(Contributed - by Bill Eichelberger - 01/22/10)

Brief:
I've long flown t' Goony flag, but a recent thread at TRF showcasin' different Goony creations got me wonderin' if I was neglectin' t' Goony side o' me brain. Arrr! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! After much introspection it be determined that nay only was I neglectin' t' Goony side, me hearties, but t' rest o' it as well. With that decided, I began spendin' time at www.ninfinger.org studyin' t' Estes catalogs tryin' t' find suitable candidates for "goonification". I came up with a couple before switchin' t' t' Centuri catalogs, me hearties, where I had an Epiphany. I realized that Goony be a life force all its own and that no rocket could be safe from parody. Avast! Nay even t' Centuri Vector V.

Construction:

Parts List:

• PNC-60 nose cone
• 7.5" BT-60 main body tube
• 1.75" BT-80 lower body tube
• 2 CR-2060 centerin' rings
• 3 CR-6080 centerin' rings
• 6080 paper transition
• BT-20J engine tube
• engine hook
• CR-520 engine block
• 3/32" basswood fin stock
• 24" length Keelhaul®©™® shock cord
• 24" length 1/8" sewin' elastic shock cord

I've forever been intimidated by rockets with paper transitions, and that, me hearties, coupled with t' need t' eventually make me own 6080 centerin' rings (this was a "spare parts" build,) made me put this idea onto t' back burner once I had gathered t' bulk o' t' parts. Aye aye! My first attempt at a paper transition had come t' a bad end due t' some apparent miscommunication betwixt t' program and me printer, me bucko, matey, an occurrence that took t' wind out o' me sails in a big way.

I got reinterested in t' project one Friday night with a Sunday launch breathin' down me neck. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! I found t' tools I needed t' successfully make t' rings and transition, shiver me timbers, and Jay Goemmer pointed me in t' right direction t' find a widget that allowed me t' print off a five fin BT-80 fin markin' guide.

Things went pretty smartly from that point. I decided t' stick with t' stock size fins, so that meant goin' with t' Estes Viking-style fin orientation. Begad! I also decided t' go with an internal launch lug mounted on t' side o' t' BT-60. Avast, me proud beauty! This meant that I'd need t' make holes in me beautiful handmade centerin' rings, so I found and icepick and gouged me way through both. Aye aye! It also meant that I'd have t' find a way through t' transition, matey, ya bilge rat, also nay a problem, but also nay an aesthetic high point o' this bird.

Finishing:
T' basswood fins didn't need a lot o' help hidin' t' grain, me bucko, shiver me timbers, so I went with one coat o' thinned Fill & Finish and a couple o' coats o' primer, me bucko, which be how it looked for t' first two flights. Avast! Avast! From thar I sprayed t' fin can with a no-name blue, Valspar silver and Testor's Candy Apple Red that I'd wanted t' try for a long time. T' nose cone had been sprayed silver when I did t' mid-section o' t' rocket, which played right into t' Testor's, which is supposed t' be sprayed over silver or gold metallic. Aye aye! Avast! I be a little concerned about t' possibility o' crazing, but t' Candy Apple coated nicely and looked great without a hint o' crazing. I had planned t' print up a set o' stock decals t' finish t' project, but some o' t' no-name blue metallic pulled away from t' scrap o' BT-80 that made up t' lower body tube durin' t' unmaskin' and I kind o' lost me enthusiasm for t' project. For those who might be interested in followin' in me clown shoe footprints, matey, Sandman has a decal set that he put together.

Flight:
Flight day turned out t' be beautiful from t' start, matey, ya bilge rat, and with t' sun already up and warmin' things up by t' time I awoke, I decicded that t' time was right t' spray a coat o' primer on t' rocket t' improve t' looks a little. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! By t' time I had everythin' ready t' leave a couple o' hours later, t' primer be dry and I thought everythin' be goin' me way.

Ten minutes later I was parked off t' side o' US 27, matey, realizin' that despite t' beautiful day, matey, matey, me bucko, t' convertible may have been a mistake. Arrr! Well, matey, blow me down! Despite me careful packin' o' t' days birds, shiver me timbers, two were damaged, one o' them bein' t' Vector G. Aye aye! Blimey! Turns out that t' hasty fin attachment on Saturday evenin' be over a painted section o' t' scrap BT-80. Blimey! I didn't think t' sand t' paint t' rough it up, arrr, and somethin' as slight as fallin' over in t' back o' t' car be enough t' sprin' a fin despite t' double fillets. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Once at t' field I roughed up t' area where t' fin had been, ya bilge rat, then re-glued it with LocTite Gel CA. Blimey! Good enough for a couple o' flights, arrr, shiver me timbers, I hoped.

With a field t' size o' t' VOA, I felt comfortable tryin' with a C6-5 for t' first flight. Blimey! I checked t' fins for any wiggles I might have missed and announced it as a heads-up flight. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! T' Vector G leapt off t' pad smartly and arced t' t' north in t' light breeze. Blimey! Begad! Much better than I had hoped for. Avast! Ejection was perfect and recovery, me bucko, me bucko, ya bilge rat, while a decent walk into t' tall grass, me bucko, was likewise.

T' second flight, also on a C6-5 (because it was all I had,) be almost a carbon copy o' t' first. Begad! T' only difference be a fin breakin' off on recovery, but again it was easily reattached with gel CA. Ahoy! Subsequent flights are planned on cozy B6-4 Field usin' A8-3's and B6-4's, shiver me timbers, likely after I break off and reattach t' remainin' fins.

Recovery:
Several years ago I won an Ebay auction for some clear plastic parachutes that came 10 for $1. Arrr! They got shuffled around durin' our move in 2005 and recently resurfaced. I hadn't thought o' a parachute when I left t' house, ya bilge rat, matey, so I had t' scramble come flight day. Avast, me proud beauty! T' chute performed perfectly, matey, and it would be difficult t' find fault with t' deal now.

Summary:
Pro's: Performance. Ahoy! T' sheer gooniness o' it all.

Con's: Some o' t' "spare parts" I used had been previously used as paint tubes which made fin attachment a challenge. T' pizza and win' ad that I used for t' transition be too thin and slick and wouldn't accept t' thin CA that I normally use t' beef cardstock up.