Originally Posted by snaquin

Here are three dated 9-24-1978

img001 Steves Centuri Nike Smoke Ready for Launch 09-24-1978
img002 Wayne Prepares Viper for Launch 09-24-1978
img003 Steves FSI Maverick 09-24-1978

Centuri Nike Smoke had an FSI "conversion kit". I had pretty much converted most of new builds to fly on FSI motors by 1978 if they were decent sized kits and I thought they could handle the larger motors. I used 1/4" launch lugs on these converted kits and my FSI LP-2B "heavy duty" metal launch pad. After I burned up the blast deflector I would use Estes blast deflectors without the 1/8" rod insert and it fit over the 1/4" rod pretty nicely. I believe Matt listed one of these pads on eBay not long ago. A buddy of mine still has that FSI pad I loaned it out many years ago when he got his nephew involved in rocketry.

A picture of my buddy Wayne that passed away. I scanned that one to see what rockets he had with him that day. Under the picture with the date I wrote in he was getting ready to launch an EAC Viper. I see his Starship Vega and Klingon Battle Cruiser on the ground. I think the black rocket next to his range box is the bottom half of an Estes Sky Raider because I have a blurry flight shot of that one. Not sure what the white rocket is?

Originally Posted by tbzep

Love the checkerboard water tower. We had one painted that way until the company was sold, then it got painted solid blue. Must have been breezy that day with the pads kicked over that far.

Originally Posted by A Fish Named Wallyum

Seeing your Maverick makes me think I may have upscaled mine a bit. It looks beefier. That wouldn't be a huge shock considering that most of the FSI stuff I "cloned" was a good bit larger than the originals

Originally Posted by snaquin

Here are three dated 9-24-1978

[snip]A picture of my buddy Wayne that passed away. I scanned that one to see what rockets he had with him that day. Under the picture with the date I wrote in he was getting ready to launch an EAC Viper. I see his Starship Vega and Klingon Battle Cruiser on the ground. I think the black rocket next to his range box is the bottom half of an Estes Sky Raider because I have a blurry flight shot of that one. Not sure what the white rocket is?

Originally Posted by Ez2cDave

The lower tube of the Maverick was "BT-60"-sized and the upper tube was "BT-55"-sized.

https://www.oldrocketplans.com/fsi/fsiMRK-18/MRK-18.pdf

https://www.oldrocketplans.com/fsi/...-18/MRK-18e.jpg

Dave F.

Originally Posted by DeanHFox

Steve, I think that might be a Satellite Interceptor (look at the upper rudder/lower rudder rake angle - it's a distinctive marker of that bird's design). It's the same angle used in the Centuri Spacemaster, but that kit's color scheme is typically gold, not white.

http://www.ninfinger.org/rockets/no...a/78est032.html

Originally Posted by tbzep

Love the checkerboard water tower. We had one painted that way until the company was sold, then it got painted solid blue. Must have been breezy that day with the pads kicked over that far.

Originally Posted by A Fish Named Wallyum

We had one that managed to survive into the 90's. I think I have a pic of my son with it in the background

Originally Posted by Earl

Steve-

Like the Centuri Nike!

I had one of those FSI pads in the late 80s when I first got into high power, but ‘graduated’ from it before too very long because most of the stuff I was flying was going off 3/8ths and .5” rods. Still have it though!

I think one of the other rockets at your friend’s side looks to be an Estes Vega. The white one though has me stumped, unless it is some kind of own design.

Like Tzep, I’m partial to the red and white water tower. I remember way back when most of them were painted that way.

And when we lived in the Atlanta area in the 1960s, we often shopped at a local G.E.X. Remember going there weekly for groceries. That one had a huge parking lot as I recall and was right across I-75 from Atlanta’s Hartsfield Airport which was not near as large then as it is now, but was growing steadily.

Earl

Originally Posted by A Fish Named Wallyum

Seeing your Maverick makes me think I may have upscaled mine a bit. It looks beefier. That wouldn't be a huge shock considering that most of the FSI stuff I "cloned" was a good bit larger than the originals

Originally Posted by DeanHFox

Steve, I think that might be a Satellite Interceptor (look at the upper rudder/lower rudder rake angle - it's a distinctive marker of that bird's design). It's the same angle used in the Centuri Spacemaster, but that kit's color scheme is typically gold, not white.

http://www.ninfinger.org/rockets/no...a/78est032.html