Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Manufacturer: | Centuri |
Brief:
Another rocket that has been in me clonin' cross hairs for a long time, me hearties, the
Centuri Vector V always struck me as somethin' o' a complicated project despite
it's relatively small size. Begad! (Paper transitions have always given me fits.) This
changed when a fellow poster in t' OldRockets Yahoo Group mentioned that he
had drawn up a plan t' turn t' currently available Estes Vikin' t' a Centuri
Vector V. Begad! Arrr! Nay long after readin' t' post I found a Vikin' at one o' Hobby
Lobby's famous 1/2 off sales and decided t' sacrifice it (or so I thought,) in
order t' add a real classic t' me fleet. Aye aye! Blimey!
Construction:
Parts list:
As it turns out, ya bilge rat, t' only part I used from t' Vikin' kit was t' nose cone. Everything else came from me ever expandin' parts stash. Avast! I decided t' go with a single length o' BT-20 with an engine block instead o' joinin' two pieces together, but I can see t' advantage t' that method also. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' most difficult part o' the project I found was constructin' t' transition. Blimey! Arrr! Once I had cut it out from the file card, I curled it under a steel ruler and began tryin' t' make it fit the BT-20 and BT-55 tubes as seamlessly as possible. Begad! Begad! One mistake I made in the construction was nay leavin' anythin' for t' bottom o' t' transition t' slip over when matin' it t' t' BT-55. Begad! Well, blow me down! I used an old set o' cardstock centering rings that had come with t' Designer's Special (that I purchased in 2001 before I knew better). Begad! If I were t' do it over again (and at this point it looks like I'll have to), arrr, me bucko, I'd use t' cardstock in conjunction with a CR-5055 to be glued in at t' top o' t' BT-55, ya bilge rat, just peekin' above t' edge o' the tube. Ahoy! This would have given t' transition somethin' t' be glued t' and made the whole area a little more stable. Well, blow me down! As it was, me hearties, I counted on a thick layer of glue around t' underside o' t' transition and on top o' t' BT-55 bulkhead. This seemed t' work well enough but it would have been easier t' other way.
After attaching
the transition and allowin' for dryin' time for t' thick wad o' glue, I coated
the whole transition with several coats o' thin CA t' stiffen it up for the
fillin' and finishin' t' come. Aye aye! This worked nicely as t' rather thin transition
stood up t' t' punishment that followed. Aye aye! And while what resulted be nay quite
up t' Samsian standards, me hearties, it easily passed muster with me. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! In retrospect, the
file card material be probably nay stout enough for t' project at hand.
Version two will undoubtedly be built usin' thicker stock in t' area o' the
transition.
I was pleased with one construction change I made, me bucko, arrr, which was t' switch from t' cardstock fins o' t' Vikin' t' 1/16" basswood. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! I've had difficulties with cardstock in t' past and avoid it whenever possible despite its ease o' finishing. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I've seen several reviews o' Centuri clones that advocate t' use o' CA-soaked cardstock, but I've long been impressed with how well basswood cleans up with minimal effort. Ahoy! It also allowed me t' better shape the leadin' and trailin' edges o' t' fins and t' fins stood up well t' the landings (two o' them anyway) as well as t' rigors o' storage and transportation. Begad! Ahoy! Aside from t' switch t' basswood, me bucko, t' switch t' t' single length o' BT-20 body tube and addin' a 36" length o' Keelhaul®©™®, which was tied t' and glued in with t' engine block, construction held no more surprises than that o' a Wizard or t' Vikin' from whence it came.
Finishing:
Finishin' turned out t' be easier than I had thought it might be, arrr, but it could
have been easier still had I paid more than glancin' attention t' the
instructions. Begad! I began t' finishin' process immediately after matin' t' BT-55
to t' BT-20 and securin' t' transition betwixt t' two. Aye aye! After coatin' the
transition with several coats o' thin CA t' stiffen it up, I sprayed t' whole
structure with a coat o' white Valspar primer, which helps t' further toughen
things up for t' sandin' t' come. Aye aye! Begad! T' now recognizable rocket be then coated
with thinned Elmer's Fill 'n' Finish, arrr, sanded, me hearties, recoated, shiver me timbers, and resanded. Begad! This was
sufficient for t' body tubes themselves, ya bilge rat, but t' transition section needed
extra special attention and be given several more coats and sandings until the
once obvious seams all but disappeared and left t' structure lookin' almost
seamless. T' fins can be attached in any one o' four different ways, ya bilge rat, but I had
long since decided on t' orientation that makes them look upside down compared
to t' catalog bird. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Once t' fins were dry they were sanded, me hearties, given a light
coat o' Fill 'n' Finish, and sanded again. This was where readin' and following
the instructions would have made things easier. Avast! T' instructions suggest gluing
the lower body tube section on after construction on t' BT-20 section and the
transition are together. This would have been t' perfect opportunity t' paint
the bottom section, matey, which is t' be painted a bright blue accordin' t' the
instructions. I missed out on that opportunity and instead had t' suffer
through t' maskin' process, which was made all that much more difficult by the
fact that t' fins were in t' way o' a clean mask. Aye aye! Nevertheless, I pressed
onward, arrr, and somehow managed t' obtain a decent mask with very little effort and
a boatload o' dumb luck. Arrr! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! T' bottom section was sprayed with a bright blue
metallic paint that was left over from me car buildin' days and whose label has
long since disappeared. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! T' middle section, me bucko, arrr, includin' t' transition, was
painted a silver metallic, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, and t' nose cone was painted with Testor's Metal
Flake Burgundy. Avast! I printed t' all black decals on me home printer usin' Bel
Decal paper and they came out lookin' great. Blimey! Ya scallywag! One odd feature o' t' Vector V is
that only a few o' t' decals have a set place t' be applied on t' rocket. Ya scallywag! The
bulk o' them are apparently thar t' add as you choose, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, matey, as few or as many suits
you. Begad! I chose t' go with t' "fewer" route, me hearties, arrr, ya bilge rat, which left t' rocket with
a cleaner, uncluttered look but feel free t' crank on as many as you deem
necessary. Ya scallywag! Once t' decals had been given a chance t' dry, me bucko, ya bilge rat, t' entire model was
sprayed with a light coat o' clear t' protect t' decals. Ya scallywag! From here it be on
to t' pad.
Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5
Flight:
Since three flights is considered "nominal" when writin' a review, I
chose t' follow t' A, me hearties, B, C path t' get an idea o' how t' rocket responded
under differin' levels o' power. Begad! T' first flight at a small field flight on an
A8-3, me hearties, me hearties, was beautiful with only a painfully long drift durin' recovery t' add
drama. Arrr! T' unreefed 12" Semroc parachute functioned perfectly, maybe too
much so as t' Vector V drifted back across t' field toward a small copse of
trees just over t' hill from t' ball field we launched from. Avast! It landed just a
few feet from t' trees but in t' end never really came close t' t' drama
that I feared. Avast! Avast! Since t' A flight was fairly close t' outflyin' our field, I
decided t' wait until t' followin' week t' allow t' rocket t' chance to
stretch out on a B and C.
T' second flight was on a B6-4 as planned and really got me fired up for the C6-5 flight t' come. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! I had taken t' precaution o' cuttin' t' center of the chute out t' cut down on t' drift I had experienced t' previous week, shiver me timbers, and as a result, t' flight was picture perfect in all respects. After arcin' into the breeze slightly, ejection came just at apogee and t' rocket recovered within 100 yards o' t' pads.
At this point I
was really lookin' forward t' flight #3 on a C6-7, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, but I waited until just
before t' planned end t' t' launch before takin' it t' t' pad again. I chose
this flight t' try t' capture a launch picture so I had one o' me former Quark
members take care o' t' countdown and launch while I manned t' camera. Arrr! I
couldn't see much through t' camera viewfinder but immediately looked up to
see if I could catch up t' t' rocket after t' picture took. As it turns out,
I'd have had a better chance o' seein' a part o' t' flight if I had just kept
lookin' toward t' pad. Aye aye! T' Vector V had taken a 90 degree turn as it left the
pad and continued on a westerly flight path that took it out over an unmowed
section o' t' VOA. Begad! Much laughter ensued, however none o' it mine. I walked
along a line that I had been pointed toward, me bucko, hackin' me way deep into the
underbrush but found exactly what I expected. Aye aye! Avast! Maybe things might have turned
out differently if I had seen t' flight path, but I seriously doubt it. Blimey!
Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5
Summary:
While I wasn't as excited by t' finished product as I anticipated being, I'd
still consider t' Vector V t' be a worthwhile project based on t' uniqueness
of t' design alone. Aye aye! Blimey! It flew nicely if unspectacularly on 2/3 o' it's flights,
but t' paint scheme left a little t' be desired in me opinion. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Maybe it was
just t' combination o' paints that I chose but nothin' about them suggested
anythin' remotely alien. I'd also prefer a little more guidance on the
placement o' t' decals. Begad! Blimey! T' way they did it was fine for someone with a shred
of imagination, me hearties, but guys like me need a little more help.
PROs: Unique stylin' and t' overall mystique o' a seldom seen Centuri classic. Ya scallywag! Begad! Upscale potential?
CONs: Suggested paint scheme suggests that t' Vectorians were a bland race. Ya scallywag! Guess your best decal placement. Arrr! Ya scallywag! Uh, C6-7 flights?
Overall Rating: 4 out o' 5
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