80's Estes rocket clones - Maverick and Scorpion

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ktchem

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So background first, the 1986 catalog was my first (well my older brother's) and it was permanently imprinted in my brain. When I BAR'ed about a year ago, revisiting that catalog online sparked lot of memories...two of which were Scorpion, my first rocket and only rocket back in the day which I don't know where it went, and Maverick, which I liked for whatever reason, maybe the pointy cone. There are others I may talk about in future posts.

So then I went about trying to find these but resorted to cloning. My level of cloning is no where near some of yours here. I ended up using a Chuter-two kit to make Maverick and Mongoose (which is a really poor kit) to make Scorpion. I used vinyl tape/pin striping to somewhat replicate the decals. All this mostly due to my skill, lack of time, and lack of willingness to pay for decals. Additionally I'm getting to like the cleaner/simpler look of the PS II designs. In the end they turned out good enough for me to get the feeling of owning the real thing. Hoping to do others soon (previously did a Reflector as a Marauder)ImageUploadedByRocketry Forum1429741003.434371.jpg
 
Countdown to TopRamen in XXX minutes. He's also a big fan of the PNC-50BB.

I've got an upscale clone of the Maverick in the works.
 
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Awesome! I still have my original Maverick; it's one of my all time faves for sport rockets. I'm hoping to clone that and some other of my OOP favorites.
 
So background first, the 1986 catalog was my first (well my older brother's) and it was permanently imprinted in my brain. When I BAR'ed about a year ago, revisiting that catalog online sparked lot of memories...two of which were Scorpion, my first rocket and only rocket back in the day which I don't know where it went, and Maverick, which I liked for whatever reason, maybe the pointy cone. There are others I may talk about in future posts.

So then I went about trying to find these but resorted to cloning. My level of cloning is no where near some of yours here. I ended up using a Chuter-two kit to make Maverick and Mongoose (which is a really poor kit) to make Scorpion. I used vinyl tape/pin striping to somewhat replicate the decals. All this mostly due to my skill, lack of time, and lack of willingness to pay for decals. Additionally I'm getting to like the cleaner/simpler look of the PS II designs. In the end they turned out good enough for me to get the feeling of owning the real thing. Hoping to do others soon (previously did a Reflector as a Marauder)View attachment 261531

:cool: I've also got a Maverick upscale, finished except for decals. The funny thing here is that I cloned an FSI Maverick a couple of years back and used the Ford Maverick font as the decal for that. I have no talent for making up my own, so I occasionally improvise. I've got an original decal for a Maverick that I got in a lot buy via Ebay a few years ago, and once Semroc is up and running again I plan to get the nose cone to clone it.

FSIMaverickonpad_zps1a86beba.jpg
 
Thanks everyone. I would definitely like to do a Maverick upscale sometime in the future.

Does anyone have a rocksim/open rocket file for Maverick or for Chuter-Two? I searched for both but wasn't able to find them.

Thanks,

Karl
 
Thanks everyone. I would definitely like to do a Maverick upscale sometime in the future.

Does anyone have a rocksim/open rocket file for Maverick or for Chuter-Two? I searched for both but wasn't able to find them.

Thanks,

Karl

Give me a few hours, and I'll have my .ork file for the Maverick up by the end of day (I might leave out the fin decals, they take a long time.). In the meantime... You can enjoy some of my other .ork files...

Here's a preview...

 
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Thanks K'Tesh! I saw that image in my search and thought I had found it, but was just the image. Must have been yours. Thanks in advance for getting me the file for Maverick as well and sending the link to your others....I downloaded a lot of them :)

Give me a few hours, and I'll have my .ork file for the Maverick up by the end of day (I might leave out the fin decals, they take a long time.). In the meantime... You can enjoy some of my other .ork files...

Here's a preview...

 
Sorry ktchem,

Until I can find someone who can get me the actual dimensions on the fins, I'll have to put this on standby. I don't want my .ork file to go out, only to find that the root edge was 1.xyz long, when I said it was 1.abc long. The .rkt files on rocketreviews are often wrong (leading to all kinds of odd looking fins), and the image I found on the oldrocketryplans.com site doesn't give dimensions (either written, or my preferred method, with a ruler alongside). I've had dimensional drawings bite me in the arse too many times.

In the meantime, I'm glad you're enjoying my other simulations.

Looking forward to getting this one done myself.

All The Best!
Jim
 
Here you go. Original fin laying flat next to a ruler.

I can't print from home, and I due to the wear on the fins, I'm not sure how long that tip edge is. Can you measure the root edge for me? With that, I can scale the printout (from school) I've made already.

Oh, and please check the thickness of the fins... I suspect they're 3/32", but I'd rather have someone verify that for me.

Thanks!
Jim
 
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Nice work! I'm a fan of the Scorpion design and wished they kept the trapezoidal fin unit vs the Mongoose's clipped delta. It might be good to check the instability of the Mongoose booster as I've heard it's still stable after burnout and will come in ballistic. Happy (& safe) flying! :)
 
The Estes Maverick was my first rocket when I was in AFJROTC in high school. I used it for my model rocketry badge. Always a sleek little flyer. I did a clone of it a few years ago but I still haven't had a chance to fly it. I also just finished a clone of the Marauder #1922 but it's waiting on paint and decals. I used a Crossfire kit for the Maverick but I can't remember what I used for the Marauder.
 
Thanks Flyfalcons...

That is really close to the 1 11/16" (1 22/32") that I found from measuring the image I printed out from oldrocketryplans.com. I suspect the difference could be from sanding the fins (really, it'd only take 1/64" (or .015625") per side to make up the difference between the two measurements). When I get home, I'll plug in the numbers and update the file.

BTW, I still have rockets that have fins that look like that too... I'm thinking of starting a thread that shows the difference between a 13-year-old's fins and his fins 32 (almost 33) years later.
 
I modified the Mongoose to the specs of the original Scorpion...including shortening the first stage. Flies pretty decent and looks good doing it.

However, a 2x upscale using ST-20 tubes is much more impressive...

IMG_2380.JPG


FC
 
Here's the Estes Maverick (1904)

Estes Maverick (1904) Stock UPDATED


Pretty much WYSIWYG, except for the black bars on the nosecone (I used MS Paint to edit the green between them). Fins are based on an unmeasured scan of the fins from the oldrocketplans.com site. They don't agree with the measurements from Flyfalcons (mine are 1/32" wider at the root), but his rocket was built when he was 10, and sanding the fins may have removed 1/64" per side (besides, it's a lot easier to remove 1/32" from a cut part than to add it back on).

I've got a BT-60 version of this in the works, and now am thinking that a clone (I don't have one) would be a good idea too.
 

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  • Estes Maverick (1904) Stock UPDATED.ork
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Going to save the nose cone and fins. The motor mount is gone - I think I removed it with the thought of sending it up on a D. Probably a good thing that never happened. This "rebuild" will be sort of like the grandfather's axe. It's had two new handles and three new blades, but it's still your grandfather's axe.

20150826_100513.jpg
 
Got as much of the old paint removed as I reasonably could, and cut a new body tube. I also grafted a new tip to the fin on the left. Looks like it had been crunched from a pavement landing.

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Originally I don't think I used sandpaper, leading to squared fin leading and trailing edges. I was tempted to leave them that way for originality but in the end decided to round them. Besides, rounding them is covered in the instructions so it was a good way to go. I'm also using wood grain filler, which I never did when I was ten years old.

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Coming back together. Even with the new style engine hook, this will be able to stand upright on its own.

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