In my previous post, I mentioned that I thought I’d make a small mistake by masking the Interstage/S-IVB/IU segment first. Now that I’m nearly done masking the S-IC/S-II unit, I’m not sure it really matters. Although there are many more small things to mask on the S-IVB and IU (numerous antennae), and although the Interstage […]

I thought that starting with the Interstage/S-IVB/IU would be easier than starting with the S-IC/S-II: the S-IVB unit is much smaller than the S-IC unit, and it made at least some sense that it would be quicker, easier, and a good place to check out masking technique. I was wrong. I was very wrong. The […]

Finally, I think I’ve found and masked all the little things that need masking on the Interstage/S-IVB/IU structure. The ullage rockets, the retro-rockets, the reflectors, the antennae, the roll pattern. I thought I was done yesterday, and then realized that there were myriad (well, not literally, but it almost seemed that way) small things on […]

It’s easy to mask off a cylinder, whether the dividing line goes around or lengthwise or even diagonally along the cylinder (assuming it’s a straight line to be masked). Masking a conical transition, though, is a different story: though the line around might look straight and parallel to the ends, it’s not: it’s really curved, […]

Time to mask the roll pattern and other details. First step is laying out the roll pattern: determining where on the S-IC and on the S-II the different things are black (and silver), and what portions of the S-IVB are black. Apogee supplies a template for masking the the S-II/S-IVB transition: it has cut-outs that […]

Priming’s done. The previous post shows pictures before and after the first coat of primer. Intentionally, it was a pretty light coat. After letting it set, I sanded the primer to smooth, then painted a second coat. That second coat is now drying; I expect to sand on Monday, spray the base white color coat […]

Finally! All the surface prep is done. The spirals are all filled and sanded, the minor dings in the wraps are filled, the gaps between the wraps and the body tube are filled, and the spots where parts will be glued after painting are masked. It’s time to spray some primer! Maybe, just maybe, I’ll […]

I’ve never cared enough to fill the spirals on a rocket body tube before. Sure, I like a nice paint job, and know the techniques for getting one (thanks, Dad!), but I’ve never cared enough about the finish on a rocket to go all-out, much less to bother filling the spirals. I don’t know that […]

Lots and lots of spot filling around edges of wraps and at tunnel covers. It’s slow work, filling the gaps with small bits of epoxy clay. I think it’s just about finished, though! Here’s a look at the work; see, especially, near the left edge of the wrap above the tunnel cover.