Favorite rocket ever built

onebadhawk said:

Frog,, that's beautiful graphics....
Is that a vinyl wrap.....
If that's what you do for a living,,
you must be awfully good at applying it.....
The wraps can be a bit difficult but doable if your very careful right from the beginning......

Teddy

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Actually not a wrap but the green slime ooze layout I drew up and cut from vinyl paint mask. I used Rustoleum matte black, matte white, fluorescent green, and Krylon triple clear gloss for paint. The only vinyl are the eyeballs and "teeth". The eyeballs idea coming from the old kites I used to fly as a kid.

Vinyl and tint are however my business in real life. www.solarartgraphics.com

I will use wraps and full cover vinyl at times but it is just what ever I feel like at the moment. The middle portion of this Leviathan is a reflective red vinyl wrap however.

slipperyfrog said:

Actually not a wrap but the green slime ooze layout I drew up and cut from vinyl paint mask. I used Rustoleum matte black, matte white, fluorescent green, and Krylon triple clear gloss for paint. The only vinyl are the eyeballs and "teeth". The eyeballs idea coming from the old kites I used to fly as a kid.

Vinyl and tint are however my business in real life. www.solarartgraphics.com

I will use wraps and full cover vinyl at times but it is just what ever I feel like at the moment. The middle portion of this Leviathan is a reflective red vinyl wrap however.

Click to expand...

Wow,,
Very cool,,
I poked around on YouTube for application tips before I did my first wrap...
I saw a guy that was so goo at getting the vinyl just the right temperature
that he did a Japanese sport bikes tank --
complex curves that turn back in on themselves,,,
and got it to come out just perfect in no time at all....
Just a few minutes....
That vinyl just laid out for him because it was very warm...
Difficult to describe,, but it just laid out beautifully...

Teddy

onebadhawk said:

Wow,,
Very cool,,
I poked around on YouTube for application tips before I did my first wrap...
I saw a guy that was so goo at getting the vinyl just the right temperature
that he did a Japanese sport bikes tank --
complex curves that turn back in on themselves,,,
and got it to come out just perfect in no time at all....
Just a few minutes....
That vinyl just laid out for him because it was very warm...
Difficult to describe,, but it just laid out beautifully...

Teddy

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Yep I know exactly what you are talking about. I do vehicle wraps all the time. With the right high quality vinyl, heat, and technique you would be amazed at what can be wrapped. After a while it becomes second nature to do complex curves, headlights, etc. You have to understand the different types of vinyl and how it reacts to warming and stretching. The memory on some of the new vinyls used in wrapping is amazing.

slipperyfrog said:

Yep I know exactly what you are talking about. I do vehicle wraps all the time. With the right high quality vinyl, heat, and technique you would be amazed at what can be wrapped. After a while it becomes second nature to do complex curves, headlights, etc. You have to understand the different types of vinyl and how it reacts to warming and stretching. The memory on some of the new vinyls used in wrapping is amazing.

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And this guy was using a propane torch to warm it....
It really was cool....
Almost like he snapped it out and it just laid right in to those concave curves after it came around the convex curves..............lol...

Teddy

I have to admit, though it annoyed me at times as I built it, my favorite has been the Mega Mosquito. So squat, so solid, so powerful... ain't let me down yet!

Kirk G said:

I have to admit, though it annoyed me at times as I built it, my favorite has been the Mega Mosquito. So squat, so solid, so powerful... ain't let me down yet!

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They do fly absolutely great… I wish they weren't being discontinued. The Polecat 5.5" diameter upscale would also be a great flyer, and I have a Madcow 4" Cricket that has the same general design and should fly great… If I ever finish it.

On topic: While I can definitely say my favorite rocket is my Magg, I have a lot of rockets I think could be second favorite. I really like my 4"/38mm Crayon bank, and I'm sure my Darkstar 3"/54mm and Vindicator Jr are going to be favorites once I build and fly them.

Agree with the last one or the next one. But I still love Big Bertha. I have 3 flying and 2 in the queue.

Mine would have to be my original Citation series Bomarc. But it is close with many seconds.

Hands down my Bomarc, wonderful build except for that stock shock cord. But for that there is always Teddy

onebadhawk said:

+1
Each one you change just a bit,,
You keep improving,,
So I like each one just a bit more then the one before..

Teddy

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That's how I feel too, Teddy. My newest is always my new favorite. I keep learning more about what I like, and learning better build techniques, so they keep improving and moving in the right direction.

My most recent rocket is now my G-Force, so that's my new favorite.

ThirstyBarbarian said:

That's how I feel too, Teddy. My newest is always my new favorite. I keep learning more about what I like, and learning better build techniques, so they keep improving and moving in the right direction.

My most recent rocket is now my G-Force, so that's my new favorite.

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I kind of agree. My favorite rocket list typically goes:
1. Mini Magg
2. Whatever else I've built most recently (right now my Crayon and Warlock)

ThirstyBarbarian said:

That's how I feel too, Teddy. My newest is always my new favorite. I keep learning more about what I like, and learning better build techniques, so they keep improving and moving in the right direction.

My most recent rocket is now my G-Force, so that's my new favorite.

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I can't wait for long enough into the future for there to be teletransporters.............
We all say ,,,, we're going to have a get together on Saturday evening............
Everybody dials a phone # and were all together...
I'm doing a build right now that I'd just love to show you guys...
I'm not big on the pic's though,, I have to send them to Matt to get him to upload them,,, lol...

Teddy

SCrocketfan said:

I kind of agree. My favorite rocket list typically goes:
1. Mini Magg
2. Whatever else I've built most recently (right now my Crayon and Warlock)

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Your Mini Magg is a great flyer. I'm going to guess the Warlock is going to have similar characteristics, just BIGGER. Have you already built it? I'm looking forward to building and finishing mine. I've got an oddball decorating scheme in mind for it, and if it turns out, it might be a new favorite.

ThirstyBarbarian said:

Your Mini Magg is a great flyer. I'm going to guess the Warlock is going to have similar characteristics, just BIGGER. Have you already built it? I'm looking forward to building and finishing mine. I've got an oddball decorating scheme in mind for it, and if it turns out, it might be a new favorite.

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I'm not sure if you heard, but the Magg went semi-unstable (kind of banked over horizontal then snapped back to stable flight) in december so it now has a 9 oz bolt in the nose. It's really fast on I's and I really like flying it on larger motors now since it's big enough to track easily at high altitudes. The Warlock on big H's and I's should fly a lot like the Magg on little H's- really nice gentle liftoff and slow climb to altitude, should fly really great and it's just long enough to not actually need any nose weight.

Mine is built now and I'm planning to fly it on an I297 Skidmark a the 2/14 Snow Ranch launch. Should be sparktacular! Unfortunately, I have to pull the BP ejection charges from a couple of Econojets or other motors- the Warlock needs at least 2.5-3G of black powder to deploy safely.

My favorite rocket was the ModX, which was a modified Estes Executioner rocket. I changed it to split in the middle with an ejection baffle, 29mm motor mount and a version that carried a camera to take still photos while under chute.

Another favorite rocket was the QuadPod II, which is the rocket shown in my avatar. It used a gimballed motor mount with active stabilization.

For me (so far) it was a Dynacom Yellow Jacket. I got the last one Eric had when he closed down Dynacom. It was a fantastic kit and I made it my goal to make it my best rocket yet. I flew it twice and lost it on the second flight. Haze in the sky made it go invisible. I had rocket fever that day and didn't
have a tracker in it nor did I inform the guys with the good eyes and binoculars it was flying.

My best rocket I ever built is usually the one I'm currently working on. Right now that is an Ultimate Wildman.