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| Step | Estimated Time | Number of People | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| CAD Mold in Solidworks | 1 | Google "Solidworks Mold-making Tutorials" and you can find helpful articles and Youtube videos. | |
| Measure MDF layers | 1 hour | 1 | Make sure to leave enough space on either side of the nose cone (and room for pry slits/alignment holes). Account for thickness of blade when marking lines. |
| Cut MDF | 2 hours | 2-3 | Cut the lines as straight as you can, because this will give you nice straight edges that will help a lot with alignment during setup for the router. |
| Epoxy layers together | 2 hours | 2-3 | Epoxy soaks into MDF quickly, so make sure you're using enough epoxy and clamping everything together tightly or you'll get gaps after you start routing. |
| Prepare CAM | Make sure your step size isn't too big or the tool will be taking off too much material and create a lot of friction/ruin the tool, etc. | ||
| Set-up piece on router | |||
| Route | |||
| Sand mold | |||
| Epoxy mold | Apply, let soak for 20 minutes, then wipe away. Don't apply multiple times because epoxy doesn't stick very well to epoxy. |
Below is the recommended procedure for making a nose cone mold, learned through trial and error and thanks to the advice of Prof. Mark Drela, an leading expert in aerodynamics and composite layups.
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