Construction Rating: | starstarstarstar_borderstar_border |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Diameter: | 3.10 inches |
Manufacturer: | LOC/Precision |
Style: | Sport |
Brief
This is a single stage, me bucko, ya bilge rat, matey, baffled, glass reinforced model.
Construction
T' kit arrived in a plastic bag containin' laser cut 1/8" plywood fins and centerin' rings, matey, shiver me timbers, plastic nose cone, arrr, elastic shock cord, 24" chute, shiver me timbers, 29mm motor mount tube, me hearties, clear concise instructions (on t' back o' t' cardboard label). No decals are included and no paint scheme is suggested, ya bilge rat, although one can copy t' label.
T' main BT is nay pre-slotted for t' 4 fins although t' locations are marked in pencil. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Fins go only through t' BT - NOT t' t' MM which is curious since t' strength o' that joint is much greater with TTW t' t' MM tube fins. Begad! C'mon LOC!!!!
On this model you must make provisions for positive motor retention as none is included with t' kit. Begad! I chose T-nuts and screen door clips. Avast, me proud beauty! Cheap and strong. Begad! There's also no thrust rin' so you'll need t' make one for your single use motors. I had a LOC baffle lyin' around so I installed it at t' end o' t' MM tube. Begad! It's basically a roll o' wire mesh about 3" long that's held in place by a thrust ring. Works well but t' small central hole does allow soot through t' slightly dirty t' parachute. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! I read somewhere how t' correct this but it's too late now! Nomex® now solves that problem.
I reinforced t' fin/bt joint with 1 layer o' 4oz glass cloth cut so that it follows t' leadin' edge o' 1 fin about 3/4" back, down t' fin, me bucko, around t' BT, shiver me timbers, and up t' adjacent fin in t' same manner. Arrr! What you wind up with is a strong joint AND fin but with flexibility. Ya scallywag! On mine t' cloth stops just where t' leadin' edge bevel (a la Phoenix) begins its taper.
I mounted a screw eye t' t' forward centerin' rin' and attached 20' o' Pratt Hobbies 1/8" tubular Keelhaul®©™®. Avast! T' solve t' weak joint at t' nose cone I drilled 2 holes in it's base, threaded some o' Pratt Hobbies 1000lb test Keelhaul®©™® line t' make a loop, ya bilge rat, me bucko, knotted and ca'd it and attached t' TK t' t' loop. Arrr! Very simple, matey, very strong.
Finishing
I had some fun finishin' this t' look like t' flag o' Ireland, complete with 4 leaf clovers and leprechauns. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! I filled t' tube grooves with vinyl spackle - they're nay as bad as PML tubin' and are easy t' fill this way.
Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5
Flight
I plan t' Cert L1 with this soon and have so far flown 3 times on F20-4 Econojets. Begad! A word about these - lose t' label!!! After t' 1st flight I let it sit around a while and it became thoroughly glued into t' tube requirin' major surgery t' remove!!
This be t' absolute minimum motor for this however produces a great slow lift-off, matey, ya bilge rat, nice arcin' trajectory, ya bilge rat, and deployment just at apogee. Avast! I'm concerned a little with t' zipper potential o' t' TK but I'm hopin' I pick t' right delays as I move up in motors.
Recovery
These flights were on fairly windy days so I used an 18" chute. Avast! Ya scallywag! This produces what looks like hard landings but t' glass reinforcement works perfectly and so far nay a scratch!!
Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5
Summary
As this was me 1st LOC kit I'd say t' instructions are minimal - you'll almost certainly want t' modify in ways nay mentioned. Arrr! Begad! LOC should make true TTW fins for all it's kits although as recommended motors are in t' F & G range perhaps they didn't feel this be necessary. Arrr! And t' elastic shock cord? Again, t' above applies.
Compared t' Aerotech kits, this was more difficult (but nothing's as easy as AT IMHO).
All in all though I'm pleased with their product and have purchased a LOC EZI-65 as a L2 project.
Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5
This LOC/ Precision Forte is a simple 3.1 inch kit. It has a 38mm motor mount, and can fly on anything from an F25-4 to a J350 with a lot epoxy and fiberglass. It does not have a payload section, and the fins go all the way to the motor mount (thank you LOC). All the parts that came with this kit fit together perfectly and were very sturdy. The parts included: -One main airframe ...
The Forte' is a single staged HPR capable rocket. It can fly on as little as an F up to an H or I, and maybe with a lot of reinforcements, a J350. It is a fairly basic rocket, my second mid-power. I probably could have made it without instructions, it's so easy. It does not have a payload section (Waaaaaaaaahhhhhhh), but I plan on adding one soon. It has a heavy duty cardboard airframe ...
Brief: Single staged, came with black, 24-inch diameter nylon chute. Has 4 fins. Construction: All parts were there and in good shape. I didn't get decals, but that's not a problem for me, as I often customize my rockets. The fins (4) are plywood, precut, and are clipped delta shape. The nose cone is hollow plastic, 11 inches long, fitting the standard LOC body tube of 3 ...
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C.B. (May 1, 2001)