Brief:

T' VMX-2 Spaceplane is a new rocket glider kit by t' equally new UK rocketry company, shiver me timbers, me hearties, Orbital Engineering. Aye aye! Well, me bucko, blow me down! You may have seen t' pre-production prototype of this kit flyin' at various rocketry events in 2002, ya bilge rat, includin' t' IRW and K-Lob. Begad! Avast!

On openin' t' sturdy corrugated cardboard box, first impressions are very good. Begad! Well, blow me down! Blimey! Three sheets and four strips o' balsa wrapped in bubble wrap, shiver me timbers, a nice piece o' BT-20, all t' small parts in a resealable bag, ya bilge rat, and a very comprehensive lookin' set o' instructions. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I should point out at this stage that t' kit supplied was a production prototype, and t' final production kits may differ slightly. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Blimey!

Construction:

T' Kit includes:-

• 3 sheets o' balsa containin' pre cut wings etc
• 2 triangular section leadin' edges
• 2 triangular section body fillets
• BT-20
• Plastic nose cone
• Coupler tube
• Launch lug
• Balsa blast deflector
• 2 lengths o' elastic
• Lead weight
• Trimmin' putty
• Self adhesive aluminium foil
• Thrust rin'
• 3 motor plugs
• Mylar strip
• 2 pins
• Comprehensive 9-page instructions

T' first step is t' free t' win' parts from t' balsa sheets and assemble them. Avast, me proud beauty! T' win' parts appear t' have been partially pre cut by some sort of router. Begad! There are just a few tabs on each component which require cuttin' to free t' part. Blimey! I found it best t' do a "rough cut" first, some way up the tab, t' free t' part. Well, blow me down! Then, once free o' t' sheet I did a "close cut" t' remove t' remains o' t' tab. Begad! Arrr! It’s best t' do this final cut from both sides o' t' part. Ya scallywag! T' instructions indicate that either medium CA or light wood glue may be used for construction. Aye aye! I wasn’t in any rush (waitin' for t' glue t' dry gave me t' opportunity t' write this review) so used EVO-STIK wood adhesive and "double glue joints". Aye aye!

Wings:

I found t' win' assembly straight forward with t' exception o' addin' t' leadin' edges. Blimey! Begad! Although the positionin' o' these is quite clear in t' win' plan diagram, me bucko, ya bilge rat, there’s another diagram that I just found confusing. Begad! I couldn’t figure out what it was tryin' t' show me, ya bilge rat, or even be sure what view it represented. Begad! Suffice to say that if you assemble t' wings bottom side down, shiver me timbers, t' leadin' edges go flat side down too! T' wings must be assembled with a dihedral. Aye aye! I found this quite tricky and, once dry, me bucko, ya bilge rat, had t' fill a small gap at t' aft end.

Elevons:

T' next step is t' add t' elevons. Arrr! Begad! These are attached t' t' aft end of the wings usin' mylar hinges. Avast, me proud beauty! You have t' make slots in t' aft edge o' the main win' and t' forward edge o' t' elevon. Ahoy! I thought this be goin' t' be a bit tricky, me hearties, matey, but as long as you keep t' knife horizontal with respect t' the wing/elevon, it’s nay too bad. Avast! Aye aye! T' positionin' o' t' hinges seemed a bit odd, me hearties, so I made mine equidistant along t' elevon (which was a mistake, the manufacturer informs me that t' unequal spacin' is intentional). Ya scallywag! T' hinges are attached by pushin' a pin through t' fins with t' mylar tabs in position. Then CA is wicked into t' resultin' hole. This hinge design is very clean and I like it a lot. Arrr!

Fins & Strakes

T' fins are added t' t' elevons next, and this was where I had me first real trouble. Blimey! Blimey! Either t' slots are too narrow, or t' balsa t' fins are cut from is too thick. Well, blow me down! I fixed this by scorin' across t' fin at t' top o' the tab, and then carefully parin' away part o' t' tab thickness. Aye aye! T' under wing strakes had t' be modified in t' same way. Blimey! Once t' fins and strakes are in place, matey, ya bilge rat, t' elevons are attached t' t' win' with t' hinges, in t' same way as the hinges were attached t' t' elevons.

Ejection Vent

T' kit can be made into two slightly different versions, arrr, matey, one for sport, arrr, t' other for competition. Blimey! The difference is in t' arrangements made for t' ventin' o' unwanted ejection gases. In t' sport model t' gases are vented through a hatch in t' top of the body tube. Begad! There are also parts t' deflect t' gases and strengthen the body tube interior. Arrr! Begad! For t' competition model, matey, me bucko, these parts are omitted and instead t' motor most be plugged forcin' t' ejection gases out o' t' motor nozzle. Ahoy! I decided t' build t' sport model. Blimey!

For t' sport model t' next stage is t' cut out t' vent hatch. This is best done with a sharp knife. Blimey! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! A section must be left uncut t' provide a hinge. This hinge is reinforced by t' addition o' a self adhesive foil strip. Begad! Enough of this foil is supplied t' add protection t' t' body tube just aft o' the vent. Aye aye! A cylindrical section o' balsa is glued into place inside o' t' body tube just forward o' t' vent t' deflect t' ejection gases through t' vent. Finally, a length o' thick cardboard tube is fitted inside t' body tube to strengthen it. Ya scallywag! This buts up t' t' balsa deflector. Ahoy! Arrr! T' aft end o' this strengthener acts as t' motor thrust ring. (For t' competition model, ya bilge rat, me hearties, an ordinary thrust rin' is provided.)

Fuselage

Next t' body is attached t' the wings. Begad! You need t' take care here as it’s all t' easy t' nay get t' tube properly aligned. Blimey! T' triangular body fillets complete t' main assembly. These must be trimmed square at t' aft end and glued into position. Well, blow me down! Once dry the front end must be trimmed t' match t' leadin' edge win' extensions. Blimey! T' nose weight is added t' t' nose cone, me bucko, which is secured only with tape t' facilitate the addition o' more weight durin' trimming.

Mechanics

T' mechanism t' move t' elevons is installed next. This comprises a pin pushed through t' part o' t' fins mounted on each elevon, and two length of elastic attached t' t' part o' t' fins mounted on t' wing. Arrr! T' pins pushed through t' fins at 45° and secured usin' CA. Ahoy! Once dry t' head o' t' pins is clipped off. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! T' elastic is attached t' t' fins in t' pre-made indentations (you did assemble them on t' correct side, matey, right?) and hooked onto t' points o' t' pins. Avast! T' tension can be adjusted by stretchin' the elastic more or less before hookin' onto t' pin points. You don’t need much tension. Aye aye! Ahoy! T' instructions specify that t' weight o' a spent C6 motor should be just capable o' lowerin' t' elevon on t' t' strake. Aye aye!

T' way t' mechanism works is that, at lift off, t' airflow forces the elevons into t' flat position. Avast! Once in normal flight however, me bucko, t' tension in the elastic is enough t' overcome t' airflow and raise t' elevons for gliding flight. Arrr! Ya scallywag!

Finishing:

It this point, matey, arrr, t' instructions suggest that you might like t' radius the edges, matey, but I think it's probably easier t' do this as you go along, shiver me timbers, and that's what I did. Begad! Next, I gave all o' t' balsa areas a coat o' sandin' sealer, and then sanded smooth usin' progressively finer paper, shiver me timbers, until almost all o' the sealer was removed. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! This may sound strange, matey, arrr, but t' idea is t' fill t' grain in t' balsa, shiver me timbers, rather than add a nice shiny coating. Begad!

Trimming:

T' instructions regardin' trimmin' are quite clear. Avast! There are two main parts t' it, arrr, t' elevon tensionin' covered previously, matey, and sortin' out the balance for gliding. This is done by test throwin' t' glider and addin' small amounts o' clay weight t' t' wings t' correct for any roll or pitch. My first attempt at trimming, ya bilge rat, at UKRA 2003, led t' t' nosecone bein' pushed into the body tube. Begad! In retrospect, matey, ya bilge rat, thar was too much breeze. Avast! T' small amount o' damage was easily repaired.

Flight:

Flight #1
Location: Baildon Moor
Motor: B6
A perfect boost and translation t' horizontal flight. Begad! Once flyin' horizontally, the glider made a 180° turn, me bucko, then appeared t' roll over, and slide sideways into what became a dive t' t' ground. Ya scallywag! T' front body tube be crimped but easily repaired. Ahoy! Ahoy! T' crimped sction o' tube was excised and replaced with a new section, matey, shiver me timbers, attached by means o' a short coupler. Well, blow me down!

Before t' next flight, I spent a lot more time at IRW 2003 trimming. Aye aye! There was a gentle breeze and I got it so it would glide really well either with, arrr, or against t' breeze.

Flight #2
Location: IRW 2003
Motor: B6
Once again, me hearties, a great boost and translation. Again it made a turn, me bucko, me bucko, arrr, but this time much wider. There was no roll, but t' glider slowly pitched down and picked up speed. Aye aye! This was never corrected and it dived into t' ground. Amazingly, matey, there was no damage at all. Blimey!

Flight #3
Location: IRW 2003
Motor: C6
Another great boost, matey, but t' flight be just a higher version o' flight #2. What did I expect? This time thar was a lot o' damage. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! T' body tube is folded up and t' wings are broken across t' span. Blimey! Arrr! It will be a big rebuild, which I haven't yet attempted. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!

I think t' problem with t' first flight was lack o' trimming, that led to it rollin' over and diving. For t' second and third flights, me bucko, me hearties, I wonder if I had the elevons tensioned correctly? T' tensionin' is meant t' be set such that the elevons are flat for t' boost, me hearties, and pop up for glidin' flight. It might be that I didn't have quite enough tension. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! Therefore, as t' glider pitched forwards, me hearties, arrr, it picked up speed, and t' increased wind speed forced t' elevons into t' horizontal position. Ahoy! Well, me bucko, blow me down! Once that happened it would never be able to correct its attitude. I did follow t' directions for tensioning, arrr, usin' the spent motor on t' elevon, shiver me timbers, me bucko, but maybe t' exact position is critical? I passed on me thoughts t' Orbital, but disappointingly, matey, arrr, I never got a response. Begad! Well, me bucko, blow me down!

Summary:

This is an excellent kit. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! It's nay exactly cheap, ya bilge rat, but t' quality o' the parts is second t' none, me bucko, t' instructions are detailed and comprehensive, matey, and even t' packagin' is first-rate. I really enjoyed buildin' it. Well, blow me down! I must point out however that I can't recommend this kit for a beginner t' rocket gliders. Despite t' detailed direction, me hearties, me hearties, shiver me timbers, I never really had a successful flight. Ya scallywag! Since I've seen and read about many other successful flights o' VMX-2s, I have t' put that down t' me own inexperience with rocket gliders which is limited t' a couple o' flights o' an Estes Tomcat, ya bilge rat, and a few flights o' an "AstronMike" style saucer glider. Avast! Ahoy! I reckon that either t' trimming wasn't up t' snuff, ya bilge rat, or that I didn't get t' elevon tension correct. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! So in conclusion, this is a great kit, shiver me timbers, but if you're a beginner, arrr, shiver me timbers, practice your trimmin' on somethin' cheaper first.

Postscript:

This article was first published, in two parts, matey, in 10...9...8... Begad! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! the newsletter o' t' United Kingdom Rocketry Association.

Betwixt publication o' t' first part o' this article and t' second, ya bilge rat, I was informed by Verney Montague that BSMA have put up a handsome Gold Medal t' be awarded t' t' first person t' break t' two minute barrier with a rocket powered Spaceplane. Begad! T' medal has actually been around for 2-3 years. Begad! Anyone know if it's been won yet?