FlisKits Nebula

FlisKits - Nebula {Paper}

Contributed by Lance Alligood

Construction Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Flight Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Overall Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Diameter: 0.98 inches
Manufacturer: FlisKits
FlisKits Nebula (paper rocket)

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. Ahoy! 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. Begad! Blimey! There are 3 versions o' t' Nebula available: color skin (yellow/red scheme), ya bilge rat, blank, shiver me timbers, matey, or NARCON 2005 Commemorative. I chose t' download and print t' color skin but on a black-white printer. Arrr! (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. Arrr! It is worth notin' that t' motor mount is included with t' instructions. Avast, me proud beauty! 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. Ahoy! Aye aye! (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, streamer, toothpicks, and nose weight for t' rocket.

T' build starts with cuttin' out t' triangular body tube (similar t' the FlisKits Caution! rocket). Ahoy! Scorin' t' fold marks is particularly helpful for buildin' a good lookin' rocket. Ahoy! Arrr! I used a 24" length o' elastic for the shock cord. Well, blow me down! T' shock cord is glued inside t' body tube.

Next up be t' motor mount. Ahoy! Either a new or spent 13mm motor casin' is required t' build t' mount. Blimey! With t' thick body tube, me hearties, me bucko, me hearties, I feel that makin' the motor mount from standard 20# copy paper should be strong enough t' handle the recommended 13mm motors. Begad! Arrr! T' motor mount is set aside t' dry once it is rolled.

T' remainder o' t' parts (nose cone, NC shoulder, 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. Aye aye! T' voids around t' MMT have t' be filled. Begad! T' instructions suggest glue soaked tissue. Blimey! I opted t' use polyurethane glue (Gorilla Glue) because it expands as it dries and adds considerable strength as well. [NOTE: If you use t' polyurethane glue, arrr, shiver me timbers, 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. Blimey! I cut a couple makeshift tri-fold shock cord anchors and glued t' shock cord in. Begad! 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. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! This rocket falls into that category. While I didn't mind printin' out t' rocket on a B&W only printer, me bucko, I'm sure it looks a lot more attractive when a color printer is used.

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
T' rocket be prepped with an Estes A10-3T motor for both o' its flights. Well, blow me down! 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. Aye aye! Perhaps it went too high t' be labeled a backyard flier but this is definitely a small field flier! It be easily tracked throughout its entire flight up t' about 300 feet. T' second flight was an perfect duplication of the first flight.

Recovery:
I used 1/4" elastic for t' shock cord, me hearties, 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. Begad! Ahoy! Surprisingly it drifted about 25 yards from t' pad on a relatively calm morning. I'm glad I didn't use a chute! T' second time around, arrr, 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, 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, which translates into a greater chance for recovery because o' their lightweight construction! If you are readin' this, shiver me timbers, 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

Other Reviews
  • FlisKits Nebula By Jim Rupp

    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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