PDA

View Full Version : After Christmas ..............


Rocket Doctor
12-26-2007, 05:56 AM
Now that Christmas is history for 2007, what did you get from Santa as far as rockets go, did you get what you had on Santa's wish list?

What is your New Year's resolutions, buy more rockets, fly less, buy less rockets, lfymore, going to NARAM .

P.S. If your going to NARAM Next year (July 26th - Aug 1st) the hotel is taking reservations now.
The host hotel is the Sheraton 4 Points - Manassas VA 1-703-335-0000, ask for reservations, and ask for the group rate for "NARAM 50".

I just booked my room yesterday, my Christmas gift to me.

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year !!!

Ltvscout
12-26-2007, 08:07 AM
Now that Christmas is history for 2007, what did you get from Santa as far as rockets go, did you get what you had on Santa's wish list?
I ordered one of Jim Neubauer's Orion II's the other day. I have to place my Semroc order this week before we head up north also. Other than that, nothing else rocket-wise. I did get the first three seasons of what was (I say was because the series has now ended) the best show on TV, The Sopranos.

Most of our money is going into a new van and a cruise in Spring. :o

chalinaty
12-26-2007, 08:08 AM
Thanks for the NARAM info. I just made my reservation.
I hope to complete my NARTREK Silver requirements this year, as well as build some competition rockets for NARAM. I probably won't get either of these completely done, though--time just seems to slip away when it comes to rocket building.
I might also try to complete the EMRR Challenge this year. I've tried for 2 years but haven't been able to finish--3rd time's the charm!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

cas2047
12-26-2007, 08:31 AM
I got the QModeling Nike-X and Amdromeda kits. I've already started on the Nike-X.

Green Dragon
12-26-2007, 09:30 AM
poor Christmas here, what with myself out of work ( well, back part-time :) , and dad missing hal fthe year with his heart bypass...

Only rocket stuff I got was the Semroc Christmas sale order I placed myself - that came Christmas Eve ( how appropriate :) ) .

Did get Barnes & Noble gift card from my bro, which can be used for Launch magazine isses :D

As for New Years resolutions... hmm... survive another year, get back to work full time ( looking good, thankfully), or start job hunt.
build MORE rockets, fly as I can, definately make plans for NARAM !!! , get this 63 Nova SS finished so I can cruise to launches in style ;) .
not much else, can't plan to find a prospective 'Mrs', but if one were to cross my path, I;m agreeable to that as well . lol .

Happy Holidays to all !

~ AL

tbzep
12-26-2007, 10:23 AM
My daughter got a Baby Bertha, but that's all the rocketry related stuff we had.

Rocket Doctor
12-26-2007, 06:51 PM
Do you have a Skywriter as well?

tbzep
12-26-2007, 07:00 PM
Do you have a Skywriter as well?

She's on her second Skywriter. She lost the first one while doing a school demo with me.

STRMan
12-26-2007, 07:32 PM
Sorry. I didn't realize the good Doc had started a thread with this same theme. I'll repost.



My wife knows I'm getting back into model rocketry, so she got me a gift certificate from my local hobby shop. I ran out today and bought myself an Estes SR-71 Blackbird kit. When I start the build, I'll post photos. It should be interesting, as this Skill Level 3 kit is the first one I've built in over 25 years.

(I'm not counting a Custom Razor tube-fin model I helped my daughter build for a middle school project about 4 years ago. That was a really easy kit. It was pre-painted out of the package. )

Here's one on eBay

ghrocketman
12-26-2007, 09:26 PM
My wife got me a Hawk's Hobby Super Orbital Transport for Christmas.

I ordered a Semroc Space Shuttle and Oso with the Christmas discount.

dwmzmm
12-26-2007, 09:28 PM
My oldest daughter got me the Estes Cosmos Cobra kit. Strange, as I've never really cared
about this kit, but since I have one now, I might as well make full use of it anyway.

I also received in the mail my order from Quest; it's the Flat Cat B/G and two packs of the Q2
igniters. Their mail order was pretty quick (about 1 1/2 week -- not bad when you consider
we're in the Christmas rush).

Rocket Doctor
12-26-2007, 09:35 PM
Sorry. I didn't realize the good Doc had started a thread with this same theme. I'll repost.



My wife knows I'm getting back into model rocketry, so she got me a gift certificate from my local hobby shop. I ran out today and bought myself an Estes SR-71 Blackbird kit. When I start the build, I'll post photos. It should be interesting, as this Skill Level 3 kit is the first one I've built in over 25 years.

(I'm not counting a Custom Razor tube-fin model I helped my daughter build for a middle school project about 4 years ago. That was a really easy kit. It was pre-painted out of the package. )

Here's one on eBay

Welcome back into the hobby........enjoy !!!

Royatl
12-26-2007, 10:32 PM
I got myself some Christmas rockets: a Neubauer Orion II, an extra Quest Delta Clipper (can't have too many of those enjoyable finless rockets!), and some old Centuri plastic nose cones.

marslndr
12-27-2007, 07:20 AM
I got myself a Semroc little joe 2, a Saki, and another VF-261 (my 3rd) along with a bunch of nose cones.

Thanks Semroc for the Christmas discount!

Mark

Ltvscout
12-27-2007, 07:50 AM
and some old Centuri plastic nose cones.
Where'd you get those?!

DANLK66
12-27-2007, 08:03 AM
I received and Estes Big Daddy, a Semroc Little Ivan, and a Starlight Seieron 3. The little Ivan was my first Semroc kit and I look forward to getting more (nothing but quality which I like). I have started the Starlight rocket and am a little disappointed with the kit. The design is good but the tubes are all cut uneven and the balsa transitions were not the greatest. I still like the kit but going from the Semroc to this really made the issues stand out. I have also started the Big Daddy and can’t wait to finish it.

For my New Years resolution I think I will actually start painting rockets instead of just building them. :p

Dan

DANLK66
12-27-2007, 08:06 AM
OOPs I forgot the best part. I have clearance to buy a real launch pad and controller. Now I just have to choose................

dwmzmm
12-27-2007, 08:14 AM
OOPs I forgot the best part. I have clearance to buy a real launch pad and controller. Now I just have to choose................

"clearance?!" From whom?! ;)

Royatl
12-27-2007, 08:26 AM
Where'd you get those?!


Ebay. A tiny little offering that nobody noticed. Got a red Alpha III fin unit, and four noses: a 7, two 8's and one 10. I've been trying to find a replacement #8 for my NARAM-13 streamer duration winner (the nose got lost somehow during my last move). This one still isn't it. But now I have two copies of the longer cone, so I have some trade fodder.

Ltvscout
12-27-2007, 08:43 AM
Ebay. A tiny little offering that nobody noticed. Got a red Alpha III fin unit, and four noses: a 7, two 8's and one 10. I've been trying to find a replacement #8 for my NARAM-13 streamer duration winner (the nose got lost somehow during my last move). This one still isn't it. But now I have two copies of the longer cone, so I have some trade fodder.
Ah, good deal. I haven't been following eBay for a number of months now. Too tempting to spend money otherwise. :o

DANLK66
12-27-2007, 09:53 AM
My wife :D

Rocket Doctor
12-27-2007, 11:31 AM
I received and Estes Big Daddy, a Semroc Little Ivan, and a Starlight Seieron 3. The little Ivan was my first Semroc kit and I look forward to getting more (nothing but quality which I like). I have started the Starlight rocket and am a little disappointed with the kit. The design is good but the tubes are all cut uneven and the balsa transitions were not the greatest. I still like the kit but going from the Semroc to this really made the issues stand out. I have also started the Big Daddy and can’t wait to finish it.

For my New Years resolution I think I will actually start painting rockets instead of just building them. :p

Dan

The reason that the Starlight tubes are uneven, is , that they are cut from longer tubes to size, rather than made to size.

A start up operation.

Leo
12-29-2007, 05:07 AM
Well, I didn't get much rocketry wize except for treating myself with a rubber powered model rocket :)

http://www.leo.nutz.de/images/rockets/Quercetti_Tor_II.jpg

I have a mid 80's version somewhere stashed away that I just can't find :mad:

dwmzmm
12-29-2007, 06:58 AM
In my mail order from Quest I received the day after Christmas (I'd ordered the Quest Flat
Cat and two packs of the Q2 igniters less than two weeks earlier), they included as a "free
kit" one of their rubberband powered rocket! Haven't opened it yet, but looks like it should
be fun....

genimijim
12-29-2007, 09:45 AM
Santa left me a Mega Dagger under the tree, I must of been good.

genimijim (Jim)

Initiator001
12-31-2007, 12:10 AM
Santa and my family were very good to me this year, rocket-wise. :D

I received an Estes Astrovision set and three books concerning the history of spaceflight.

Bob

Maniac BAR
01-01-2008, 05:10 PM
I can't complain :rolleyes:
A friend got me an Estes new Screaming Eagle B/G and the local hobby shop allowed me to get both sizes of the new Estes Interceptor. I was in the area of the only HL we have and got lucky with a new style Mean Machine that no one saw parked in the back of the rocket shelf :p With the 40% off coupon, the whole thing out the door was just over $16.
Such a deal :eek:
I recieved the Honest Goon from Phred just before Christmas and it was built in a few hours and then flown on a picture perfect day on the 26th. Great flight on a B6-4. Now to fill and finish it.
I just started the build of the QMOdeling Mars Snooper and will start a new thread for that in the next few days unless there is one on that rocket already. Unbelievable kit!!! :p

Mark II
01-02-2008, 01:42 AM
Now that Christmas is history for 2007, what did you get from Santa as far as rockets go, did you get what you had on Santa's wish list?
Nothing here, actually, not even a spent engine or a lump of coal. Rocket Santa doesn't visit the houses of people who have no jobs or unemployment benefits.

I was doing OK this past year and was giving model rocket businesses some steady business until my employer suddenly yanked the rug out from under my feet in November. Among the many consequences of this was that it brought my hobby acquisitions to a screeching halt. In my line of work, my principle source of employment is non-profit agencies. In November and December, these employers were all nearing the end of their budget years, and so were not hiring new staff.

The good folks at Semroc offered me a very handsome discount as a Christmas gift, but I could not take advantage of it because I literally had no money at all in December. Thanks to my wife's job, though, we still had a roof over our heads, gas in the car and food in the larder. (Just barely, though.)

The two of us had a very pleasant, quiet Christmas Eve and morning. We had/still have a real nice tree again this year, but there were no presents under it for either one of us. Later, we had Christmas dinner at my sister's house. Although she is happily employed, she too was left without presents this year after the fuel oil man took all of her Christmas money earlier in the month, thanks to a whopping increase in the price of heating oil.

So our presents this year consisted of simply spending time with each other, and no one spent the holiday alone. God bless us, every one.

Mark K.

Daniel Runyon
01-13-2008, 09:56 PM
My wife's friend's husband got my son one of these:

http://www.isarapix.com/pix33/1200282117.jpg

It's structurally identical to our NSA Starships and flies well. We went out for our first launches in many months over the last few days (three total launch sessions), and it was pretty much triggered by getting this, so the gift wound up being far more than the rocket, in and of itself, and I'm very grateful.

We launched a few that had yet to see action, including the Semroc Vega, which is a PERFECT flier, a new Big and Baby Bertha (that replaced the ones we crashed on the bad engines earlier last year), and my first design, which flew beautifully.

Some of you may also remember the 20 something year old Star Dart we recieved and flew last year, well the same fellow (the guy that does all of our tire and brake work, who saw an Estes catalog in our van) found a box of his old rockets and we did a little repair work and flew em. One was a three finned Big Bertha, another was some kind of Estes payloader that he'd used to get an ROTC certification of some sort back in his high school days, an orbital interceptor, and a couple of little rockets.

They (the ones he gave us) all had a weird larvae of something sealed up in the engine tubes, and when we pulled them out they started wiggling. They were brown pods with yellow larvae inside. He gave us the rockets about three months ago, and the engine tubes were sealed with a white, clay like substance, and here these months later were still there, so those larvae have gone through many cold nights, sometimes down into the teens out in the carport and survived.

We're now back to working on our Dr. Zooch shuttle, a Fat Boy, and I'm finally getting around to starting work on a scratch video rocket.... all spurned from the gift above.

DaveR
01-14-2008, 10:20 AM
They (the ones he gave us) all had a weird larvae of something sealed up in the engine tubes, and when we pulled them out they started wiggling. They were brown pods with yellow larvae inside. He gave us the rockets about three months ago, and the engine tubes were sealed with a white, clay like substance, and here these months later were still there, so those larvae have gone through many cold nights, sometimes down into the teens out in the carport and survived.


Watcha got there is your Indian Meal Moth larva. The larva will (or would have provided they didn't pay the ultimate price) turn into small moths, about 3/8 inch in size. The eggs can remain dormant for LONG periods of time; waiting on the ideal conditions to hatch. (about 68 to 72 degrees) Sounds like the eggs warmed up and hatched out when you brought the box inside. The larva will eat just about anything: dust, paper, even crushed red pepper. :eek:
I work in a food distribtion warehouse (nuts, dried fruits and candy) and this is our #1 enemy.
If you have a weak stomach you may want to quit reading this at this point. The eggs are pretty much in every food product you buy it's only a matter of wether or not they hatch. Rice, flour, tree nuts, dried fruit, grains, herbs, spices, even dog food all contain the eggs.
If you see these little moths in or around your pantry, you can bet something in the pantry is infested.

Daniel Runyon
01-14-2008, 11:06 AM
Watcha got there is your Indian Meal Moth larva...

http://www.isarapix.com/pix23/1200329894.jpg

:D:D:D:D

I don't know if that's what it'd be though, because the yellow larve part was squaty lookin, sorta scrunched. I don't have em anymore or I'd take a pic (I put em under a bush in the yard), but one was dead and outside the brown pod so we could see it, and it looked shorter, fatter and was kinda ribbed in the middle like an accordian to a degree. I'm not ruling out that it was an Indian Meal Moth larvae though... perhaps it stretches out or something at a later point.

When I first saw the pods (which looked about like mini brown, Rocky style punching bags) I assumed them to be dirt dobbers or something... mainly due to the "clay" seal caps that covered both ends of the engine tubes... whatever layed these things had evidently first sealed the inside hole, then layed the pods and sealed the outside hole, and the material was pretty thick, white/gray (almost cementlike) clayish stuff, that broke up into a powdery debris when punctured to remove the pods.

DaveR
01-14-2008, 11:24 AM
http://www.isarapix.com/pix23/1200329894.jpg

:D

I don't know if that's what it'd be though, because the yellow larve part was squaty lookin, sorta scrunched. I don't have em anymore or I'd take a pic (I put em under a bush in the yard), but one was dead and outside the brown pod so we could see it, and it looked shorter, fatter and was kinda ribbed in the middle like an accordian to a degree. I'm not ruling out that it was an Indian Meal Moth larvae though... perhaps it stretches out or something at a later point.

When I first saw the pods (which looked about like mini brown, Rocky style punching bags) I assumed them to be dirt dobbers or something... mainly due to the "clay" seal caps that covered both ends of the engine tubes... whatever layed these things had evidently first sealed the inside hole, then layed the pods and sealed the outside hole, and the material was pretty thick, white/gray (almost cementlike) clayish stuff, that broke up into a powdery debris when punctured to remove the pods.
I didn't realize from your first post that the actual engine tube itself was sealed by the critter in question. Doesn't sound like meal moths..... the brown "pods" as you described definately sounded like meal moths though. Perhaps it twas the dirt dobbers, during the summer months at the house; those guys will stuff any hole they can find with mud. There is a purple variety who's work closely resembles "clay" rather than mud.

My apologies for Hi-jacking this thread; and now back to After Christmas..........................

Rocket Doctor
01-14-2008, 03:37 PM
Nothing here, actually, not even a spent engine or a lump of coal. Rocket Santa doesn't visit the houses of people who have no jobs or unemployment benefits.

I was doing OK this past year and was giving model rocket businesses some steady business until my employer suddenly yanked the rug out from under my feet in November. Among the many consequences of this was that it brought my hobby acquisitions to a screeching halt. In my line of work, my principle source of employment is non-profit agencies. In November and December, these employers were all nearing the end of their budget years, and so were not hiring new staff.

The good folks at Semroc offered me a very handsome discount as a Christmas gift, but I could not take advantage of it because I literally had no money at all in December. Thanks to my wife's job, though, we still had a roof over our heads, gas in the car and food in the larder. (Just barely, though.)

The two of us had a very pleasant, quiet Christmas Eve and morning. We had/still have a real nice tree again this year, but there were no presents under it for either one of us. Later, we had Christmas dinner at my sister's house. Although she is happily employed, she too was left without presents this year after the fuel oil man took all of her Christmas money earlier in the month, thanks to a whopping increase in the price of heating oil.

So our presents this year consisted of simply spending time with each other, and no one spent the holiday alone. God bless us, every one.

Mark K.

Mark

PM your address, and, I will send to you a rocket kit, hard times are not easy.
God Bless you and your family.
Best Wishes,
RD

barone
01-14-2008, 05:27 PM
Mark

PM your address, and, I will send to you a rocket kit, hard times are not easy.
God Bless you and your family.
Best Wishes,
RD
Me too with a wish list.....If I got it, you might get it... ;)

Ltvscout
01-14-2008, 05:38 PM
It's great to see how the members here take care of each other. Thanks, guys!