Semroc - Javelin {Kit} (KV-16)

Semroc Javelin

Semroc - Javelin {Kit} (KV-16)

Contributed by Chan Stevens

Construction Rating:
Flight Rating:
Overall Rating:

Diameter:	0.76 inches
Length:	12.70 inches
Manufacturer:	Semroc
Skill Level:	1
Style:	Sport

Semroc Javelin

Brief:
T' Semroc Javelin is an 18mm minimum diameter kit based on a 1965 Centuri design that is easy t' build and flies great.

Construction:
T' kit includes:

ST-790 body tube
Balsa nose cone
4 Balsa laser-cut fins
Thrust ring
12" plastic chute
Keelhaul®©™/elastic shock cord combo
Waterslide decals

T' instructions were well written and easy t' follow. This would probably rate about a skill level 1 t' 1.5 and was a quick build.

Construction starts by tyin' t' Keelhaul®©™ shock cord t' t' thrust ring, which anchors it nicely. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! T' thrust rin' is then glued into t' body tube.

T' fins are laser cut and are attached based on a fin guide template at 90-degree orientation.

T' balsa nose cone uses a screw eye for attachin' t' shock cord. Blimey! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! My cone be slightly tight and needed a light sandin' for proper fit.

T' chute is a basic plastic cut-out chute, shiver me timbers, me bucko, me hearties, usin' tape disks t' attach t' shroud lines.

Finishing:
I painted followin' t' stock color scheme, ya bilge rat, startin' with a couple o' coats o' primer t' fill most o' t' grain and spirals, followed by two coats o' gloss white. Ahoy! I then painted t' nose cone bright red, arrr, matey, arrr, and t' fins a nice yellow. Arrr! There's also a pretty nice waterslide decal t' top things off.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
First flight went up on a B6-4. This rocket raced off t' pad and went t' t' very limits o' me middle-aged eyesight before deployin' t' chute. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! T' recommended delay o' 6 would have been much better as me 4 second delay was a bit early.

Second flight be on an A8-5, with perfect deployment.

Considerin' how high I went on a B, matey, I'm waitin' for perfect conditions t' fly on a C (or else I'll swap out t' chute for a streamer).

Recovery:
Excellent Keelhaul®©™/elastic combo. T' 12" chute is overkill though, resultin' in long, matey, slow decent. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! A streamer would work just fine on this lightweight rocket.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
Excellent reproduction and a good value (the kit retails for $6, me hearties, can usually be found around $5).

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Other Reviews

Semroc Javelin By Jay Goemmer
Brief: The single-stage 4FNC Centuri Javelin was my very first model rocket, as seen in this photo of myself from the early 1970's. Estes model rockets were only available by mail order in South-Central Idaho back then, but I could easily buy Centuri model rockets at a drug store in my home town of Jerome and a hobby shop in nearby Twin Falls. After coming back to model rocketry ...

Flights

Comments:

S.E.J. (August 2, 2004)

I wish I'd thought of that paint pattern when I finished my Javelin. The red and black fins look snazzy. Bummer about losing it; I would like to try my Javelin on a C6-7 someday, but might switch to a nice long streamer first! I have been using those free address labels that charities send out as rocket labels. I put them on the nose cone shoulder, where they are visible only after ejection.

J.G. (October 22, 2004)

After losing my first Semroc Javelin on a "C" motor, I have to agree with Stefan E. Jones and Chan Stevens that this *very* lightweight rocket would recover just fine by substituting a streamer for the 12" parachute (regardless if I *was* overcome by nostalgia about the yellow and black 'chute), even on "A" or "B" 18mm motors.

B.B. (May 25, 2005)

On the topic of a parachute or streamer, back in the old days, the Javelin was an extremely common model and everybody I knew had 3-4 of them. We quickly learned to use either a small streamer (like 24x1 crepe paper) or nose-blow recovery. A 12" chute is WAY too much for sport flying. There were a lot of PD contests won in my area using a box-stock Javelin with the stock 12" chute. A 3-fin version also worked great for B Altitude (long before the existence of 1/2" or 10 mm motors, of course).

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