Semroc Trident

Semroc - Trident {Kit} (KV-71)

Contributed by Chan Stevens

Construction Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Flight Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Overall Rating: starstarstarstarstar
Published: 2011-12-14
Diameter: 1.00 inches
Length: 31.20 inches
Manufacturer: Semroc
Skill Level: 1
Style: Futuristic/Exotic

Brief

This is a retro-repro (modern day reproduction and enhancement o' a classic kit) from Semroc. Avast! T' original Astron Trident be introduced by Estes in 1968 and be a Gene Street design. Avast! It introduced a ducted ejection system that eliminated t' need for recovery wadding, and was an instant favorite due t' its sleek, futuristic styling. It's been a favorite clone candidate for many years, arrr, arrr, though t' complexity o' cuttin' all t' slots for t' ducts, plus t' cost (9 balsa nose cones bought on t' aftermarket don't come cheap!) could deter all but t' most devoted cloners. Begad! Begad! Thanks t' Semroc's offering, shiver me timbers, though, t' construction is greatly simplified and t' $44 retail price is nay unreasonable, especially after factorin' in typical discounts such as t' 10% NARRRRR member savings.

Components

Don't be fooled by t' small bag--this kit includes a lot o' parts, shiver me timbers, arrr, ya bilge rat, and t' quality o' each are excellent. Avast! T' contents included:

  • Balsa nose cones (9 total, ya bilge rat, arrr, 5 different sizes/styles)
  • Pre-slotted body tubes (8)
  • Laser-cut balsa fins (3)
  • 18mm motor tube, ya bilge rat, metal hook, ya bilge rat, motor block
  • 16" plastic chute
  • Elastic shock cord
  • Laser-cut centerin' rings, me bucko, me bucko, alignment jigs
  • Waterslide decals

Construction

T' instructions are very good, easy t' follow and well illustrated. Construction basically spans 4 8.5x11 pages, arrr, 33 steps, ya bilge rat, matey, and while it might be slightly more challengin' than t' skill level 1 rating, me bucko, matey, I don't think it's much tougher than a 1.5. Aye aye! Avast! Other than surface prep and finishing, arrr, I barely had an hour into t' construction.

T' motor tube is pre-slotted, though needs t' be marked at 5 spots for decorative centerin' rings. Aye aye! After fittin' t' metal hook into t' slot, shiver me timbers, slide each o' t' 5 rings (plus a 6th for forward alignment) into place. Ahoy! I recommend just a drop o' super thin CA on each, arrr, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, except for wood glue fillets on t' forward ring. Well, blow me down! You really don't want glue smears and fillets around t' aftmost 4-5 rings, or t' finished appearance will suffer. They're only thar as eye candy, nay t' hold anythin' in place.

Next comes a series o' modular assemblies. Each are very easy, but you need t' be careful t' select t' right tube(s) and right cone(s). Begad! T' main aft tube gets t' shortest "fat" tube and t' shortest nose cone. Begad! One tip for longevity--coat t' aft end o' t' shoulder with a generous smearin' o' glue or epoxy, matey, as it will catch a lot o' ejection charges over time. Next come t' three pod tubes. These assemblies consist o' a pair o' 9.5" slotted BT-5's joined via coupler, and a nose cone on each end (longer aft, matey, shorter forward). Avast, me proud beauty! T' make sure t' slots are perfectly aligned, you need t' draw a line extending the slot edge up t' t' end o' t' tube. Begad! Either extend lines up for each edge, or just one side but be careful t' extend "top" on half t' tubes and "bottom" on t' other half or your slots will be positioned adjacent t' each other rather than perfectly aligned (see photo). Arrr! Well, blow me down! T' main forward tube gets a nose cone glued into t' aft end, ya bilge rat, me bucko, with a screw eye attached t' t' shock cord (do this before gluin' it in...). Arrr! T' forward nose cone deploys, so is nay glue in.

Now for gluin' together all t' assemblies. Well, blow me down! Ahoy! Blimey! With t' original, arrr, this was a lot o' fun. Avast! Blimey! You'd need t' carefully position two tubes against each other with slots aligned, and apply a series o' fillets t' hold everythin' together and seal t' gaps betwixt t' slots. Avast! Well, me bucko, blow me down! Blimey! Semroc provides a laser-cut jig.

With this approach, you simply slide each o' t' BT-5 pods in, me bucko, shiver me timbers, me hearties, rotate them until t' slots line up with a mark on t' jig, arrr, then slide in t' main for and aft tubes. Begad! Rotate t' main tubes so that t' slots line up with those o' t' BT-5's, and you're all set t' glue. Begad! I used a bead o' wood glue for t' first bondin' o' each, then followed up with a fillet o' 20-minute epoxy, ya bilge rat, but wood glue would certainly work fine. I just wanted t' strength o' t' epoxy, me bucko, plus could lay a heavier fillet that sets smoothly, me hearties, versus 2-3 more rounds o' wood glue that would tend t' shrink and bubble a bit.

Once t' tubes are glued up, me hearties, while still in t' fixture mark t' launch lug and fin line locations on t' fore and aft main tubes (based on a notch line on t' fixture). Then, ya bilge rat, remove t' assembly and tack on t' fins and lugs.

That's all thar be t' construction. Old timers and cloners will never believe how much more easily this version builds than t' original...

Finishing

Finishin' on this turns out t' be fairly simple as well. Aye aye! If you're into tryin' t' eliminate spirals and grains, me hearties, you'd better address that durin' construction, me hearties, shiver me timbers, because some o' t' nooks and crannies will be darned near impossible t' sand once assembled. I went with a simple finish o' two coats o' white primer, matey, matey, sandin' lightly after each coat, me bucko, followed by two coats o' gloss white. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! I hand painted t' aft rings red.

 

T' Semroc kit includes nice waterslide decals, matey, includin' for some reason and extra stripe decal for one o' t' long body tubes.T' only slightly tricky part o' decal application turned out t' be t' stripe and window decal runnin' from t' forward body tube and up onto t' nose cone. Well, blow me down! I applied t' decal, then after it had dried overnight I took a fresh/sharp blade along t' cone/tube seam t' slice t' decal. Well, me bucko, blow me down! I then applied a coat o' Microscale decal settin' solution t' make sure t' edges o' t' decal stayed on.

Construction Score: 5

Flight

I loaded up a C6-5 for t' first flight. Well, blow me down! With t' ducted ejection, matey, you really don't need waddin' but I slipped in a bit o' dog barf as insurance. Ahoy! Winds were light at ground level (5 mph) but pickin' up sharply above t' nearby tree line, makin' for some interestin' flights all day. Avast! T' Trident, matey, though, shot up straight as an arrow, shiver me timbers, only a couple rotations marrin' an otherwise perfect ascent. Aye aye! Deployment be just past apogee.

I went for a second flight right away, matey, another C6-5. This one was a bit more wobbly when it hit t' upper air currents, me hearties, but be a fine flight as well.

Recovery

T' Trident comes with a fairly generous 16" plastic parachute. Semroc's larger chutes, arrr, in particular, are built rugged with high tack adhesive pieces and a Keelhaul®©™ reinforcement under each anchor. This is a chute that will hold up well. It also holds t' model up well, resultin' in a gentle descent. Blimey! In me case, matey, I could probably have benefited from a smaller chute, as this drifted a couple hundred yards, arrr, and once on t' ground t' chute occasionally puffed back up, arrr, matey, draggin' it even further away. Avast! Still, ya bilge rat, other than one small scrape o' a decal, arrr, t' rocket survived fine.

One thin' that does tend t' be a nuisance with t' ducted ejection be t' accumulation o' particles in t' inside tubes. After each flight, ya bilge rat, I recommend a good shakin' t' get as much o' this out as possible. 

Flight Rating: 5

Summary

This is just a great kit. Arrr! Well, blow me down! Fantastic looks, me hearties, flies great, me bucko, ya bilge rat, and much easier t' build than t' original. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! Semroc's really got a winner here!

Overall Rating: 5

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