add on parts that help cover construction joints and adds details



One thing I happened to notice, there appears to be a gap between the round and square tubes.
Did a shot of glue to plug this (both sides - only showed one.....)

 

[neil_w]

That is such a great riff on the Andromeda/Alien Explorer design. I love what Rick did with the fin can, and the two round tubes mixed with the square stuff, two-motor cluster… this one is just overflowing with good stuff.

Look forward to seeing how it turns out.

 

[mjennings]

The official website is exceedingly old and out of date. Next best thing is to look at the Newway section of eRockets.

Yeah I wound up at eRockets when looking thanks

Very neat build!

 

[les]

Primer



And when I thought I was on the home stretch so I would be done by Monday evening....

The suggested paint color was Krylon Metallic Dark Metal.
When I went looking, the cap seemed somewhat light colored. And from the kit package, the rocket should be a dark color so the white decals pop. So I thought I would use their Metallic Black stainless.
This is what the web site shows for these colors


This is what how the rocket came out compared to the cap color


Now the paint states to paint in temps between 55 and 75F, with less than 60% humidity. It was raining and 81. So I rigged up a temporary paint area in an air conditioned area. Humidity down temp was 70F. A little better but.....


Contacted Krylon. I believe they are going to reimburse me for the paint but I still need to figure out what to do....

 

[neil_w]

I think it’ll still look good, but yeah that’s a big difference from the cap color.

Rusto Black Night Metallic is a great color but I dunno if you want to go that dark (or if it's compatible.)

 

[les]

I dunno if you want to go that dark (or if it's compatible.)

looking for dark, but yes concerned with compatibility.....
The Krylon allows recoats up to 6 hours or after 24.
Rustoleum requires within 2 hours or after 48.
So obviously a difference in the mix, but does not indicate whether it will be good or not.

 

[les]

Fortunately I had two samples I could test compatibility of the Rustoleum vs Krylon.
Things looked good so I took a chance. And the result???????? See below.....



I only did 2 coats since I have so many coats of the Krylon.....


My Andromeda used the Rustoleum, I was hoping for a slight difference with the Krylon, but not as different as the Krylon did.

 

[Bluegrass Rocket]

I’ll chime in here. Thanks Les for doing a build thread. I’m proud of this kit as it was the first thing I designed after a long illness. Around 2 1/2 years ago I was hit with something that made me bedridden for 5 months. They still haven’t figured out what, but they did find a medication that helps. So, when I was finally able to get back doing things I sat down with a sketch pad and the USS Element was born. The finished kit is very close to my original drawings. I got back to making kits then the “we aren’t willing to make you quality tubes anymore and we’re not going to do business with you” hit. I was using up my tubing supply when I thought I should save enough tubes to do 12 Element kits. I’m not pushing them, some guys asked about it because they had seen a picture of it here. On this one I’m just selling direct. I’ve got 5 left depending on pending sales, maybe a couple more. Message me if you’re interested.
About the website. I’ve let it go. During all my illnesses I couldn’t work so money became a thing and I wasn’t updating the website since I just didn’t know enough about keeping it updated. With the square tube issue and my lack of knowledge of websites and trying to join the round rocket world, I figured I’d step back and regroup before going forward.
I’ve got a bunch of ideas myself and I’m looking at some of Neil W’s designs (still Neil), but time management is now a thing as I’m back employed and still getting used to the new schedule. I’m looking at making a couple of the square designs into round versions, including the USS Element. It just depends on how they look and work out. If you ever saw the Steamliner kit, I think it is going to translate into round well. Thanks for supporting NewWay and letting me ramble on.

 

[neil_w]

Looks good to me.

 

[les]

If you ever saw the Steamliner kit, I think it is going to translate into round well.

And for those NOT familiar, here is the square version

 

[BABAR]

And for those NOT familiar, here is the square version

View attachment 652444

Love the rocket. Any chance there is a launch video? I’m wondering if this has a slow dramatic lift off due to those spatula fins.

 

[les]

I did not get a video of the Steamliner. But back to the USS Element.....

The blue markings are vinyl tape.


And then the decals, which are all white (which is why I wanted the dark paint)



It still needs clear coat, but that will need to wait. Glad I was able to get this done by my deadline.
I won't be able to work on rockets for probably 6~8 weeks. Glad my last one was this special kit.

 

[Bluegrass Rocket]

Looks great Les. Better than my own. Thanks for taking the time to show it.

 

[Back_at_it]

I did not get a video of the Steamliner. But back to the USS Element.....

The blue markings are vinyl tape.
View attachment 652600

And then the decals, which are all white (which is why I wanted the dark paint)

View attachment 652601View attachment 652602

It still needs clear coat, but that will need to wait. Glad I was able to get this done by my deadline.
I won't be able to work on rockets for probably 6~8 weeks. Glad my last one was this special kit.

That is really a great design and an awesome build. I've always loved NewWays square designs and I will miss them. Glad to see the company is continuing on and adapting as needed.

 

[KenECoyote]

And for those NOT familiar, here is the square version

View attachment 652444

Steamtrunk!

 

[loopy]

Great job on this build! Can't wait to see what you build when you come back!

 

[Bluegrass Rocket]

I’ll also let the cat out of the bag regarding one detail about the USS Element, all of the windows. Each line of windows is something written in braille. I’ve had some eye issues the last few years and it hit one day after I had designed the rocket and was working on the graphics to spell out stuff in braille for the windows. I’m not real bright though, as I don’t remember what it says.