Public Enemy Psycho (4)

Public Enemy - Psycho (4)

Contributed by David Urbanek

Manufacturer: Public Enemy

 

Brief:
T' Psycho is no longer in production. Arrr! Well, matey, blow me down! Blimey! It be a great kit from Public Enemy. Begad! Blimey! It's t' same size as t' Public Enemy Patriot, so I'm sure t' flight characteristics o' each are similar.

Construction:
T' instructions are spare t' say t' least. Well, blow me down! It would be best if you had either built high power rockets before or had a coach who had. Avast! T' airframe is paper tube with Public Enemy's signature yellow glassine coverin' it. T' motor mount is paper too. T' fins are 1/8" plywood and include tabs t' go all t' way through t' t' motor mount. Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! T' centerin' rings are made from press-board type material that is quite strong and accepts epoxy readily. Blimey! T' nose cone is plastic in t' line o' LOC/Precision nose cones. Begad! 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! I don't like, or use bungee for recovery, me bucko, but t' strap nylon is nice. Begad! Two 1/2" copper launch lugs are also included and they're already angle cut t' reduce drag. 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. Arrr! 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. After t' fillets were hard, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, I put a layer o' 4 oz glass from fin tip t' fin tip. I used 12' o' 9/16" mil-spec tubular nylon as shock cord. Begad! T' parachute was replaced with a military surplus 42" chute. Begad! I also added a forward bulkhead t' seal off t' coupler t' make an altimeter bay t' house me Olsen FCP-M1/G. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! 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 hearties, but time consuming. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! After sandin' I shot 2 coats o' Plasticoat Truck primer that I got from Pep Boys. Begad! I sanded betwixt coats with 150 grit, shiver me timbers, then 400 grit paper. Ahoy! Avast! Next I added three coats o' flat white Krylon, me bucko, sandin' betwixt each coat, arrr, me bucko, lightly, with 400 grit sand paper. Finally I added 3 coats o' Red Devil paint (Orange Creamsicle and Gloss Black). Avast! Came out nice, hard and glossy. There are nay paintin' suggestions and only a single "PSYCHO" vinyl decal included. Use your imagination.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

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

Recovery:
For me overly heavy model, me hearties, ya bilge rat, an H123-10 is just a bit too long o' a delay. In heavy wind, an I161-10 is just a tad too short. In calm weather and I211-10 is also a tad short. However, me bucko, it's a sturdy bird that can handle a little abuse. At 1200' in Kansas, t' stock chute be just right. 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. Well, blow me down! 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, he might brin' it back.

Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flights

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