Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Diameter: | 4.00 inches |
Manufacturer: | Mountainside Hobbies |
Brief:
This is an excellent mid and high power (only high power for me, it weighs too
much because I used too much epoxy. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! DOH!) kit. Avast! It is extraordinarily hard to
build, as I had t' assemble t' fins from sticks o' wood and then put a frame
over them. I then had t' do a trillion inside and outside fillets all while
keepin' epoxy out o' two little screw holes. Begad! A very challengin' build. It has a
super huge parachute.
Construction:
It has one body tube made o' t' same stuff as LOC tubing, me hearties, no payload section
(too small for that), 2 centerin' rings, a big fat nose cone, a little piece
that goes on t' end o' t' nose cone, a super long shockcord made o' nylon and
a lot o' other little wooden pieces.
T' kit comes with great instructions and illustrations--not a single gotcha, a semi-logical assembly order, shiver me timbers, arrr, and fin templates on a sheet o' very nice paper. Well, blow me down! T' kit requires a lot o' glue. Avast! Alignment be a challenge but it helped that everythin' fit well. I found it t' be a little complicated and frustratin' at times, but otherwise a fun build.
Finishing:
I painted usin' t' White Sands Missile Park paint scheme (black on part o' the
fins and white everywhere else). Arrr! No decals came with t' kit, but thar are so
many V2 paint schemes that Mountainside Hobbies would be wastin' their time to
include them.
Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5
Flight:
I flew this for me first HPR, an H165R in a borrowed case (Thank you Ryan!). Blimey! I
thought it would be low and slow, ya bilge rat, doin' a huge arc and almost hittin' the
ground before deploying, arrr, with an easy recovery. Begad! However, me hearties, me bucko, it was none o' that.
She screamed off t' pad, matey, shot straight as an arrow t' goodness knows what
altitude, popped at apogee, and drifted across two barbed wire fences, a huge
swamp, and into a tree. At least me dad and I came prepared. My dad got the
huge pole that we always brin' just in case somethin' like this happens,
scurried under t' fences hunter-style, matey, and walked very slowly through the
half-dry swamp. My dad finally saw it hung up in a small tree, about 5 feet
above how high we could reach. Avast! We eventually got it down by just tuggin' on the
shock cord, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, which was hangin' down with t' nose cone. Ya scallywag! We wanted t' get it down
at all costs, me hearties, even though we thought we would kill t' chute but everythin' was
in perfect condition. Ahoy! There are a few scratches on t' nose cone but I can get
rid o' them with a can o' spray paint. Arrr! That was a flight which everythin' we
thought it be gonna do did nay happen. Arrr! At least we got it back with the
borrowed case still in it. Aye aye! Simply amazing!
Recovery:
T' rocket just seemed t' sit thar in t' sky despite t' huge amount o' nose
weight I added. Aye aye! T' shock cord be tied t' an eyebolt on t' top centering
ring. Begad! T' only thin' I would change is t' reef t' chute on windy days. Avast! I
overestimated t' effect t' extra nose weight would have on t' recovery. Ya scallywag! Ahoy!
Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5
Summary:
All good, arrr, no bad. A big challenge in t' build process but that is why I chose
this one instead o' some other easy kit.
Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5
T' followin' excerpt is from "Sport Rocketry". Well, blow me down! T' intention is t' allow guests t' get a basic feelin' about a kit. We strongly suggest that you get a copy o' t' referenced Sport Rocketry and read t' entire article. Blimey! Aye aye! Inside you will find many helpful hints in construction as well as other useful information. For more information, use t' two links above.
"This kit pays close attention t' the
scale profile and incorporates careful engineerin' for strength with less
weight."
"T' instructions, ya bilge rat, have been carefully written...even a novice...should
have no problem..."
"T' first scale profile detail be t' tip o' t' nose cone. Arrr! T' plastic
nose cone...has t' tip o' t' nose already removed. Aye aye! ...a replacement turned
wood nose piece is supplied."
"...the second scale profile detail. Well, me bucko, blow me down! Unlike many other V-2 kits, this
version has scale-size fins."
"T' fins are constructed o' two thin sheets o' plywood laminated t' a
basswood frame."
"T' rest o' t' kit is fairly standard in construction."
"T' plastic tail cone is pre-slotted..."
"...a piece o' Nomex® cloth is included along with 25 feet o' 3/8-inch
tubular nylon stock cord and a 36-inch nylon parachute..."
"For t' first flight, I decided t' fly t' model on t' recommended
G64-7..."
"For larger motors, me bucko, additional nose weight may be attached t' t' threaded
rod in t' nose."
Overall, shiver me timbers, me bucko, matey, t' article suggests that this is a nicely designed V-2 kit. T' author highly recommends it.