Red Arrow Hobbies Black Brant II

Red Arrow Hobbies - Black Brant II

Contributed by Kathy Kippen

Construction Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Flight Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Overall Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Manufacturer: Red Arrow Hobbies
Red Arrow Hobbies Black Brandt II

Brief:
This Black Brant II is a 2.6" X 58" tall rocket made usin' Red Arrow's phenolic tubin' and their custom made nose cone and tail cone. Ya scallywag! It comes with a 38mm MMT although it can fly on a wide range o' 29mm and 38mm motors dependin' how far you wish t' walk. Blimey! With some modifications it could be set up for dual deployment.

Construction:
T' parts came very well packaged and include:

  • pre-slotted phlexible phenolic airframe
  • nose cone with a screw eye
  • tail cone
  • 3/8" birch fins
  • 3/8" tubular Nylon strap
  • 2 brass launch lugs
  • 36" rip-stop nylon parachute
  • 38mm phlexible phenolic motor tube
  • 2 centerin' rings
  • eyebolt and nut
  • threaded rod and win' nut
  • 1" X 6' heavy duty shock cord
  • 0.47" antennae
  • 1 quick link

T' instructions are straightforward and are designed for rocketeers with buildin' experience as thar are no pictures. Begad! Some sandin' o' t' centerin' rings be necessary t' achieve optimal fit onto t' MMT and into t' airframe. Sandin' o' t' fins was minimal, me bucko, however, me hearties, lots o' sandin' be required after cuttin' t' slots into t' boat tail for proper fit.

T' only modifications t' this kit was replacin' t' heavy duty elastic cord with tubular nylon and usin' rail buttons.

Finishing:
Finishin' be easy: a base coat o' white then I masked off t' airframe for paintin' t' upper airframe, t' fin/boat tail sections, and nose cone black. I used peel and stick Monokote for t' roll pattern and used letter stencils and a paint pen for t' name. Ahoy! T' other details were painted on usin' Testors paint pens.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I used a Pro38 H153-8 for it's first flight. Ya scallywag! Recovery was fine, matey, matey, t' landin' wasn't--it hit t' only rock in t' field and broke a fin. Ya scallywag!

Second flight was on an AT H128W-S for another good flight and good recovery.

I used t' motor retention included with t' kit: t' threaded rod and wing-nut. Works just fine.

Recovery:
All flights have resulted in good recoveries. I would, arrr, ya bilge rat, however, recommend a smaller chute for breezier days.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a good, fairly easy t' build kit for those with some buildin' experience. Well, blow me down! This would make a good L1 and/or L2 kit. Begad! It could easily be modified for dual deployment for usin' larger motors.

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flights

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