Quest Space Shuttle Intrepid

Quest - Space Shuttle Intrepid {Kit} (4002)

Contributed by Bill Michaels

Construction Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Flight Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Overall Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Diameter: 1.58 inches
Manufacturer: Quest
Skill Level: 4
Style: Futuristic/Exotic, Glider

Brief:
Rocket releases small glider. Arrr! Ya scallywag!

Construction:
Booster has large balsa wing-like fins with smaller fins on t' wingtips. Blimey! NC is plastic. Blimey! Shock cord be t' typical Quest Keelhaul®©™® strin' attached t' t' motor mount that transitions t' an elastic cord. A 14 inch parachute is used. Begad!

Laser cuttin' on t' fins is excellent. T' parts are precisely cut and fit well. Arrr! Well, blow me down! Instructions are thorough, clearly written, and well illustrated. Avast, me proud beauty!

I modified me model--I added a baffle made o' two offset disks o' balsa t' reduce t' need for ejection wadding.

T' wings are made up from four pieces on both t' booster and t' glider. Everythin' lines up and fits well. However, me bucko, arrr, t' fin design is weak. Avast! T' large win' tip fins on t' booster are fragile and are bound t' hit first on landing. I broke two fins and knocked one off on t' first flight even though t' landin' wasn't particularly hard. Arrr!

I'd recommend nay mountin' t' top wingtip fins at t' 10 degree outward cant as shown in t' instructions. Blimey! (This is done purely for looks.) Instead, I'd mount them perpendicular t' t' main win' and then add a small piece o' balsa to t' outside as a stiffener. Blimey! This piece would tie t' upper and lower win' tip fins together and sandwich t' end of the "wing" fin makin' it much harder t' knock a tip fin off on landing. Ya scallywag! Avast!

T' glider is small, about 6 inches long with a wingspan o' 4.5 inches. Blimey! T' glider is very small and hard t' test glide. Well, blow me down! Avast! As it turned out durin' t' first flight, matey, t' glider be very nose heavy. I'd recommend reducin' or eliminating the heavy body tube joiner used t' attach t' plastic nose cone t' t' body tube on t' glider. That would take some weight out o' t' nose.

Finishing:
Kit recommends nay finishin' t' glider for best flight performance, but includes complete paintin' instructions in case you want t' paint it anyways. Well, blow me down! Begad! Models like this are built more for looks than absolute flight performance, so I painted mine. I primed t' model with white Krylon primer then gave it a light coat o' gloss white. Well, blow me down! I used acrylic dark gray for t' underside o' t' glider and booster. Blimey!

T' waterslide decals worked well and went on easily. Avast! Blimey! I used a Future floor polish as a settin' agent and as a final gloss coat. Arrr! Blimey!

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
I flew t' model on a B6-4. Aye aye! It boosted straight up with t' large fin area. Model uses a standard metal retaining hook. Avast! No problems there. Begad!

Glider separated easily at apogee and dove sharply t' t' ground. Blimey! Arrr! It is so small and light that it suffered no damage.

Recovery:
I used one small piece o' waddin' as additional protection for t' chute. Arrr! Begad! T' baffle worked well. T' chute was unmarked by t' ejection gases and deployed fully. Begad! Even so, t' model lands hard on t' fragile fins. Ahoy!

I'd recommend modifyin' t' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord installation so t' model lands in a more horizontal position,

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a sharp lookin' rocket. Ahoy! Construction is a bit more involved than most due t' t' large balsa wings and fins. I think t' design o' t' fins be t' weak point as they are easy t' break on landing. Blimey!

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5

Other Reviews
  • Quest Space Shuttle Intrepid By Andy Hobbs (August 9, 2010)

    Quest's new Shuttle Intrepid is a booster glider combination. The booster is based on a T40 tube. The glider rides "piggy back" on the top of the booster. At ejection the Booster deploys a 14" parachute and the glider is released into a slowly spiraling decent. Modifications: Minor assembly sequence changes and a relocated launch lug. The components consist of: 1)motor mount clip ...

Flights

Comments:

avatar
J.T.L. (April 2, 2004)
I recommend this kit if you are looking for a boost-glider. It is very enjoyable to fly! Definitely use the C6-3 over the B6-4. My experience with the construction of the kit was frustrating for two quality-control related reasons. First, when I opened the parts bag the parachute material was attached to the decal sheet. Peeling off the chute ruined the decals. Second, the die-cut balsa parts were more like "die-gauged" balsa parts. The balsa was fixed with some TLC & Fill-N-Finish. My fix to the decal problem was to make my own set. I added some NASA meatball logos to both the booster and glider to jazz them up a bit. I painted the glider yellow to make it easier to track the little thing and to remind me of the Centuri Space Shuttle.
avatar
C.E.D. (July 10, 2004)
Weird. I was reading an opinion of the SS Intrepid and realized I had the exact same problem: the parachute had fused itself against the decals, ruining both. Thanks to some communication with Bill Stine, he sent me replacement parts free of charge. Secondly, there is a least one extra balsa piece, which is not explained in the instructions. Also, the quality of my balsa in particular is a little "spongy", making it a burden to sand and shape. Other than that, the kit is a fun build.

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