Estes - (Astron) Ranger (K-6 or #1206) Gallery

[jeffk813]

Found my all-black Big Bertha after about 10 years of sitting in a moving box. One of the fins was missing and the upper 3/16 of the body tube was badly crunched.

So, I trimmed up the tube, replaced the fins, sand her down and repainted her in a new color scheme. Then I cam up with a lame slogan "Big Bertha Evolved" and cut out some decals on the vinyl cutter.

For this one I was trying out new paints and a new technique and I have to say I'm VERY happy with the way she came out:

[goose_in_co]

I made a family photo of the bertha's in the house a long time ago. Left to right: Clone Mini-Bertha, Polar-1 (baby Bertha bash), Baby Bertha, Big Blue Bertha, Boat-tailed Big Bertha, Super Big Bertha.

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[BEC]

My Ranger clone based on parts from a whole bunch of places. So far it has been flown on As and Bs only. Perhaps it'll get a ride on three Quest C6-5s at the Blue Mountain Rocketeers' Rolling Thunder event in September.

[Scode68]

We christened this one last year and it has well over 20 flights on it. This was built from spare parts but is all stock design wise.




Have more Bertha's and some Ranger's planed.

[chadrog]

We christened this one last year and it has well over 20 flights on it. This was built from spare parts but is all stock design wise.




Have more Bertha's and some Ranger's planed.

Excellent paintjob!

[caveduck]

Wow, I like a lot of these. Somehow I've never built a BB...gonna have to make one pretty soon. As far as a paint theme I'm thinking "COW" (the Pig Bertha is hysterical, we need more farm animals!).

Pretty cool to see Vern flying BB#1 recently. I recall seeing him fly it at NARAM 32 or 34, and it was old then. It's gotta be the oldest model rocket still in semi-regular operation, flown by the longest-serving rocketeer ever.

[chadrog]

Wow, I like a lot of these. Somehow I've never built a BB...gonna have to make one pretty soon. As far as a paint theme I'm thinking "COW" (the Pig Bertha is hysterical, we need more farm animals!).

Pretty cool to see Vern flying BB#1 recently. I recall seeing him fly it at NARAM 32 or 34, and it was old then. It's gotta be the oldest model rocket still in semi-regular operation, flown by the longest-serving rocketeer ever.

I've been thinking cow for awhile myself. It will be a nice addition to our "Barnyard Bertha" collection, which so far includes the pig and a chicken. I really should get a chick-pic in here...

[FatBoy]

Here is my BIG Baby Bertha.... It is an up-scale based on a 2.6" diameter body. The fins, body tube, nose cone and 24mm motor mount are parts I collected from Semroc, and the vinyl decals are from StickerShock. It stands almost 20" high....

[FatBoy]

I flew this today on a D12-5....

[JPVegh]

Bigger Bertha, a long time ago in galaxy far away.

[StefanJ]

I based my Ranger clone's paint job on an early catalog photo:


Of course, I'm only assuming it was red.

[Fishhead]

I won a vintage payload section in an Ebay auction and left it as it was, pairing it with a newly built booster. I built it as I would have in 1977, no filler after the primer. It hasn't flown as yet.

[gdjsky01]

Seems to be a popular scheme. This one is built with interchangable 1x18, 2x18, and 1x24mm motor mounts.






Mount Wilson Observatories in the background.

[StefanJ]

My Astron Ranger clone lifting off. Brothers, OR, around 2003.

[StefanJ]

This is a BT-80 based Ranger upgrade. The body and mount were built by the late Alex McLoughlin of Oregon Rocketry. I bought this from him at a "flea market." I added the payload section and fins.

Alex got to see the finished model before he died. He got a kick out of how an abandoned project of his evolved.

I've flown the model two or three times, on a cluster of 3 x C11-7 motors. I believe a D12-7 cluster would do fine as well.

[gpoehlein]

Thought I'd post this Youtube video of my unglamorous (I put on a white base coat, but never got around to putting on the rest of the paint) Ranger clone. It is made from a current Big Bertha, but instead of using a Balsa nose block for the payload section, I glued 1/2" foam core disks in the front and back of a CT-60 coupler tube. But the business end (cluster mount) was built using the Ranger's tissue and white glue filler.

The Ranger's flight is the second one in the video (the first is a saucer launched by the daughter of our club president who also shot the video). If I remember correctly, the Ranger was flown on three Quest A6-4 motors, hence the nice smoky launch. If you listen carefully, you can also hear the "pop-pop-pop" of the three ejection charges going off one right after the others.

http://www.youtube.com/user/s8ePilot#p/u/8/raLx8RCCpvs

[qquake2k]

Seems to be a popular scheme. This one is built with interchangable 1x18, 2x18, and 1x24mm motor mounts.

Mount Wilson Observatories in the background.

That turned out really nice! Love to see it on a cluster.

[qquake2k]

Thought I'd post this Youtube video of my unglamorous (I put on a white base coat, but never got around to putting on the rest of the paint) Ranger clone. It is made from a current Big Bertha, but instead of using a Balsa nose block for the payload section, I glued 1/2" foam core disks in the front and back of a CT-60 coupler tube. But the business end (cluster mount) was built using the Ranger's tissue and white glue filler.

The Ranger's flight is the second one in the video (the first is a saucer launched by the daughter of our club president who also shot the video). If I remember correctly, the Ranger was flown on three Quest A6-4 motors, hence the nice smoky launch. If you listen carefully, you can also hear the "pop-pop-pop" of the three ejection charges going off one right after the others.

Nice flight! I love the launch controller sitting on the chair. LOL

[foamy]

[MarkII]

Here are close-ups of the TK-1/0801 Mosquito, the TK-2/0802 Screamer and the TK-3/0803 Mini Bertha. These were the three debut kits introduced in the fall of 1971.

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Copied to gallery with permission

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[Socknic]

I've said this before, but never posted pictures. I have two Big Berthas. The black one is my stock Big Bertha. The yellow one is Big Bertha Lite, which is skinnier by a few mm, weighs less, has thinner balsa, an aluminum launch lug, and an 18" black nylon 'chute. Both have been successfully flown on B6-4 motors.

[JPVegh]

I've said this before, but never posted pictures. I have two Big Berthas. The black one is my stock Big Bertha. The yellow one is Big Bertha Lite, which is skinnier by a few mm, weighs less, has thinner balsa, an aluminum launch lug, and an 18" black nylon 'chute. Both have been successfully flown on B6-4 motors.

OK you got my attention with the BB lite. Can you give some more details on the parts used?

[Socknic]

I used Quest 40mm body tube, a Quest Elliptical nose cone, Estes standard "E" shock chord, 1/16" balsa, a piece of 1/8" aluminum, and an 18" nylon 'chute from Rocket Chutes. This thing gets up there with a B6-4 and has really dramatic recoveries.

[Micromeister]

Guess My latest Bertha is my Micro Bertha.

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[JPVegh]

I used Quest 40mm body tube, a Quest Elliptical nose cone, Estes standard "E" shock chord, 1/16" balsa, a piece of 1/8" aluminum, and an 18" nylon 'chute from Rocket Chutes. This thing gets up there with a B6-4 and has really dramatic recoveries.

Ahh, Quest parts. I thought that might be the case. 1/16 Balsa is pretty brave for those fins. Very cool rockets, nice work man.

[Socknic]

Ahh, Quest parts. I thought that might be the case. 1/16 Balsa is pretty brave for those fins. Very cool rockets, nice work man.

Yeah, 1/16 is pretty brave, so brave that it broke a fin in the rocket bag on the car trip back. It was easily repaired, but looks like crap... Arggg! Anyway, thanks for your interest.

[Solomoriah]

Here are mine. The blue one is a more-or-less stock BB, while the red one is my infamous Double Barrel Baby Bertha, flying on 2x18mm engines.

[Socknic]

Here are mine. The blue one is a more-or-less stock BB, while the red one is my infamous Double Barrel Baby Bertha, flying on 2x18mm engines.

The retro looks on those two are almost impossible to beat.

[onesureshot]

This is one I built my wife. We launched it and apparently there was a very slight breeze above us. It got about 100 feet, up, tipped into the wind and took off like a cruise missle, lol. The chute deployed and it floated back to within about 100 yards of where we launched.

A couple weeks later I was playing with some 13mm body tube and a 1/4" cardboard launch lug and came up with the downscales. The next time we were out to launch, I pulled the 13mm out and asked if she had washed and dried her rocket. She laughed, then I pulled out the MMX version and she rolled her eyes and called me a dork.

[Solomoriah]

The retro looks on those two are almost impossible to beat.

Thanks for the kind words!