Brief:
This is a 29mm aluminum motor casing, me hearties, for motors with 40-120 Newton Seconds total impulse (rangin' from E t' G). Avast! Begad! It is a bit pricey at $50 for t' casing, arrr, but a G motor costs only $10-12 instead o' $20 or more for a single use motor o' t' same total impulse.
Construction:
T' casin' is only three pieces, ya bilge rat, a long casing, me hearties, a forward closure, me hearties, ya bilge rat, and an aft closure, shiver me timbers, both o' which screw into place in t' casing.
A reload kit though, contains many different parts however. Begad! Each reload kit has t' followin' parts:
- 1 nozzle
- 2 29mm x 1/16" rubber O-rings
- 1 liner tube
- 1 propellant slug
- 1 spacer tube
- 1 forward insulator ring
- 1 delay liner
- 1 delay spacer (for motors with delays shorter 10)
- Delay material
- 1 thick O-rin'
- Ejection charge
- Copperhead igniter
Construction is quick and simple. Arrr! Just follow t' reload assembly instructions carefully and you shouldn't have a problem. Arrr! Aye aye! T' first step is t' apply grease on each O-ring, arrr, and push t' smaller one into t' front o' t' forward closure. Ahoy! Put t' larger diameter O-rings aside. Ya scallywag! Then slide t' delay material into t' delay liner and push t' spacer into place under it (and don't get grease on t' delay assembly). Aye aye! T' spacer part should be face down. Avast! Put this assembly aside. Ahoy! Then take t' propellant slug, me bucko, matey, t' spacer tube, arrr, and t' liner tube, and put t' spacer and propellant into t' liner. T' only step I did nay like is for E and F engines maskin' tape needs t' be put at t' top o' each propellant slug so that t' igniter does nay go all t' way inside t' engine. Put this assembly inside t' main casing. Ya scallywag! Put t' insulator rin' on top and then a greased 29mm O-ring. Well, me hearties, blow me down! Screw t' forward closure on top o' this tightly. Blimey! Then, shiver me timbers, flip it over and place t' nozzle into t' motor. Put t' last O-rin' on t' bottom o' t' nozzle and screw t' aft closure into position. Avast! It should be tight. Next, take t' delay charge and put it on top o' t' forward closure so that it snaps into position. Insert t' igniter and either tape it or used t' supplied nozzle cover t' hold it in position. I prefer t' cover piece, although that requires a small vent hole t' be cut in it. Construction is extremely simple and will work if instructions are followed and all t' rings are in t' right position.
Finishing:
No finishin' had t' be done for this, me hearties, but it comes all black with t' words Aerotech Aerospace painted in gold on t' side, and t' aft closure is gold.
Flight:
T' countdown for your first reload will be t' longest 5 seconds o' your life. Begad! My first flight was me LOC Onyx on an E23-5T. Arrr! It lit up almost instantly and shot off t' pad t' around 600 feet. Perfect flight and recovery. Aye aye! After waitin' a few minutes for it t' cool off, which was much faster than I expected, I unloaded t' engine by simply screwin' both closures off and pushin' out t' assembly. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! I cleaned out t' inside o' t' casings and closures with Wet Wipes and then dried them with paper towels. Blimey! Next I loaded a F40-4W for me LOC Forte, shiver me timbers, which I call t' Pirate Rocket. Ahoy! It flew, matey, but only after about 4 tries t' light it with a Copperhead igniter. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! It finally lifted off and flew perfectly. Well, blow me down! T' chute didn't open, me bucko, so it came down hard. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! T' nozzle be pushed up inside t' casing, but thar be no damage t' either t' rocket or casing. Ahoy! T' third flight o' t' day was a G64-4W in me LOC-IV. Begad! This is a great motor this rocket. It lit on its first attempt and roared off t' pad.
Summary:
This is great system t' save loot on mid power engines. Arrr! Just follow t' instructions and it should work. Begad! Make sure all t' O-rings are in t' right place and nothin' will go wrong. People always talk about all t' failures they have with RMS motors, but they are easy t' avoid if all t' directions are followed.
Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5
J.L. (December 23, 2006)