STRUCTURES
Carbon Fibre Airframe
To continue the overkill theme of Project Summit, and maximise learning opportunities, the decision was made to produce Summit's airframe from a carbon fibre composite. The final tube is approximately 100g heavier then the cardboard equivalent, though it's added strength has already paid off after the second launch attempts failure.
This process began by producing a mandrel (round mold) from PVC pipe, MDF circles and a broomstick. This mandrel was then positioned on car axel stands, covered in non-stick baking paper and coated with epoxy. At this stage the carbon fibre rolling began. The carbon fibre was rolled tight and the excess epoxy was squeezed out along the way. Peel ply was then used to soak up excess epoxy during the curing phase. The tube was then finished with extensive wet sanding and a coat of clear gloss paint.
PLA Nose Cone
The original plan was to 3D print a mold for a fibreglass nose cone. This mold was designed and printed, however it was highly recommended that I 3D printed the nose cone instead.
The 2mm thick nose cone took 15 hours to print, plus two hours for the additional rings to secure the laser cut bulkhead. The nose cone was wet sanded down to 600 grit, before being painted and sanded and painted and sanded. This is how the final shiny and smooth surface was achieved, despite the initial 3D printed layer lines. 5-minute epoxy was then used to secure the bulkhead and electrical tape was wrapped around the lower section to ensure a secure fit in Summit's airframe.
Laser Cut Acrylic Bulkheads
Every bulkhead within Summit was laser cut from 3mm acrylic on an Emblaser 2. These bulkheads were then glued into 3D printed rings with epoxy, which allow them to be easily screwed into the airframe. There are bulkheads within the coupler unit, piston and nose cone.