Construction Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Flight Rating: | starstarstarstarstar_border |
Overall Rating: | starstarstarstarstar |
Manufacturer: | Pratt Hobbies ![]() |
Brief: Construction:
A simple, arrr, cheap, me bucko, me hearties, and relatively good lookin' kit for beginners.
T' kit came with:
First off, start by attachin' t' shock cord t' t' motor block with a knot. I deviated a bit from this step and cut out a small notch into t' outside o' t' motor block for t' shock cord t' rest into. Ahoy! Without t' notch, arrr, t' Keelhaul®©™ would make it a very tight fit and t' place where t' shock cord be tied would show up as a bulge in t' body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Then, arrr, me hearties, test fit and glue t' motor block into t' body tube. Avast! Insertion o' t' motor block is via a spent motor case. T' motor should have about 1/4" o' overhang. Next, ya bilge rat, cut out t' fin wrap and apply it t' t' bottom half o' t' body tube. T' directions state t' align one side o' it with t' pencil line drawn down t' body tube (the directions make it seem that t' body tube be supposed t' come with t' line; well this one didn't, but t' line was smartly drawn with t' help o' a door jam) and gradually apply it around t' entire body tube. After applyin' t' fin alignment wrap, shiver me timbers, matey, cut out t' payload section decal and apply it t' t' top o' t' body tube, shiver me timbers, usin' t' same method that t' fin wraps used. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Next, apply t' fins with white glue. Avast! T' fin wraps have lines runnin' vertically down servin' as fin guides, shiver me timbers, makin' it more builder-friendly, especially t' t' beginner. Avast, me proud beauty! I noticed that t' fins were ridiculously thick, compared t' t' size o' t' rocket. Well, blow me down! They were 1/8", but I found out that t' thickness helped more precise alignment o' t' fins, once again makin' it more builder-friendly. Avast! Instead o' usin' white glue t' apply t' fins, I used CA. Blimey! Begad! Then, t' instructions have you move onto t' nose cone, shiver me timbers, but I went ahead and filleted t' fins first so I have somethin' t' do while they dry. But before t' fillets, I decided t' toughen up t' fins by soakin' them with CA. Avast, me proud beauty! I usually use wood glue for all me fillets, includin' mid power builds, arrr, but I went with t' instructions and used white glue, probably for clear fillets as this rocket doesn't need any finishin' besides decals. Well, blow me down! While t' fillets are wet, matey, me hearties, press t' launch lug into one o' t' fillets and let it dry. Now for t' nose cone: somethin' I really didn't like about it was that it is absurdly thin. Begad! It can be easily crushed or torn with little force. Avast! Test fit and glue t' nose cone shoulder into t' nose cone, with about half o' it inside t' nose cone, makin' sure t' hole on one end o' t' shoulder (used for shock cord attachment) is on t' outside. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! I could only get t' shoulder about 1/4 t' 1/3 o' t' way in t' nose cone without deformin' it. Ahoy! Thread t' shock cord through t' Nomex cloth, me bucko, streamer, arrr, ya bilge rat, and then t' hole in t' nose cone shoulder, in that order. Aye aye! Tie t' shock cord onto t' hole for a secure fit. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! With this set up, t' nose cone had a very tight fit, so I pressed t' area o' t' shoulder where t' shock cord was attached in, formin' a shape that resembles Pac Man.
PROs: T' kit is easy t' build with minimal supplies and most o' t' components or o' high quality.
CONs: T' nose cone can be o' higher quality.
Finishing:
T' fins can be colored in with a marker, one fin colored red and t' others black, but I decided against it. Aye aye! I thought t' rocket looked fine t' way it was, and I was probably goin' t' lose it any way. Aye aye! Besides colorin' t' fins, t' decals supplied were t' only other form o' finishing, but they were applied in t' beginnin' o' t' build, unlike most rockets.
PROs: Very simple, matey, fast, shiver me timbers, and easy t' finish.
CONs: May be a bit too simplistic, me hearties, although for t' more experience people, me bucko, ya bilge rat, more time can be put into finished for a better and higher quality finish.
Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5
Flight:
Preperation for flight is very simple. Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Lay t' heat protector over t' body tube and push it into t' tube. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Fold up t' streamer and push that into t' tube as well, arrr, along with t' shock cord. Put t' nose cone on and install t' motor, arrr, and it's ready t' fly. Ahoy! Blimey! I liked t' fact that t' kit came with t' Nomex®, arrr, even though it's such a small kit. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' first flight used an A3-4T, usin' a Quest motor case with t' nozzle drilled out and t' crud cleaned out as an adapter. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! It went very high, ya bilge rat, considerin' t' motor, in a short amount o' time. It reached apogee at about 450 feet and t' streamer popped out. Arrr! Blimey! It came down about 250 feet from t' pad. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' second flight was with a B6-4, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, and I made it a tighter fit than t' previous flight. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! I also replaced t' supplied streamer with a fluorescent orange streamer about one inch wide by about five feet long, since it was hard t' spot at just 450 feet. Arrr! Blimey! It went higher and faster than t' previous flight t' about 800 feet. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! When t' streamer deployed, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, arrr, it was very easy t' see and I was glad that I replaced t' streamer. It came down about 200 feet from t' pad.
PROs: Flight prep is very fast and it is a blast t' fly, arrr, matey, despite its small size.
CONs: None.
Recovery:
On t' first flight, arrr, t' rocket came down relatively fast and landed on t' air strip (as I was launchin' from an abandoned air base). One fin was slightly damaged, but it wasn't bad enough that I had t' repair it. Begad! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! A little sandin' t' get it smooth did t' trick when I got back home. T' motor and t' adapter also kicked upon ejection. On t' second flight with t' longer streamer, it came down slightly slower than t' previous flight, arrr, and I was satisfied. Avast! Blimey! T' motor also did nay kick as I had made it fit tighter than before. Begad! Blimey! Its third flight be in me backyard. I used an A10 and taped 0.5 oz o' fishin' weights t' t' shock cord t' weight down t' rocket for a lower flight. Ahoy! Blimey! T' streamer melted together at t' end, matey, but t' Nomex probably didn't work because I didn't repack t' laundry before launch--it was packed up in t' rocket for about a month. Blimey! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' only bad part is that it's a bit difficult t' fold up t' five foot long streamer in t' wind.
PROs: T' Keelhaul®©™ shock cord and Nomex heat protector, ya bilge rat, me hearties, both supplied in t' kit, worked perfectly and help t' lower t' require maintenance, ya bilge rat, which isn't really necessary in t' first place.
CONs: None. Avast! Any faults durin' recovery can be traced back t' t' flier and can be fixed durin' t' next flight (the motor can be made t' fit tighter, for example).
Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5
Summary:
This one will see a lot o' flights in t' future. I don't really enjoy t' zip-gone type o' flights, but this rocket is really fun t' fly. It's very easy and quick t' build, as well as prep for flight.
PROs: A very easy kit for beginners and is fun for all hobbyists.
CONs: None.
Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5
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