Estes Pro Series II

Wiley said:

Um, I like the design of the Ventris, but perhaps, before ordering one, you might want to look up the Latin definition of the word :eyepop:.

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Interesting...hmmmm..Hopefully 5 and 6 don't apply

Nice looking rockets Grim, great job as usual. I got a couple of the new Estes midpower kits and overall I'm very impressed. Can't wait to get building.

Grimracer said:

Fellas,

The rockets are larger then one would expect. The shapes are nice and clean and overall light weight and simple.

My little Red Head can not make it as our daugher and gandson are coming to visit this weekend as well as our friends from Eauclare. Big is going to be hanging with me as well as my good buddy Squeaky from Canada.

Yep.. that cute little Red head is a Grandma.. Good living and makeup!:roll:
:roll:

Eric. Your Argent looks great. I can not wait to line them up side buy side and hammer the power!.. 54321 GONE!

See ya all soon!

Grimracer

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I was waiting for Grim to post highlights of his many flights at Thunderstruck, many of which were his excellent productions of the new Pro Series II models, but I can't wait any longer.

So here's my quick recap of the good, bad, and downright excellent:

Let's start with the Bad, as in "my bad". So we planned this kick tail drag race with the Argents at Thunderstruck. I was happy to offer a pair of old Aerotech H268 Redlines up for the drag race. Well, the reloads proved to be tooooo old to be used in a drag race. With the available igniters, we simply could not get them to light. These had been stored sealed in a low humidity, constant temp. setting, but their age got the better of them. So "the bad" was a no-go on the drag race at Thunderstruck despite efforts to make it happen.

On a more positive note, the Good news is that Mike's Argent flew beautifully later on (G80T I think), and my Argent has put in two flights this past week, the first on one of those stubborn H268 Reds (after roughing up grain cores & ends, installing a Pyrodex pellet in the forward grain for ignition, it lit instantly...go figure), as well as an H220T, both of which kicked hard, but the sturdy Argent held up beautifully! Here's a slightly less than good photo on the pad prior to the H220 flight (sorry about the lack of flight picture, poor lighting and blurriness)!



On to the Excellent, Mike offered up one his most excellent coozies for my Argent as a generous token for providing the drag motors! The coozie is keeping the Argent protected for transport and storage...Thanks Mike! Furthermore, Grim offered up some G80's for a redux of the failed drag race. It was a great offer, but by that time, I had to help Dad and Justin get two of their birds off the pads before quickly packing up and heading north for home!

Mike, let me know when you can make it up to "the Bong" for a launch. We should be at the July and August TWA launches, maybe the Woosh ECOF event on July 28-29 as well. Your next motor is on me, I failed us for the drag race!

-Eric-

Did you had to add any nose weight or made any mods to your Argent to fly on those H motors? and what altitude did they reach?

ECayemberg said:

-Eric-

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That is an AMAZING rocket!!!

I LOVE the colors, I NEED ONE :cry:

jus_rockets said:

Did you had to add any nose weight or made any mods to your Argent to fly on those H motors? and what altitude did they reach?

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The only "mods" I made were to double the length of elastic cord and to add rail buttons. No noseweight necessary, I calculated the CP to be 7.75" up from the aft end and the Argent had over 1 caliber of stability with any 29mm motor I added! I didn't have an altimeter onboard, but the H268 simmed to 3500' and 700mph, while the H220 simmed to about 2800' and 550mph. Hard to believe, but remember these are LIGHT! My Argent RTF minus motor is 465 grams.

-Eric-

Thanks for posting that man.

First Toledo and then Las Vegas for work.. April is nuts for me.

Here is a pic of Eric and I ready to go..

Glad you got your Argent airborne!

Grim

Which launch pad and remote is recommended for these pro series rockets? I couldn't find anything specific.

A Mantis pad is sufficient for these rockets.

https://www.hobbylinc.com/htm/aro/aro89281.htm


As for the controller, search around. There are plenty that would be more than sufficient for the job.

Saw a couple of these at Hobby Lobby the other day

JMies419 said:

Which launch pad and remote is recommended for these pro series rockets? I couldn't find anything specific.

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The Estes Pro Series II pad is not on sale yet, but it looks like a reissue of the big pad they sold several years ago.

The E controller is perfect for these models as it has 30 feet of launch leads and the igniters can easily be fired by the 4 AA batteries. Other controllers with more powerful power supplies will also be fine as long as you have 30 feet or more of launch leads.

Do the Pro Series models use 5 mm launch lugs?

Oliver

I am sure on the mm size, but they use 1/4 inch launch lugs

the little red card that comes with the kits says, "a sturdy launch pad with a 1/4" (6.4mm) launch rod..."
rex

Sorry if this has been answered....are all the Pro Series II motors 29mm?

the E30s are 24mm
rex

Are the Pro Series II motors the only motors that can be used in these rockets if built per the instructions? I want to build one so bad but don't want to pay the $24.99 (or a bit cheaper with the hobby lobby coupon) every time I want to fly it. Lol.

I love to fly rockets but don't really get into the smaller ones in the Estes lineup. The smallest I like to build is about the size of the Estes Patriot probably, and those are cheap to fly. I don't need 2000 ft. + flights I just want to launch large rockets, even if its only 800 - 1000 ft.

I think the estes PSII motors are just relabelled AT motors, so I have to imagine that you could fly the PSII rockets on normal 29mm reloads too.

These kits come with a standard 29mm motor tube and a cool threaded retention system that should work with pretty much any commercially available 29mm motor, either single use or reloadable. It will be up to you to determine just how much motor is appropriate but I think the rocket will accomodate just about anything.

if you leave out the engine block, in theory one could shove an I200 in the tube and it would be stable...in theory. don't know long it would remain stable shreding fins does tend to destablise things a bit .
rex

Rex R said:

if you leave out the engine block, in theory one could shove an I200 in the tube and it would be stable...in theory. don't know long it would remain stable shreding fins does tend to destablise things a bit .
rex

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Rex, I can say with certainty that the Argent, and likely the other Pro Series II models will stand up to the I200 just fine. See post 63 above where I mention the flights on an H268R and H220T. The H268 fits the same hardware as the I200W, has a bit less total impulse (~10Ns), yet higher max and average thrusts. I built the Argent from start to finish (complete with paint/decals) in two evening sessions with 5 or 15 minute epoxy. These birds are fun flyers on H motors!:horse:

I did leave out the two green rings because I didn't see the need for either. Also doubled the length of elastic shock cord (didn't see the need for kevlar or nylon on this light ship), and added rail buttons for versatility.

Have fun building the Ventris!

-Eric-

shreadvector said:

The Estes Pro Series II pad is not on sale yet, but it looks like a reissue of the big pad they sold several years ago.

The E controller is perfect for these models as it has 30 feet of launch leads and the igniters can easily be fired by the 4 AA batteries. Other controllers with more powerful power supplies will also be fine as long as you have 30 feet or more of launch leads.

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I've never had an Estes E controller, does it provide more current than the standard controller? The regular controller won't pop a Sonic.

chadrog said:

I've never had an Estes E controller, does it provide more current than the standard controller? The regular controller won't pop a Sonic.

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Both Estes controllers are similar in that they use 4 AA Alkaline batteries and have an incandescent continuity lamp. The big difference is that the regular controller have extremely thin wires to the launch pad (15 feet) and the E controller has 30 feet of very thick wires. The thick wires allow more current to reach the igniter. nto a ton more, but enough to fire 2 Estes standard igniters, which is why they recommend the E controller for their 2 motor clusters.

you must use fresh Alkaline batteries. weak batteries won't work. 1.2 volt NiCads will only provide 4.8 volts and not enough wattage (amps times volts).

Per the Safety Code, you need to be 30 feet away.

shreadvector said:

The Estes Pro Series II pad is not on sale yet, but it looks like a reissue of the big pad they sold several years ago.

The E controller is perfect for these models as it has 30 feet of launch leads and the igniters can easily be fired by the 4 AA batteries. Other controllers with more powerful power supplies will also be fine as long as you have 30 feet or more of launch leads.

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Is that the one with the yellow feet and the big yellow ball? I see on several sites have pictures on the website of a three foot pvc pipe with a rod that isnt adjustable. I hope its not that for $54.

Rex R said:

the little red card that comes with the kits says, "a sturdy launch pad with a 1/4" (6.4mm) launch rod..."
rex

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I see, 1/4" should be 6.35 mm. So it´s a little bigger than the standard 5 mm rod Estes offers for larger rockets.

Not an accurate representation unless you call close as in atomic bombs and hand grenades.

Estes makes three launch rods now: 1/8", 3/16" & 1/4"

The first two have been in the Estes catalog for a very long time. The last is the standard size for MPR and smaller HPR. I would note, as I have one of the new pads, that standard 1/4" launch lugs are loose on the Estes 1/4" rod.

Oliver said:

I see, 1/4" should be 6.35 mm. So it´s a little bigger than the standard 5 mm rod Estes offers for larger rockets.

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Peter Olivola said:

Not an accurate representation unless you call close as in atomic bombs and hand grenades.

Estes makes three launch rods now: 1/8", 3/16" & 1/4"

The first two have been in the Estes catalog for a very long time. The last is the standard size for MPR and smaller HPR. I would note, as I have one of the new pads, that standard 1/4" launch lugs are loose on the Estes 1/4" rod.

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Which "new" pads do you have? The Estes "E" pad or the Estes "Pro Series II" pad? I was told by Estes there will be a "Pro Series II" added to the lineup and will be shipping this week.

I noticed that the Estes 1/4"? lugs fit kinda snug on my 'lauch lug alignment tool' (arrow shaft) when I was glueing them on my ventris.
rex

Pro Series II.

JMies419 said:

Which "new" pads do you have? The Estes "E" pad or the Estes "Pro Series II" pad? I was told by Estes there will be a "Pro Series II" added to the lineup and will be shipping this week.

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Perhaps I missed this somewhere already posted but I assume that these are all through the wall fins?