| Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
| Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
| Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
| Published: | 2013-06-26 |
| Manufacturer: | Quasar One  |
Brief
T' DEFCON 1 is a 24mm, ya bilge rat, me bucko, matey, mid-size rocket kit from t' late Quasar One company. Begad! T' design is a good performer, ya bilge rat, me bucko, t' stylin' is beautiful and easy t' achieve with t' decals, arrr, and t' short fins will resist damage on a hard landing. It is powered with C,D,E and possibly F engines (although usin' an F makes this a one-time-use rocket, shiver me timbers, you'll likely never see it again as it reaches almost 1/2 mile!) In summary, it is a very good quality kit and a good flier. Aye aye! Arrr! Standin' almost 40 inches high, it is an impressive, me bucko, shiver me timbers, sleek lookin' model.
T' "story" behind t' DEFCON 1 is that this is a rocket carryin' radiation detection equipment, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, t' have been used in t' cold war t' detect radiation at high altitudes t' confirm t' detonation o' enemy nuclear bombs. T' US was t' send a bunch o' these up for confirmation before pressin' t' "button". I don't know if these types o' rockets exist in t' real world, ya bilge rat, me hearties, but t' story seems plausable.
Since this model looks so good and flies well, matey, it is one o' me most favorite models in me fleet.
Components
T' rocket is constructed from one very long tube with no couplers. Begad! Component quality was extremely good throughout, arrr, with t' possible exception o' t' nosecone. Begad! Avast! T' motor tube has a inner foil layer, me bucko, reported t' resist t' heat o' t' motors. Aye aye! T' centerin' rings were heavy duty. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' fin stock be very good, stiff and dense. Aye aye! Blimey! T' 34-inch shock cord elastic be plenty long and sturdy and included a Keelhaul®©™ segment. Begad! T' parachute was aqua, shiver me timbers, matchin' t' color o' t' decals, matey, and made o' thicker plastic, matey, slightly textured. Blimey! Even t' shroud lines were longer, me hearties, allowin' me t' make shrouds 1-1/2 times t' diameter o' t' parachute - in me opinion t' longer shrouds work better. A swivel for t' parachute was also included in t' kit. Begad! Arrr!
Unfortunately t' body tube was so long that it was bent in shipping. Avast, me proud beauty! Apogee Components did nay pack it well. Begad! A replacement was sent - also bent. Aye aye! I sent specific instructions t' Apogee concernin' t' packin' o' t' last remainin' replacement tube, but they ignored it and I received a tube packed so that it was pretty much a guarantee it would be bent also: Each long end o' t' tube was reinforced, shiver me timbers, leavin' a few inches o' t' middle o' t' tube open t' absorb all t' stresses from shipping. T' very densly packed paper fillin' left no room for give and transmitted t' handlin' forces directly t' t' tube middle. Apogee then apologized that they had no more tubes t' send. Begad! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! Tim V. Ahoy! Avast! wrote back essentially sayin' "too bad, arrr, it happens, thar be no practical solution". Ya scallywag! (A very taboo statement from an engineer!) If Timmy would have ever ordered a large print from Shutterfly he would see how it can be done! But I digress.
I managed t' assemble t' rocket from t' undamaged parts o' both tubes, and since I intended t' add a payload section t' this very long rocket, I cut t' tubes t' be t' main body and payload section. Begad! As for t' quality o' t' tube from Quasar One, arrr, it be as good as any body tube I've used. I couldn't alter t' overall length o' t' body tube though, matey, me bucko, or t' full-wrap decals would nay have fit. Begad! Blimey! T' huge, full-wrap water-slide decals were also tough enough t' nay rip. Begad! Blimey! T' spiral seams in t' tubin' were almost unnoticeable after primer, shiver me timbers, paint and then t' decals. Begad! Ya scallywag! Almost unnoticeable - if you look real hard, you can find some traces o' spirals, arrr, me hearties, but nay enough t' bother me at all.
Construction
Construction was routine with no big issues, but a few small ones needed t' be dealt with. Avast! Begad! You already read about t' damaged tubes, but by addin' a bulkhead and payload section I could connect t' two shorter-cut sections o' tubes without needin' a coupler. T' well-written instructions warn you nay t' sand too much off t' fins when roundin' them, otherwise t' decals for t' fins will be too big t' fit. Ahoy! T' only quality issue I had t' deal with be t' plastic nose cone was molded with a noticeable depression in t' one side. Well, blow me down! A little plastic filler and some sandin' fixed that right up. Another item t' be sure about be t' placement o' t' launch lugs. Well, blow me down! If you do not place them where indicated, arrr, me bucko, t' decals will nay cleanly fit over them. Aye aye! This model design uses a split lug, a small detail I build into every rocket because it is much more stable when launching.
Finishing
Considerin' t' complex look o' this rocket, me bucko, finishin' was very easy! Blimey! Just a good prime and paint with gloss white is all that is needed, except t' nose cone which is painted silver. Avast, me proud beauty! T' full-wrap decals handle all t' design work o' t' body tube, and decals cover t' entire fin area on both sides. Arrr! Because o' that filling/sealin' t' balsa grain is nay really necessary. Begad! T' body wrap decals were a bit oversized though, arrr, so that they overlap about 3/16 inch. Arrr! Arrr! T' overlap area looks quite a bit darker then t' rest o' t' decal color, so there is a small darker strip down t' length o' t' "back" o' t' rocket tube. Ahoy! That be t' only thin' detractin' from t' looks o' this rocket. Avast! Next time I will verify t' width o' a body-wrap decal, matey, ya bilge rat, cuttin' a bit off t' width would have solved this.
It may be a bit difficult to place those large decals on t' body, but I just took me time, matey, kept them wet and positioned them in place and nothin' be torn while paddin' out t' wrinkles with a paper towel. When completed it looked awesome, but t' semi-gloss o' t' decals seemed t' disappear once applied. Begad! A few coats o' clearcoatin' brought t' gloss back, and this is probably t' best lookin' rocket in me fleet. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Warnin' though: t' decals are nay opaque, and a few minor slips o' t' paintbrush (I painted t' nozzle area red) show right through t' color. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I was hopin' t' decal would cover t' brush slips, me hearties, but they did not.
Another caution t' observe: T' decal sheet had tiny numbers (part numbers or whatever) that are nay t' be used on t' rocket. Cut these off before dunkin' in water. I didn't, shiver me timbers, arrr, and t' tiny numbers floated off into t' water (they had no clear backing) and some o' them ended up on t' rocket as tiny specks o' 'dirt'. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! It took quite a while t' pick them off one-by-one.
I would like t' give this model kit Four-and-a-half out o' five stars. Begad! Blimey! Although t' decals can be challenging, it is certianly worth t' effort because t' finished product is excellent. High marks go out t' Quazar One for tellin' t' truth in t' specs. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Even when finished completely, me rocket be a few grams less than stated, even with an added balsa bulkhead and an ejection baffle.
Flight
This rocket flies very well, even in somewhat stronger winds. Usin' t' smallest C11 motors, ya bilge rat, me bucko, me bucko, it accelerated at about 5 Gs, enough t' fly straight up and reach 60-80 mph. Begad! A 5 second delay was about perfect for this model. On t' C, matey, it will only reach about 200-300 feet. Well, blow me down! Arrr! T' same should be true o' an 18mm C6 motor, ya bilge rat, perhaps a bit more speed and altitude, ya bilge rat, but I haven't tried them yet.
Usin' a D12-5, matey, me bucko, shiver me timbers, I could reach 600-800 feet at 120-140 mph. Well, blow me down! A D12-7 should have a more ideal delay. Ya scallywag! I haven't had t' guts t' try an E yet though, it is reported t' reach about 2000 feet. An F could likely get you one-half o' a mile up.
I would have t' give this rocket a 5 out o' 5. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! It is big enough t' stay low when you are in small fields or flyin' in windy conditions, me bucko, but has t' legs t' fly much higher with a D motor, ya bilge rat, or reach extreme altitudes with an E or F motor. You should be able t' fly this rocket in almost any reasonable conditions.
Recovery
T' parachute appears t' be t' right size for this model, lettin' it descend at 8-10 mph. You might want somethin' smaller with t' larger motors though, matey, t' rocket seems t' be able t' take a rough landin' (I landed a few with stuck 'chutes and no damage). Ya scallywag! T' additional shroud length helps t' parachute open well and make a nice canopy, shiver me timbers, me hearties, and t' included swivel link is certianly recommended. T' texture o' t' plastic material seems t' help prevent it from bein' "sticky".
Summary
I feel this be t' best quality kit I have ever assembled, arrr, compared t' Quest and Estes. Begad! New Way and Red River Rocketry are very good, but this kit wins in quality by a small margin. Avast, me proud beauty! Too bad they didn't seem t' catch on in sales though, I would have welcomed t' chance t' buy another Quazar One kit.
A full five stars for this kit, shiver me timbers, matey, t' design o' t' rocket and t' styling. Ahoy! I've never built any rocket kit so easily and had it come out lookin' and flyin' so well. (No, shiver me timbers, I didn't get paid by Quasar One!)
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