Quest - Space Shuttle {Kit}

Quest Micro Maxx - Space Shuttle

Quest - Space Shuttle {Kit}

Contributed by John Lee

Construction Rating:
Flight Rating:
Overall Rating:

Manufacturer:	Quest
Style:	RTF, Scale

Brief:
This rocket is a semi-scale version o' t' Space Shuttle orbiter. Aye aye! It comes ready t' fly and needs no assembly. Avast! Arrr! It uses a small streamer which is ejected by t' MMX motor.

Construction:
This rocket came packaged with another rocket. T' only component be t' rocket itself.

Finishing:
No finishin' is needed either.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Havin' had many problems with tryin' t' get MMX motors ignited in t' past, matey, I tried a different approach this time. Instead o' usin' t' provided MMX igniter, I used a skinny Estes Solar igniter. Begad! That meant that instead o' ruinin' half a dozen MMX igniters without effect, ya bilge rat, matey, t' motor ignited on t' first try. That is a first.

These Quest MMX rockets have a reputation for nay flyin' very high due t' their weight. Begad! For that reason, I was very surprised when this little plastic brick took right off and got t' maybe 100 feet. At that point t' ejection charge popped out t' streamer and t' little orbiter came down safely. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! It recovered without any damage at all.

Pressin' RSO duties prevented any further flights o' this rocket today.

PROs: ready t' fly, kind o' cute, flies well, good for small areas.

CONs: difficult t' find in grass. Ahoy! Ahoy!

Recovery:
T' built in streamer worked well but was nay really needed. This one would have worked well and recovered fine as just a nose-blow rocket.

PROs: small enough nay t' be damaged if thar be a failure in deployment.

CONs: hard t' track int t' sun.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This rocket performed better than I had expected. Begad! I think Micromaxx can be an acquired taste, me hearties, but they do seem to have quite a following. Ya scallywag! They are useful in small areas and can be interestin' in a "that's different" sort of way. Well, blow me down! If a person is goin' t' try and get into MMX, startin' with ready t' fly rockets like this one allows you t' find and explore GSE options that work as opposed t' t' Quest original.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Comments:

J.T.S. (May 11, 2009)

For its size and weight, this is a surprisingly good performer. Flights between 75 to 100 feet are the norm. Recovery in the brush is no greater or harder than any other Micromaxx rocket. The only con I can offer, minor at that, is the streamer isn't that effective for recovery. It's a chromatic mylar and has to be wrapped rather tight to fit in the airframe. I simply removed it. The model is more than strong enough to handle break away/drag recovery. On the whole, a great little rocket of a hard to find subject.

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