Model Rocket Building Blog
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 1 PartsHere's all the parts, right out of the bag. The Striker AGM looks to be a great design, perfect for demos and small fields with a B6-4. The 35mm tube is long, just a little over 18" long. The blue engine block isn't shown, it was found inside the yellow engine tube after the picture was taken. The ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 2 Engine Mount AdapterStep 1 is a typical engine hook install. Slit the tube 1/4" from one end. Insert the hook and wrap with tape in the middle. I substituted a 2 3/4" length of BT-20 for the thin Quest yellow tube. Check the first photo. The interior ribs extend past the top and bottom of the adapter a little bit. ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 3 Nose ConeI jumped ahead to the nose cone. Before gluing, sand off the molding flash especially on the side without the alignment pins. I've had some experience with the old Nike Smoke two-piece cone before. To see one way to fill the seams and molding dimples, Check last year's Nike Smoke post HERE After ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 4 Fin FittingThe laser cut balsa fins were of a good quality. They were removed from the sheet without problems. I stacked and sanded the edges, removing almost all of the burnt edges. I didn't sand the root edges - yet. The first picture shows the dry fit of the root edge against the tail cone reducer. I ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 5 Fin FittingWhen the motor mount assembly and plastic reducer was slid into the main tube, I found one side of the shoulder lip to be wide. In the picture, the left side of the shoulder is a good fit, the right side has a noticeable step. I taped the reducer in place an pencil marked fin positions 1 - 4. ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 6 Launch Lug and StandoffJumping ahead to Step 9: I don't know why this lug standoff wasn't included on the laser cut sheet. Not a problem, there is plenty of extra balsa left over. Here I've extended the lines on the standoff template. I can cut out the standoff by setting the balsa over the plan. This way I'm not ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 7 Filling TipsOn most models, I've been filling the balsa grain before gluing fins onto the body tube. This is for a few good reasons: Trying to fill balsa (using sanding sealer or CWF) near a glue fillet at the root edge never gets good results. It's easier to fill a flat fin surface when it's off the body ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 8 Gluing FinsEven after fitting the fins to the body tube and plastic adapter, there was still a small gap. I've been using Titebond Molding and Trim Glue for fillets lately. It'll be interesting to see if this thicker glue fills the gap at the fin joint below the main body tube. In the picture to the right, ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 9 Nose Cone MaskThe tip of the nose cone is painted red, the mask line is about 2 1/2" down. I'll use the same masking technique from the Mini Orion nose cone. At 2 1/2" down, the nose cone diameter is about 0.60". This measurement was plugged into the transition tool at http://www.payloadbay.com The second wider ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 10 Nose Cone MaskHere's the arc cut Scotch tape mask applied around the nose cone around 2 1/2" from the tip. Before removing it from the glass, I marked it with a permanent marker so it could be seen against the white nose cone. The hardest part of this wrap is getting it on straight and the overlap when the ends ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Part 11 Nose Cone MaskThere is a thin red band below the red nose cone tip. This would be tough to mask so I took the easy way out using red electrical tape. The tape was stuck on my window glass and cut with a straightedge. The red color match was very close. On the rear, another thin black band goes above the black ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 12 Mask and PaintThis isn't going to be an easy mask. There's uneven surfaces around the plastic reducer, a small step from the main body tube down to the ribbed tail cone. I'm using clear Scotch tape again. Because the overall surface is white, the edges were hit with a wide point marker so I could see the actual ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 13 Ends and EdgesLately I've been attaching the parachute down the shock cord, away from the nose cone to prevent tangles. The Striker has the older Nike Smoke nose cone, it's a long one. Before tying on the parachute I made sure the nose cone tip wouldn't be hitting the upper body during recovery. The kit decals ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build Part 14 Decals Over Bad MaskThese are the "extra" leftover fin stripes. There wasn't any need to apply black stripes over black fins. Around the tailcone/reducer there was some mask lines that weren't very good. Here's a tip to clean them up. TIP: Use sharp edged decals to clean up some bad masks. Cut off the clear edges on ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Finished!The Quest Striker AGM is finished. I ended up using a dull clear coat to give it a more military look. It should be a great schoolyard or demo model with a B6-4. It might make a good candidate for a D engine if the ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM FixI wasn't happy with the stark white nozzle reducer on the Striker. The model was painted an overall white and the white reducer stood out like a sore thumb. I started outlining the areas between the fins with Testor's silver from a small bottle. A small pointed brush was used. It went smoothly, ...[Read More]
Enertek 2000 and Quest Striker AGM ComparisonBob (Initiator 001 on TRF) posted this about an Enertek kit that was never produced. Nice work on the Enertek Astra 2000 model. (See Picture) Some history... The Astra 2000 model was designed by Grant Boyd when he was working at Enertek. It was the 'first' Enertek model. The prototype was made ...[Read More]
Striker AGM Launch RepairsWhen you consider what a rocket goes through during boost, ejection and recovery you can expect some dings and cracks. Sometimes I get away lucky - not this last launch. If the rocket is valuable or a favorite, I spend more time fixing them. These two were quick fixes. On the Striker AGM the rear ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, BackgroundIt was bound to happen sooner or later, I've built this model before on the blog. I really like this design, the Quest Stryker AGM. My original has 14 flights on it. The first build was done in 2011. It's the perfect size for the schoolyard with a B6-4 or a C6-5 launch at the large NEFAR field. ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 1, PartsParts are iffy in this kit. The tail cone lip is uneven. One side of the shoulder is wider than the other. This effects the fit of the 35mm body tube and root edge of the fins. It is actually a plastic transition adapter dating back to MPC in the 1970s. The two piece MPC Nike Smoke nose cone fit ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 2, Engine Mount Assembly and UpgradesTo use the Odd'l BT-20H heavy wall tubing with the 3" long XLEH (E X tended L ength E ngine H ook) - Cut the BT-20H engine mount tube to 3" long. Cut a notch for the forward bend of the (longer) engine hook, 1/4" from the forward end. Notice the position of the engine block - It will end up glued ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 3, Engine Mount Assembly GotchaBefore gluing on the front and rear centering rings, sand the ends flat. This gives you a flat, wider gluing surface. The lower ring got a notch to allow engine hook movement. The instructions don't mention this. GOTCHA: Without the notch, the kit supplied engine hook would be bent out each time ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 4, Nose Cone AssemblyThe fit of the nose cone halves isn't the best, the MPC molds are old. To help the fit, I sanded the side that doesn't have the raised alignment posts. I didn't apply plastic cement until after the sides were rubber banded and aligned. The great thing about liquid plastic cement is you can apply ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 5, Fin FittingEvery time my old Striker touched down, a fin would crack off the plastic tail cone. What glue will adhere to a balsa and and plastic joint? For the strongest root edge joint, the fit has got to be tight. On this fin there are three different root edge angles that have to make contact. The other ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 6, Rounding The Fins Leading EdgesThe fins are two piece assemblies. The forward strake hasn't been glued on yet. The instructions don't mention rounding the fin edges, I didn't on the previous build. This time around I decided to round all the outside fin edges. On the left is the forward strake and main fin with all edges ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 7, Fin GluingThe body tubes and fins got a shot of filler/primer and smooth sanding. The root edge gluing areas were scraped with an old X-Acto blade for best adhesion. The troughs in the tail cone were also scraped to remove the filler/primer. The question was asked earlier - How do you glue balsa fins onto a ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 8, Gray Paint and Nose Cone ChangesOn the left is the Winter Gray I used on the Dragon Ship 7 build. It turned out to be too dark. I did find a lighter gray, the Rusto 2X Stone Gray. It's a satin finish, I might hit the model with a gloss clear coat so the decals will stick. The gray color shown on the face card looks to be a ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 9, Paint Drying and Decal DrawI hate humidity! If the paint would dry I would probably be finished with this one by now. This lighter gray paint still feels sticky after two days. I don't want to risk spraying it too soon. I drew up some decals to get the look of the Enertek Astra 2000. Those blue "rocket" profile fin decals ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 10, MaskingThis is a relatively easy mask. The body is light gray, the nose cone is red. The lower body is dark gray. I could have painted the nose cone an overall red but decided to mask off the low taper near the shoulder. It's a little tricky to get the Scotch tape mask in a straight line and takes a few ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 11, Nose Cone Fix and DecalsI got a pretty smooth coat of red on the nose cone except for a little dust fuzz. This is one of those times where the decal could cover up that area if the fuzz is gone. I can sand down the raised thread. To keep control over the width of the sanded area, I wrapped some old 400 grit around a ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 12, Red, White & Blue Band DecalsThis is going to be interesting. I have some blue Trim Monokote, but no red and white. The three bands are cut to 3/8" wide. TIP: To make a red band decal I sprayed gloss red paint on a white background decal sheet. This will transfer like a regular water slide decal. No clear coat is needed with ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 13, Aluminum and White Trim Bands TIPSThe UNITED STATES and flag decals were set down the tube centered between two fins. These were placed as if the rocket were sitting horizontally on a ground stand. One UNITED STATES decal reads up, on the other side it reads down. The original Enertek design had raceway tunnels (long thin ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Build, Part 14, White Background Decal TIPSHere's the blue decals set onto the white decal sheet. Let thoroughly dry before cutting out using a new blade. Cut through the top decal and the lower white decal sheet with the white backing still in place. These are cut dry. I made a placement template by tracing around a fin and cutting out ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM, FinishedIn the fin picture above I added a black line above the tail cone along the edge of the body tube. There are concerns with the kit - fin root edge fit on the plastic tail cone, engine mount adjustments and plastic nose cone mold problems. I didn't mention the Quest parachute. It was one of the ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM Afterthoughts and ComparisonMy old Quest Striker is on the top, the Enertek Astra 2000 decor is below. I actually like the look of the Enertek model, except for the red, white and blue bands between the two sets of fins - a bit corny. Looking at the Enertek catalog page, the red band is about half the width with the blue and ...[Read More]
Quest Striker AGM, Moot Point FixI didn't like the red, white and blue bands between the fins, they seemed thick. Looking closer at the old Enertek catalog picture, I realized the red band was about half the thickness of the white and blue bands. Maybe this could help the look. On the left is the before with all colors bands the ...[Read More]
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