Flis Kits Midnight Express User manual

2003, FlisKits, Inc., All rights reserved Midnight Express Instruction Sheet: FK-INS-FRE01
Engineering Directive
From:
From:From:
From: Office of Chief Engineer
Vehicle(s):
Vehicle(s):Vehicle(s):
Vehicle(s): FRE01
Effective Date:
Effective Date:Effective Date:
Effective Date: 26-March-2002
Chief Ordinance Engineer Chief Deployment Engineer
Effective immediately, the attached procedures will be used in
the assembly and deployment of Launch Vehicle FRE01,
known as “Midnight Express”.
Recommended Motors: A6-4, A8-3, B6-4, C6-5
Flying Model Rocket
Assembly Instructions
The Midnight Express model rocket kit is a FREE download kit available from FlisKits, Inc.
These instructions, and available pattern sheets are copyright 2003, FlisKits, Inc. and can not
be reproduced in any way, by any means, electronic or otherwise without the expressed
written permission of FlisKits, Inc.
The Midnight Express will provide you with hours of building and
flying fun while showing that very non-conventional materials can be
used to build a very conventional looking model rocket. Other than the
recovery device (Shock Cord and Streamer), there are NO standard
model rocket materials used in this kit. The entire model (body tube,
fins, launch lug and nose cone) is made entirely from a single sheet of
card stock!
The Midnight Express will show you techniques that you can apply to
other models, both kits and scratch built models. You will learn how to
fabricate tubes, cones and fins, each with surprising strength, from
very simple and readily available materials.
One set of patterns comes pre-printed with the Midnight Express
artwork. A second pattern sheet is available that has just the outline of
all of the parts needed for this model. You are encouraged to use your
imagination and decorate this model in any way you choose! You may
wish to color/decorate this other kit before assembly, as you may find it
easier to do so while the parts are flat (something you can’t do with
conventional model rocketry materials!) You can use paints, markers,
pencils and even crayons to get just the look you want for your paper
model rocket!
To construct your Midnight Express, you will need the following:
Pencil, razor knife, white glue, 1/8” dowel (for shaping launch lug),
short length of BT-5 body tube or other narrow tube, 3-4 expended
engine casings (for shaping the body tube), patience and your
imagination! You will also need the following components to add to
these patterns, to complete this FREE kit:
o 12” – 18” Shock Cord material
o 12” Cotton Button Thread
o Masking Tape or tape disk
o 18” Crepe Paper Streamer
o Clay Weight or other nose weight material
Please read these instructions through, to become familiar with each
step, before beginning construction. You must go to http://fliskits.com/
and go to the Products section to obtain the pattern sheets for the
Midnight Express (Under Sport rockets)
1. Referring to Figure 1, use a straight edge and razor knife to cut
out the Body Tube from the provided pattern.
Figure 1
2. Resting the pattern on your fingers, print side down, press and roll
the body tube, with the unprinted side against a table edge, as
shown in Figure 2. This will cause the paper to begin to curl in
the direction needed for assembly.
Figure 2
3. Tightly roll the Body Tube until it is narrow enough to fit INSIDE a
narrow tube (like a BT-5 body tube). Place this inside the narrow
tube, as shown in Figure 3, and set aside. This will help it to
retain its shape as you go on to the next few steps.
Figure 3
4. Using your razor knife cut out the Nose Cone. (NOTE: Take your
time while working the Nose Cone into shape for gluing. A
second Nose Cone is provided should the first one not come out
right) Referring to Figure 4, set the curl in the nose cone, with the
edge of a table, as you did for the Body Tube. After the curl has
begun, continue rolling the Nose Cone between your fingers,
bringing the edges together, until the Nose Cone can hold its
shape.

2003, FlisKits, Inc., All rights reserved Midnight Express Instruction Sheet: FK-INS-FRE01
Figure 4
5. NOTE: Practice this step WITHOUT glue first. Apply a glue film
to the glue tab and form the Nose Cone by bringing the other
edge over the glue tab as shown in Figure 5. Hold the Nose
Cone to the proper shape between your fingers or, place the point
of a sharp pencil into the Nose Cone and hole with your thumb
(as shown on the left side of Figure 5). Hold until the glue is set.
The finished cone is shown in Figure 5, bottom-right. NOTE: It is
normal to see a small gap or hole at the top of the Nose Cone.
Figure 5
6. Using a straight edge and razor knife, cut out a Fin from the
provided pattern sheet. LIGHTLY score each of the fold lines,
from the printed size, using your knife and straight edge as shown
in Figure 6, on the right. You should have 9 score lines (2 for
each tab and one long one along the center of the Fin. NOTE: Do
NOT cut all the way through the material. Just enough to enable
easy folding along these lines. After scoring, gently fold at each
score line as show on the right of Figure 6. Repeat for the
remaining two fins.
Figure 6
7. Apply a bead of glue on all 4 tabs (gray areas) and form the fin,
compressing it between your fingers to hold its shape as the glue
sets, as shown in Figure 7. NOTE: Make sure that the edges of
the fin are flat and flush, as shown on the right of Figure 7.
Repeat for the remaining two fins.
Figure 7
8. Cut out the Launch Lug and begin curling it as you did with the
Body Tube and Nose Cone. After curling, roll the Launch Lug
tightly upon itself to help it retain its shape. Referring to Figure 8,
apply a bead of glue along the glue tab and roll the launch lug
over a 1/8” length wood dowel. Press and hold until the glue has
set. Remove the wood dowel as soon as possible to prevent it
from being glued inside the Launch Lug. NOTE: The Launch Lug
will be larger in diameter than the dowel. Make sure that, as you
wrap the lug around the dowel, that you do so very loosely.
Figure 8
9. Getting back to the Body Tube, remove the Body Tube from the
tube you placed it in from Step 3. You will notice that the Body
Tube will retain its shape. Referring to Figure 9, insert engine
casings into the Body Tube (4 casings will fill the entire Body
Tube and will result in the best construction). Run a bead of glue
along the full length of the glue tab and smooth it out to cover the
whole glue tab. NOTE: Be very careful NOT to get any glue on
the engine casings!
Figure 9
10. Carefully line up the edge of the Body Tube along the glue tab
and press into place, on a smooth flat surface. Referring to
Figure 10, roll the Body Tube on the flat surface until the seam is
on the underside, held in place with your fingers and the engine

2003, FlisKits, Inc., All rights reserved Midnight Express Instruction Sheet: FK-INS-FRE01
casings (the casings prevent you from crushing the Body Tube
during this operation). It is a good idea to occasionally check the
seam to make sure that it hasn’t shifted during this operation.
Also, it is IMPORTANT to check that the engine casings are still
loose and not glued inside the Body Tube. Remove the engine
casings as soon as possible, after the glue seam has set.
Figure 10
11. Cut out the Engine Block and the Nose Cone Shoulder. Curl
both items as done earlier. The patterns should look like that
shown on the left of Figure 11. Apply a bead of glue to the glue
tab and glue the Engine Block and Nose Cone Shoulder as
shown at the right. NOTE: Check that both components fit inside
the Body Tube before the glue dries.
Figure 11
12. As shown in Figure 12, apply a bead of glue inside the base of
the Nose Cone from Step 5. Carefully place the Nose Cone on
the Nose Cone Shoulder, as shown, making sure that the Nose
Cone is sitting flat and straight on the Shoulder. Refer to the
bottom center and bottom right images to see how this assembly
should look.
Figure 12
13. Make a mark ¼” from the end of one engine casing. Apply a
bead of glue 1 – 2” inside the bottom (end with the Fin Location
marks) of the Body Tube. Referring to Figure 13, use the engine
casing to push the Engine Block into the Body Tube up to the
mark made on the engine casing. NOTE: Remove the engine
casing QUICKLY to prevent it from becoming glued inside the
Body Tube.
Figure 13
14. As shown in Figure 14, apply a bead of glue to the root
edge of one fin and attach to the Body Tube onto the
triangular Fin Location marks. Allow to dry then repeat
with the remaining two fins.
Figure 14
15. Run a bead of glue along the seam of the Launch Lug and
attach the on the launch lug line, 2½” from the bottom of
the Body Tube and between two fins, as shown in Figure
15.
Figure 15
16. After the Fins have thoroughly dried, apply a bead of glue
on each side of the fin, at the fin/tube joint. Smooth this
bead of glue with your finger to form a strong filet of glue,
as shown in Figure 16.

2003, FlisKits, Inc., All rights reserved Midnight Express Instruction Sheet: FK-INS-FRE01
Figure 16
17. Cut out the Shock Cord Mount and glue the Shock Cord
into it as shown at the top of Figure 17 by applying glue
as shown and folding the Shock Cord Mount over the
Shock Cord twice, to trap it inside. Referring to the bottom
of Figure 17, glue this Shock Cord assembly at least ¾”
inside the top of the Body Tube.
Figure 17
18. Tie a knot in the other end of the Shock Cord. Secure this
knot in the tip of the Nose Cone by applying a bead of glue
inside the Nose Cone tip. Allow to dry.
19. Taking the Clay Weight, roll it into an irregular ball and
insert into the tip of the Nose Cone, as shown in Figure
18. NOTE: Do NOT omit this added weight. This model
rocket will NOT be stable without this added weight! To
verify the proper amount of nose weight, place the Nose
Cone onto the Body Tube and balance it on your finger.
The balance point (without motor or streamer) should be
about 6½” from the bottom of the Body Tube (+/- ½”). Add
or remove clay, as necessary, to achieve this balance
point. Once you’ve found the proper balance point, apply
a film of glue over the clay, securing it inside the Nose
Cone.
Figure 18
20. Referring to Figure 19, attach the Shroud Line to the
Streamer by tying a small knot in the end of the Shroud
Line and securing it to the end of the Streamer with a
Tape Disk or a square of Masking Tape. Firmly press
the tape into place. Tie the free end of the Shroud Line to
the Shock Cord, near the Nose Cone.
Figure 19
Congratulations! You have completed the assembly of your
Midnight Express model rocket from FlisKits!
Recommended motors for this model are the A6-4, A8-3, B6-4
and C6-5. With these motors, you will enjoy impressive flights
and safe returns via its brightly colored streamer for many
more enjoyable flights.
Save these instructions for building your second paper rocket!