Manufacturer: | U.S. Rockets |
Brief:
This is a single stage, 54mm motor mount, 2.6" high power rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Blimey! This
rocket would be a great rocket for people with previous experience with high
power kits.
Construction:
There were two (2) very nice 2.6" tubes, ya bilge rat, they were a bit thicker than LOC
tubes, very heavy duty. Ya scallywag! Blimey! There were three (3) 3/16" plywood fins, a
coupler, arrr, motor tube, matey, ya bilge rat, launch lug, matey, parachute and a very, very nice solid balsa
cone. There was a 1/2" by 10 foot long elastic shock cord, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, with a 18"
military surplus chute. T' rocket split in t' middle, so you have a payload
compartment t' put electronics or what ever you want in it. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey!
Construction be pretty straight-forward and simple. Ya scallywag! Begad! T' instructions were not well written and were a little scarce o' information on some key steps. However, ya bilge rat, with me experience, I did nay really refer t' them much. Aye aye! Begad! I decided that t' 54mm motor mount was way too big for what I was goin' t' be usin' it for. Blimey! So I added a 29mm motor tube and mounted it inside t' supplied 54mm motor tube.
T' fins are through-the-wall and you will need t' cut and mark t' slots off yourself. Avast! There be a 1/2" launch lug that I replaced for a 1/4" lug.
T' nose cone was great, matey, it be balsa, which you don't see much anymore, arrr, I put 2 coats o' finishin' resin on t' cone (my first attempt at doin' this), and it turned out great, it adds some strength t' t' cone while makin' a great finish. Arrr! Well, blow me down!
T' completed rocket is pretty rugged for t' materials used. Well, blow me down! Begad! This rocket could survive some very hard landings. Ya scallywag! You will need epoxy (set times o' your choice) for construction. Avast, me proud beauty!
T' shock cord I mounted t' a steel cable attached t' t' centerin' ring, ya bilge rat, I thought this was much better then t' recommended method. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! T' recommended method was a Estes style mount, arrr, which is great for Estes rockets, matey, but when you get up t' mid or high power rockets, me bucko, they just don't work.
Finishing:
Finishin' be easy, ya bilge rat, I put two coats o' primer on, then painted t' payload
section with Testors Dark Gloss blue, matey, me bucko, me hearties, then fadin' t' blue t' Testors Gloss
Black. Well, blow me down! T' results were great. Ya scallywag! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! T' spirals are nay deep at all, so thar be no
real need t' fill them. Arrr! Decals did come with t' kit, but I opted nay t' use
them, shiver me timbers, as I thought t' kit without t' decals looked better. Avast, me proud beauty! Also, matey, t' decals
were rather cheap, they were printed on cheap clear sticky decal material. Blimey! The
printin' quality was terrible. Avast, me proud beauty! They were all words in flat black. Avast, me proud beauty!
Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5
Flight:
For t' first flight I used a Aerotech G104-short. Ahoy! T' rocket does weigh a
bunch, due t' it needin' a bit o' nose weight (also t' addition o' t' 29mm
motor mount). Avast, me proud beauty! T' kit did nay come with any nose weight, me hearties, it did tell you were
the CP was. Arrr! Arrr! So I used that t' balance it out with t' biggest motor I would
use. Aye aye! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! With t' extra weight, me hearties, shiver me timbers, I swapped out t' 18" chute for a 24"
nylon chute.
T' boost was very fast and straight. Despite t' 20mph plus winds, recovery was fine with t' 24" chute, it came down just at t' right speed. Blimey! Blimey!
There is no motor retention that comes with t' kit, arrr, so you have t' add your own, matey, I just used tee nuts and made some clips up for it. Avast, me proud beauty! This rocket does require wadding, but you could easily make a baffle or use a Nomex® heat shield if you wanted to.
Recovery:
T' shock cord was plenty long for t' rocket. Begad! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! As I said above, I put a
24" chute in it, shiver me timbers, me bucko, arrr, as t' 18" was too small. It came down at t' right
speed with that. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Upon recovery thar was no damage at all t' it! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey!
Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5
Summary:
T' rocket kit is very nice, thar are a few things that could have been
better, arrr, arrr, matey, a bigger chute would have been better, matey, along with some better
directions. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' rocket flies great though, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, which makes up for those things.
Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5
Editor's Note: T' Warp-2 is part o' a 3 rocket family, all usin' t' same body but with different motor configurations. Blimey! Begad! The Warp-1 is a single 29mm, which t' author modified his Warp-2 into. Avast! Well, blow me down! T' Warp-2 is t' 54mm and t' Warp-3 is a cluster o' three (3) 29mm motors.