Model Rocket Building Blog
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 1, PartsHere we go - now on sale on the Estes website, One of the more anticipated new kits, the very detailed Destination Mars - MARS LONGSHIP. The kit parts are packaged in a tall box. Two bags of parts and one long BT-55 tube. The bag on the left contains: The plastic details that glue onto the tube ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 2, Parts Prep 1The laser cut fins are removed from the balsa sheet. On the right, the laser cut edges are squared up with a sanding block. Laser cutting makes a wedge shaped cut, wider on one side. The picture shows the edge sanded with the block perpendicular to the flat face of the fin. A little bit of sanding ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 3, Parts Prep 2The large nozzle has the ends cut off. To be safe, I mark the cut lines with pencil. I use a fine tooth razor saw, then smooth the rough ends with a sanding block. The large ring has an outside seam that should be filled. The inside of the ring is visible on the finished model so I also filled the ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 4, Fin AssemblyHere's how the outside fin pieces fit together. The fit wasn't very tight and will require some filling. TIP: If the fit seems loose - After applying glue, check the angle of the two pieces against the instruction sheet drawing. I applied some extra CWF to fill the joint between the two ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 5, Engine MountI did make a slight arc bend in the engine hook. Over the years I've learned to mark the engine mount tube three or four times around the tube. A single line of marks can be covered up by the engine hook. TIP: The engine block was loose in the engine tube. A dried glue bead around the outside edge ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 6, Fin Primer & Card Stock FormingI was assembling two kits at the same time, you are seeing double inside and outside fins. This is after the fins got a coat of CWF and sanding. Everything is taped down to spray one side with filler/primer. After that dries, flip them over and stick down again for spraying the other side. I had ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 7, Gluing On Ring SupportsUse the full size marking template to mark the locations of the "H" card stock pieces. On the right I used my aluminum angle to extend the marks over the height of the ring. TIP: Double, then triple check these marks against the full size drawing. Placement of the "H" pieces is critical for the ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 8, Details & More DetailsThe three lower "R" pieces are glued on the body tube, centered between the fins. TIP: In the left picture you can see the glue placement. I tried to keep it away from the edges so it wouldn't squeeze out (and be seen) when pressed onto the body tube. The lower plastic pieces are glued 3 1/2" from ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 9, Lugs, Nozzle & Shock CordThe 3/16" launch lug is cut in half for two 1" long pieces. I get the cleanest cuts without crushing the lug using a new razor blade. The shock cord mount is a standard Estes tri-fold. TIP: As normal for me, I glue the rubber shock cord at an angle so the finished mount lays flatter against the ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 10, Decals! Lots of Decals!The kit has a separate instruction sheet for the decals alone, printed on both sides. Here's the two decal sheets - The first is gray, black and yellow. The second sheet is blue. I'd recommend starting with the blue decal upper band wraps. Set these first, towards the outside ends of the body ...[Read More]
Estes Mars Longship Build #7296, Part 11, More DecalsThe low end of the nose cone has 16 decals. Set the gray centers first, then the upper and lower yellow and black stripes. After those dry, set down the the vertical blue bands, see below. Here's how the nose cone section looks with all the decals in place. That gray decal in the center and to the ...[Read More]
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