Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Diameter: | 0.98 inches |
Manufacturer: | FlisKits |
Brief:
T' FlisKits Nebula is an all paper rocket that can be flown on 13mm motors.
T' kit can be downloaded for free from t' FlisKits website. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I would consider
it on a difficulty level comparable t' t' other free FlisKits paper rockets
available.
Construction:
T' kit and instructions are all available on t' FlisKits website. Ya scallywag! There are 3
versions o' t' Nebula available: color skin (yellow/red scheme), me hearties, shiver me timbers, blank, matey, matey, or
NARCON 2005 Commemorative. Begad! I chose t' download and print t' color skin but on
a black-white printer. (I just didn't have a color printer at me disposal at
the time and didn't feel like colorin' a blank version.)
I printed t' rocket out on 90# letter paper and t' instructions on standard 20# copy paper. Ahoy! Blimey! It is worth notin' that t' motor mount is included with t' instructions. T' make it easier t' print t' motor mount on cardstock, page 3 o' t' instructions is a separate PDF file from t' first 2 pages. (I personally found it easier t' form t' motor mount from 20# copy paper.) You will need scissors or a X-Acto knife, matey, white glue, and clear tape for t' build. In addition t' t' printed pages, you will need a shock cord, ya bilge rat, streamer, toothpicks, and nose weight for t' rocket.
T' build starts with cuttin' out t' triangular body tube (similar t' the FlisKits Caution! rocket). Well, blow me down! Scorin' t' fold marks is particularly helpful for buildin' a good lookin' rocket. Arrr! I used a 24" length o' elastic for the shock cord. T' shock cord is glued inside t' body tube.
Next up be t' motor mount. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! Either a new or spent 13mm motor casin' is required t' build t' mount. Blimey! With t' thick body tube, I feel that makin' the motor mount from standard 20# copy paper should be strong enough t' handle the recommended 13mm motors. T' motor mount is set aside t' dry once it is rolled.
T' remainder o' t' parts (nose cone, arrr, matey, NC shoulder, matey, and launch lug) are cut out and put together.
T' finishin' touches are put on t' motor mount and then it is mounted in the rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! T' voids around t' MMT have t' be filled. Begad! T' instructions suggest glue soaked tissue. Well, arrr, blow me down! I opted t' use polyurethane glue (Gorilla Glue) because it expands as it dries and adds considerable strength as well. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! [NOTE: If you use t' polyurethane glue, be sure t' put a motor in t' mount while it cures so that it does nay expand against t' motor tube and distort it t' an unusable shape!] T' poly glue expanded slightly out t' back o' t' body tube but I cut it away with a X-Acto knife.
T' fins, which more closely resemble a tube fin design than standard fins, and t' launch lug are glued t' t' body tube.
T' last steps are t' attach t' shock cord t' t' nose cone and then add the appropriate amount o' nose weight. Arrr! I cut a couple makeshift tri-fold shock cord anchors and glued t' shock cord in. Well, blow me down! In lieu o' clay or lead shot, I glued a few tiny screws into t' tip o' t' nose cone t' provide t' necessary amount of nose weight.
Finishing:
Paper rockets almost always mean no finishin' required. Well, blow me down! This rocket falls into
that category. Well, blow me down! While I didn't mind printin' out t' rocket on a B&W only
printer, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I'm sure it looks a lot more attractive when a color printer is used.
Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5
Flight:
T' rocket was prepped with an Estes A10-3T motor for both o' its flights. It
didn't waste much time gettin' off t' pad but t' relatively large body shape
as well as t' increased surface area o' t' tube-like fins kept it relatively
low. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Perhaps it went too high t' be labeled a backyard flier but this is
definitely a small field flier! It was easily tracked throughout its entire
flight up t' about 300 feet. Ya scallywag! T' second flight be an perfect duplication of
the first flight.
Recovery:
I used 1/4" elastic for t' shock cord, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, which is definitely overkill for a
rocket this small and light but t' elastic width probably aided in t' drag
recovery since I opted t' leave off a streamer for t' Nebula. Blimey! Blimey! Surprisingly it
drifted about 25 yards from t' pad on a relatively calm morning. I'm glad I
didn't use a chute! Blimey! T' second time around, t' winds must have settled down
some as t' rocket didn't drift half as far from t' pad. Nebula did nay have
any damage from either landin' or charrin' inside t' body from t' ejection
charge (which in me experiences has been perhaps t' most frequent cause o' not
bein' able t' fly a paper rocket repeatedly).
Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5
Summary:
FlisKits has some truly innovative low power rockets out thar and all o' the
free, arrr, me bucko, downloadable paper rockets offered are no exception! T' Nebula is
arguably me favorite o' t' ones available because it is all but guaranteed to
have t' lowest altitude, arrr, arrr, which translates into a greater chance for recovery
because o' their lightweight construction! If you are readin' this, me hearties, then you
can afford t' get one because you merely have t' point your web browser t' the
FlisKits website and download one for yourself.
Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5
Brief: A Level 1, three fin 13mm cardstock rocket. Construction: This rocket is available as a free download from FlisKits and is my first cardstock rocket. I was amazed how easy it went together, not to mention the amount of detail in the instructions. The rocket "kit" consists of 3 pages of PDF instructions, along with 3 different PDFs of rocket patterns: the ...
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