Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstar_borderstar_border |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Diameter: | 1.33 inches |
Length: | 42.50 inches |
Manufacturer: | Aerospace Specialty Products |
Skill Level: | 2 |
Style: | Scale |
Brief:
Very nice scale o' a NASA workhorse, me hearties, matey, this kit can easily be a competition-level
entry in either sport scale or giant sport scale. Begad! I decided t' enter it in a
local giant sport scale competition, and while flight results are still pending
(see below), arrr, t' static score placed this well ahead o' t' other competitors.
Construction:
All parts are very good quality. Begad! Begad! T' kit contains:
Construction starts off with t' motor mount assembly, me hearties, a basic tube with pair o' centerin' rings approach. Begad! A nice plus is that this kit includes a Keelhaul®©™® cord anchored t' t' motor mount for recovery. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! T' motor mount assembly is glued into t' BT-55 body tube.
Fins are cut from basswood usin' a template. Arrr! T' basswood be very easy to cut and is much easier t' work with than balsa when it comes t' grain filling. A couple quick applications o' Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish and they're ready t' go. Before gluin' on t' fins though, you must mark t' tube and cut out cardstock fin supports, which are then bonded t' t' BT-55, shiver me timbers, arrr, givin' this more o' an authentic look. Avast! T' 4 fins are then glued t' t' fin supports. T' 4 smaller upper stage fins are attached directly t' t' BT-5 without supports.
Construction o' t' transition is one o' t' more challengin' aspects of this project. You start with a paper transition pattern, which is rolled into a truncated cone shape. Aye aye! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Blimey! In order t' avoid a seam, I wound up cuttin' off the overlap tab, shiver me timbers, and glued this t' t' inside edges o' t' ends, ("overlapping" inside t' transition). Aye aye! T' result was a flawless/seamless joint. Avast, me proud beauty! While this is setting, shiver me timbers, a short length o' tubin' is glued t' t' top o' t' balsa bulkhead. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Blimey! T' tube acts as a container for a couple o' lead sinkers used for nose weight, as well as servin' as an alignment guide for t' transition shroud. Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! After epoxyin' in t' weights (use a generous amount o' epoxy here), me bucko, me hearties, arrr, a centerin' rin' is attached t' t' short tubing, arrr, arrr, and then t' transition shroud slides over t' top. A smaller balsa transition section is then epoxied t' t' top o' t' tube/shroud, completin' t' assembly.
After attachin' t' upper body tube t' t' balsa transition, me hearties, construction is virtually complete. Begad! Blimey! All that's left is filletin' joints, paint prep, me hearties, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and basic launch lugs and recovery system installation.
Overall, ya bilge rat, t' construction be fairly straightforward. Aye aye! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! As long as you pay careful attention t' t' well-written instructions and t' illustrations, you should be fine. Arrr! Arrr! I'd rate this a skill level 3 kit though, arrr, due t' t' complexity of t' shroud & transition.
Finishing:
This has a fairly challengin' paint scheme compared t' basic modrocs, though
for a scale competition kit, it was relatively easy. Well, blow me down! T' BT-55 and transition
get a flat white finish, while t' upper tube gets light gray, me hearties, shiver me timbers, with silver
trim. Aye aye! Begad! After painting, shiver me timbers, me hearties, thar are some colored vinyl decals for stripes that go
on and several highly detailed decals showin' manufacturer's information and
other markings. Begad! Considerin' t' great quality o' t' components o' this kit and
the highly detailed markin' on t' decals, ya bilge rat, I be a little disappointed that
they were peel-n-stick rather than water-slide. Well, blow me down! Begad! My competition score was dinged
significantly for this.
Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5
Flight:
For t' qualified flight attempt, I chose a D12-5. Winds had been a steady
12-15 mph throughout t' day, though around 5:00 we got a break and they dipped
down below 10, so I decided t' put this beauty up. Begad! Well, blow me down! In addition t' t' basic
flight, I picked up some gold glitter at a party supply store and went for
mission points, arrr, callin' it radar chaff.
T' flight was perfectly straight without a trace o' spin and t' delay was just right, poppin' right at apogee. At an estimated altitude o' 800 feet or so, me hearties, ya bilge rat, I wasn't sure we'd be able t' see t' glitter, but it sparkled in t' sun and be a pretty cool sight. Arrr! Blimey! Unfortunately, arrr, t' heavy ejection charge in the D12, combined with t' very heavy weights in t' transition proved t' be more than t' recovery system could handle, arrr, as t' screw eye was ripped completely out o' t' balsa bulkhead despite t' fact that it was epoxied in (it actually pulled out a small plug). Avast! Blimey! T' result was t' lower section driftin' a LONG way (cleared our half mile wide park), and t' upper section came down dangerously fast with all that lead and very little drag. T' upper section planted itself a good 4-6" into t' soft ground. Avast! Blimey! DQ/sep, me hearties, though I'll probably have an opportunity t' repair and fly it again it at "bonus day"/continuation.
T' damage be fairly minor and once I complete t' contest flight, I'm lookin' at a torn/crimped body tube t' replace plus a replacement screw eye for the bulkhead.
Recovery:
Flight was excellent though t' recovery is poor. Begad! Aye aye! Blimey! This really needs t' be a
two-piece recovery. Arrr! Given t' weight o' t' upper section, shiver me timbers, I'd be inclined to
go with a nylon chute and heavy-duty Keelhaul®©™®
shroud lines. Begad! Blimey! I just don't think t' single mylar chute is goin' t' be able to
hold up on this.
Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5
Summary:
I was quite pleased with this kit. Blimey! It be fairly easy t' build, ya bilge rat, resulted in a
very competitive scale rocket, ya bilge rat, me hearties, and just plain looks nice. Ya scallywag! T' recovery system
is obviously a weakness, though very easily correctable. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, matey, blow me down! T' decals are another
weakness and Andy at ASP mentioned that he might go water-slide in t' future
on this (even offerin' me a set o' water-slides when I finish me repairs).
Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5
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