Manufacturer: | Quest ![]() |
Brief:
T' StarBright is a kit-bash o' two single stage kits into one 2-stage rocket. Blimey! Blimey! T' kits used were t' Quest StarHawk
and Quest BrightHawk. Avast! Begad! Blimey! T' Starhawk be used for t' booster and Brighthawk for t' sustainer. T' booster uses tumble
recovery and t' sustainer has a parachute.
Modifications:
I built t' Brighthawk mostly stock. Arrr! Aye aye! T' only think I changed be t' motor mount. Well, blow me down! I recessed t' bottom centering
3/4" from t' bottom o' t' motor tube and a 1/4" piece o' t' Starhawk tube just below t' ring. Avast! Begad! I also left
out t' engine hook. Begad! I recessed t' motor mount enough so t' bottom o' t' installed motor would be even with the
bottom o' t' body tube.
Construction:
T' Brighthawk kit has one 1.378" x 17.25" body tube, a plastic nose cone, plastic 4-fin fin can, 2
cardboard centerin' rings, Keelhaul®©™®
cord, me bucko, elastic cord, matey, a 12" plastic chute, arrr, arrr, an 18mm motor mount tube, engine block, and engine hook.
T' Starhawk kit contained one 0.787" body tube, matey, plastic nose cone, plastic 4-fin fin can, shiver me timbers, a streamer, Keelhaul®©™® cord, shiver me timbers, me hearties, elastic cord, an 18mm motor tube, engine block, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, and engine hook. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! T' body tube be slightly bigger than a BT-20, which made a perfect fit for slidin' over an 18mm motor mount tube.
Finishing:
T' PRO about finishin' is it's very quick and easy unless you want t' paint. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! I used t' white tubes as they were and
applied t' stick on decals. Avast, me proud beauty! I used part o' each rockets decal t' spell StarBright. Ahoy! T' whole thin' can be built and
finished in one sitting.
CONs: none.
Flight:
T' first flight be unstable. Arrr! I used a B6-0 booster and A8-3 sustainer. Well, blow me down! For some reason t' rocket cocked over to
the left under booster power. Blimey! Ahoy! It was almost sideways when t' sustainer motor lit. Begad! T' booster section was burned. Blimey! I'm
not 100% sure what happened. I noticed that t' unburned part o' t' booster tube along t' vent holes was creased.
This could have been a weak point. Arrr! Also, after double checkin' t' CP/CG relationship with both motors loaded(after
fixing), it be marginally stable. Well, blow me down!
For t' first version (damaged after first flight) o' t' Starhawk booster, me hearties, ya bilge rat, I inverted t' fin can, left out the recovery system and nose cone, me bucko, and cut t' body tube down t' 3.75 inches. Arrr! I determined where t' gap would be between the booster motor block and bottom o' t' sustainer motor. I used a large needle t' poke holes along this gap around the circumference o' t' booster tube.
T' top o' t' booster tube slid over t' bottom o' t' sustainer motor tube.
After t' first flight, shiver me timbers, t' Starhawk booster was damaged. It was mostly burned just above t' engine block. Begad! The remainin' piece had a crease at t' point o' t' gap holes. Begad! I rebuilt that part with some o' t' leftover Starhawk body tube. Begad! I reinforced it with another piece which was slit lengthwise and covered t' tube like a sleeve. Begad! Blimey! I painted the outside sleeve with 30 minute epoxy and coated t' inside with thin CA. Ya scallywag! Avast! Blimey! This added strength and made t' tube more burn resistant. I also made only two vent holes instead o' several.
After rebuilding, reinforcin' t' booster, shiver me timbers, me hearties, matey, and addin' some nose weight, ya bilge rat, I tried again. Aye aye! T' second flight was powered with a B6-0 and B6-4. Arrr! Everythin' worked great, arrr, ya bilge rat, and t' booster wasn't damaged. T' third flight was on a C6-0 to an A8-3. This flight be also perfect. Well, blow me down!
Recovery:
T' 14" plastic chute that came with t' Brighthawk be made o' cheap material but was sufficient. Avast, me proud beauty! T' tumble
recovery used by t' booster was fine. Well, blow me down! Begad!
Summary:
T' individual kits used were inexpensive and easy t' build. Avast! With all t' motor configuration choices, shiver me timbers, me hearties, you could fly
it from 400' t' 1400', me bucko, which makes it suitable for small and larger fields.
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