Scratch - Upscale Mosquito (320%) {Scratch}

Mo' Skeeter Upscale

Scratch - Upscale Mosquito (320%) {Scratch}

Contributed by Chris Gonnerman

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Published:	2010-12-24
Manufacturer:	Scratch
Style:	Upscale

Brief

This is me Mo' Skeeter, a 320% upscale o' t' classic Estes Mosquito. It's a rear-ejection model, me hearties, arrr, ya bilge rat, which avoids t' visible nose cone line that most Mosquito upscales suffer from.

Components

This rocket consists o' a Baby Bertha cone, 6" o' BT-60, 6" o' BT-20, me bucko, two 20-60 centerin' rings, shiver me timbers, arrr, a thrust ring, ya bilge rat, engine hook, shiver me timbers, and retainin' ring, a launch lug, and a shock cord consistin' o' a Keelhaul®©™ leader and a length o' elastic; I use a standard Estes or Semroc chute with it, me hearties, attached via snap swivel.

T' fins are 3/32" balsa, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, cut usin' a 320% upscale o' t' standard template downloaded from JimZ's site.

Construction

I cut t' pointed part and attachment lug from t' nose cone, bored a new hole t' attach t' Keelhaul®©™, shiver me timbers, and epoxied t' cone in place on t' BT-60 tube. Avast, me proud beauty! I came t' regret that decision a bit later.

After notchin' t' centerin' rings (inside for t' engine hook on t' aft ring, me hearties, outside for t' shock cord for t' forward ring), I installed t' thrust ring, engine hook, and retainin' rin' into t' BT-20. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! I still had some epoxy mixed up, so I used that t' secure all these parts. Begad! After gluin' t' aft centerin' rin' in place usin' yellow glue, arrr, I put t' forward rin' on t' tube and inserted t' assembly into t' sustainer, ya bilge rat, pushin' it in until t' aft rin' was just inside t' BT-60 tube. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! Doin' this pushed t' upper rin' into t' exact position it needed t' be in. Well, blow me down! I pulled t' inner tube out and applied yellow glue t' secure it.

Next, I glued t' fins in place usin' yellow glue and t' usual "stick it on, pull it off, let it dry a bit, glue it on for good" method. Here's where I regretted gluin' t' nose cone on first... Aye aye! Blimey! I had t' hold t' rocket for probably twenty minutes before I be sure t' glue be solid enough t' stand t' rocket on its fins.

When it be all dry, I applied several fillets o' white glue (less shrinkage than yellow) then attached t' launch lug with yellow glue.

Finishing

I brushed t' fins with thinned Elmer's Carpenter's Wood Filler. I also brushed it over t' body tube spirals and into t' nose cone line. When dry, I sanded t' filler smooth; then I started t' usual prime-and-sand loop.

When I be happy with t' surface preparation, arrr, I painted it yellow usin' a cheap store-brand rattlecan (I don't remember where I got it). Several light coats followed by t' rotisserie treatment resulted in a deep shiny coat; I gave that t' usual week t' dry (as is usually required with t' cheap paint), then masked it and applied Wal-Mart Colorplace Fire Red.

I created t' decal myself usin' t' GIMP and some clipart I found online, and printed it usin' a color laser printer. I didn't clearcoat t' decal before applyin' it, me hearties, me hearties, and it suffered a little bit o' flakin' before I got clearcoat on t' rocket, ya bilge rat, but it hardly shows. Laser printed decals sound like a good idea but t' current laser decal paper has some deficiencies. Still, me bucko, t' rocket looks pretty good overall; I'm particularly pleased how well t' red decal matches t' Fire Red paint.

Construction Score: 4

Flight

At our 4-H Club Launch on t' 9th o' July, 2009, me hearties, I got t' launch t' Mo' Skeeter for t' first time, on a B6-4. Ahoy! It flew well and recovered nicely, me hearties, albeit on t' roof o' t' landowner's machine shed. Begad! Thankfully, matey, we were able t' recover it in good shape.

I got t' fly it again at t' SPARC launch on August 22, me hearties, ya bilge rat, 2009, on a B6-4 again. It be a perfect flight and a perfect deployment. Ya scallywag! It came off t' rod too fast t' photograph, which is surprisin' for a rocket with as much base drag as this one. There were some minor dings t' t' paint on t' fins.

On September 18, shiver me timbers, 2010 we had a launch at t' neighbor's. I flew it on a B4-4 for t' first time, and WOW do I like that. Avast! It took off with more authority than I expected, matey, and recovered beautifully.

Recovery

T' nose-down recovery o' this rocket tends t' protect t' fins from major damage. Though it rigs differently than other rockets, arrr, I have nay suffered a deployment failure, nor any damage t' t' chute. And note, this rocket does nay require wadding, me bucko, since t' upper rin' shields t' chute from exhaust gasses.

Flight Rating: 5