DynaStar Rockets LexxJet User manual

Page 1
LexxJet Parts List
P/N Description Qty
10091 Engine Mount Tube (AT-24/3.75) 3
10132 Airframe Tube (AT-33/2.25) 2
10166 Airframe Tube (AT-56/10) 1
13031 Centering Ring (CR18-24) 1
13035 Centering Ring (24-29) 2
15015 Die-Cut Ring Set CR24-41.6 1
13056 Launch Lug (1/4” X 3”) 1
15549 Laser-cut balsa fin sheet A 1
15550 Laser-cut balsa fin sheet B 1
15551 Laser-cut balsa fin sheet C 1
19470 Plastic Nose Cone PNC-56A 2
24041 Regular Engine Hook 1
23011 Parachute Reinforcement Ring 8
29500 Parachute Shroud Line 21.3 ft
29117 32” Plastic Parachute canopy 1
29506 300# Test Kevlar® Shock Cord 8 ft
29602 Clay Nose Weight (23 grams) 1
31090 LexxJet Instruction Sheet A 1
31091 LexxJet Instruction Sheet B 1
37031 LexxJet Pattern Sheet 1
41034 LexxJet Printed Decal Sheet 1
Other Tools and Materials Needed
Scissors
Hobby Knife
Pencil
Carpenter’s Wood Glue (or White Glue)
CyA Adhesive (thick viscosity, such as gap-filling variety)
Razor Saw
Masking Tape
Sandpaper (200 and 400 grit) & Sanding Block
Aluminum “Angle” to draw lines on the tube
Ruler
Wood filler or sanding sealer to smooth balsa fins
Paint Brush
Spray Paint
24mm Spent Engine casing to insert engine block.
Long wood dowel to spread glue deep inside tubes.
Mid-Power
Model
Rockets
3355 Fillmore Ridge Heights
Colorado Springs, CO 80907 USA
web site: www.DynaStar-Rockets.com
Skill Level 4 – Slightly Challenging
Imagine owning a business jet with an extra kick of rock-
et power in its rear. That is what the LexxJet is all about.
It is luxury flying with extra speed and acceleration.
The DynaStar LexxJet is another cool-looking model
designed by that famous rocket inventor, Shrox. But
what will really get your kit noticed is that it doesn’t have
the usual shape of a model rocket. It doesn’t look like it
should fly straight, but it does!
This kit is slightly challenging to build. You will need to
cut the body tubes at an angle, and attach fins to the
curved section of a plastic boattail. Be sure to carefully
follow the instructions and you should not have any
problems. You’ll end up with a great looking rocket that
all your friends will envy.
Kit #5037
Sheet A - P/N 31090

Page 2
LexxJet Rocket Assembly
1. Using 400 grit sandpaper, fine sand the
balsa sheets before removing the fins. Care-
fully remove all the pieces from the balsa
sheet by freeing the edges with a sharp hobby
knife. Save the scrap wood for step 4.
2. Group the like fins together, and gently
sand the edges as shown in the illustration.
3. Glue the leading edge of the wing onto
the main wing using wood glue.
4. Glue the horizontal tail fins together. The
ends are propped up 1/8 inch to give the cor-
rect amount of dihedral. A piece of scrap balsa
wood under each tip can be used as a spacer.
5. When the glue is dry on the fins, you can
apply sanding sealer to the surfaces of all the
balsa pieces to smooth out the wood. Coat
both sides at the same time to minimize the
chances of the fins warping. Do not allow the
sanding sealer to get on the root edges of the
fins. This could prevent the fins from bonding
well to the body tube when they are glued on
later. Set them aside to dry completely. When
they are dry, sand the sealer smooth until you
get a desirable surface finish. You may need
to repeat this step several times depending on
the level of quality you wish to achieve.
6. Using a razor saw, carefully cut off the
tip on one of the nose cones. The location of
the cut is on the forward side of the raised
bead nearest the tip of the nose cone. You can
discard the tip of the nose. Clean up the end
with sandpaper to make the edge smooth and
free of rough plastic.
7. Using a hobby knife, make a deep
score in the plastic along the groove line on
the shoulder of the piece trimmed in step 6.
After going all the way around the perimeter
with the knife, gently press on the score line
you made. This will cause the plastic to crack
and separate the back half. Discard the rear
portion.
Prop up the tips with scap balsa
wood to give the correct dihedral.
Keep blade on forward
side of the cut line.
Cut line.
Molded groove line.
Leading Edge

Page 3
8. The inside edge of the small end of the
tailcone may need to be sanded to allow the
engine mount tube to slip through. To do this,
wrap a rough-grit sandpaper around a wooden
dowel or small rocket motor, and sand out the
inside edge of the hole until the engine mount
tube slips easily through it. Try to keep equal
wall thickness all the way around the edge of
the plastic.
If the tube is too loose in the plastic part, don’t
worry. This will be fixed at motor mount instal-
lation.
9. Mark a line on the outside of the motor
mount tube 2.25” (57mm) from one end. This
will be the aft end of the rocket. Make this line
about 1/8” (3mm) long as the picture shows.
Take a hobby knife and cut a 1/8” (3mm) long
slit in the engine tube along the line as shown
in the picture. You will insert one end of the
motor hook into this slit.
10. Make a mark 1” (25.4mm) from the aft
of the engine tube Find one of the large green
rings that fits over the 24mm diameter engine
mount tube. Put a thin layer of wood glue
around the engine tube behind the mark you
made. Take the green ring, slide it onto the
engine hook, and then onto the engine tube
until it it up against the mark. (Be sure that
the engine hook remains perpendicular to the
engine tube).
11. Glue the small green engine block ring
inside the front end of the engine mount tube
using wood glue. It should butt up against the
metal engine hook that protrudes inside the
tube.
12. DO NOT USE ANY GLUE ON THIS
STEP! Make a mark 1.0” (25.4mm) from the
front of the engine tube. Find the other large
green ring that fits over the 24mm diameter
engine mount tube. Cut a notch on the inside
of the ring with a hobby knife. Tie the yellow
Kevlar® shock cord around the front end of the
engine mount tube. Now slide the green ring
over the Kevlar and onto the tube (the cord
should nest in the notch). Remove one of the
large centering rings from the die-cut card
sheet. Again, slide this ring over the front end
of the engine mount tube.
1/2 inch (13mm)
Cut a notch for
the shock cord.
�
Engine Hook Size “A” Length
Estes D-Engine 2-1/4 inch (57mm)
Estes E-Engine 3-1/4 inch (83mm)
The “E”-size engine hook is not included
in this kit. They can be ordered from www.
ApogeeRockets.com. Select P/N 24049
1 inch (25.4mm)
1 inch (25.4mm)
DO NOT GLUE YET!
Sheet B - P/N 31091

Page 4
13. USE ONLY WOOD GLUE FOR THIS
STEP! Glue the disk centering ring at the 1.0
inch (25.4mm) line on the engine tube. The
large green ring is glued up against the disk
ring. While the glue is still wet, pull the shock
cord tight up against the green ring. Apply a
bead of wood glue over the shock cord to hold
it down against the engine tube.
Allow the glue to completely dry. Once it is
inside the plastic boattail, it will never dry be-
cause air cannot circulate around the glue. So
it must be completely dry before continuing.
14. Glue the two winglets on the tips of the
two wings using wood glue. Make sure they
are perpendicular to the wing. Allow the glue
time to dry.
15. Cover work surface with a piece of
plastic to keep the parts from sticking to it.
Then glue the two wing halves together using
wood glue. The root edge joint should lay flat
on the table, and the winglets will lift up the
tips to give the correct amount of dihedral. Al-
low the glue to completely dry, and then apply
glue fillets to all the joints.
16. Glue the horizontal tail fins onto the top
of the vertical tail using wood glue. Make sure
that it is not skewed. Allow the glue to com-
pletely dry, and then apply glue fillets to all the
joints.
17. Draw a line down the length of each of
the two jet engine nacelles [the tubes that are
1.325 inch (33mm) diameter by 2.25 inches
(57 mm) long]. Glue the nacelle tubes to the
balsa stand-off pieces with wood glue. Use the
line on the tubes to make sure the tubes are
aligned straight along the tube.
Joint rests on the table surface.
Rear view showing dihedral
Rear view showing dihedral
Perform two times
Perform two times

Page 5
18. Locate the two remaining 24mm diam-
eter tubes. Draw a single line down the length
of each tube. Measure and mark a line 0.75
inch (19mm) from one end of the tubes.
Cut out the Jet Exhaust tube cutting guide
from page 11. Wrap the guide around one of
the tubes and tape the ends together. Slide
the guide so the rounded edge is at the 0.75
inch (19mm) line and so that the line on the
cutting guide is positioned over the line drawn
down the length of the tube. Tape it down so it
can’t move. Draw a line around the perimeter
of the tube along the curved edge of the cut-
ting guide. Remove the marking guide. Repeat
this process on the other tube.
19.Carefully cut along the curved pencil
line drawn on the tube in the previous step to
make the diagonal end-cut. Sand the edge on
a piece of sandpaper laid on a flat surface to
make the edge perfectly flat. Repeat for the
other tube.
20. Glue the diagonal cut tube from the
previous step onto the jet engine balsa stand-
off using wood glue. The tip of the diagonal
edge is aligned with the diagonal edge of the
standoff piece. Make sure the tube is straight
inside the forward nacelle tube. Repeat with
the other diagonal cut tube. Allow the glue to
dry.
21. Cut out the tube marking guide from
page 11. Wrap the guide around the big tube
and tape the ends together. Using a pencil,
make a tick-mark on the tube at the end of
each arrow point on the guide. Remove the
guide. Using an angle-channel as a guide,
draw straight lines along the entire length of
the tube at each tick mark.
0.75” (19mm)
Perform two times
Perform two times
Front View

Page 6
22. Temporarily loop the shock cord out
the back end of the motor mount to keep glue
from getting on it. IMPORTANT: BE SURE TO
TEST-FIT EVERYTHING BEFORE APPLY-
ING GLUE. Slide the engine mount into the
tailcone. Push it in tight so that both centering
rings touch the inside edge of the plastic. If the
forward ring does not touch the plastic all the
way around the perimeter, pull out the engine
mount, and sand the aft centering ring down.
When the fit is correct, apply a bead of “thick-
viscosity” CA glue to the edges of the center-
ing rings and reinsert it into the tailcone. While
the glue is still wet, rotate the engine mount
around so that the engine hook lines up with
one of the seams in the plastic tailcone.
23. Using thick-viscosity CA glue, attach
the boattail to the body tube. Align the seam
on the boattail with one of the lines on the
tube. Mark the tube on the opposite side of the
engine hook as the bottom of the rocket.
24. The easiest way to extend the lines
from the tube to the boattail is to use a piece
of masking tape. Sight along the tube to make
sure the tape is straight before you draw the
pencil line. The line should go from end-to-
end on the boattail. Repeat for the other side,
where there is not a seam line from the plastic.
25. Apply a bead of wood glue on the top
surface of the wing where the two wings join.
Glue the wing on the bottom of the the body
tube. The back edge of the wing is positioned
where the boattail meets the tube. Make sure
the wing is straight on the tube. Hold it in this
position until the glue sets, and then allow it to
fully dry.
Page 6
Align engine hook
with seam of plastic.
Sand down aft ring to
make the fit tighter.
Apply glue to the back
edge of the rings.
Align seam on boattail with one of the lines on the tube.
Thick-viscosity CA glue
Masking tape
Align tape edge with pencil line on tube
Front view

Page 7
26. Attach the ventral fin to the bottom
of the rocket using “thick-viscosity” CA glue.
Make sure the fin is straight along the tube.
27. Mark the boattail 2.0 inches (50.8mm)
from the rear end as shown. Apply “thick-vis-
cosity” CA glue to the balsa wood standoff and
attach the jet engine pods to the boattail at this
location. Perform the same step for the sec-
ond jet engine on the other side of the rocket.
28. The vertical tail is glued to the top of
the boattail using “thick-viscosity” CA glue.
The rear edge butts against the little raised
plastic line on the boattail. Make sure the fin is
perpendicular to the boattail and also straight
along the plastic seam line on the top of the
rocket.
29. Using wood glue, attach the launch lug
to the tube. It is wedged between the top of
left wing and the tube. Position it so that its
rear edge is 0.5” (13mm) from the rear edge
of the body tube. Allow the glue to dry. Apply
a bead of wood glue to both sides of each
launch-lug/body tube joint. Pull your finger
along the joint to smooth out and remove the
excess glue. Lay the tube horizontally while
the glue dries.
If the fin hangs over the
edge, sand off the tip.
2.0 inch (50.4mm)
Perform two times
Raised plastic line
0.5 inch (13mm)

30. Using the point of a hobby knife, open
up the hole in the base of the nose cone so
that you can easily insert a long wood dowel
(1/4” diameter [6.3mm] will work fine). Roll all
the clay into a long snake and insert into the
nose cone. Press it firmly into the tip using the
wood dowl.
31. Test fit the nose cone onto the front
end of the rocket. You may need to apply 2 or
3 layers of masking tape to make the fit snug.
When applying the masking tape, leave a
slight gap between the edge of the nose por-
tion and the edge of the tape.
32. Tie the loose end of the shock cord to
the loop on the base of the nose cone using
two overhand knots. Apply a little bit of the
wood glue onto the knot to keep it from com-
ing untied.
Parachute Assembly
33. Carefully cut out the parachute canopy
along the dashed lines. Place one reinforce-
ment ring on each of the marked corners.
Take a sharp pencil or knife and poke a hole
through the plastic in the center of each ring.
34. Fold the shroud line in half, and cut at
the fold to make equal lengths; cut each piece
in half again to make a total of four lines of
equal length.
35. Pull each parachute line end through a
parachute reinforcement ring and tie using two
overhand knots. Repeat for all the corners as
shown.
36. Holding the parachute at the center of
its top, pull the lines together to even up the
ends. Thread the four looped lines through the
loop at the base of the nose cone. Take the
top of the parachute and pull it through all four
string loops at the same time and then pull to
tighten the knot. This securely attaches the
parachute to the rocket.
�
Figure 1
Shroud line
Adhesive circle
a division of APOGEE ROCKETS
1130 Elkton Drive, Suite A
Colorado Springs, CO 80907 USA
www.ApogeeRockets.com
CAREFULLY CUT OUT ALONG DASHED LINE
CAREFULLY CUT OUT ALONG DASHED LINE
STEP 2
Press the circle firmly and attach second end to the
circle next to it on the same side of the parachute
(see Figure 2).
STEP 1
Carefully cut out parachute canopy along dashed lines.Take parachute
shroud line and cut into 3 equal lengths. Placing the end of each shroud
line over a circle at the parachute corners, secure line with adhesive
circle as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 2
STEP 3
Holding the parachute canopy
by the center of its top, pull the
lines together and try to even up
the ends.
STEP 4
Pass the parachute lines through the nose cone eye screw. Pass the canopy
completely through the loop ends of the parachute. Pull the lines tightly against
the eye screw and fix the knot in place with a drop of glue.
nose cone eye screw
Tape Ring
Poke hole through
each ring.
A
BC
Wrap tape around the shoulder to tighten the fit in the tube.
Roll clay into a snake
and insert into nose cone.
Page 8
Push into the tip
with a wood dowel

Painting Instructions
37. After all the glue has completely dried,
you may now paint your LexxJet model rocket.
Roll a piece of paper and insert it into the
aft end of the body tube so you can hold the
model while painting it. For best results, paint
the model with primer before using the un-
dercoat paint color, which is white. Follow the
directions on the paint can, and always paint
outdoors with the wind against your back. Let
the paint harden at least 24 hours before pro-
ceeding. When the white is dry, you can paint
the model as shown here, or using your own
favorite colors. There is a diagonal marking
guide in the pattern sheet 11.
38. Cut around the perimeter of the de-
cal with a pair of scissors. Peel off the paper
backing, and affix the decal in place on the
model. Use the picture on page 1 for decal
placement.
Launching the LexxJet
The motor matrix shown here was developed
using the RockSim software (www.RockSim.
com). Initial conditions: slightly breezy (3-
7mph wind), straight up launch angle and a 48
inch (121.9 cm) long launch rod. You can use
RockSim to find other motor combinations that
will work well in the DynaStar LexxJet rocket
kit. Download the RockSim file for this kit and
a free trial-version of RockSim at: www.Apog-
eeRockets.com/LexxJet.asp
Launch Supplies Needed
To launch your rocket you will need the follow-
ing supplies:
u A model rocket launching system.
u Flame resistant recovery wadding (8
sheets).
u Recommended 24mm Diameter Rocket
Engines — see the motor matrix.
Rocket Preflight
A. Loosely crumple and insert 8 sheets of
recovery wadding into the body tube.
B. Carefully fold the parachute and insert it
into the tube with the shock cord.
1 2 3
45
Fold
Peak
Down.
Spike
Canopy. Lay Excess String
on Top of Canopy.
Roll Sides Inward.
Loosely Wrap Any
Excess String around
Canopy And Insert.
LexxJet
P/N 41034
Motor
Type
Produced
by:
Estimated Altitude
(feet)
Estimated Altitude
(meters)
C11-3 Estes 123.6 ft 40.42 m
D12-5 Estes 377.4 ft 115.04 m
E9-4 Estes 663.4 ft 202.21 m
E15-4 Aerotech 1112.3 ft 339.01 m
E30-7 Aerotech 1090.3 ft 332.31 m
E18-4 RMS Aerotech 1061.4 ft 323.52 m
E28-4 RMS Aerotech 1079.9 ft 329.14 m
F12-5 RMS Aerotech 1168.26 ft 356.09 m
F24-7 RMS Aerotech 1587.1 ft 389.04 m
F35-8 RMS Aerotech 1461.2 ft 445.37 m
F39-9 RMS Aerotech 1313.29 ft 400.29 m
Motor Matrix: How High Will The LexxJet Fly?
Page 9

Page 10
C. Insert the motor into the motor tube until
the motor hook holds it in place.
D. Insert and secure the engine igniter as
directed on the package the engines came
with.
Countdown and Launch Procedure
Fly your rocket on a large field that isn’t near
any power lines, trees, or low flying aircraft.
The larger the field, the greater your chances
of recovering your rocket. The launch area
around the pad must be free of dry weeds and
brown grass. Launch only during calm weather
with very little or no wind and good visibility.
Always use a launch pad that includes a blast
deflector.
10. Remove the safety key from the launch
controller
9. Slide the launch lugs over the launch rod
to place the rocket on the pad. The rocket
should slide freely over the rod.
8. Attach the micro-clips to the igniter. The
clips must not touch the other or the metal
blast deflector.
7. Stand back from your rocket as far as the
launch wire allows (at least 5 meters - 15
feet).
6. Insert the safety key to arm the launch sys-
tem. The light (or buzzer) on the controller
should come on.
Give a loud countdown 5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ... 1 ...
LAUNCH!
Push and hold the button until the engine
ignites. Then remove the safety key and place
the safety cap on the launch rod.
Misfire Procedure
Occasionally the igniter will burn, but the mo-
tor will fail to ignite. If this happens, the cause
is that the pyrogen on the igniter was not in
contact with the engines propellant. When an
ignition failure occurs, remove the safety key
from the launch controller and wait 60 seconds
before approaching the rocket. Remove the
old igniter from the engine and install a new one. Make sure that the igniter
is insert fully into the engine and touches the propellant. Secure the igniter
as directed on the engine package and repeat the countdown and launch
procedure.
Always follow the NAR* Model Rocket Safety Code when launching model
rockets.
*National Association of Rocketry
**Kevlar® is a brand name of E.I. DuPont for their selection of aramid fibers. Only DuPont
makes Kevlar®
Launch
rod.
Hook securely latched over edge of the
rocket engine.
Parachute
Recovery
Wadding
Make sure the clips don’t
touch each other, or the
metal blast deflector.
Rocket
motor