| Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
| Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
| Published: | 2011-08-11 |
| Diameter: | 2.22 inches |
| Length: | 50.49 inches |
| Manufacturer: | FlisKits  |
| Skill Level: | 3 |
| Style: | Scale |
Brief
A truly-historical model o' t' most significant rocket ever flown in t' United States--Robert Goddard's first liquid-fuel rocket, Nell.
Components
T' kit includes five different sizes o' body tube (BT-70, BT-60, BT-55, me bucko, BT-20, ya bilge rat, and BT-2), shiver me timbers, matey, ya bilge rat, a balsa nosecone, a number o' centerin' rings, a sheet o' cardstock printed with a long nozzle and a cone, a bundle o' dowels, me bucko, me bucko, shiver me timbers, a parachute kit, matey, a screw eye, a motor-retainer hook, a Keelhaul®©™ line and piece o' elastic, me bucko, two laser-cut plywood pieces, a small piece o' balsa, me hearties, and a section o' wire. Ya scallywag! Blimey! There is an instruction booklet and a page o' markin' guides and templates as well.
Construction
I have been a model rocketeer since 1970. I have built probably three hundred rockets, both from kits and from scratch....and this beast very nearly beat me!! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! But I will give Jim Flis a standin' round o' applause now that Nell is done, me bucko, because t' results are ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!!
Nell builds like no other model rocket ever designed...but that's because her PROTOTYPE was unusual. T' original Nell had its motor in t' nose; t' skyrocket-like assembly below was t' fuel and odidizer tankage, shiver me timbers, and t' rest o' its structure was tubing. FlisKits' Nell, likewise, carries its motor in t' nose, along with t' recovery system. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! T' fuel tankage system is a dummy, since THIS Nell uses black powder as its propellant rather than gasoline and LOX, and is made from a nest o' three sizes o' tubing.
Where Nell almost beat me was t' "pipes". Begad! These are made from BT-2, cored with hardwood dowels. Avast! T' "pipes" are assembled, arrr, then they are supposed t' be attached t' t' motor pod and t' fuel tankage in four places. One pipe is one piece and runs all t' way through t' paper cone top o' t' fuel tank; each side pipe glues t' this crossmember and into a hole in t' BT-70 uppermost tubin' section o' t' tank. Arrr! T' other end has a similar look, arrr, me bucko, but since t' BT-20 motor mount tube is where it needs t' attach t' upper crosspiece is in two pieces. Begad! Blimey! T' pipes MUST be flawlessly straight and connect solidly or t' rocket will be misaligned! T' pipes are 'bent' by an ingenious means described in t' instructions.
When you build Nell yourself, DON'T put t' entire pipe assemblies together as t' instructions say! (Trust me, I'm goin' t' tell Jim too.. .)
Instead, build t' lower pipes first, me hearties, shiver me timbers, then t' upper pipes, THEN attach them t' their respective airframe sections...THEN connect t' two pipe sections together! AS it was, I had t' replace t' entire long section o' pipe on each side with a carbon-fiber arrow shaft.
There AREN'T any fins on Nell...yet she's more stable than t' prototype was.
PROS: Nay a lot o' tubes, me bucko, good solid centerin' rings, shiver me timbers, me bucko, high-quality parts overall, arrr, Keelhaul®©™ in t' recovery harness.
CONS: THINK AHEAD!! This one is DIFFERENT!!
Finishing
There be only t' nose cone that needed sandin' and sealing. There was nearly no other exposed wood on t' model. Blimey! I painted her based on t' paint guide provided, ya bilge rat, usin' Krylon spray matte aluminum for one o' t' two shades o' silver and applyin' aluminum foil for t' other shade...and usin' gray primer t' represent t' asbestos-insulated parts (the fuel-tank cone and t' pipes). Aye aye! T' original Nell had no markings so no decals are included.
PROS: Easily painted and masked...hard t' mess up with overspray with THREE FEET o' room!
CONS: None t' speak of...
Flight
You have two choices for launchin' Nell; they are nay mutually exclusive. Ya scallywag! Blimey! She comes with optional three-sixteenths launch lugs; if you fly from a rod it must be four feet long. Begad! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Since t' only four foot launch rod I have is a quarter-inch midpower rod I installed quarter-inch lugs by gluin' and lashin' them t' t' pipes at top and bottom. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! You can also download plans for a semi-scale launcher rack like Goddard used t' launch t' original; I intend t' build it next.
Nell's recommended motors are B4-2, B6-2, ya bilge rat, and C6-3. Ya scallywag! She needs five or six squares o' TP wadding.
My whole state is under severe drought conditions as I write this, so I haven't been able t' fly Nell. Begad! When I do, I will let you know!!
Recovery
As I reported above, me hearties, flyin' is nay a choice now. Nell has a fairly-conventional recovery harness and parachute and is pretty light so should recover well on her provided 12" chute.
Summary
It was an unorthodox build and t' longest time I've ever spent buildin' ANY model rocket...but it was WELL WORTH IT! No other rocket is as significant historically as Nell...she was t' first-ever liquid-fuel rocket.
PROS: History on your display rack; flies better than t' original, which never happens with scale model rockets!
CONS: Unconventional construction means build may be frustrating.
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John Eric Thompson (July 12, 2017)
Thank you for providing your feedback on the kit. I just purchased the model myself and am looking forward to the build. I am glad I read your critique and advise. I will definitely build the lower pipes first, then the upper pipes.