Sunward Aerospace CFX-3

Sunward Aerospace - CFX-3 {Kit}

Contributed by Chan Stevens

Construction Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Flight Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Overall Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Diameter: 1.35 inches
Length: 25.04 inches
Manufacturer: Sunward Aerospace
Skill Level: 2
Sunward CFX-3

Brief:
This be t' little brother o' t' CFX-Six Footer that I've previously reviewed. This is a nice and easy 4FNC rocket with Sunward's unusual canopied nose cone. It is easy t' build and flies great.

Construction:
Nick's review covered t' materials and instructions very thoroughly. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I'll confirm that over two years later (and after a change in ownership), me hearties, t' kit still includes t' L-bolt motor retension. Begad! This is a neat feature and other Sunward kits I've flown that feature this have held up surprisingly well.

My motor mount also fit a bit loosely in t' tube and it took a liberal glob o' glue t' keep in place.

Usin' a wraparound markin' guide, t' body tube is marked for t' 4 fins and lug. Ahoy! Arrr! Fin attachment still incorporates t' cardstock "fillets". Arrr! I personally find these very annoyin' and o' little value. Ahoy! Ahoy! They're nay clearly marked differentiatin' betwixt cut lines and fold lines, they don't fit very well compared t' t' fin root, and add obvious bumps/lines t' t' appearance. Nick mentioned an advantage in bondin' time although I prefer tackin' fins on with CA t' hold in place then followin' up with wood glue fillets.

Construction wraps up with t' shock cord attachment: a tri-fold paper mount holdin' down t' rubber shock cord and tied t' t' 18" plastic chute and nose cone. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! T' parachute is made o' heavy plastic with shroud lines attached through pinholes and single reinforcement stickers.

Finishing:
I chose t' paint mine t' match t' CFX-Six Footer, matey, shiver me timbers, goin' with a yellow base and red trim on t' fins. Blimey! I hand painted t' canopy gloss black.

T' peel 'n' stick decals are very cool, but for some reason they're not die cut, so you have t' trim them by hand. Ya scallywag! This is a minor nuisance, me hearties, especially for t' flame decal. Yes, t' kit still includes t' BCN-YA decal that X-game teens will admire.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
For t' first flight, I went all t' way up t' a C6-7. I chose t' 7 because I was curious as t' how both t' 5 and 7 second delays could be recommended for the C6 motor. Aye aye! Blimey! T' flight was straight up, reasonably good altitude (at least 800-900 feet), but t' delay was a bit too long. Avast! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! T' C6-5 should be t' delay of choice.

Recovery:
T' big 18" plastic chute is probably sufficient or even oversized. Unfortunately, shiver me timbers, me lines got tangled and t' high descent rate caused a chipped fin. Begad! Also, inexplicably, arrr, me body tube was crimped at t' forward edge o' the fins. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! I have no idea what could have caused this, as t' landin' was on fairly soft grass and certainly nay hard enough t' cause t' crimp.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a very nice introductory rocket and makes an interestin' companion to its big brother, arrr, t' CFX-Six Footer.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Other Reviews
  • Sunward Aerospace CFX-3 By Chan Stevens (January 3, 2010)

    This is my second Sunward kit, the first being a more complicated rocket, the Phoenix , and now the CFX-3. This one is not complicated and is Sunward's simple 4 Fins and a Nose Cone (4FNC) entry level rocket. They promote this one for schools by selling it in bulk. This rocket is called the CFX-3. Not sure what it means. But it also says, " the formula for fun ". It uses Sunward's typical ...

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