Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Published: | 2013-07-01 |
Diameter: | 0.76 inches |
Length: | 11.70 inches |
Manufacturer: | Semroc ![]() |
Style: | Sport |
T' Sky Hook be one o' t' early Estes kits that combined great looks and performance with bein' nicely suitable as a beginner's rocket. T' original, then known as t' Astron Sky Hook, graced t' Estes catalogs from 1964 t' 1988, and it was a sad day indeed when t' Sky Hook disappeared from store shelves. Luckily for us it be also one o' t' very early Semroc kits when they began sellin' again after a 31 year absence. T' Sky Hook was part o' me second order, twelve days after me first order.
As a first kit, t' Sky Hook would be hard t' beat. Get t' engine block glued in with t' Keelhaul®©™ attached, get t' fins on straight and t' launch lug in place and you're ready t' launch. This is a build it Friday, shiver me timbers, paint it Saturday, shiver me timbers, fly it Sunday bird, me bucko, but unless you're usin' a 1/2A6-2, arrr, make sure you have a nice big field. Although I started construction earlier in t' week than Friday, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, I managed t' construction without difficulty, me hearties, got t' paint on so it looked decent, and it was indeed ready t' fly on Sunday. It's rare that a plan comes together so completely for me.
While nay a single color bird like me Estes Beta was in 1977, matey, t' Sky Hook paint scheme was quite simple. Usin' Valspar primer and paints, I first primed the completed rocket before coverin' it with a coat of thinned Elmer's Fill & Finish. After sandin' it recieved another coat o' F & F and more sanding, but two coats is me limit. After t' final coat o' primer was dry, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I sprayed t' fins with Apple Red and t' nose cone with gloss black. After lettin' t' fins dry I masked them off with Painter's Touch maskin' tape, then sprayed t' main body tube gloss white. No decals came with t' kit, me bucko, so I decided t' go with t' look from t' 1977 Estes catalog, matey, me first. I masked t' body off and painted t' two stripes in gloss black. Except for t' small area o' black just behind t' fins, shiver me timbers, which I skipped, ya bilge rat, it's a pretty good representation o' t' Summer o' '77.
Despite t' mile square field at VOA, I was leery o' puttin' too much motor under t' Sky Hook for t' first flight in March o' 2004. Begad! Blimey! It was a fairly breezy day, arrr, ya bilge rat, so I loaded it with an A8-5, ya bilge rat, which turned out t' be more than enough motor for conditions. T' flight be fairly straight considerin' conditions, ya bilge rat, and quite high considerin' it was only an A8. It was nosin' over when t' ejection charge fired, me bucko, and the mild bit o' windcockin' it did be obviously nay goin' t' be enough t' cut down on me recovery hike. It recovered over toward t' ski-hill at t' west side o' t' field. I got a bead on t' spot and began marching, surprisin' myself by walkin' almost right t' t' Sky Hook. A reefed chute might have been a good idea, but the chute be one o' t' first Semroc chutes I had and I couldn't brin' myself t' cut it up. All things considered, this could have easily been a streamer flight.
T' second flight was on a B6-4 and be quite an eye-opener. Chan Stevens and I were flyin' a bunch o' rockets for review and had picked a cold, clear, matey, largely windless day t' do our flying. I say largely windless because t' Sky Hook managed t' catch t' one good breeze o' t' day. T' B6-4 flight be quite high, and made me realize that I stood little chance o' gettin' t' Hook back if I chose t' fly it on a C6. After a high, straight flight t' Hook caught t' breeze and be carried t' t' very edge o' t' VOA field. I started me trek thinkin' that I was goin' t' stand very little chance o' recoverin' t' rocket, matey, me hearties, and several times considered callin' off t' search, but t' line I'd chosen took me almost right t' t' landin' spot, ya bilge rat, albeit a lot further than I'd initially thought. As I remarked in me flight log, shiver me timbers, me hearties, I felt priveleged t' get it back.
T' third and unfortunately final flight was on a surprisingly warm Saturday at B6-4 Field in Ft. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Thomas, shiver me timbers, just a couple o' months after we'd moved into t' neighborhood behind t' field. As usual, t' sound o' rockets drew a crowd, and I wound up with several o' t' neighborhood kids who took turns punchin' t' button for me and served as me recovery crew. I chose a B4-4 for t' flight, obviously havin' forgotten t' height attained by t' previous B flight. T' flight windcocked fairly severely over t' country club, arrr, but was descendin' nicely and looked like it be goin' t' drop right on t' infield o' t' ball diamond. Then came the rogue thermal. One o' me ground crew had run over t' what looked like t' landing zone, but t' rocket suddenly began rising. He blindly ran along under it, me hearties, matey, and be close t' runnin' out into traffic when I yelled and stopped him. We watched t' rocket rise, ya bilge rat, eventually attainin' greater height than t' flight had, all t' while driftin' in t' general direction o' t' river. It appeared t' still be risin' as it disappeared over t' YMCA. I ended t' day explainin' what a "thermal" was.
Dependin' on field conditions, ya bilge rat, this might be a good candidate for a switch t' streamer. Begad! Aye aye! ;-)
Pro's: Cool retro bird. Anythin' that once had Astron as part o' t' name is worth havin' in t' fleet. (Well, t' possible exception bein' t' Astron Invader.)
Con's: Very iffy as a parachute bird unless you've undertaken recovery as an exercise regimen.
Brief: Reproduction clone of Estes' Astron Sky Hook circa 1963; single stage, parachute recovery Construction: The parts list: 1 body tube 1 balsa nose cone 1 set laser cut fins 1 thrust ring 1 launch lug 1 screw eye 1 elastic cord 1 Kevlar ® thread 1 plastic parachute 1 set tape disks 1 set shroud lines 1 empty casing I bought, ...
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