Posts: 2476
Joined: 1/19/2002 From: Anchorage,
AK, USA Status: offline
We're making molds!
As of 11-04-04, we've got the stabiliator mold, vertical fin/dorsal mold, NACA inlet mold, and canopy mold done. ( images attached ) Fuselage mold is next, and should be done within the next week or so. Everything is going well...No problems, and we can't wait to get this baby in the air. ( http://www.nextcraft.com/j47_sportjet01.html )
Excuse the sloppy appearance in these photos. The plugs were just pulled, and they still need to be more neatly trimmed, and all the wax and PVA cleaned off. We'll clean 'em up tomorrow.
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Mike James RC Design and Building - www.nextcraft.com
Posts: 2476
Joined: 1/19/2002 From: Anchorage,
AK, USA Status: offline
First (top) mold half is done... Second (btm) half coming soon. The stabilator, vertical fin, NACA inlet, and canopy molds are already done, and we've been making test parts with good results. I'm finishing the wing plugs, and they'll be molded soon, too.
Posts: 2476
Joined: 1/19/2002 From: Anchorage,
AK, USA Status: offline
Thanks for visiting my site, and for your nice comment. (working on the btm mold half of the fuselage tonight!)
For my purposes, epoxy has better performance. (Opinions will vary about this, but stats are published on most composite supplier's web sites... less shrinkage, etc.... and less smell)
Posts: 1149
Joined: 3/31/2002 From: Rougemont,
NC, USA Status: offline
Mike,
Those molds look great !! I was looking at the mold halves and did not see any alignment pins or provisions to join the halves in the mold. I am assuming that you are going to mold in two pieces and then join outside the mold?? Nice to see another new plane come out of NC.... now if I can just get my Orion molds done....
Posts: 2476
Joined: 1/19/2002 From: Anchorage,
AK, USA Status: offline
Hi Dan,
Thank you.
This mold set is a little different from the usual ones I've done, due to the side pieces being separate. There are no alignment pegs built into the exterior of the mold face, but there are alignment holes for machine screws in all the parts, so the mold becomes self-aligned when assembled. (We'll be vacuum bagging the individual parts, then joining them in the assembled mold.)
An Orion sounds like a cool project... Start a build thread and show us some photos.
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Mike James RC Design and Building - www.nextcraft.com
Posts: 2476
Joined: 1/19/2002 From: Anchorage,
AK, USA Status: offline
Hey, thank you, moxjett!
I have a little prelim work to do, and will probably then make the first test fuselage (without all the formers) either today or tomorrow. That's why I'm up at 5am... Haven't slept yet, because I'm just wired about having gotten the fuselage molds done. Pretty exciting, considering some of the ups and downs of the past couple of years.
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Mike James RC Design and Building - www.nextcraft.com
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"Eliminator 2" molds under way - 
