Upon initial inspection all but one of the parts were present. The missing part was an adapter ring (part# AR-2050). These are fairly common and I was able to find one in my spare parts assortment. By the way that brings up a good point. ALWAYS save leftover parts. Model rocketry often involves modifying or repairing a model and having a good assortment of spare parts onhand can save alot time, expense, and trips to the hobby store.
Closer inspection of each individual part revealed a few more issues which wasn't surprising given the number of years I've been dragging this kit around. The main body tube (part# BT-50) had a pretty significant crease in it where something had been set on it. I was fortunate to also have a spare one of these in my parts assortment. The other damaged items were all in the recovery system. The parachute (part# PK-12A) had a pretty large slit cut in it (possibly from a hobby knife gone astray), there was a missing tape disc (part# TD-3F) and the rubber schock cord (part# SC-1) had hardened over the years and become brittle.
No big deal on the recovery system damage, as I was planning on upgrading to a nylon parachute kit with a Kevlar shock cord in any case, so these parts are not needed and can be discarded.
I was pleased that while there was some significant yellowing of the instructions and pattern sheet (part# SP-83) as can be seen in the above photo, the decal sheet (part# KD-83) was still pretty clean. Storing your kits out of direct sunlight will help to reduce yellowing. Unfortunately, this kit had sat on a shelf in my hobby room for the last couple of years and was exposed to direct sunlight through an open window. I must have lucked out that the decal sheet was tucked in behind something and didn't get as much exposure.
Well thats about it for the parts inventory and inspection. In our next post we will begin construction!
No comments:
Post a Comment