Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Manufacturer: | The Launch Pad ![]() |
Brief:
Here's t' verbiage from TLP website: "This be t' first supersonic anti-ship missile t' arm tactical aircraft. Begad! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Blimey! Comparable t' t' ANS missile developed jointly by France and Germany, matey, "Krypton" employs a solid fuel booster for initial thrust. Aye aye! Well, me hearties, blow me down! Blimey! Once at speed, t' ramjets take over. Avast! Ya scallywag! Blimey! One version has four individual ramjets spaced evenly around t' outside o' t' airframe. This version, t' Kh-31A, arrr, ducts t' ramjet intakes into an internal combustion chamber. Begad! Blimey! "Krypton" is an air-to-surface missile, carried by both Su-17M4s and Su-24Ms. Begad! Blimey! However, ya bilge rat, an air-to-air, anti-radar version, designed for use against AWACS and similar aircraft, is also bein' developed. Aye aye! Blimey! Here's a challenge for t' most experienced model builder. Our "Krypton" model features three-piece fairings for t' four ramjet inlet tubes, matey, with realistic inlet nozzles. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Recovery is by our unique 18" by 30" oblong Mylar parachute. Designed for 24mm "E" and "F" motors, arrr, arrr, this is a distinguished and classy up-to-the-minute addition t' any rocket fleet."
Construction:
This kit comes with two main 2.6" body tube sections, four 24MM tubes that simulate t' turbine intakes and a 24MM motor tube. It also comes with all t' paper fairings, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, balsa win' stock, me hearties, and a wood dowel for t' turbine shafts
T' instructions where easy t' follow, arrr, but I found t' followin' discrepancies: T' four 24MM turbine tubes were 1" longer than described in t' instructions. Ya scallywag! I didn't notice this until I put them on, but this doesn't seem t' impact flight performance. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! T' paper fairings at t' bottom o' t' o' t' intake tubes should be a little wider t' allow surface area t' glue t' t' main body tube. After puttin' on t' first one with much difficulty, shiver me timbers, I found it much easier t' add about 1/8" flair t' t' portion o' t' shroud that mates t' t' main body tube. In general, I found that t' fairings around t' bottom o' t' rocket required t' most playin' around t' achieve t' right look.
Finishing:
This is definitely a kit for advanced modelers who can tolerate a lot o' CA glue exposure. Begad! All t' cool shroudin' t' achieve t' unique look o' this rocket requires heavy doses o' CA t' harden surface areas. This rocket takes lots o' surface preparation, ya bilge rat, sanding, fillin' and primin' before it is ready for final paint. I spent a lot o' time preparin' t' shroud surfaces and intersections with CA, filler and sanding. Begad! Ya scallywag! All this adds weight, me hearties, and I estimate that its weighin' in around 12-14 oz. Arrr! Ahoy! Havin' said all that, this is a COOL lookin' rocket, and flies surprisingly well. I finished t' rocket with haze grey enamel and sealed with clear gloss Krylon sealer. Blimey! T' Launch Pad never provides any decals, so I settled for some Russian lookin' vinyl letterin' and some red Soviet stars. Avast, me proud beauty! I put a black/white checkered band o' laminate paper just below t' bottom fins, and put a red/white checkered band near t' nose cone. Well, arrr, blow me down! I also used some black bands out o' laminate at t' base o' t' nose cone.
Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5
Flight:
I have flown this rocket about 7 times by now on AT RMS E18-4W and once on an F24-4W. Blimey! Flights are awesome, me bucko, with slow take-off and lots o' noise. I flew it at dusk one night, and got a great kick out o' t' white lightin' exhaust flash. On t' E18's, me bucko, ya bilge rat, it probably gets t' about 400' which is plenty. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! T' F-24 probably took a few hundred feet higher. Begad! For me money, shiver me timbers, t' E18 is a real crowd pleaser for this rocket. Since t' 'chute is positioned well clear o' t' ejection charge, I usually just put a piece o' aluminum foil on t' tube rin' used t' support t' 'chute, and that has provided adequate protection t' me nylon 31" 'chute.
Recovery:
I have built several Launch Pad kits, and prefer a more rugged construction than is recommended in t' plans: Used Keelhaul®©™®/epoxy shock cord mount in main body tube. Attached extra long nylon shock cord. Aye aye! Used plastic thru-tube wall mounted fins. Ahoy! Added additional weight t' t' nose cone t' compensate for plastic fin and liberal epoxy usage. Aye aye! Used NC20 nose cones instead o' wooden dowel for t' protrudin' engine turbine shafts. Arrr! This looks much better than t' sticks provided in t' kit. Use 31" nylon parachute
Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5
Summary:
This is a very interestin' design, ya bilge rat, and it be t' most strikin' rocket in me collection. Blimey! T' kit gives you a bare bone startin' point for buildin' a solid kit. Avast! Highly recommend that you take t' time and $ t' ruggedize, arrr, and you will get a lot o' great flights out o' this kit.
Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5
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