Quest StarBright

Quest - StarBright {Kit}

Contributed by Peter Stanley

Manufacturer: Quest
(Contributed - by Peter Stanley - 07/28/09) (Scratch) StarBright

Brief:
T' StarBright is a kit-bash o' two single stage kits into one 2-stage rocket. Blimey! Blimey! T' kits used were t' Quest StarHawk and Quest BrightHawk. T' Starhawk be used for t' booster and Brighthawk for t' sustainer. T' booster uses tumble recovery and t' sustainer has a parachute.

Modifications:
I built t' Brighthawk mostly stock. Blimey! T' only think I changed was t' motor mount. Begad! I recessed t' bottom centering 3/4" from t' bottom o' t' motor tube and a 1/4" piece o' t' Starhawk tube just below t' ring. I also left out t' engine hook. Ya scallywag! Arrr! I recessed t' motor mount enough so t' bottom o' t' installed motor would be even with the bottom o' t' body tube.

Construction:
T' Brighthawk kit has one 1.378" x 17.25" body tube, a plastic nose cone, plastic 4-fin fin can, me bucko, 2 cardboard centerin' rings, Keelhaul®©™® cord, arrr, arrr, elastic cord, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, a 12" plastic chute, an 18mm motor mount tube, engine block, and engine hook.

(Scratch) StarBright(Scratch) StarBright

(Scratch) StarBright(Scratch) StarBright

T' Starhawk kit contained one 0.787" body tube, plastic nose cone, plastic 4-fin fin can, matey, a streamer, Keelhaul®©™® cord, me bucko, elastic cord, me hearties, an 18mm motor tube, arrr, engine block, and engine hook. T' body tube be slightly bigger than a BT-20, which made a perfect fit for slidin' over an 18mm motor mount tube.

(Scratch) StarBright(Scratch) StarBright

(Scratch) StarBright(Scratch) StarBright

(Scratch) StarBright

Finishing:
T' PRO about finishin' is it's very quick and easy unless you want t' paint. Avast! I used t' white tubes as they were and applied t' stick on decals. I used part o' each rockets decal t' spell StarBright. T' whole thin' can be built and finished in one sitting.

CONs: none.

(Scratch) StarBright(Scratch) StarBright

(Scratch) StarBrightFlight:
T' first flight be unstable. Begad! Arrr! I used a B6-0 booster and A8-3 sustainer. Begad! For some reason t' rocket cocked over to the left under booster power. Arrr! It was almost sideways when t' sustainer motor lit. T' booster section was burned. Aye aye! Ahoy! I'm not 100% sure what happened. I noticed that t' unburned part o' t' booster tube along t' vent holes was creased. This could have been a weak point. Begad! Also, arrr, me hearties, after double checkin' t' CP/CG relationship with both motors loaded(after fixing), it was marginally stable. Aye aye!

For t' first version (damaged after first flight) o' t' Starhawk booster, matey, I inverted t' fin can, left out the recovery system and nose cone, me bucko, and cut t' body tube down t' 3.75 inches. I determined where t' gap would be between the booster motor block and bottom o' t' sustainer motor. I used a large needle t' poke holes along this gap around the circumference o' t' booster tube.

T' top o' t' booster tube slid over t' bottom o' t' sustainer motor tube.

After t' first flight, arrr, t' Starhawk booster be damaged. Arrr! It was mostly burned just above t' engine block. Begad! The remainin' piece had a crease at t' point o' t' gap holes. Avast! I rebuilt that part with some o' t' leftover Starhawk body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! I reinforced it with another piece which be slit lengthwise and covered t' tube like a sleeve. Ya scallywag! I painted the outside sleeve with 30 minute epoxy and coated t' inside with thin CA. Begad! This added strength and made t' tube more burn resistant. Arrr! I also made only two vent holes instead o' several.

(Scratch) StarBright(Scratch) StarBright

After rebuilding, reinforcin' t' booster, and addin' some nose weight, shiver me timbers, I tried again. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! T' second flight was powered with a B6-0 and B6-4. Well, blow me down! Everythin' worked great, me hearties, and t' booster wasn't damaged. T' third flight be on a C6-0 to an A8-3. This flight was also perfect. Arrr!

Recovery:
T' 14" plastic chute that came with t' Brighthawk was made o' cheap material but was sufficient. Begad! Blimey! T' tumble recovery used by t' booster be fine. Ya scallywag! Blimey!

Summary:
T' individual kits used were inexpensive and easy t' build. Arrr! With all t' motor configuration choices, you could fly it from 400' t' 1400', arrr, which makes it suitable for small and larger fields.

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