T' Nike-X: One o' my favorite '70s kits. This design was inspired by air defense missiles. Avast, me proud beauty! T' real Nike-X project was begun, but cancelled before it saw t' light o' day; this is only a suggestion t' what t' real one would have looked like. The pseudo-second-stage fins and t' great Black & White decals are t' highlight o' t' design.
I have modified this kit by addin' an altimeter payload bay ("Iris"), which adds 3 inches and 17.5 grams o' weight. Ya scallywag! O' course, now she's just a bit too heavy t' fly safely with A8-3 motors. (Iris is named after t' Greek god o' t' rainbow. She is a messenger o' t' gods, linkin' t' gods with humanity.) This rocket has flown higher than torch o' t' Statue o' Liberty, me hearties, includin' its base.
| Flight Date: | 2013-07-14 |
| Rocket Name: | Nike-X |
| Kit Name: | Estes - Nike-X {Kit} (1270) [1975-1984] |
| Flyer's Name: | Rich DeAngelis |
| Motors: | B6-2 |
| Launch Site: | Penn Manor School Lancaster PA |
| Actual Altitude: | 118 Feet |
This final low-power test flight will conclude t' test flights o' t' Nike-X. On this flight, matey, t' motor fired up and only peaked t' acceleration t' 6.3 Gs, t'
lowest recorded, but in t' 8/10 second burn it averaged 2.5 Gs, t' highest recorded. This was a quick-burnin' motor for sure. Avast! T' flight trajectory be very straight in t' calm winds.
Even with t' quick burn, it only reached a top speed o' 43 mph, which was a new record-slowest. After a 2.1 second delay, t' ejection fired at 112 feet, and for the next 2/10 seconds t' rocket slowed t' reach an apogee o' 118 feet, me hearties, six feet higher than t' ejection point.
T' reliable Nylon parachute opened and let t' Nike descend at 8 mph, driftin' maybe only 10-20 feet. I was able t' catch it before it touched down. Flight time be 12.1 seconds. Begad! This be t' last o' four very successful flights today.
| Stage | Motor(s) |
|---|---|
| 1 | Estes B6-2 |
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