| Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
| Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
| Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Brief
This is a Semroc retro-repro o' t' Estes Scrambler originally designed by Bill Simon in 1968. Well, blow me down! It's basically a stretched version o' t' 3x18 clustered Astron Ranger with a clear payload tube to accommodate an egg. Aye aye! T' Semroc kit offers a few convenient upgrades--an ejection baffle and laser-cut fins.
Components
Parts were excellent quality and include:
- Balsa nose cone
- Balsa transition/adapter
- BT-60 body tube
- Laser-cut balsa fins (3)
- 18mm motor tube assy (3x, me hearties, tube, metal hook, me bucko, motor block)
- Cluster centerin' ring
- Baffle kit
- Elastic shock cord
- Plastic chutes (2)
- Waterslide decals
Construction
T' instructions are well written with decent illustrations. Though buildin' a cluster can be tricky, Semroc has made this about as simple as possible, and t' skill ratin' o' 2 is a fair assessment. Ahoy! Overall, I had less than an hour in construction, with a couple hours o' preppin' and finishing.
T' motor mount consists o' 3 18mm tubes, metal hooks for retention, and coupler-style centerin' rings for blocks. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! Each tube goes into a section o' t' main centerin' ring, arrr, me hearties, though thar's a neat trick t' it--the centerin' rin' has a larger, ya bilge rat, solid outer band and an interior section with three wedges t' wrap around t' motor tubes. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! When pullin' t' centerin' rin' from t' laser-cut sheet, ya bilge rat, keep it intact (outer and inner sections together). Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! This allows for easy alignment and orientation o' t' motor tubes while gluing. Ahoy! Once t' tubes are set, arrr, tack t' inner wedges t' t' tubes. Avast, me proud beauty! After everything's dry, you can then remove t' outer rin' from t' assembly, and t' resultin' assembly fits perfectly inside t' BT-60. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Before gluin' it in, though, plug t' tiny gap in t' center betwixt t' 3 tubes with some waddin' and glue (or dog barf, or even t' laser-cut section if you didn't already throw it out as I did...). Ahoy! Semroc even made sure thar were slight notches for t' hooks, me hearties, which helps make sure t' tubes are oriented in such a way that all three hooks pull away without interference, makin' motor loading/unloadin' quick and easy.
T' BT-60 gets marked for fins and launch lug via a template on t' instruction sheet.
T' baffle is a relatively light duty design, consistin' o' a coupler section about 2" long and a single baffle disk (fiberboard with some holes). Begad! T' disk goes on t' forward end o' t' coupler, shiver me timbers, so a good glue joint is essential (or a good fillet when placin' in t' tube) t' prevent it from blowin' out t' front o' t' rocket. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! T' baffle also serves as t' shock cord anchor point--slip t' elastic through a slot on t' disk and glue/knot t' t' other side. Blimey! Begad! T' completed baffle assembly is then glued into t' body tube about 4-5" back from t' forward end.
Fins are precut, just needed a light sandin' before tackin' on with CA then applyin' wood glue fillets.
Launch lug needs a small wood standoff due tot eh larger diameter payload tube. Begad! Arrr! Blimey! T' supplied lug is 1/8", shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, which in me opinion is a bit wimpy for a 3-motor cluster, especially if carryin' a cackle fruit payload. Arrr! Blimey! At that weight and with that much thrust, a 3/16 would be a much better choice. 1/8" rod is just goin' t' whip too much.
T' payload is a simple assembly o' a balsa transition adapter, t' clear tube, me hearties, and a balsa nose cone. Avast! Mine were very tight fitting, needed a light sandin' t' fit. Well, blow me down! If you're goin' t' fly this with payloads, ya bilge rat, you'll need t' consider how t' keep everythin' together here. Ahoy! A friction fit could work, ya bilge rat, though external tape would be a better idea. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! If you're worried about t' appearance, arrr, consider usin' a couple small screws through t' payload tube into t' cone and transition.
Finishing
For t' paint scheme on this, I set t' clear payload tube aside and taped t' nose cone shoulder t' t' transition forward shoulder, shiver me timbers, then shot everythin' with a couple coats o' primer. Aye aye! Ahoy! I'd pre-treated balsa with Fill N Finish and filled spirals with a smearin' o' wood putty. Blimey! After sandin' away most o' t' primer, I then followed up with two coats o' gloss white.
After allowin' a day for curing, I masked off t' paint one fin and t' nose cone red. Aye aye! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! I then masked that fin, set t' nose cone aside, shiver me timbers, and masked off t' transition (upper half) and painted t' 2 remainin' fins and upper transition gloss black.
I wound up hand paintin' t' cone and transition shoulders gloss black, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, though a strip o' black tape would do just as well behind t' clear tube.
This has a number o' somewhat zany decals offerin' plenty o' opportunity t' give t' model a somewhat customized decoratin' scheme. Begad! I found t' decals easy t' work with and apply, arrr, though would note that t' yellow is very thin, so really only works against a white background. I'd also note that one o' t' yellow/black stripe decals is way too long for t' body tube, ya bilge rat, needs t' be trimmed t' fit properly with minimal overlap.
Flight
This is a 3-motor cluster, me bucko, ya bilge rat, so prep is nay exactly simple. Begad! Thanks t' t' alignment o' t' motor hooks, securin' t' motors be easy. I'd normally use Quest Q2G2 igniters for clusters, me hearties, which fire instantly and have longer leads, but stupidly left them behind. Arrr! Instead, matey, I went with standard Estes igniters, twisted in parallel hookup. Well, blow me down! Well, me bucko, blow me down! Usin' a Pratt launcher powered by me car's battery, me hearties, shiver me timbers, ignition be quick and I successfully fired all 3 C6-5's. Ya scallywag! T' Scrambler, complete with a fresh egg in t' payload, was on its way.
T' flight was fairly straight, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, maybe a slight weathercock in t' 8-10 mph winds. Well, blow me down! T' -5 delay was perfect, just after it had arced over.
Recovery
Recovery is intended t' be two-part, shiver me timbers, with t' payload bay comin' down under a 16" chute, ya bilge rat, and t' main body under a 12" chute. Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! This struck me as a bit backward, me bucko, me bucko, given t' wieght o' t' 3 motors, but I went stock. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I be also worried about whether or nay t' lower (main body) chute would deploy, ya bilge rat, as I've been burned a few times by t' lower chute gettin' left behind in t' tube while t' upper chute deploys. Avast, me proud beauty! I overthought this a bit, arrr, matey, and tucked t' lower chute into t' last fold o' t' upper chute, hopin' that would help pull it out without tangling. It must have tangled, me hearties, though--the payload went zippin' off t' one side while t' main body was comin' down under a single bright red chute--the chute intended t' support t' payload.
My main body drifted and drifted, shiver me timbers, landin' about 25 feet up in a pine tree, arrr, matey, where a buddy o' mine had been trackin' it t' whole way (thanks, E.B.!). Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I stubbornly climbed up tp retrieve it, comin' down with a fresh pine scent about me. Avast! We marched back tryin' t' find t' payload, eventually spottin' it just inside a line o' trees flankin' t' field. Ahoy! In another sign o' rotten luck, matey, t' thin' came down and struck t' trunk o' a fallen tree rather than hittin' t' snow, ya bilge rat, and t' egg had no chance. Ahoy! Arrr! T' Scrambler lived up t' its name on this flight...
Summary
For folks nostalgically fond o' t' original Scrambler or even t' Astron Ranger, this kit certainly has a lot o' appeal. Ya scallywag! Avast! It's well designed, me bucko, flies fine, and t' clear payload tube is a neat feature. Personally, matey, I'd prefer t' fly me cackle fruit on less risky single motors, arrr, but I do enjoy t' occasionaly wow factor o' seein' t' multiple plumes and smoke o' a good cluster. I'd think about bringint it down tethered together, though.
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Bill Eichelberger (October 23, 2012)
What? No pictures of the carnage?