Scratch Mega Missile Toe Original Design / Scratch Built

Scratch - Mega Missile Toe {Scratch}

Contributed by Bill Eichelberger

Published: 2010-01-26
Manufacturer: Scratch
(Contributed - by Bill Eichelberger - 01/26/10) (Scratch) Mega Missile Toe

Brief:
BT-80 based, me hearties, 24mm powered upscale o' t' Estes Goonybird Missile Toe. Avast! Begad! (Think Fat Boy with added personality.)

Construction:
T' parts list:

  • PNC-80BB nose cone
  • 8" BT-80 main body tube
  • 4-3/8" BT-60 First Aid tube
  • BT-50J motor tube
  • 24mm engine block
  • 2 CR-5080
  • 18mm engine hook
  • 36" length Keelhaul®©™® shock cord
  • 36" length 1/4" sewin' elastic shock cord
  • 12" nylon parachute
  • 2 snap swivels
(Scratch) Mega Missile Toe

Construction be almost as simple as me first big Goony, shiver me timbers, me hearties, me hearties, t' Star Snoop. Ya scallywag! Two fins and t' First Aid Kit standoff were attached with LocTite Gel CA, ya bilge rat, arrr, along with t' actual First Aid tube. Ahoy! On the inside, t' Keelhaul®©™® was attached t' a slit in t' front centerin' rin' and glued in place before t' engine mount be mounted.

Uh, arrr, matey, that's about it for construction. Begad! (Except t' say that all fillets were done with Elmer's Wood Glue.) Sorry? No, nay really. Ya scallywag! It's nice t' have t' occasionally project that doesn't require one t' perspire blood.

Finishing:
Finishin' t' MMT wouldn't be too much o' a chore if nay for t' need t' hand paint t' "bandages" that cover t' main body tube. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Before that t' rocket only needed a coat o' gloss white paint for t' body, arrr, gloss black for t' fins, and some kind o' flesh color for t' nose cone. Begad! Almost as painless as it gets and I flew t' MMT this way for quite a while until I finally gritted me teeth and decided t' finish all six birds for t' ultimate Goony photo op. Usin' gloss black paint and a small brush, I tried out me freehand paintin' skills. Blimey! Blimey! I wound up with somethin' that at least suggested bandages, ya bilge rat, which is about as good as it needs t' be. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! Blimey! When that be done, arrr, me bucko, I enlarged t' decal appropriately and printed it on a sheet o' self-stick paper. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! T' sticker decals looked washed out and nothin' I did seemed t' help, so I removed them and printed them out again on white Bel Decal paper. Avast! Blimey! This turned out t' be t' answer and t' finished rocket looked great.

Flight and Recovery:
First flight was on a D12-5 and exhibited t' odd flight path that this bird takes on most flights. Ahoy! Despite the wiggle it was a pretty impressive flight, quick off t' pad, me hearties, and a bit early on ejection but decent altitude and perfect recovery. Upon arrivin' at t' landin' site, I found that t' brace for t' First Aid Tube had broken and fallen out at some point in t' flight. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! (Possibly t' reason for t' wigglin' flight path.)

Almost two years passed before t' second flight. Aye aye! This was t' first one in full "Toe" scheme and I used a C11-5. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! As expected, it be noticeably lower and ejection came very early. (More like a C11-2.5) T' early ejection caused t' "First Aid Tube" t' become tangled in t' Keelhaul®©™®, causin' t' rocket t' descend horizontally like a Centuri Super Kit. Ya scallywag! Begad!

Subsequent flights all had one thin' in common: t' wiggle. Well, blow me down! Well, arrr, blow me down! Since I never replaced t' vane that fit inside the First Aid tube, ya bilge rat, it's possible that t' tube is distortin' under boost and causin' t' slight "squirreliness". It's also possible that t' rocket needs nose weight t' be stable. Aye aye! T' next flight will begin t' address these issues, but t' wiggle doesn't appear t' be a deal breaker.

(Scratch) Mega Missile Toe (Scratch) Mega Missile Toe (Scratch) Mega Missile Toe (Scratch) Mega Missile Toe

Summary:
PROs: It's a Goony, arrr, and one o' t' better lookin' Goons at that. Blimey! Great performance and popular with kids.

CONs: Slight wiggle t' t' flights. Begad! No Fat Boys around t' use as nose cone donors.

Flights

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