B
EFORE you can continue, you will need to
obtain 4 pieces of
3
⁄
8
" diameter aluminum
rod about 36" long. Aluminum rod is avail-
able from most good hardware stores in
either 6 or 12 foot lengths. Take a piece of the
13
⁄
32
" diameter by 3" long brass tube with you
to the store to make certain that the alu-
minum rod is a smooth slip fit in the tubing.
Next, plug one end of each of the four
13
⁄
32
"
diameter brass tubes. Use a knife or file to
sharpen one end of a tube by removing mate-
rial from the inside edge to form a sharp
bevel. Use this as a punch to cut four discs
from
1
⁄
16
" scrap balsa. Glue a disc into one
end of each piece of brass tube with CA. The
discs will keep the epoxy out of the tubes. Rough up the out-
side of the tubes with coarse sandpaper.
Lay the launcher sides on some waxed paper or plastic wrap.
Slide the aluminum rods into the brass tubes. Glue the tubes
into the slots in the L-2 parts with epoxy. Use enough epoxy
to fill the voids between the tubing and L-1. Some epoxy will
be squeezed out of the channel. It can be cleaned off later.
Check that the rods are parallel before the glue sets.
Do not
glue the aluminum rods in place.
R
EMOVE all launcher parts from the die
cut plywood sheets. Be careful when
removing the eight L-2 parts, since the area
around the slots is fragile. It is a good idea to
use a knife to remove the parts from the
sheets.
Lay the two L-1 parts on the bench. Be sure
to orient them as shown so you make both a
left side and a right side. Laminate four L-2’s
onto each L-1. This can be done with either
epoxy or a thick CA glue. Make sure that the
slots line up and are oriented as shown.
While you are at it, laminate the four L-7
parts into 2 pairs of two layers each.
If you want, sand the edges of the lamina-
tions smooth. It doesn’t make any difference in how well the
launcher works, but it does look better.
Remove parts from sheets
Laminate parts
Make a left and a right
Sand edges
Phoenix
Page 27
Launcher Assembly
Laminate launcher sides
Obtain aluminum rod
Plug ends of tubing
Glue in place
Make sure rods are parallel
Install brass tubes
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