Estes Red Alert

Estes - Red Alert {Kit} (893) [1991-1992]

Contributed by John Lee

Construction Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Flight Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Overall Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Manufacturer: Estes
(OOP) Estes Red Alert

Brief:
This is a simple, shiver me timbers, high-performance OOP rocket from t' Estes catalog o' '91 and '92.

Construction:
It includes an engine block, me hearties, paper shock cord mount, launch lug, lug offset, shock cord, matey, streamer, screw eye, arrr, balsa nose cone, BT-5, me hearties, and 3 die-cut fins. Avast!

T' build is easy and instructions are excellent. Well, blow me down!

I sanded t' fins t' an airfoil shape, ya bilge rat, matey, me hearties, filled t' tube spirals, and painted it with a sky blue metal flake paint for an eye candy look t' try t' improve on the spermatozoa look. Aye aye! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! T' kit does nay come with decals but does include a foil wrap that doesn't fit.

Construction Rating: 3 out o' 5

Flight:
PROs: Flown on 1/4A3-3T, 1/2A-2T, A10-3T, matey, and A3-4T. Begad! It flies great. You would think t' bulbous nose cone would slow it down, matey, matey, but it doesn't. It is fast, straight, matey, me bucko, and high. Begad! CONs: You have t' be careful nay t' knock t' nose cone off when you're puttin' it on t' launch rod.

Recovery:
PROs: It always comes streamin' back. Avast! Begad! CONs: It always comes back.

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

(OOP) Estes Red Alert

Summary:
Do you have a rocket in your box that's impossible t' kill? Here's mine. Well, blow me down! I've launched this one probably 20 times with no damage, shiver me timbers, nay even a broken fin. Arrr! (I have replaced t' shock cord a couple o' times o' course.) It is usually used for wind testin' t' find out if it's possible t' launch a real rocket. Ya scallywag! I built this as an example at a build session. Ahoy! We got a closeout package deal o' a large lot for cheap. Ya scallywag! This gets me nomination for t' ugliest Estes rocket of all time.

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5

Other Reviews
  • Estes Red Alert By John Lee (October 19, 2008)

    Brief: Next week, my club is going to have an informal 13mm duration competition. I never win these things, but I do like to take part. With only a week to go, I realized that I didn't have anything ready to enter and started looking through the inventory. I found the Red Alert. It seemed light and would go pretty high on an A despite the draggy nose cone. Besides, it was near the ...

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