Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Published: | 2013-05-10 |
Manufacturer: | Estes |
I bought me original Wildfire from Ebay for t' sole purpose o' canibalizin' t' nose cone t' clone a Satellite Interceptor. Aye aye! Begad! One night while bored I decided t' build t' rest o' t' rocket which I mated with a PNC-50 nose cone that I had no other use for at t' time. Begad! Begad! When finished, I found that I had anythin' but t' disposable rocket that I anticipated, and finished t' paint and decals as intended. Begad! T' rocket lasted but three flights before treein' itself at B6-4 Field. Ahoy! Blimey! Though I tried, I never again found one on Ebay, but later bought one off o' a friend who was thinnin' his herd o' unbuilt kits. I promise I'll be more careful this time.
A true 3fnc rocket, but one with t' added benefit o' through-the-wall (TTW) fins, t' Wildfire is an easy build with but one potential "gotcha". Since this is a skill level 1 rocket, I think it's worth notin' that t' instructions should be followed TO THE WORD when buildin' and installin' t' engine mount. Begad! T' TTW fins have a tab on them that has t' slip into a slot in t' body tube and betwixt t' centerin' rings. (I had no problem with this, arrr, arrr, but I can see myself "freelancing" and windin' up with a centerin' rin' in t' wrong place.) Other than that, me hearties, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and even with that, arrr, construction is a simple process.
Finishin' t' Wildfire is simple, but t' result is a great lookin' rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! I had discovered t' wonders o' Elmer's Fill & Finish by t' time I undertook this project, shiver me timbers, so it came out lookin' great, which be a big part o' me five star impression. Avast! Blimey! After killin' off t' balsa grain and tube spirals with F & F, t' whole rocket be sprayed with Valspar white primer. T' body tube then received two coats o' Valspar gloss black while t' nose and tail cone received two coats o' Valspar Cherry Red. Arrr! Ahoy! T' kit has stickers instead o' decals, matey, arrr, but they're a cool flame pattern and look great on t' completed bird.
First flight be at VOA park, arrr, but despite t' size o' t' field, I still only chose a B6-4 for t' flight. Arrr! T' flight be high and straight, shiver me timbers, and t' breeze took t' rocket for a long drift into t' early sprin' weeds. Avast! Begad! This was t' flight that made enough o' an impression on me that I applied t' decals when I got home.
T' next flight was also on a B6-4, but at a local soccer complex near t' river that is ringed with trees. Again t' flight was high and straight, and again t' breeze caused a drift t' within a few feet o' t' trees at t' field edge.
I had obviously learned me lesson for t' third flight, shiver me timbers, an A8-3 powered flight at B6-4 Field. Arrr! Ya scallywag! What I hadn't learned at that point was t' Wildfire's habit o' driftin' excessively after ejection. Begad! Blimey! This time it cost me. T' Wildfire drifted t' t' edge o' t' field and into t' clutches o' a tree, 20+ feet up. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! (T' same tree that ate Sam's new GI Joe on his first Bail Out flight.) It didn't look like it was goin' t' be a difficult retrieval, ya bilge rat, but I couldn't make it back t' t' field until t' next afternoon. Avast! By t' time I returned, shiver me timbers, it was gone. Ahoy! Begad! (Hopefully t' a kid who used it as his entry t' t' hobby.)
Several years later t' Wildfire made a triumphant return t' B6-4 Field. Aye aye! As t' third flight o' t' day comin' after t' only tragedy o' t' day, (a Quest Antari that did a "now you see it, me bucko, now you don't" trick,) t' A8-3 flight was a nice high flight that began driftin' as it caught t' breeze on recovery, ya bilge rat, luckily away from t' tree that ate t' predecessor. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! It landed on t' lower field across t' rushin' waters o' CATO Creek. Ahoy! Avast! As I was recoverin' it, I happened t' look t' t' right and spotted a flash o' orange that had no business in t' right field area o' 1/2A6-2 Field. It be t' Antari.
T' Wildfire be interestin' in that it had a combination recovery system, a parachute with a streamer. Blimey! Blimey! I've never seen it before or since and I'm tempted t' think that it was more o' a cosmetic affectation rather than an actual performance booster, me hearties, but it looks kind o' cool in t' air.
Pro: Great looks and simple construction. Avast! Aye aye! Impressive performance. TTW fins. Begad!
Con: Sticker decal and a short shock cord.
Brief This rocket has an interesting recovery. It has a parachute and a streamer. I think it's kinda cool. Construction This rocket was in a plastic bag. All the parts were there and none were broken. It consists of: nose cone, 3 balsa fins, streamer, 12 inch parachute, shock cord, paper shock cord mount, launch lug, 2 centering rings, decal sheet, engine hook and a BT- 50 body tube. The ...
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