Edmonds Aerospace - Ecee {Kit} (ECEE)

Edmonds Aerospace Ecee

Edmonds Aerospace - Ecee {Kit} (ECEE)

Contributed by Hank Helmen

Construction Rating:
Flight Rating:
Overall Rating:

Manufacturer:	Edmonds Aerospace
Skill Level:	1
Style:	Glider

Brief:
T' Edmonds Ecee is a balsa single stage 1/2A sized rocket boosted canard glider that uses variable geometry during recovery glide.

Construction:
A plastic bag contains all laser cut balsa wood. Aye aye! T' particular kit built for review had very lightweight wood. Perhaps too light. Arrr! More on that later.

Included in t' kit are nicely laser cut parts, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, two sheets printed front and back o' instructions, shiver me timbers, one body tube, tape for t' elevator (canard) hinge, and a launch lug.

T' four pages o' instructions are great and easy t' follow. Buildin' t' Ecee is a breeze. Well, blow me down! Begad! It took me six year old son and me less than an hour t' finish. Arrr! T' fuselage is square and was a little tight around t' body tube. Avast! Avast! Do not glue t' round dowel into t' body tube, ya bilge rat, as it must be free t' slide in order t' activate t' canard elevators.

Edmonds Ecee Once everythin' be together, it came out OK. Begad! Begad! Blimey! I had t' use a little plastic modeler's clamp t' hold t' fuselage while gluing. Begad! Blimey! Also I used some 90 degree steel blocks t' support t' fins while gluing. Make sure you get t' ejection charge exhaust hole pointed downward and toward t' front o' t' fuselage, It needs t' line up with t' 1/4 inch slot in the bottom. Avast, me proud beauty! This kit seems a little flimsy since t' balsa is so soft. Begad! Avast! Blimey!

T' only tools required were a bottle o' white glue, shiver me timbers, a sandin' stick with some fine sandpaper on it, matey, and a hobby knife. Avast, me proud beauty! I used some CA glue on some parts. Arrr! T' finished rocket does come out light.

Finishing:
Rocket gliders need t' be light. Conventional finishin' with normal paint will add a lot o' weight. Ahoy! Begad! For this reason, trim markings were added t' wings and fuselage with Sharpie Magic markers.

There are no decals included in t' kit. Avast, me proud beauty! T' Ecee looks very cool when finished as it has a nice full fuselage and canard win' design that are attractive and aerodynamic looking.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
T' recommended motors are 13mm 1/2A3-2T and A3-4T. For t' initial test launch, ya bilge rat, we chose an Estes A3-4T. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! T' prepare the glider for boost, matey, a pencil must be used t' push t' canard elevator actuator t' t' aft position. T' ejection charge pressurizes t' internal body tube and pushes t' little balsa dowel actuator against t' elevator control horn to make it deflect downward approximately 15 degrees. Aye aye! Avast! In theory, you should get a straight boost then a nice glide. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! The model should be hand flight tested with t' elevator deflected full down and a spent engine case in. Blimey! Blimey!

Test glides were great. A tiny bit o' clay be added t' t' aft o' t' fuselage for good balance. Aye aye! Begad!

Ready for take-off Lift-Off

T' motor is held in place by clear tape. A wrap o' tape is put around t' motor where it fits into t' body tube and a little more on t' outside o' t' case where it sticks out, arrr, me hearties, t' prevent it from pushin' up into t' tube during launch. Begad! Begad! There is no motor stop rin' in t' kit. Blimey! No recovery waddin' is needed for t' Ecee

T' very first flight be a scary disaster! Just 15 feet above t' launch pad, t' Ecee's left main win' separated right in t' middle! T' vehicle veered over 90 degrees in a rapid series o' fiery smokin' tumbles and gyrations. We dove for cover as t' model tumbled around t' sky until t' engine finally ejected. Arrr! What was left o' the wreckage then tumbled t' t' ground. Well, matey, blow me down! On closer inspection it was discovered that in addition t' t' broken wing, the elevator had broken off at t' hinge line.

Edmonds Ecee Recovery:
There is no shock cord on t' Ecee. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! Preparin' t' glider for launch is conventional. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! T' recovery was disappointing to say t' least as this thin' had flown so nicely in all t' test glides. Blimey! T' damaged win' and elevator should be relatively easy t' repair, and we will return t' flight in a day or two.

On t' second flight, me hearties, t' win' held together nicely but boost was a bad arch right into t' ground. Begad! T' fuselage broke in two just behind t' canard.

Flight Rating: 2 out o' 5

Summary:
We really liked t' way this kit looked when it was finished. Avast, me proud beauty! T' ease o' assembly is a real bonus. T' glide o' the Ecee is very realistic and majestic. Blimey! That is why it be such a disappointment when it shredded on t' very first launch. Blimey! Begad! T' wings could be a little denser grade o' balsa. Begad! We had t' add tail weight anyway so this wouldn't be a problem with overall weight.

Overall Rating: 2 out o' 5

Other Reviews

Edmonds Aerospace Ecee By Alan Rognlie
- by Moira Jean Whitlock Brief description: This is an all balsa wood glider that flies up like a rocket and is recovered when it glides down like an airplane. Pros and cons of construction: The parts are all there, secure within a plastic bag, Nothing was broken or defective. The fuselage of the model is panels of die cut plywood, as are the wings and canard. The motor tube is spiral ...
Edmonds Aerospace Ecee By Alan Rognlie
( Contributed - by Alan Rognlie) After my good experience with Edmonds Deltie , I decided to try this model from Rob Edmonds. I ordered it from Apogee Components (along with a second Deltie, a plan set for a Nike Hercules and a couple of his technical reports) and it arrived within 4-5 days. This kit builds to a nice mini-motor (13mm) rocket glider - i.e. no parts are dropped ...

Flights

Comments:

K.W. (September 1, 1999)

This rocket performed like a champ for me. I added a home-built engine lock from a piece of music wire, which worked fine for me (I really hate engines held in with tape). It did finally cato (looks like a full-immediate burn on the engine), which ate it, but I bought another one and will soon be flying again!

G.A.D. (June 25, 2002)

I really like these Edmonds kits. I built the Ecee on the morning of a launch and took it there with the glue still wet. We left it in the car to "heat-cure" and flew it at the end of the day. The 1/2A load provided a moderate boost, and the glider rounded over and appeared to be trying to glide. At that moment the taped-in motor ejected itself from the glider with a very loud "POP" and the glider shot forward and up like a scalded cat. It then settled into a flat glide that drew applause from the crowd. Obviously, I had no chance to glide-test it, and there was no clay provided in our kit, but the Ecee flew very well even without the spent engine in place. It seems that a stronger engine restraint system is in order, but even if the engine comes out, it glides well.

J.R.R. (September 23, 2002)

As the review said it is a very easy and quick build and parts are cut smooth and accurate and fit together well. I tried doing some hand tossed glide tests in a grassy area and after a few test glides I succeeded in breaking the boom as shown in the picture. I glued it back together with white glue. On it's maiden flight I think I used a C motor. (It's been awhile)It boosted straight and high and then while very high and still ascending the boom broke again in the same place. It all tumbled back down slowly in two pieces with the wing and boom section occasionally gliding a bit. I guess I should have patched it back together with CA or epoxy instead of white glue. I am not sure if the flight stress broke it or I think it might have broke from the torque from the ejection charge as it vented out the vent hole. I have not put it back together again because I am still debating on reinforcing the boom at the break with a couple of small pieces of balsa or paper or just use CA or epoxy. I am afraid if I splint it, it might make the nose to heavy for a good glide. A friend of mine gave me this kit and also got one for himself. His flew great and sustained no damage. It glided so straight though that we thought it was going to fly out of the field but it came down before reaching the trees. He tried sanding a slight bevel on one side of the vertical fins to induce a turn but on the next flight it still glided very straight. The way the boom is notched for the canard makes for a stress point at the trailing edge of the canard. I think it might would not be as easily broken if the boom was not notched for the canard and just glue the canard straight to the bottom of the boom. Of course this change would have to be done by the manufacturer as the boom comes already notched.

D.B. (February 18, 2007)

This is my favourite Edmonds kit. A refreshingly different build to your normal 3FNC rockets, but still straightforward. Be careful how you affix the canard, it must not touch the fuselage when deployed - if it does, there is a likelihood of catastrophic failure when the ejection charge forces it into place at high speed and the movable canard slaps into the rigid body. I made the mistake of placing the trimming clay at the rear of the glider. This meant that the masking tape used to retain the motor slipped off at ejection and the glider spat the engine. Despite being trimmed with a spent engine, the Ecee kept gliding for what seemed like hours. I will have to get the Thunder version as well.

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