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  #1  
Old 11-26-2008, 10:37 AM
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Default 1/16" Balsa

Next time you guys use 1/16" balsa for large fins, don't use thinned F-n-F to fill the grain. I made it thick as I could and still brush it on and it still warped the fins. I got them straight after the first application and I will after this one, but it is a pain in the butt to fool with. Just thought I'd vent a bit.

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Old 11-26-2008, 10:47 AM
Ltvscout Ltvscout is offline
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Cool! A home made wacky wiggler. Someone should build a rocket using the 1/16" balsa and purposely warp the fins to see how it wobbles going up.
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Old 11-26-2008, 10:51 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ltvscout
Cool! A home made wacky wiggler. Someone should build a rocket using the 1/16" balsa and purposely warp the fins to see how it wobbles going up.




It would be easy to wet the wood and make some interesting fin designs.

And to think I had everything so well aligned before I started filling. I told Kody that the Apogee fins were closer to perfect than any fins I had done before.



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Old 11-26-2008, 12:59 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tbzep


It would be easy to wet the wood and make some interesting fin designs.

And to think I had everything so well aligned before I started filling. I told Kody that the Apogee fins were closer to perfect than any fins I had done before.


Apogee II? And you used balsa? 1/16" fins are a poster child for basswood. The only time I would consider using balsa is in a glider.
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Old 11-26-2008, 01:42 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kurtschachner
Apogee II? And you used balsa? 1/16" fins are a poster child for basswood. The only time I would consider using balsa is in a glider.


I used 1/16" balsa for my EAC Viper clone. I papered them with Avery Labels. They are super strong and have been holding up quite well.
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Old 11-26-2008, 01:55 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kurtschachner
Apogee II? And you used balsa? 1/16" fins are a poster child for basswood. The only time I would consider using balsa is in a glider.


I had to. It's a re-build of my best friend's rocket.

He gave me all his old stuff when he got out of rocketry and the original nosecone and payload section was still in there including the lead weights. Yep, I could call it a clone, but I'm going to call it a restoration. Heck, those guys replace most of the metal with fresh stuff in those classic car restorations.


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Old 11-26-2008, 01:56 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by STRMan
I used 1/16" balsa for my EAC Viper clone. I papered them with Avery Labels. They are super strong and have been holding up quite well.


I didn't have any trouble with warping at all with my EAC Viper rebuild. Those fins were smaller and the balsa was a little more dense to boot.
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Old 11-26-2008, 03:07 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tbzep
I had to. It's a re-build of my best friend's rocket.

He gave me all his old stuff when he got out of rocketry and the original nosecone and payload section was still in there including the lead weights. Yep, I could call it a clone, but I'm going to call it a restoration. Heck, those guys replace most of the metal with fresh stuff in those classic car restorations.



I was mostly just yanking your chain. But I did recently complete an Apogee II clone and I used basswood for those fins. It worked out very well.

I'm pretty much a total basswood convert, purging my stock of the evil balsa whenever I can
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Old 11-26-2008, 03:46 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kurtschachner
I was mostly just yanking your chain. But I did recently complete an Apogee II clone and I used basswood for those fins. It worked out very well.

I'm pretty much a total basswood convert, purging my stock of the evil balsa whenever I can


I've never tried basswood. How does it cut and sand relative to balsa?
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Old 11-26-2008, 03:54 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tbzep
I didn't have any trouble with warping at all with my EAC Viper rebuild. Those fins were smaller and the balsa was a little more dense to boot.
I imagine the density was a key factor. It likely limited the absorption and thus minimized the warping.

I rarely use 1/16" preferring to instead upgrade most of my clones to 3/32" for the sake of durability. That said, I still use it on occasion and don't see many problems. I normally lay down a coat of Zinnser primer first, and I wonder if that averts the warping by limiting the absorption of the thinned FnF.

Doug...thinking out loud...

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