Public Enemy Psycho (4)

Public Enemy - Psycho (4)

Contributed by David Urbanek

Manufacturer: Public Enemy

 

Brief:
T' Psycho is no longer in production. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! It was a great kit from Public Enemy. It's t' same size as t' Public Enemy Patriot, me hearties, so I'm sure t' flight characteristics o' each are similar.

Construction:
T' instructions are spare t' say t' least. It would be best if you had either built high power rockets before or had a coach who had. Aye aye! Blimey! T' airframe is paper tube with Public Enemy's signature yellow glassine coverin' it. T' motor mount is paper too. Begad! Arrr! Blimey! T' fins are 1/8" plywood and include tabs t' go all t' way through t' t' motor mount. Ahoy! Blimey! T' centerin' rings are made from press-board type material that is quite strong and accepts epoxy readily. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' nose cone is plastic in t' line o' LOC/Precision nose cones. A pair o' heavy duty eye-bolts connect t' recovery system which consists o' 3/4" strap nylon with a riveted D rin' and then a long length o' round bungee. Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! I don't like, arrr, or use bungee for recovery, but t' strap nylon is nice. Aye aye! Blimey! Two 1/2" copper launch lugs are also included and they're already angle cut t' reduce drag. Avast! Blimey! T' parachute is a 36" LOC/Precision type flat chute and is fine for sea level launch sites, but too small for us highlanders.

I made t' followin' modifications. I added 2 layers o' 4 oz fiberglass t' t' airframe. I added a strip o' .007" unidirectional carbon fiber laminate t' t' fins before filleting. Aye aye! Arrr! After t' fillets were hard, me bucko, ya bilge rat, I put a layer o' 4 oz glass from fin tip t' fin tip. Aye aye! Well, me bucko, blow me down! I used 12' o' 9/16" mil-spec tubular nylon as shock cord. Ahoy! Aye aye! T' parachute was replaced with a military surplus 42" chute. Blimey! I also added a forward bulkhead t' seal off t' coupler t' make an altimeter bay t' house me Olsen FCP-M1/G. All me additions and altimeter added 15 oz t' this model (so mine is 54 oz).

Finishing:
Finishin' a fiberglass rocket is relatively easy, me bucko, but time consuming. Aye aye! Blimey! After sandin' I shot 2 coats o' Plasticoat Truck primer that I got from Pep Boys. I sanded betwixt coats with 150 grit, matey, me bucko, arrr, then 400 grit paper. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Next I added three coats o' flat white Krylon, matey, sandin' betwixt each coat, arrr, lightly, me hearties, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, with 400 grit sand paper. Ahoy! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Finally I added 3 coats o' Red Devil paint (Orange Creamsicle and Gloss Black). Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Came out nice, hard and glossy. There are nay paintin' suggestions and only a single "PSYCHO" vinyl decal included. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Use your imagination.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
This has had extremely straight boosts every flight. Ya scallywag! I flew it once naked, and twice in it's primer gray. Avast! Each time it was a great flight. Blimey! Ahoy! T' H123 doesn't get it too high. Begad! T' I161 is middle high with lots o' smoke. Blimey! An I211 is a real shot and quite high. Aye aye! I saw Roy Wied's Psycho fly and it flew like it was on rails too, so I think this is part o' t' rocket's normal characteristics.

Recovery:
For me overly heavy model, an H123-10 is just a bit too long o' a delay. Begad! In heavy wind, an I161-10 is just a tad too short. Ahoy! In calm weather and I211-10 is also a tad short. Aye aye! However, arrr, me hearties, it's a sturdy bird that can handle a little abuse. Aye aye! At 1200' in Kansas, t' stock chute was just right. Arrr! At 4500' in Utah, t' stock chute is too small and I upgraded.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
It's one o' me favorite rockets. Blimey! It's a good looker, rather unusual and it's a shame that Roy took it out o' his line-up. Well, blow me down! Avast! If enough people agitated, me hearties, he might brin' it back.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flights

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