I may have pushed the limits on my 3D printer with this one. After a number of failed attempts I was able to print the tower structure for a Mercury capsule. This is at 1:52 scale designed to fit in a Centuri ST-13 body tube (Estes BT-56). It is printed Continue Reading
Model Rocket Building
Enerjet 1340 Fin Can 3D Print
JackHydrazine did a terrific job creating 3D files for the Enerjet 1340 fin can. The file can be found here: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3641770. I printed it overnight and it came out really well. I used PETG. It’s strong and can withstand higher temperatures like ABS and is not brittle like PLA, it Continue Reading
Saturn 1B 1:156 Part 3
To Engine Mount or Not to Engine Mount? That is the question. I have a dilemma. An 18mm BT-20 engine mount will not fit in the space left from the BT-4 tank tubes. I was planning on cutting out an 1/8 of an inch down the length of each BT-4 Continue Reading
Blast from the past, Estes renegade!
Here’s a blast from the past. An old favorite and workhorse, an Estes renegade kit #1271. This launch was August of 1978 from my parents’ front yard. It flew on the mighty Estes D engine!
Saturn 1B 1:156 Part 2
And while the BT-4s I got were too short, they were long enough for me to verify BT-4s will work just fine for the 8 tanks.
Saturn 1B 1:156 Part 1
Besides the Pershing 1A, I have another 3D printed rocket project underway, a Saturn 1B. The main body is constructed around a BT-60 sized body tube. The scale will be about 1:156. The 3D files were created by scottdee and I downloaded them from https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2958861. I upscaled the fin unit to Continue Reading
Pershing 1A Estes Maxi-Brute Clone Part 4
I’ve printed the last pieces from Leo’s files. The cable covers, the charge retainers, and the shock cord plate. The combined weight of these last parts is about 26 grams. long cable cover 9 gramsshort cable cover 6 gramscharge retainer 2 grams eachshock cord plate 7 grams I put these Continue Reading
Pershing 1A Estes Maxi-Brute Clone Part 3
The Lower and upper fins have been printed. The lower fins weigh about 10 grams each and the upper fins 13 grams. These fins are not scale, they are upsized for stability to match the Estes kit.
Pershing 1A Estes Maxi-Brute Clone Part 2
I’ve printed the 3 sections that comprise the nose cone. The sections have been dry fitted. My caliper measures my wall thickness as 0.80mm, and the combined weight of the nose cone parts dry fitted is 113 grams in total. Wow, it’s huge!
Pershing 1A Estes Maxi-Brute Clone Part 1
In the 70s I remember being at Service Merchandise and they had all the Maxi-Brutes, but I had only enough money to buy one. At the time it felt like the hardest decision of my life. I finally settled on the Honest John, but I always wanted the Pershing 1A Continue Reading