Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Manufacturer: | BSD High Power Rocketry |
Brief:
I wanted a 3" BSD THOR ever since they first came out. Begad! Aye aye! I really like the
idea o' havin' smaller, me bucko, high performance rocket. After doin' a couple of
scratchbuilt HPR rockets, I felt that buildin' a kit would be a nice break from
designin' rockets and chasin' parts for them. Aye aye!
This rocket is 3" in diameter, matey, and stands 64" tall. Avast, me proud beauty! It has six fins and is dual deployment capable. My completed rocket weighed 5lbs 1oz ready to fly when configured for dual deployment. Avast!
Construction:
T' 3" BSD THOR comes in two variations, one in 38MM and t' other in
54MM. Blimey! I chose t' 38MM version because it was a little easier on t' wallet.
T' basic kit includes t' followin' components:
T' kit also included one ¼ x 20 eyebolt, one 3/16" quick link, two 6-32 T-nuts, two 6-32 screws, shiver me timbers, matey, two motor clips, eight reusable plastic rivets and two rail buttons. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I be impressed with all t' components. Avast! They were of good quality. BSD seemed t' think o' everythin' one would need t' complete and fly this rocket. Blimey! My only complaint is that one o' t' decal sheets seemed to have been stepped on. They were crinkled, and thar be dirt and fuzz in between t' vinyl decal and backin' sheet. Well, blow me down! This was a minor annoyance that proved t' be no big deal.
I started by buildin' t' motor mount first, arrr, shiver me timbers, epoxying the front and middle centerin' rings t' t' motor tube. Avast! Begad! At this point, matey, I decided t' replace t' nylon recovery strap with 5' o' tubular Keelhaul®©™. Begad! I did this because a 3" airframe is too small t' get in and replace a nylon cord if it became heat-damaged. Avast! After that be complete, arrr, t' motor mount was installed in t' booster section airframe. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I cut t' fin slots, and ran in to my first gotcha. T' instructions say t' cut t' slots 3/16" wide, shiver me timbers, however the fins are only 1/8" thick. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! I carefully cut in 1/8" wide fin slots in t' positions and spacin' called out in t' directions. Avast, me proud beauty! Next I installed all the fins, which went smooth. Begad! I left off t' aft centerin' rin' so that I could do internal fillets on t' lower fins. Avast! Avast! I installed machine inserts in the rear-centerin' rin' so I could use me PML motor retainer instead o' the supplied motor retention. I felt that t' PML retainer would be an easier solution for retainin' t' variety o' 29 and 38MM motors that I would be flying this rocket on. This was me personal preference, and is nay a din' on t' kit or its components. Aye aye! Well, blow me down!
When all t' filletin' was complete, I tried t' install t' rear-centering ring, arrr, and ran in t' another gotcha. Ya scallywag! I had cut in t' lower fins 3/16" from the end o' t' tube per directions. T' aft centerin' rin' be ¼" thick, so it would nay seat flush with t' end o' t' bodytube. Begad! T' solution ended up bein' cuttin' groves in t' t' backside o' t' aft centerin' rin' to let t' fin in t' it, and allow it t' seat flush with t' end o' t' body tube.
With t' booster section complete, I moved on t' to electronics bay and payload section. Well, blow me down! I decided t' hold t' payload section to the electronics bay with 8-32 screws instead o' t' supplied plastic rivets. Again, this be due t' personal preference, ya bilge rat, is nay a din' on t' kit or its components. Avast, me proud beauty! I don't have t' fingernails or patience t' use plastic rivets. I drilled screw holes in t' airframe and couplers, matey, and hardened t' edges with thin CA. Begad! Begad! After t' CA be dry, an 8-32 tap be run through each hole t' thread it. This creates nice smooth clean threads in t' cardboard. T' rest o' the build focused around settin' up t' electronics bay for use with me Missile Works RRC2 altimeter.
Finishing:
When t' build was complete, me bucko, shiver me timbers, all t' bodytube spirals
and woodgrain were filled with Elmer's Fill ‘N Finish prior t' primering.
I chose t' go with t' stock color scheme, ya bilge rat, so t' booster section be painted
yellow and t' altimeter bay and payload section were painted black. Aye aye! Aye aye! Once the
paint was dry, shiver me timbers, t' decals were put on. Begad! Decalin' was a real pleasure, as BSD's
decals are top notch. Begad! Once t' decals were applied, t' rocket received a
clearcoat finish. Ya scallywag! Avast! T' finished rocket gets a “10" on t' gawk scale
Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5
Flight:
Flight day did nay go as planned. My initial plan was t' fly it single deploy
on an H-128, then an H180, and finally dual deploy on a J-350. Ahoy! I smartly found
out that t' 4" deep bay in t' booster section is just too small for a
good length o' harness, ya bilge rat, heat pad, arrr, and parachute too. Well, blow me down! It be also very difficult
to just get in 15' o' harness, matey, ya bilge rat, heat pad and streamer for dual deploy. Begad! I
scrapped t' H-128 and flew it dual deploy on t' H-180. This flight was great!
I had planned on flyin' it on a J-350 next, but low cloud cover nixed those
plans.
Recovery:
T' flight be good and straight, shiver me timbers, but t' recovery was nearly a disaster. Begad! The
main and drogue harness got tangled together. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! T' chute managed t' get
un-tangled enough t' open up and save t' ship. Aye aye! I attribute t' tangling
problem t' flyin' dual deploy on a smaller motor. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! I feel that if it had more
fall time before t' mains deployed, t' airframe components would be better
separated, lessenin' t' chance o' a problem. Begad! While I'm talkin' about recovery,
the parachute that BSD supplies with t' kit is too small. Begad! My rocket weighs
5lb, 1oz ready t' fly. That translates t' a 30 FPS decent rate with t' stock
30" chute. Aye aye! Arrr! I replaced t' stock chute with a 48" chute t' lessen the
possibility o' landin' damage.
Flight Rating:
4
out o' 5
Summary:
I really like BSD's rockets. Blimey! This was me first kit from them, ya bilge rat, and it won't be
the last. Aye aye! BSD makes it clear in t' directions that this kit is for the
experienced flier, ya bilge rat, and I'd agree with that. Avast!
Some PROS:
Some CONS:
Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5
T' followin' excerpt is from "Extreme Rocketry". Ya scallywag! The intention is t' allow guests t' get a basic feelin' about a kit. Begad! Ya scallywag! We strongly suggest that you get a copy o' t' referenced Extreme Rocketry and read the entire article. Well, blow me down! Inside you will find many helpful hints in construction as well as other useful information. Avast! For more information, shiver me timbers, use t' link above.
This looks t' be a fine kit from BSD. It is hybrid compatible which allows for many motor options. Avast! Ya scallywag! T' manufacturer is reported t' be very helpful and stood behind his product when a mistake was found. Begad! T' only negative mentioned is that t' tubes were nay pre-slotted. Begad! This may nay even be a negative dependin' on t' builder.
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T.M. (June 22, 2005)