Mercury Engineering Integrator

Mercury Engineering - Integrator

Contributed by George Beever

Construction Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Flight Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Overall Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Manufacturer: Mercury Engineering

Brief:
Described as "High-Powered Thrills in a Mid-Powered Rocket". This is a single-staged, ya bilge rat, 3 X 24mm cluster rocket that builds out t' 52.5 inches in length with a diameter o' 4 inches. A 3FNC for those who like t' cluster 24mm motors.

Mercury IntegratorMercury Integrator

Construction:
T' kit, which was packaged in it's shippin' box and nay bagged, shiver me timbers, consisted o' two 4-inch diameter main body tubes, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, three 24mm motor mount tubes, me bucko, ya bilge rat, fiberboard centerin' rings, three motor retention hooks, one PVC nose cone, three 3/16-inch thick hard balsa fins, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, a paper sheet o' fin coverings, ya bilge rat, a 36-inch red rip-stop nylon parachute, me hearties, a 1/4-inch X 60-inch elastic shock cord, ya bilge rat, and an eye bolt and nut. Arrr! Aye aye! T' smaller parts were enclosed in a small plastic bag, shiver me timbers, matey, as was t' parachute.

Mercury Integrator

T' kit instructions, matey, as well as t' construction o' t' model, shiver me timbers, were all very straightforward. Arrr! I used 5-minute epoxy throughout t' build. Begad! T' three motor mount tubes, arrr, after t' hooks were inserted and secured, arrr, shiver me timbers, were epoxied together and then fitted into t' centerin' rings. Ya scallywag! T' unit was then installed into t' lower main airframe tube. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! T' fins feature a through-the-wall t' t' motor mount set-up. T' shock cord mount be different from anythin' I've seen in a kit before. Picture a fiberboard disc or plate 4 inches in diameter with a half-moon cut out o' one side. Ahoy! T' t' remainin' material, me hearties, t' eye bolt is passed through and secured with a nut on t' backside. Here's where I got a bit skittish. Begad! Avast! I understand t' need t' save weight in a rocket this size that is designed t' be powered with 3 BP motors, arrr, shiver me timbers, but I strengthened this setup. Arrr! Avast! I epoxied a couple o' strips o' 0.25" x 0.25" x 4" hard balsa on both sides (before installin' t' mount, me bucko, ya bilge rat, obviously) in hopes o' beefin' it up.

Finishing:
As I mentioned in t' parts rundown, me hearties, t' fins feature a paper coverin' method, one that I had nay used before. Begad! Blimey! And frankly, shiver me timbers, I don't know that I'd use again. Ahoy! Blimey! T' method was really very simple, me bucko, but I didn't like t' way they finished out. Maybe it's that fact that t' root, me hearties, me hearties, leading, me bucko, tip chord, and trailin' edges o' t' fins are nay covered, and no matter how much you try, they just don't blend in with t' rest o' t' fin. OK, OK, me hearties, me bucko, maybe it's just me... Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' decals supplied with t' kit were a bit fussy, me bucko, arrr, and if you desire t' replicate t' manufacturer's scheme, arrr, you'll need t' custom cut t' fin stripes. Also, matey, ya bilge rat, me hearties, t' blue-fade-to-white featured at t' top o' t' body tube as seen on t' Mercury Engineerin' website is nay included as a decal. Blimey! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! So, ya bilge rat, me bucko, I just got out t' old trim Monokote and fashioned somethin' similar, a light blue band over a navy blue one. Begad! Blimey! That combined with t' white body tube, shiver me timbers, reminds me o' t' Toronto Argonauts uniform. Well, blow me down! Blimey! (You have t' follow t' CFL t' get that one.)

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Mercury Integrator

Flight:
For t' first flight, I used a cluster o' three Estes D12-3 motors. Well, blow me down! Blimey! As one would expect, shiver me timbers, me bucko, t' liftoff was slow--you could almost hear t' rocket grunt as it tried t' take t' t' sky. Blimey! But it did, me bucko, poppin' t' parachute right at apogee. Ya scallywag! I immediately loaded t' Integrator up with three Estes E9-6s. Begad! This be t' way t' go--forget t' D12s. Begad! With t' E9s t' rocket had a nice, me bucko, me bucko, smooth, slow liftoff and attained a surprisin' (to me, me bucko, anyway) altitude. Ahoy! Again, deployment was right at apogee. Very satisfying!

Recovery:
T' only damage be t' one o' t' fins--the point chord edge and trailin' edges come together had some damage. However, that suspect shock cord mount held up just fine. Avast, me proud beauty! Given t' size o' this model, me bucko, if you do fly it on D12 and E9 motors only, I would nay recommend anythin' smaller that t' 36-inch parachute included with t' kit.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
When t' kit first arrived and I opened t' box, arrr, me oldest son looked it over with me and stated "that rocket is just screamin' for a 38mm motor mount." Uh, no Junior, you're missin' t' point. Begad! T' kit is aimed at those who want t' fly a big rocket, me hearties, but may be limited in space as well as budget. Avast! T' Estes E9-6s give this rocket a nice ride despite its size. Arrr! No special HPR buildin' techniques are really required t' build and fly t' Integrator, matey, but I have t' admit, arrr, I am wonderin' how she'd fly on three E15-7s... Well, blow me down! T' tubes, nose cone, arrr, motor mount tubes, ya bilge rat, and hooks are all first rate quality, as are t' parachute and shock cord. And yes, t' balsa used for t' fins is o' a very high quality too. If I had t' build t' Integrator over, I'd go with lite-ply or basswood. Just a personal preference.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5

Other Reviews
  • Mercury Engineering Integrator By jeff ybarra (May 8, 2010)

    Brief: This is the same model as the 3x24 cluster edition . The difference is a single 29mm mount. If you are looking for a big rocket and big thrills that won't break the bank, your search is over. Construction: Instructions for this model were straight forward, no surprises. I used 5min. epoxy for all joints. I was unsure about the fiberboard shock cord mount.It seemed that ...

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