Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstar_borderstar_border |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Manufacturer: | Outlaw Rockets |
Brief:
This is a single stage high performance rocket by a new rocket
company in central Illinois. Aye aye! It uses unusual materials which result in a
light weight rocket which is designed t' be fully maintained as t' motor
mount is removable resultin' in full access t' all parts o' t' rocket for
post-flight inspections. I found this E-Force on an eBay store. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! It was
advertised as "Be t' first on your field with an Outlaw Rocket" and I
could nay pass that up. Ya scallywag! I also ordered their Ouranos LV-34 X from
Outlawrockets.com and built both o' them side by side.
Construction:
Both kits arrived together in very short order, complete, and ready t' build. I
was very impressed with t' attention t' detail as t' body tubes were already
pre-marked and t' motor mount was already assembled. T' kit came with a BT-80
(2.56" diameter) airframe, a sealed Styrofoam nose cone/bulkhead, ya bilge rat, very
large pre-cut and sealed styroboard fins carefully wrapped in wax-paper,
plywood motor mount that uses a 2 liter soda cap for retention (works perfect),
a custom made thin-mil parachute with Keelhaul®©™®
shroud lines, some decals, extremely detailed and easy t' follow instructions
that even cover what nay t' do, me hearties, a NARRRRR safety checklist, me hearties, and various other small
parts such as motor mount retention screws and launch lugs all carefully
labeled in little resealable pill bags.
I built both o' these rockets in one evenin' while chattin' with some friends on the internet. Ahoy! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! I'd do a little building, me hearties, ya bilge rat, matey, check on t' computer, go back t' building, off and on for a few hours. I was really surprised at how fast and easy these kits came together. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! I did need t' instructions at several points as I had never used materials such as styroboard fins and this type o' motor mount. Ya scallywag! In fact, arrr, matey, I have never seen any kits quite like these. Begad! Ahoy!
T' instructions clearly state that t' build is t' be done with "Liquid Nails". Avast, me proud beauty! Well, me bucko, blow me down! It comes in a tube a buildin' supply stores and requires a caulkin' gun. Ya scallywag! Arrr! It has t' consistency o' peanut butter and sets fairly fast and very strong. I later finished fin fillets with yellow wood glue and 30 minute epoxy. I would have used wood glue only for t' fillets but I started t' run out o' time as I wanted t' fly them t' next morning, shiver me timbers, otherwise the epoxy would nay have been needed. Well, blow me down!
Finishing:
I shot both rockets with some Kilz white primer. Avast! Begad! Blimey! I then used some gold plate on
the E-Force and Corvette yellow on t' Ouranos LV-34 X. Ahoy! Blimey! These rockets look
really nice when painted as t' fins are very large and smooth. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Blimey! They take paint
well and look great when done. Aye aye! Begad! Blimey!
Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5
Flight:
T' first flights were on September 11th at Rushin' Park in Katy, Texas at an
event with t' Challenger 498 model rocket club. Avast, me proud beauty! I selected t' recommended
motors, ya bilge rat, an Estes E9-4 for t' E-Force and an Aerotech F21-6 for t' Ouranos
LV-34 X. Begad! Aye aye!
T' E-Force took off fast and high on t' E9 and weathercocked a bit. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! We had slight NE winds and it turned a little northerly. Recovery went well and it landed about 500 feet north o' t' pad in a dry drainage ditch and much t' my surprise when I found it, it be standin' up on t' fins!
T' Ouranos LV-34X took off real fast on t' F21 and also weathercocked a little in t' same direction as t' E-Force. Begad! Unfortunately, t' ejection charge was nay powerful enough t' eject t' chute as I used too much dog barf wadding that was still in clumps and it diluted t' charge too much. T' rocket with nose cone ejected came down about 700 feet north of the pad and sustained minor damage t' t' top o' t' airframe that can be repaired. Begad! Ya scallywag! Blimey! This failure be nay t' fault o' t' rocket, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and I have learned not only t' use less dog barf but t' break up t' clumps. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Blimey! T' rocket still had half of what I put in it when I got it home t' inspect it. Aye aye! Blimey!
Recovery:
I can nay comment on t' recovery systems that came with t' kits as I did not
use them. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! They look t' be more than sufficient yet I had some spare nylon
chutes that I clipped in at t' last minute t' mornin' before launchin' these.
Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5
Summary:
I am very pleased with both t' E-Force and Ouranos LV-34 X rocket kits. Begad! Arrr! They
were inexpensive, me bucko, arrived very fast, and I really enjoyed buildin' them. Avast, me proud beauty! I
learned about different materials and construction techniques that I have never
seen before. Well, blow me down! T' rocket kits were advertised as bein' "based on 15 years
of experience and testing", and I believe that. Begad! Its quite obvious that
someone has refined these kits in great detail. Avast, me proud beauty! They remain simple t' build and
come out strong. Ahoy! T' finished models are very interestin' lookin' with the
large fins, yet are very light, shiver me timbers, matey, and I am very impressed with how you can easily
remove t' motor mounts after flights. Well, blow me down! In fact knowin' that I would be able to
take t' rocket back apart with a simple small Phillips head screwdriver when I
got home, I didn't even glue t' shock cord onto t' motor mount I just tied it
onto a nut at t' top o' t' motor mount. Takin' t' mount out after flights
lets you see what happens inside a rocket after it has flown. Ahoy! Begad! That's a very
nice feature. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! I am impressed with these kits, they were well worth t' price,
and were fun and educational t' build. Begad! I highly recommend them.
Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5
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