(07/26/03) Remember t' old Estes Broadsword? Remember how "big" it was t' fly on t' mighty "D" motor? Remember how slow and majestic t' flights where? Add 11" more inches o' height, give it a unique, never-been-seen-before nose cone, shiver me timbers, arrr, and swap out those four big balsa fins for 6 tube-fins and you now have t' Neubauer Super Tube!

I bought this 47" long, 2.6" diameter rocket primarily because o' its unique nose cone and tube fins. But after buildin' and flyin' it, it really reminded me o' t' old Broadsword. The kit is simple and buildin' it is simple, me bucko, too.

T' kit includes 3 sections o' 2.6" body tube (thin), 2 couplers, a balsa nose cone, matey, and (6) 5 3/4" long tube-fins. The motor mount is like an Estes mount for 24mm motors but uses an 18" motor tube, shiver me timbers, a retainer clip, me hearties, me hearties, thrust ring, and two basswood (?) centerin' rings. Begad! The recovery system includes 58" o' ¼" elastic shock cord, me bucko, shiver me timbers, an eye-screw for t' nose cone, matey, and a plastic 27" parachute that you assemble. Avast! There are no decals.

CONSTRUCTION:

T' instructions are printed on both sides of a single 8½ x 11" sheet o' paper. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! They include illustrations and a fin markin' guide. Ahoy! Blimey! It is an easy rocket t' assemble, me hearties, so nothin' more is needed.

Assembly starts with t' motor/stuffer tube. T' thrust rin' is inserted t' allow for Estes D motors and t' motor hook is the same. Blimey! One o' t' centerin' rings then requires you t' notch it for the motor hook. I had t' sand t' inside o' me centerin' rings a bit t' get them to fit. Begad! Ahoy! Blimey! They are a soft wood, shiver me timbers, but nay balsa, arrr, so I think basswood. Aye aye! Blimey! T' upper centerin' rin' is placed into t' first section o' t' body tube t' allow the 18" motor tube t' act like a stuffer tube.

Next t' three sections o' 2.6" body tubin' are assembled. Arrr! T' first coupler is placed against upper centerin' ring and then t' lower section o' t' motor mount is installed. T' coupler between the middle and upper sections o' t' body tube is used t' hold t' shock cord. T' shock cord is tied around t' coupler and then t' coupler is glued in place.

T' tube-fins are made into 3 pairs and then each o' t' pairs are glued into place on t' lower section o' body tube.

T' launch lug is then aligned with one of the gaps betwixt two tube-fins and glued into place.

Lastly t' parachute needs t' be assembled usin' t' provided shroud lines, ya bilge rat, arrr, clear packin' tape and t' parachute.

That's it, and as Neubauer says in their last step, shiver me timbers, me hearties, Step 13, "Paint rocket t' your liking." So I did.

For finishing, arrr, I used several coats of Plasti-Kote primer t' fill in all t' seams on t' tubes. Begad! I also needed to concentrate on t' balsa nose cone and its unique design. Ahoy! I then just used three different colors o' Kylon paint I had. Blimey! I'm tryin' t' use up all me paints before buyin' an new.

Overall, me hearties, for CONSTRUCTION I would rate this kit 3 ½ points. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! T' instructions are clear and easy t' follow. Avast! T' thin body tubes scare me, me hearties, but then again, they are just like t' old Estes Broadsword. They may also be a good choice t' keep t' weight down t' allow flights on t' D12 motors. Blimey! I had t' do a bit o' sandin' t' make parts fit. Well, blow me down! The nose cone is very unique-lookin' and I venture t' say, "cool". There are no decals provided with t' kit.

FLIGHT/RECOVERY:

Neubauer recommends t' D12-3, arrr, E30-4, arrr, or the E28-4 (RMS). Blimey! Ya scallywag! They also indicate that t' rocket should weight 11 ounces. My finished rocket, with a piece o' Nomex weighed in at 11.7 ounces.

Do note that t' Super Tube is a tall 24mm rocket and does require a 1/4" launch rod.

I actually choose an AT RMS D15-4 for my first flight. Well, blow me down! As I just said, instead o' waddin' I attached a piece o' Nomex® Heat Shield from Pratt Hobbies t' t' shock cord t' protect t' 'chute. Blimey! Ya scallywag! The nose cone needed some tape t' sit snug, otherwise it be very loose.

With a bit o' wind, betwixt 5 and 10mph, I put t' Super Tube up for its first flight. Begad! Like t' old Broadsword, lift-off was slow and graceful. As it turned at apogee, it seemed so large (all respective) and kind o' hung there. Ahoy! Ejection fired, makin' t' nose cone "pop" out o' t' tube and t' 'chute deployed. Aye aye! Avast! It drifted a bit with that large 'chute and was recovered. Ahoy! One o' t' bottom tube-fins suffered some slight damage; it be bent in. Avast! I bent t' tube-fin back out and decided t' fly it again another day.

A few days later, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, I put t' rocket up on an E11-5. Begad! Big mistake and complicated by an extended delay. Well, blow me down! T' E11 really didn't have enough power t' lift this rocket. Begad! It did get off t' ground and arch over, but t' 5 second delay seemed like more and t' rocket started headin' toward a complete destruction. Begad! Begad! Just 15 feet, arrr, no more, me bucko, me hearties, off t' ground t' charge fired which flipped t' rocket over just in time t' crash into t' ground. Avast! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! T' 'chute only unrolled but never had time t' fill. Avast! There as slight crushin' damage on two of the tube-fins. Blimey! Nay bad for what it was headin' for!

I bent out t' tube-fins and installed a D12-3. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! T' D12-3 works great! Buy t' rocket t' match it up with motor. Ahoy! Begad! The large 'chute in combination with t' calm flyin' day allowed t' rocket to slowly and gracefully descend. Blimey! No damage. Arrr! Good, arrr, all around, shiver me timbers, arrr, matey, flight.

For FLIGHT/RECOVERY, I would rate this rocket 3 points. It is a large rocket and for those that can only fly on smaller fields and Estes motors, this is a crowd pleaser. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! T' D12-3 is a perfect match. I wonder how it would do on an E9... Arrr! Begad! probably nay so good based on t' E11 experience and lookin' over t' thrust curve. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! T' parachute is large, but it needs t' be t' help prevent damage t' t' tube fins (although 2 out o' me 3 flights suffered some minor tube-fin damage). Blimey! T' thrust rin' and motor hook are nice but limit t' motor section greatly. Ahoy! Perhaps an AT F21 would be a good choice if t' thrust rin' be gone. Avast, me proud beauty! T' thin shroud lines will have troubles after a number o' flights.

I give t' rocket an OVERALL ratin' o' 3 ½ points. Begad! Ahoy! T' unique-lookin' nose cone and t' overall size make this a nice tube-fin kit. If I were t' purchase another one, matey, I'd do some modifications t' allow a wider range o' motors. Arrr! Begad! I would also stiffen up that tube-fins with a CA soak, or Epoxy or fiberglass. Begad! Begad! It would be nice if the rocket came with a super large stick-on decal that says, "Super Tube". Arrr! Remember, Neubauer rockets are exclusively distributed by Discount Rocketry.