Over the holidays I managed to assemble the plywood pieces into something resembling the core of my falcon.
I also cut some simple templates or jigs to help with drilling the holes in the side of the core. I'll pilot the hole with the jig, and then burn through with a larger holesaw to create the final size.
The core already has some holes around the perimeter to reduce some of the mass, and the pocket for the rear engine lights is also already removed. Though I think need to temporarily brace that just in case it starts to warp. Not sure of the weight of this piece yet, however I'll try to capture that shortly as I'm interested in the breakup of the mass of plywood, steel armature and other elements as I go along.
At this point I have only cut the two forward mandible tubes. I still need to cut the larger lateral tube and fabricate. Just need to make a mental note to self to do this in-situ. And that will probably necessitate another timber jig to get everything straight.
Edit: Plywood core currently weighs 9.8kg or 21.6lbs.
I also cut some simple templates or jigs to help with drilling the holes in the side of the core. I'll pilot the hole with the jig, and then burn through with a larger holesaw to create the final size.
The core already has some holes around the perimeter to reduce some of the mass, and the pocket for the rear engine lights is also already removed. Though I think need to temporarily brace that just in case it starts to warp. Not sure of the weight of this piece yet, however I'll try to capture that shortly as I'm interested in the breakup of the mass of plywood, steel armature and other elements as I go along.
At this point I have only cut the two forward mandible tubes. I still need to cut the larger lateral tube and fabricate. Just need to make a mental note to self to do this in-situ. And that will probably necessitate another timber jig to get everything straight.
Edit: Plywood core currently weighs 9.8kg or 21.6lbs.