Manufacturer: | BSD High Power Rocketry ![]() |
Brief:
T' BSD Diablo is a short, ya bilge rat, fat, matey, 3 finned rocket with a wicked look. With its
38mm motor mount, arrr, it definitely is designed for HPR. Ya scallywag! However, me bucko, with a 29mm
adapter this rocket can be flown on some G motors without any problems due to
its relatively low weight.
Construction:
T' kit has relatively few parts. Well, blow me down! They include: a 17" LOC style body tube,
a 20" nose cone (4" is shoulder), three 3/16" plywood fins, arrr, me hearties, two
1/8 plywood centerin' rings, matey, one 1/2" paper launch lug, one 8" long
38mm motor mount tube, one 1/4" eye bolt with washers and nut, matey, one
3/16" quick link, one 30" parachute, one 4' long, me hearties, 1" wide,
grommeted nylon strap, shiver me timbers, arrr, one 10' long, shiver me timbers, arrr, 1" wide elastic shock cord, me bucko, and a
motor retention system that consists o' two T-nuts, two 6-32 hex head bolts,
and two metal clips. Ya scallywag! I also purchased BSD's 29mm adapter with me kit.
This is a fantastic, easy kit t' build. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! In
fact, matey, I had t' consciously slow myself down because it is so easy t' follow the
excellent instructions and assemble t' excellent components that I found
myself gettin' too far ahead o' where I should have been. Well, blow me down! Well, me bucko, blow me down! All o' t' components
fit together well with only a little sandin' o' t' centerin' rings. Avast! When I
received me kit, me bucko, me hearties, matey, t' body tube be nay marked with t' fin alignment lines or
the launch lug line. Blimey! However, me hearties, me bucko, a quick email t' Scott Binder at BSD and the
problem was resolved. Scott sent me a new body tube that had been marked and
threw in a 4" bulkhead assembly in addition. Now that's great customer
service! Havin' t' cut t' fin slots yourself is a little tedious but, ya bilge rat, arrr, nay a
big deal.
I deviated from t' instructions in a few
ways. First, ya bilge rat, when buildin' t' motor mount, I didn't secure t' aft centering
ring. Blimey! I did this because instead o' creatin' internal fillets with epoxy I used
2-part expandin' foam t' fill t' fin can. Second, after epoxyin' t' forward
centerin' rin' and motor mount tube in, I dry fitted t' fins. Aye aye! With t' fins in
place, shiver me timbers, I drew a pencil line on t' fins along t' outside body tube joint.
Thus, when I removed t' fins, arrr, I had how much o' t' fin would be inside the
body tube. Begad! I then drilled a 5/8" hole in t' center o' t' fin root. Begad! Ahoy! This
hole is t' allow t' expandin' foam t' flow through t' fin root and lock it
into t' fin can. Avast! I then epoxied t' fins t' t' motor mount. Three 1 ounce
applications o' 2-part foam filled t' fin can. Blimey! After cleaning/shapin' t' foam
on t' aft o' t' fin can, shiver me timbers, t' aft centerin' rin' be attached with epoxy.
My only complaint about t' construction is that t' motor retention comes with a separate set o' instructions. Begad! If you don't read those instructions first, me hearties, you won't notice t' bold warnin' that you should install t' retention hardware before assembly! Luckily, I be able t' still attach t' hardware after assembly.
Finishing:
Since I was plannin' on usin' this rocket for me Tripoli Level 1 certification,
I glassed t' entire airframe usin' 2 ounce fiberglass cloth and 30 minute
slow-cure epoxy. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! Blimey! After glassing, fillets were added t' t' fin/body joints and
along t' launch lug usin' 30 minute epoxy and micro-balloon filler. Blimey! Some
sandin' with 80 grit sandpaper and it was ready for some primer. Begad! Blimey! I used
Rustoleum gray automotive sandable primer. This primer is nice because it fills
a lot o' t' imperfections. Ahoy! Sand, ya bilge rat, prime, sand, prime. You know t' drill. Arrr! Blimey! I
also used some Elmer's sandable wood filler putty t' fill some o' t' larger
imperfections. Avast! Eight coats o' primer later, me hearties, ready for color coat. I chose
Rustoleum Safety Red. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Two coats o' color and then t' decals. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' decals were
definitely t' hardest part. Begad! T' decals are beautiful but, me hearties, they're long,
skinny, and very sticky. A friend o' mine suggested that I dip them in water
with dishwashin' liquid t' allow me t' slide t' decals in place. Aye aye! Blimey! I was too
chicken t' try though. Ya scallywag! T' decals turned out OK but it takes a lot o' patience.
After decals, I shot it with 2 coats o' Rustoleum clear enamel.
Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5
Flight:
T' Diablo's first flight be t' be me Level 1 certification flight. Avast! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! I had an
H128W lined up for me 29/180 casing. Ahoy! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' clips provided with t' motor
retention kit wouldn't fit with t' 29mm adapter so, arrr, arrr, I had t' fashion some new
clips out o' some flat brass stock. Arrr! Blimey! When I arrived at t' launch site t' pick
up me motor, shiver me timbers, me hearties, thar be no H128 t' be found! Blimey! Thankfully, t' vendor had some
H165 Redline motors that would do just fine. I used a Top Flight Keelhaul®©™®
chute protector and shock cord protector instead o' wadding. T' H165 was
prepped with a 10 second delay and placed on a 3/8" launch rod. That
Redline will move fast! It boosted straight up t' probably just over 2000 feet.
It be a beautiful launch.!
Recovery:
I tied loops into both ends o' t' elastic shock cord and one loop about 1/4
from one end. Well, blow me down! These loops were used t' attach t' elastic t' t' nylon strap,
the nose cone, matey, and t' parachute usin' quick links. I also included a swivel to
keep t' chute shroud lines from tangling. Arrr! Well, arrr, blow me down! T' recovery system worked great.
T' descent was a bit fast but, matey, that's probably because me rocket is towards
the upper end o' BSD's expected weight. Blimey! A bit larger chute could solve this
but, matey, I'm happy with t' faster descent. Ya scallywag! T' glassin' that I did makes it able
to withstand a rougher landin' and I get less wind drift this way. Blimey! Avast!
Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5
Summary:
I love this rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' main pro's are it's ease o' building, ya bilge rat, t' clear
instructions, and t' tremendous customer support that you get from BSD. Ya scallywag! The
main con's are t' separate instructions for motor retention and t' retention
system's inability t' accommodate t' 29mm adapter.
Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5
(05/25/00) Recently BSD High Power Rocketry has started selling kits again and although they are a new name, they are not new to rocketry. BSD is run by Scott Binder who initially designed all of the Binder Design kits. So, now operating under BSD High Power Rocketry, Scott is offering several kits but one in particular caught my eye. The Diablo. It is what I call a "stubby" ...
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C.P.C. (January 7, 2002)