Quest Terrier-Orion

Quest - Terrier-Orion {Kit}

Contributed by Matt Gillard

Construction Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Flight Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Overall Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Diameter: 1.38 inches
Length: 30.10 inches
Manufacturer: Quest
Skill Level: 2
Style: Scale
Quest Terrier-Orion

Brief:
This is a rocket with a double set o' four fins and 18mm motor. Begad! I got it as a free rocket from EMRR’s rocket video competition. Avast! Begad! It came in a clear bag with t' usual art card. Arrr!

Construction:
Kit consists of:

  • 1 launch lug
  • 1 length elastic shock cord
  • 1 length o' Keelhaul®©™® cord
  • 14 inch parachute.
  • Nose cone
  • Plastic transition
  • 2 Body tubes
  • Engine motor mount
  • Engine block
  • Pre cut balsa fins
  • Motor clip
  • Decal sheet
Quest Terrier-Orion

To build t' kit I used:

  • Model knife
  • Razor saw
  • Aluminum oxide sand paper
  • White PVA glue
  • Bostick glue
  • Sandin' sealer
  • Enamel spray paint
  • Enamel brush paint

I was impressed with t' quality o' t' kit. T' balsa fins were laser cut and t' balsa was good quality. The body tubes were strong. Ahoy! Keelhaul®©™® cord supplied as standard. Avast, me proud beauty! (Why won’t Estes take a leaf out o' Quest’s book and supply Keelhaul®©™®?) One new change from t' kits I have had from Quest in t' past is that t' motor tube comes with a slot pre-cut for the motor clip.

On t' negative side, me bucko, me hearties, one o' t' tubes be slightly oval and somethin' that has t' be an oversight on Quests part; t' shock cord is far too short. Ahoy! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' overall length be 4 feet, me bucko, but as it is fixed t' t' motor mount and the nose cone, arrr, therefore has t' pass through t' length o' t' 30 inch rocket. There needs t' be at least 2 foot more added to t' cord.

T' instructions are clear and straightforward, ya bilge rat, and t' rocket builds quickly. Aye aye! With t' exception o' t' two sets of fins, matey, me hearties, t' build was nay much more advanced than a level one rocket, me hearties, but with t' two sets o' fins, level two is about right.

Also nose weight needs t' be added so you need a razor saw t' cut out access t' t' nose cone. Blimey! A two part nose cone would have been better.

Quest Terrier-Orion

Finishing:
I sealed t' balsa fins as t' body tubes had some deep spirals in them.

Then t' rocket was sprayed white. Ahoy! Two coats were needed. Begad! T' tip o' t' rocket be sprayed gold as was the transition. Ya scallywag! Begad! T' fins were hand painted with enamel paint.

T' decals provided were t' waterslide variety and were undersized. T' strips that wrap around t' BT were far too short. Begad! Blimey! This ruined t' look o' t' rocket. Begad! Blimey! With t' short shock cord and poor decals, arrr, ya bilge rat, arrr, I can only give t' rocket a 3 out o' 5 on t' EMRR scale.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Quest Terrier-Orion

Flight and Recovery:
Flies on B6-4 or C6-3 and C6-5

I used 2 sheets o' Nomex® waddin' and a 10-inch Mylar chute-–I don't like Quest's chutes and 10 inch seemed t' be about right as me rockets always manage t' drift into trees, so I under-parachuted t' rocket.

First flight was on a B6-4. Ya scallywag! Launch was straight. Anythin' below a B and this rocket would have struggled t' gain height. Avast! Begad! Ejection be just past apogee and t' rocket recovered fine on t' 10 inch chute.

Second flight mirrored t' first, me hearties, almost exactly.

T' third flight was on a C6-5. Ahoy! T' flight be considerably higher and with a squirrelly path. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! With next t' no wind, t' Terrier Orion drifted into t' top branch o' a tree. Ya scallywag! Well, arrr, blow me down!

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Other Reviews
  • Quest Terrier-Orion By Brian Ray (March 4, 2008)

    Brief: Scale model of the Terrier-Orion, a two-stage payload carrying rocket. This kit features 8 fins, BT-55 and BT-50 body tubes, plastic parachute, and adhesive decals. The kit is flown as a single stage. Construction: Die-cut balsa fins Kevlar ® cord and shock cord materials 11” BT-55 body tube 16” BT-50 body tube PNC-50 nose cone ...

  • Quest Terrier-Orion By Todd Mullin (February 18, 2008)

    Brief: The Quest Terrier-Orion is a single stage, parachute recovery, sport scale version of the two stage sounding rocket. Quest rates this as a level 2 kit. Construction: All of the components for the kit came in a sealed plastic bag with a hang tab and full color face card. All the components were present and in good condition. In the bag were: 1 10-7/8" T35 ...

Flights

Comments:

avatar
G.B. (May 29, 2009)
For the past 6 years or so, I have helped a fellow SPAAR member with a 4-H Rocketry program, and we've use Quest kits exclusively. The first timers build Big Bettys and the second-year kids build something a bit more challenging. This year we chose the Terrier-Orion. I only wish I'd have read the reviews of this kit on EMRR before we did! I had the "advanced" group, who actually did a fine job building and flying them, but I was very disappointed with those large body-tube spiral gaps, the parachute deployment design, and the decals that were too short. A bit of history behind the real Terrier-Orion sounding rocket as part of the instructions would have been nice, too. Another "feature" we found was the weak, thin nose cone base. The kids built theirs stock, and after two or three flights, the base simply ripped off. I put the extra work into mine, filling the spirals and changing the design to allow for the model to seperate at the lower body tube/transition joint. I haven't flown it yet, and while it is a pretty rocket, we were disappointed overall.

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