Hello All,

In January I received an Estes Star Trooper kit (see: www.estesrockets.com/003031-star-trooper ), and I was surprised to see crucial omissions from its instructions, missing steps that will ensure recovery system failure in flight (I've listed the steps below).

Also, the kit's artwork suggests a change that would simplify it significantly and reduce its production cost. First, though, here are the missing steps in the kit instructions:

The "Nose Cone Assembly" instructions at the top of page 3 don't mention anything about threading the screw eye into the nose cone base, un-screwing it, squirting glue into the hole, and then re-threading the screw eye into place; they simply say to thread the screw eye into the nose cone base. Also, the "Engine Preparation" instructions on page 4 say nothing about applying masking tape to the engine for a friction-fit (they just say "Insert engine into rocket.")--this will ensure that the engine ejects itself instead of deploying the streamer, resulting in a "streamlined in" crash. As well, the instructions do *not* say to apply glue fillets to the fin/body tube and launch lug/body tube joints to reinforce them. Also:

Comparing the Star Trooper kit's artwork to its included balsa nose cone (and to a plastic nose cone from a 220 Swift kit [see: see: www.estesrockets.com/000810-220-swifttm ]), it is apparent that the 220 Swift's nose cone was used for the Star Trooper in the kit artwork. This nose cone is available molded in yellow plastic (as offered in the Customizer Mini Launch Set, see: www.estesrockets.com/001497-customizer-minitm ). If this nose cone was used in the Star Trooper kit, it would not require painting to match the nose cone color in the Star Trooper artwork, and it would lower the kit's production cost. In addition:

The original Centuri Star Trooper (see: http://www.ninfinger.org/rockets/no...a/73cen00c.html ) used the same nose cone as the Estes Gnome (see: www.estesrockets.com/gnometm [not from the same mold, but both nose cones were/are 4:1 tangent ogives]). This nose cone is also offered molded in yellow plastic in the Customizer Mini Launch Set (see: www.estesrockets.com/001497-customizer-minitm ). Perhaps the Star Trooper could be offered with both the Gnome and 220 Swift nose cones, molded in yellow; one could be used for sport flying, the other (the shorter 220 Swift nose cone) for competition flying.

What do you think?

__________________
Black Shire--Draft horse in human form, model rocketeer, occasional mystic, and writer, see:
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperba...an-form/8075185
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6122050
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6126511
All of my book proceeds go to the Northcote Heavy Horse Centre www.northcotehorses.com.
NAR #54895 SR

Contact Estes with the serious instruction problems. The lack of masking tape on friction fit motors is a common problem on many of the Estes kit instructions. I have contacted them about the ones I found, but they seem to be slow to fix the errors (or there have been changes in personnel and the "we need to fix this next time we print these" job was forgotten).

__________________
-Fred Shecter NAR 20117 (L2)
Southern California Rocket Association, NAR Section 430

When I built my Estes Star Trooper last year I did not notice these omissions in the instructions. As a model rocket building veteran, I knew to put glue on the screw eye and to put tape around an engine to make it friction fit if the rocket does not have an engine hook. But it is good to point out for the younger builders.

One serious flaw with this kit is that it is essentially fire and forget with the most commonly available motor, the A10-3T. Someone flew one at our launch on Saturday and sure enough, nobody saw where it came down. While breaking down the pad, I happen to see it lawn darted several feet away, perfectly camouflaged in the green grass. The motor had ejected instead of the nose cone, perhaps because the owner did not know to friction fit it.

All joking aside that Estes may get to sell another kit, a rocket that the owner gets back probably results in more motors used in the same afternoon - a more profitable proposition.


Bill

__________________
It is well past time to Drill, Baby, Drill!

If your June, July, August and September was like this, you might just hate summer too...

Please unload your question before you ask it unless you have a concealed harry permit.

: countdown begin cr dup . 1- ?dup 0= until cr ." Launch!" cr ;

Give a man a rocket and he will fly for a day; teach him to build and he will spend the rest of his days sanding...

That yellow nose plastic nose cone is also used in the Tercel boost glider kit. Of course using it introduces the need for a second adhesive type to be used by the builder to glue the base to the cone. A mixed bag for the builder vs. the balsa cone.

On motor retention...with the fins that far forward one could simply wrap the aft end of the body and the motor. Ugly but effective.

__________________
Bernard Cawley
NAR 89040 L1 - Life Member
SAM 0061
AMA 42160
KG7AIE

I contacted them this morning. Ann Grimm relayed the information to their personnel who write and illustrate the kit instructions.

__________________
Black Shire--Draft horse in human form, model rocketeer, occasional mystic, and writer, see:
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperba...an-form/8075185
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6122050
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6126511
All of my book proceeds go to the Northcote Heavy Horse Centre www.northcotehorses.com.
NAR #54895 SR