Vote for Your Favorite Bill Simon Design!
Bill Simon will be at The Museum of Flight on September 23rd in Seattle as we salute the venerable Astron Alpha. During his career at Estes Bill designed at least 18 of the early K-kit era products including the Alpha.
Vote for your favorite design and we will try to show some of the examples contained in the G. Harry Stine Collection in Seattle. In case you need to tickle some dormant memory neurons, here's Bill's page at Vintage Estes Rockets (Eric Higgins amazing resource for rocket hounds). http://vintageestesrockets.com/k-ki.../bill-simon.htm |
There are a handful that stand out for me: K-12X, K-37, K-40, K-45, and K-59. It's really a tie with these for various reasons. If I had to step out and pick one, I guess it would be the Scrambler for it's combination of payload, cluster, and humor.
Now that I have read the post that goes along with the poll, I'd want to display the Farside-X for the general public to see more than my other choices, even though I chose the Scrambler as my favorite. |
Re: K-40 Midget
It's good to see the K-40 Midget is getting some love :)
Doug . |
I voted for the Avenger. I always liked the look of it.
I am doing another Space Ex MB for our scout troop this month, and as always I had them all buy an Alpha. I hope these boys have better fine finger motor skills than the last bunch 2 years ago. |
I voted for the Sky Hook, but the Avenger almost won out. I was given a box of rockets by a friend when his family was moving. I was 6 (50 years ago). In that box were a few catalogues, a launch set, wires, tons of engines, a Sprite, and a Sky Hook. I launched those as much as allowance would allow. I became 'hooked.'
Ever since, I have had a soft spot for these, especially the Sky Hook I should get the SLS version... The Avenger was my first stager. At age around 9 or 10, I was a decent builder (I thought :p ), but I remember having issues getting the fins to match up! Fun memories. Allen |
This is a public poll. That means you can see what kit your fellow YORF members voted for. Just click on the number of votes for one of the entries to see who voted for what. I personally went for the Farside-X. Just a cool looking 3-stager, IMHO. Second place was a tie between the SPEV and Scrambler.
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I voted for the Alpha. Cobra 2, Drifter 3.
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Ooooh, Farside-X is nosing ahead.
I rank the Avenger higher. A more elegant and refined design. I'm actually flying a Farside-X today; C6-0/C6-0/C6-7. A definite classic, but hard to prep, and kind of maniacally over-designed (huge fins, spin fins). |
Astron Avenger
Voted for this one, as I liked being able to use C motors in both stages and routinely get them back.
Also, it looked good with the checkerboard-type roll pattern decals I found somewhere... Finally treed the sustainer after many flights back in '90. Been considering making an upscale of this, and somehow make the booster glide as well. Also, around that time, I made a scratch built stager to replace the departed Avenger. Sort of a 4 finned Comanche deal, with BT55s. Booster of this DID glide, and rather nicely, on D12-0! Lost the sustainer, however, after only two flights, and wound up losing the gliding booster too. Guess I'd better stick to larger gliders then! |
I voted for the Avenger too. I really like those old timey two-stagers where the booster and sustainer fins fit together. The Avenger is a particularly graceful example.
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Farside-X flew yesterday. CCC = WAY zoomie. I lost sight of the top stage shortly after it zipped away.
Got a lot of "WOW" out of that flight. I got everything back, thanks to an unknown person who found the sustainer way out at he far end of the field. It was really beat up. I'm thinking of making a new main body. I'll skip the spin-fins and make it a couple of inches longer, so I can pack really long surveyor's tape streamer in addition to (or even instead of) a parachute. * * * I have an Avenger clone. I think it is intact. I'd like to start the paperwork to use discontinued motors, and fly it on a B14-0 / B4-6 combo. The Farside on a B14-0 / B6-0 / A8-5 would be interesting; fast boost, good altitude but not insane! |
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Plus, the long payload section imparts a lot of moment at the transition which I fear over time will make it a loose fit (which I don't want to deal with :) ) Doug . |
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Flew my Astron Cobra last month for its maiden flight, on B6-4 motors. Beautiful flight. Meant to fly it you yesterday at Chili Blaster in Pueblo on C6-5s, but just ran out of time. I am working on an upscale Cobra using BT-80 body, but it will have four 24 mm motors so fins can go thru wall to joints of the motor tubes. Always loved the Farside-X and never had one. I built an Apogee II as a kid instead -- it was like a whole dollar cheaper (!), and one less engine meant I might actually ha able to afford motors to fly it. One of thes days I'll build a Farside-X. I am detailing my first ever Sky Hook now. It was hard to pick my absolute favorite but I probably dreamed about the Farside-X more than any kit as a kid as I browsed the old catalogs.
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You launch in Pueblo? You rock. |
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Semroc recently released a reproduction Farside-X, though of course if you have the fin patterns, it's pretty easy to clone. I had one as a kid - it mostly flew on low impulse motors. I built a Farside for a classic model competition a few years ago. I've never had the nerve to go C-C-C on it. Typically B-B-A is what I've done. |
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http://www.nar.org/wp-content/uploa...ing-Program.pdf Stefan, The way I read this you won't be able to use B14-0 and B4-6 on the same flight. Only one decertifed motor at a time in a multistage. Jerry, I'm planning to visit Bill Simon tomorrow to do a little prep for this coming weekend's event. I'll try to remember to mention that you would like him to autograph the big Alpha. I know I have a normal sized one, a clone of the first version, that I want him to sign as well. |
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My favorite is not listed but it is the Antares as it was my first rocket!
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Jerry,
I live in Fort Collins (190 miles one way to Pueblo) but thoroughly enjoy flying with John Boren and the other great people of SCORE, so the drive isn't that bad. Our site in Northern Colorado has been shut down most of this year due to fire bans. The Denver group has a beautiful site in Bear Creek Lake State Park, but it's small, and flights are limited to 1500 grams weight and 125 grams propellant. My wife joins me (she never has gone to launches, other than when we launched with our kids many years ago). I got to know John at NSL and he told me I'd enjoy flying with them. He was right. I'm looking forward to going to NARAM in Pueblo next year. I hope a lot of the people here on YORF can attend. I've met a few over the years and at NSL. By the way, the site is easy to find. Google Maps knows the location as "Hudson Ranch Rocket Launch Site". :) |
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I think I'd likely just order the kit. I'm getting lazy when it comes to cutting out fins. Of course, Semroc kit fins are usually available separately. But with all the tubes and rings, might as well just buy the kit. Oh, yeah, need the decals too! Yep, kit it is. |
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I just don't understand ANY votes for the Alpha.
That thing while classic has to be the most boring 3FNC rocket to ever exist. |
Well, that pushed me over. I hadn't voted yet.
The Alpha may be boring to you, but it's been continuously available for almost 52 years now (having first appeared in MRN in late 1965). It was also the first kit to use the EH-2 motor hook for a quick change engine mount (the hook itself having first appeared in the Sprite) and the first to use the reliable tri-fold paper shock cord mount. Both of those features have also stood the test of time. |
It's still uber-boring.
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2 Attachment(s)
I had mentioned earlier that I had flown my Astron Cobra for its maiden voyage back in August, and that I had parts for an upscale. I’ve been working on it off and on for a couple weeks. Here is a picture of the completed motor mount, and the fins I cut out last week. I took this picture of parts prior to slotting the body tube. The last picture is a dry fit of the components. My Astron Cobra is shown for comparison. I now have the assembly work done, and I’m in the process of sealing the fins. They are basswood. Immensely fun cutting them by hand, especially with fin tabs.
I’m on a real Bill Simon rocket kick. I’ve got a Skyhook nearly done, just needs fins painted red, and the black striping added. I’ve also been contemplating an upscaled Drifter — it was one of my first rockets. |
Nice, I really like the Cobra.
Is it me, or is that a reeeeeally short shoulder on the back of the transition? |
It’s a reeeeeally short shoulder. Just like the old Estes balsa adapters! 😀
It fits extremely well, and since the payload section is short, I may leave it. On the old Estes balsa adapters, I’ve fixed in a couple of ways — a coupler section glued onto the shoulder, or my favorite, several dowels glued into holes drilled into the shoulder, with the edge of hole at the shoulder’s edge. Less friction. Requires drilling holes for dowels on a drill press unless you are really good holding a hand drill. On a shoulder that is BT-70 sized, I used four 3/8” dowels. |
Great work Lee! I bet all of us including Bill himself will enjoy seeing them.
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