Post by bearcat on Jun 8, 2011 19:30:21 GMT -5
Hi Guys.
Things are going okay in Clovis. Kind of a bad year for flying so far because of the wind; particularly intense this year. But at least I've got the RC flight sim to get stick time, and I get up once in awhile.
Anyway, has anyone ever seen the Estes Strato-Blaster? It was a very rare kit to build a rocket powered RC glider. If you haven't, look it up on You Tube. I liked the idea of getting up to altitude with a rocket, so I designed and am building one of my own. It's called the "Kestrel".
It is a boom and pod design and is all balsa and carbon-fiber. It's got a 49 inch wingspan with a 5 degree back sweep, 1.5 degrees dihedral, and a 14% Clark-Y airfoil. The entire plane weighs 12.8 ounces so far, without electronics. It is being built for an E-sized motor, which produces 1.2 pounds of thrust for 6.5 seconds. I'm hoping for at least 500 ft altitude after burn.
The wing is interchangeable with the Peregrine, so I can experiment with E-power on this aileron wing too, if I don't feel like sending it up with a rocket. Those rocket motors cost about $5 apiece, so it can get a little expensive. It will also be high-start compatible.
Here are a few pics of the plane so far.
And I am finalizing the plans that I've been drawing too.
Things are going okay in Clovis. Kind of a bad year for flying so far because of the wind; particularly intense this year. But at least I've got the RC flight sim to get stick time, and I get up once in awhile.
Anyway, has anyone ever seen the Estes Strato-Blaster? It was a very rare kit to build a rocket powered RC glider. If you haven't, look it up on You Tube. I liked the idea of getting up to altitude with a rocket, so I designed and am building one of my own. It's called the "Kestrel".
It is a boom and pod design and is all balsa and carbon-fiber. It's got a 49 inch wingspan with a 5 degree back sweep, 1.5 degrees dihedral, and a 14% Clark-Y airfoil. The entire plane weighs 12.8 ounces so far, without electronics. It is being built for an E-sized motor, which produces 1.2 pounds of thrust for 6.5 seconds. I'm hoping for at least 500 ft altitude after burn.
The wing is interchangeable with the Peregrine, so I can experiment with E-power on this aileron wing too, if I don't feel like sending it up with a rocket. Those rocket motors cost about $5 apiece, so it can get a little expensive. It will also be high-start compatible.
Here are a few pics of the plane so far.
And I am finalizing the plans that I've been drawing too.