Intro

A modification o' a cheap bad rocket into a cheap good rocket.

I couldn't resist it. Aye aye! There it was sittin' on t' shelf at Hobby Lobby, with a clearance price tag. Begad! I thought long and hard. Begad! This rocket had a bad reputation, shiver me timbers, Styrofoam. It had replaced all o' t' balsa wood in t' original kit. Arrr! T' reviews were bad and t' owner was tryin' t' unload t' remaining inventory because it was a dog. Arrr! I thought some more and then placed me $1.25 on the counter and walked out with a genuine Edsel o' t' model rocket world, a Fun Rockets Wicked Winnie.

After I got it home and summoned t' courage t' open t' box and take a look at t' kit, arrr, thar it was, Styrofoam boat tail, Styrofoam fins, ya bilge rat, Styrofoam bulkhead and Styrofoam nose cone. Aye aye! It wasn't pretty. Blimey! It sat on me workbench for a couple o' weeks while I thought on how best t' use t' rocket, matey, should I part it out, arrr, should I build it stock, shiver me timbers, what should I do?

I finally decided t' build it as stock as possible. Well, matey, blow me down! I only paid a buck and a quarter for t' kit, it be practically a disposable rocket at that price. T' first attempt at installin' t' fins be a disaster. Ya scallywag! Blimey! They don't fit. I thought about sandin' them but t' Styrofoam looked like it could handle one launch and then crack on landing. At this point I deviated from me original thought and decided t' modify t' rocket t' make it useable. T' goal at this point be t' make t' minimum modifications t' t' rocket, but also t' have a fully functional rocket.

With this thought in mind, me bucko, shiver me timbers, I finally decided upon replacin' t' fin with balsa fins. Ya scallywag! I realized that t' motor mount in t' boat tail was a rather nice stout cardboard tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! If I could only slot t' boat tail where t' fins are, then t' fins could glue t' t' motor mount instead o' t' Styrofoam. Aye aye! This was easier than I thought. Avast, me proud beauty! T' Styrofoam cuts easily with a sharp X-Acto knife leavin' a through t' boat tail mountin' for t' fins. Ya scallywag! I then used the Styrofoam fins as a template for 1/4" balsa replacements, keepin' in mind that they would have t' be larger at t' root edge t' actually go through to the motor mount. Ya scallywag! Arrr! After t' fins were cut and sanded roughly alike I mounted them t' t' motor mount and t' surroundin' Styrofoam with a generous amount of glue. Once this was done and t' fins were dry, I added fillets and sealed the fins usin' Elmer's Fill-n-Finish.

Then t' next problem reared it's ugly head. Begad! Blimey! I decided t' paint t' fin unit before installin' it in t' rest o' t' rocket since t' balsa fins are the only thin' on this rocket that are nay painted. Arrr! Blimey! I pulled out t' trusty Krylon primer, shiver me timbers, and started t' cover t' fins and boat tail in gray paint. Ya scallywag! Blimey! But wait, ya bilge rat, what be that sound that I was hearing. Arrr! Blimey! Faint cries o' "I'm Melllltiiiing!" echoed throughout t' yard. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! I looked at t' once smooth surface o' t' boat tail slowly shrivelin' away. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! What t' do now? Was all that work in vain? It be time t' fall back and regroup. Obviously t' Styrofoam did not like t' solvents in t' Krylon primer, me hearties, me bucko, I should have tested it on a spare fin, but in me haste I skipped t' compatibility test. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! There was only one thing left t' do, shiver me timbers, coat t' entire boat tail with Fill-n-Finish so that none o' the Styrofoam would see t' primer and paint again. Begad! Blimey! After several coats o' the fill-n-finish, I approached t' primer with fear and trepidation. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Fortunately the coatin' held and t' fin section was finished with a semi-gloss black paint.

T' rest o' t' construction be uneventful. Install a paper rin' on the tail section, ya bilge rat, me hearties, and then glue t' tail section into t' body tube. Blimey! Blimey! Done. The rocket was now complete and ready t' fly, arrr, matey, t' parachute is pre-assembled and the rest o' t' rocket was already painted. Begad! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I added t' Wicked Winnie sticker to t' side and she be ready t' fly

Flyin' t' Winnie

Finally I found a gap in t' hectic pace of the summer that also had a lack o' wind, and took me recovery crew out t' the local football field t' launch Winnie and a couple o' t' other birds that I had managed t' slap together this summer.

First flight was on a B6-4. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! It was a fairly slow liftoff, matey, me hearties, and t' parachute ejected just after apogee. T' parachute gave a good rate o' descent and the nose cone popped off and floated down separately. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! Note t' self: tape t' nose cone on, and put on a bigger parachute if thar be a payload in t' rocket. Well, blow me down!

T' second flight was on a C6-5. Ahoy! This was an easy choice at this point since t' other rockets had all broken fins off at landing. T' flight was great, me hearties, matey, nice and high with t' ejection at apogee. Again t' nose cone popped off and floated back separately. Begad! Note t' self again: Tape t' outside o' the nose cone, nay t' shoulder on t' inside since t' Styrofoam compresses, thus renderin' t' extra tape useless.

Overall Impressions

T' stock out-of-the-box Wicked Winnie is a dog. Ahoy! Ahoy! However with t' addition of the balsa fins and tapin' t' nose cone on (I will probably tape or glue the bulkhead in as well) this is a cheap good payload rocket. Avast! I didn't take the time t' shape t' fins but that would only help t' flight characteristics of this rocket. Ahoy! As these are seen at clearance prices, this is a really cheap way to get a larger low power payload rocket.