Aluminum Thrusters

[fulcy]

Hey guys - long time no post. Thought I'd put this up here, since at least some of you like mecha modeling

http://www.mechaskunk.com/gthruster.htm

http://www.mechaskunk.com/store-al.htm

I was inspired by the aluminum thrusters used on some of the models over at Peck's World:

http://members12.tsukaeru.net/peck/

and thought I'd try to get my own made. After many months of trying to find the right machine shop (and right price), I finally have the parts in hand for anyone who is interested. Enjoy!

[Tachyon]

Hey, Fulcy! Nice to hear from you.

[happy hopping]

I have 2 problems w/ Al.

It's too heavy and can pull the rest of the connected part off (parts connected to the thruster)

It's Al so you can't paint metal easily if you decide not to have Al color inside, say you want some part of that thruster be another color. If it's resin or plastic, it's obviously a lot easier.

[KOG]

I have 2 problems w/ Al.

It's too heavy and can pull the rest of the connected part off (parts connected to the thruster)

It's Al so you can't paint metal easily if you decide not to have Al color inside, say you want some part of that thruster be another color. If it's resin or plastic, it's obviously a lot easier.

That's funny... since a lot of people who actually, you know, BUILD kits seem to use this type of thing without any problems.

I seriously doubt that some aluminum thrusters will be pulling a backpack off any time soon.

And this fellow seems to have tinted the interior of his thrusters with no problem.

http://fichtenfoo.com/02GiantRobots/02a-GPM.html#

[fulcy]

I have 2 problems w/ Al.

It's too heavy and can pull the rest of the connected part off (parts connected to the thruster)

It's Al so you can't paint metal easily if you decide not to have Al color inside, say you want some part of that thruster be another color. If it's resin or plastic, it's obviously a lot easier.

Yes, please only comment if you actually KNOW what you're talking about. The aluminum parts add minimal extra weight to the connected parts - I've used them as a replacement of the stock plastic thrusters, mounting them in poly joints, and they are fine - no pulling off of anything. As shown in the FichtenFoo link, you can also come up with your own custom connection, using simple magnets and a metal ball, as a form of custom metal ball joint. Also, aluminum is EASY to paint - clear paints adhere fine to it, and gives you a great effect, as KOG pointed out.

[happy hopping]

but thru time, would it hold? At the joint where the Al meets the plastic?

In that link, he uses the magnet, most people don't use magnet, is he using the magnet because he also concern thru time the plastic joint wouldn't hold?

[fulcy]

It should hold just as well as the original thruster should hold. Granted, there may be a little modification required - they are not one to one replacements, you may need to modify the polycap, or add a balljoint to the end of the thruster - but in all honesty the aluminum thrusters are maybe a couple grams heavier than the plastic ones - so over time it shouldn't matter at all.

He is using magnets because it was his design choice - he wanted a custom detail on the inside of backpack, instead of the stock plastic innards, so he replaced them this way. He had no concerns over the plastic joint, it was just his design choice to use the magnets - you could have accomplished the same with various poly joints, if you didn't care about the finish, and just wanted to use what was in your spares box...