Missile Works ASP

Missile Works - ASP

Contributed by Neil Thompson

Construction Rating: starstarstarstarstar_border
Flight Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Overall Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Manufacturer: Missile Works

Brief:
This is a clone o' t' Cannonball Works Atmospheric Soundin' Projectile, shiver me timbers, it has a 38mm outer tube. I got all t' parts as a custom kit from LOC, shiver me timbers, but they say they may make a real kit out o' it soon! It is about a 1/4 scale (.252) version of t' rocket used t' probe mushroom clouds, and t' sky durin' a solar eclipse in t' IGY.

Construction:
It has one very small (4 inch) payload section, a very long motor tube, me bucko, and really big slots. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! T' slots go almost t' entire length o' t' fin! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Way too long in me opinion .... Well, blow me down! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! but hey, me hearties, it worked! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I also got a very nice red parachute from LOC.

No instructions, arrr, but it was a custom kit, so I shouldn't have expected any. Very straight forward. Begad! Alignment was an issue, me bucko, ya bilge rat, t' slots were nay dead-on; but good enough for a stable flight. Blimey! T' real kit will probably have more precise slots. Once assembled, me hearties, matey, it is very sturdy. Avast! Well, blow me down! It makes an excellent addition t' my rocket fleet; me new second-favorite (First is a tie betwixt me Mach Buster 1 and me first mid power IQSY Thomahawk).

Finishing:
No big issues with finishing. Avast, me proud beauty! I used t' Bikini-Atoll paint scheme, me hearties, and it looks really good!

Construction Rating: 4 ½ out o' 5

Flight:
This model be terrific! I flew it with an EconoJet G35-7W, arrr, and it was the perfect match. Begad! T' orange-white paint scheme, arrr, o' t' operational sounding rockets, was very visible; even from 1,500 feet. Begad! SpaceCAD says it flew to 2,750', and it looked like it too. That thin' can really move! When it descended t' 1,500', me bucko, me hearties, matey, you could see t' orange fins spinnin' in t' breeze, makin' a very easy t' track bird. Arrr! T' only problem was that at about 50', me hearties, the nose disconnected from t' payload bay; nearly hittin' me best friend on the head (We were both chasin' after t' rocket). Avast! No damage done, ya bilge rat, me bucko, however. I had a Nomex® shield, matey, which I thought be small, shiver me timbers, me hearties, but turned out t' be fine. Ahoy! This eliminated the need for wadding. Begad! I also had a Slimline motor retainer on it, ya bilge rat, so t' motor stayed put.

Recovery:
T' shock cord be attached with t' standard loop technique used in all LOC kits. Blimey! Blimey! Recovery was picture perfect - a little bit o' black on t' parachute, but no biggie. Ahoy! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty!

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a great rocket. Ya scallywag! fairly easy t' paint, only one difficult spot on the nose cone; otherwise it is easy as pie. Simple construction, shiver me timbers, simple every thing. Avast! Aye aye! preps in under 5 minutes. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! I like it!

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5

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