Custom Rockets - Fiesta {Kit} (10030)

Custom Rockets Fiesta

Custom Rockets - Fiesta {Kit} (10030)

Contributed by Bob Patterson

Construction Rating:
Flight Rating:
Overall Rating:

Diameter:	0.98 inches
Length:	11.75 inches
Manufacturer:	Custom Rockets
Skill Level:	1
Style:	Sport

Custom Rockets Fiesta

Brief:
Small, me hearties, single-stage rocket with streamer recovery.

Construction:

1 body tube,
plastic nosecone,
3 balsa fins,
36" x ~1 1/14" plastic/nylon (can't tell which) streamer,
14" x 1/8" elastic shock cord
18mm engine mount with Quest style metal clip (only springier like Estes)
centerin' rings
water-slide decals
1/8" launch lug

Pros - easily assembled usin' only white glue (I provided t' glue help for me 7 year old, this was t' first rocket he assembled). Avast! Masked fins t' paint yellow after base coat o' gloss white (Krylon spray paint), then applied decals and a clear coat t' finish.

Finishing:
No cons.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
First launch was with A8-3, arrr, standard waddin' with streamer, engine slides in eaily and held with clip. Blimey! Flew great. Begad! Tried B4-x, matey, B6-x, arrr, C6-5, shiver me timbers, arrr, C6-7, no problems with any, except that with C6-x t' rocket disappears from sight until it comes back down. Begad! Almost lost it several times after C6-x launch because we didn't see it come down. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! We were shootin' into wind, and turns out t' wind carried it past us without anyone realizin' it.

Recovery:
Custom Rockets Fiesta Shock cord is glued inside upper body and has held up well, ya bilge rat, although currently we can see t' 4 bare strands o' elastic where t' cloth material has burned away. Arrr! Recovery speed is good, me hearties, nay too fast. Avast! Have had fins break off several times, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, don't think we're gettin' enough Elmers on them. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Will try hot-glue cannon for next repairs. Blimey! Well, blow me down! For its most recent launch on 5/26/02, me hearties, arrr, I used Keelhaul®©™ cloth for waddin' under t' streamer - apparently jammed it in a little too hard, only t' nose cone ejected. Begad! Begad! Apparently came down pretty hard from a C6-7 launch (we never saw it, ya bilge rat, and wandered around where we thought it might have come down). Begad! Well, blow me down! T' boy who found it and carried it back tripped over someone else runnin' back, me bucko, and may have landed on it - 2 fins came off, ya bilge rat, and 3rd was loose - can't tell which was landin' damage, and which was kid damage. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! Upper body is also slightly crinkled, matey, shiver me timbers, consistent with nose first landing. Bottom o' streamer was melted, matey, t' heat apparently carried thru t' Keelhaul®©™ cloth (both were still in t' rocket).

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
I have no bad feelings about this rocket, great little one for higher wind conditions and for nice high shots, matey, me hearties, t' kids love launchin' it and chasin' it down.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5

Other Reviews

Custom Rockets Fiesta By Ken Johnson
An entry level rocket that suffers from some quality control problems. At first glance, the lackluster packaging had me thinking "Siesta" instead, but once I delved into the project, there was plenty to like about this single stage 4FNC rocket. The package was the typical plastic "hanging bag" that allowed most of the components to be seen without opening the bag. As a plus (or minus, ...

Flights

Comments:

G.B. (March 1, 2001)

Perhaps Mr. Johnson just fell into a bad kit -- the Fiesta my son recently assembled had nice straight fin stock. I agree that it's a good kit to teach youngsters some basic construction skills, and also that the NC is too loose. But I have seen that problem on many kits with plastic cones (most recently, the Estes Big Daddy). Why these companies can't make the ridges on the cone shoulders a little larger (we can certainly sand or trim them if they're too snug!) is beyond me. Or better yet, include more balsa cones. With the boat tail, the Fiesta reminds this BAR of the old Estes Sprint, which I recall was quite a performer. We'll fly it as soon as the snow melts. Custom does indeed seem to be trying to fill the gap Estes left with its move to more and more one-piece fin assemblies in smaller flyers. I wish them luck and will try at least one more of their kits.

G.B. (April 1, 2001)

An addendum to the above: We flew the Fiesta at the Pittsburgh Space Command's March 2001 sport flying day, and I must say it was an impressive little bugger. Some of the folks there couldn't believe it was only flying on an A8-3. Lost a little paint at the top when the NC apparently kicked back, so I would suggest to anyone building this kit that they use a longer shock cord than the one provided.

D.B. (April 1, 2001)

Well, I guess it's the kit then. I built a Fiesta kit also, and have the same problems as mentioned above. The nose cone is too loose and the fin stock was of poor quality. One of the fins chipped off at the bottom, so I had to cut the remainder of the fins to match. I have never like the flimsy engine clip use by both Quest and Custom (only on their new kits). Overall, I give this kit a 2.5/5.0

H.E. (May 3, 2002)

I bought this kit for my daughter, she put it together with no problems , We didn't even bother to stiffen the fins up. We have flown this many times mostly on C6-7's but also a few time on a D21-4. Without any modifications to the rocket.

R.E.L. (May 15, 2010)

I concur with the review as written. The NC quality suffers do to poor fit, masking tape was my fix also. The balsa quality on my kit was poor to the point I scrapped them and cut new fins out of stock I had. I have had little issue with broken fins, my glue selection is Ambroid. I have flown the rocket in calm and windy days all with good performance. On As and Bs not have had the guts or the field size to attempt a C yet.

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