Social Isolation Launch - 3/23/20
 

I snuck up to B6-4 Field yesterday for the second straight day to attempt a launch. I had a pretty ambitious load with me, but unlike Sunday, when I tried two launchers that didn't work, this one was a mild success. I'd excavated one of the launchers from one of the Star Wars sets I'd collected over the years and armed it with new batteries. Everything went as I'd hoped, except that the winds kicked up a bit right after I arrived at the field. I started with an Estes Mighty Moe on an A8-3, which proved to be more than was safe with the breeze. I recovered it, but went with the mini motor birds after the initial flight. I wound up with five flights on the day, but recovered everything. I might try to go back up today with a bunch of my low and slow birds to boost my numbers a little.

Isn't that the just way of things? :eek: :)

I'm glad you got them all back.

This was my kickoff flight, the Estes Mighty Moe on an A8-3. It flew great, dead straight off the rod, then it was drifting straight down after ejection. Two things happened. The chute, which had been happily parawadding, suddenly filled. The breeze, which had been non existent, began blowing from the north. It crossed Woodfill Avenue with plenty of extra height, then appeared to drop in the back yard of the house next to the school. Looked like it landed deep, so I decided to wait until I had packed up to ask if I could retrieve it.

I picked this rocket up years ago on clearance. Too cheap to pass up, right? Wrong. I think this is the Estes Space Bus, although I never really gave them enough thought to cement the names in my head. They turned up on my "Haven't flown in over ten years" list, so I dug them out and dusted them off. Kind of miss the dust, to be honest. Flew fine on a 1/2A3-4T, but never stopped feeling like a cheap afterthought.

The Not So Big Der Red Max was another addition to my Max family. I had planned to buy another downscale decal set from Gordon, but the Alps died before I got to it, so I decided to fake it. I still have faking to do, but I haven't felt like dicking with the printer of late. 1/2A3-4T flight just disappeared. I had the sense that it went to the left, but I never saw anything land, so I walked the field. Just as I was about to give up, a friendly neighbor asked if I was looking for a …..thing. :chuckle: Landed on the grass strip between the sidewalk and the road. While I was picking it up the lady came out of the house where I thought the Moe had landed, so I asked to retrieve it. It wasn't there. Turns out it never made the yard, but instead landed in the grass right next to the fence by the school driveway.

More plastic (not) fantastic. 1/2A3-4T was too much for it. Found it in pieces in the muck and mire of deep center. Feh.

Final flight of the day was an Estes Star Trooper, quite possibly the oddest of the "bring backs" of several years ago. Flying on a :eek: 1/2A3-4T the Trooper also disappeared into the blue, but was quickly found on a round trip of the field. I had no mini-engine birds left in my bandolier, and nothing else that would stand up to the breeze that was now constant, so I packed up and socially isolated myself in the house once more.

I applaud your efforts to build almost every model rocket kit to have ever been offered for sale ;)

I have less knowledge on old Centuri designs. Growing up in Colorado, Estes was very well known, as you’d expect, but Centuri, less so. I do not ever recall seeing Centuri in hobby shops in the Denver area.

I’d sure agree that it was an interesting choice to bring back the Star Trooper. I bought several on the Hobby Lobby clearance last year, but I’ll admit it was to get a body tube and nose cone for some glider builds.

Regarding social isolation, it sounds like we are going to be on tighter isolation here in Larimer County, in northern Colorado. Perhaps most of the state, I just haven’t heard. Only one trip to grocery stores, weekly, maybe? I’m conflicted over the decisions being made.

I knew Centuri because the guy up the street bought the ESS Raven, but I had no idea where he got it. Then my locker partner got interested in the hobby after paging through my Estes catalog during study hall. That Christmas he got a launch set, but it was a Screaming Eagle. Turns out there was a short lived toy store out where he lived, which was also where the father of my neighbor worked. The place stocked only Centuri rockets. Don gave me a catalog request form from one of his Centuri birds and I mailed it off. It came one day when we'd had all of our first floor windows replaced. I was the lucky guy who got to be home while the house was completely open to the elements. Global warming was not a thing on that day, but I did have something to read. When I finally got my license I went out to that toy store only to find it had long since closed. I never could get the timing right. :rolleyes:

Looks like you had a pretty good launch, as usual.