Anyone Built Estes #3232 Centuri Kit?

Estes has a Kit that I'm interested in, but I searched and could not find any threads here about it.
Just curious as to if anyone had any opinions about this kit.
I simply like the look of it and wonder if the Decals are waterslide or self adhesive. I'de be less inclined to get one if they are self adhesive.

You and your PNC-50BB nosecones...

https://www.rocketryforum.com/showthread.php?55691-Estes-Centuri-(-3232)-Gallery

https://www.estesrockets.com/media/instructions/003232_CENTURI.pdf

The instructions call for wetting the decals.... Thus Waterslide

Thanks K'.
I'm going to get one from AC Supply on Friday when I order my D-Region Tomahawk then.

And yeah, it's a sweet Nose Cone that 50BB.

I was checking out the Centuri the other day and might have to get one and make it a two-stager. It's a sweet looking little rocket.

kyle said:

I was checking out the Centuri the other day and might have to get one and make it a two-stager. It's a sweet looking little rocket.

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That's a fine Idea! Perhaps I'll clone it after building it and do it as a Two-Stage. It's already going to get updogged to 24mm and FG like everything else. I ended up building 5 Crossfires, may as well build a few of this one too.

It also looks like it would make for an impressive upscale to say BT-80 scale.

Ordered it today!!!

I love that kit; built one a while back - there's a pic in the galleries. Definitely thinking about a bigger one too - 76 to 54mm with 38mm power would be a nice 3X upscale. 4" to 2.6" (4X upscale) would also work and could take 54mm motors.

caveduck said:

I love that kit; built one a while back - there's a pic in the galleries. Definitely thinking about a bigger one too - 76 to 54mm with 38mm power would be a nice 3X upscale. 4" to 2.6" (4X upscale) would also work and could take 54mm motors.

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I saw yours in the Gallery. Very nice! I like how you airfoiled the Fins.

Thanks! If memory serves I papered the fins with CA, airfoiled afterwards, then re-sealed the sanded parts with CA, followed by some diluted spot putty filler.

Mine should be here tomorrow according to the Tracking info.

Got it!

I discarded all the stuff I'm not going to use. That stuff goes into my miscellaneous parts bag so that I can give it to folks that need it.
I got the Fins cut out and stared at the awesome Decal Sheet.
Tomorrow I'll see if I can get around to glassing the fins and body tubes.
I'll likely order another 1 or two of this kit because I want to build it a few different ways. Right now I actually have everything I need to do a clone of it if I want to.

Lets begin!!!
Like most Estes LPR Kits, the slots on the BT leave a few things to be done to make a clean, non-bulging final product. Those who have built the Crossfire ISX will know what I'm talking about.
First I widened each slot gently with an emery board. To make it maintain its shape during the layup, I made an undersized centering ring and wrapped it in Teflon tape, then stuck it at the midway point in the slots. The Teflon tape will make it easy to remove the Ring when the wrap of cloth has cured.

Thankfully, I left the work looking just like you see it in that last Pic' to come post this, and realized when looking at the Picture a second time that I have forgot to mark my upper body tube for fin placement, and the lower BT for rail guide placement.
I like to make my markings under the glass.

That was uneventful, and I like how it went. Got the Fins under the weights and books on the "granite surface plate" to cure for a day or two.



The decal sheet for this Kit is Killer!



I'm going to do a Clone of this kit, but make a JB Weld Decal in the same font as the Centuri decal. The colors are a perfect match.

I also decided not to do the markings under the glass this time.

This thing will really rip on an F32 or F44.

What a fun Kit!

Going to use the Rocketarium retainer on this one.

Dry Fitting:

Assembled the MMT.

Dry fitted the MMT and got the seam sanded down a bit. I can do another fill after Primer if necessary. The Bondo actually sticks to the gently sanded glass cloth surface remarkably well. Go figure...:wink: Bondo and Glass work like they are supposed to.
I also got the other side of the Fins glassed and sitting in the press.
I'm considering modifying this Kit to deploy its recovery gear from the upper Tube, or "Sustainer" portion of the Rocket.
Rockets of this configuration can be tricky to make stable, and given what I'm feeling from the MMT section weighing 14g. as opposed to the original MMT of 5-6g. I dry fit the assemble body tubes, MMT and an E20-4W, and the CG was right in front of the Motor.
I was thinking about using streamer recovery, and to prevent wear and tear on the transition, perhaps using a Piston to deploy the streamer or chute. It's been done before, so why not?
Any Ideas are welcome...
This would give me recoveries that are hopefully as straight down as they are straight going up, in addition to moving the CG forward and lessening the overall weight. If I did the recovery from the Booster Tube, I'de require added Nose Weight, and I'de like to get away with not having to do that this time if possible.

This will fly from my 60" Rail, so velocity off the Rail should always be safe.

More nice weather meant I was able to sand the Fins today.
Dry Fit looks great. I have to make foamboard fin template jigs from Payloadbay since I don't have one already in these sizes.

My Printer would not work, so I had to use a BT-60 size Jig that I already had made up. I made everything fit perfectly, and there was just a little room for the MMT and Fins to move/slide up and down, so I gently pressed the MMT Forward after I had inserted the Fins to lock them against the Top of the Slots. This is one incredibly rigid tail section!
I'm getting pretty good at fitting glassed parts together. Much easier to do precise work and maintain dimensions vs. Papered Balsa.

Got the four tiny fins on the upper/sustainer portion. Went to my moms house and used her Printer for the template.

I really like the way this Kit is turning out. I think I'm going to keep the recovery gear in the booster section, but rather than glue/epoxy the sustainer to the transition, I'll use miniature screws, so I can still mess around in there. I might even make an AV Bay.
I would recommend this Kit to anyone looking for a fun Kit.

I might try to get some Primer on there later since it is supposed to be nice out today.

Well, no progress today.
I did get a new Computer today though, so I got Openrocket on it that works, and can start doing Sims tomorrow.
I want to know my CP before I continue.

Started my OR file this morning.
Kudos again to K'Tesh for his "Nose Cone Library".

TopRamen said:

Started my OR file this morning.
Kudos again to K'Tesh for his "Nose Cone Library".

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Glad you like them... Don't forget to check out the Parts Library, and my Open Rocket Files thread...