Who Knew?
How many of you guys knew that Estes marketed a 36" silk parachute back in 1969? To the best of my knowledge, it never appeared in a catalog and the 'chutes weren't offered for any great length of time.
Did anyone here ever buy one? Joe |
Interesting. I wonder if it was associated with the big Saturn kits of the time.
Centuri offered silk 'chutes for use with its "large scale rocketry" line. If you bought a Hustler or Aero-Dart back in the day, that's what it would come with. Early on you could even buy a sew-it-yourself kit. |
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That's interesting. I'm pretty sure Estes never sold a Saturn kit with a large silk 'chute. But didn't Estes buy out Centuri around this timeframe? I wonder if they were simply extending their product line with some of the stuff that Centuri sold. Do you have one of the Centuri 'chutes? If so, could you post a photo in this thread? Anybody else? |
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Damon bought both companies. . |
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Yeah.....they bought Estes September, 1969. I think the Damon buyout of Centuri was finalized around February of 1971, but as I understand, Damon initially approach Lee Piester about a buyout at NARAM the prior summer of 1970. Earl |
I seem to remember that I read that the EnerJet Egg Crate came with two silk chutes.
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The Centuri/Enerjet fabric parachutes were made by Betty Piester (Wife of Centuri President Lee Piester) and some of her friends.
All of them belonged to a sewing circle and would get together once a month to sew parachutes for the rocket kits. |
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Now that is amazing! A different world from the one we know today. |
My Enerjet Nike Smoke kit (opened) has the hand-sewn Silk Parachute in fine flyable shape, though it will NOT be flown once I build the kit. I will save it in a bag.
Very interesting that it must have passed through Betty Piester's hands. |
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