Crash-n-Burn
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2014
- Messages
- 377
- Reaction score
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Don't expect that title will grab many readers, but here it goes...
I happened upon a HeliCat kit at a local Michael's store. The box was dinged up a bit but was marked down to $5. I couldn't resist so I picked it up. When I got home I unpacked the box. The launch pad was not assembled and in the original bags. The launch controller was bagged new as well. I put the HeliCat parts aside without much of a glance and put the pad and controller into circulation.
A couple weeks later I came back to the rocket, thinking I'd put it together quickly for my kids. I also wanted to check out the spinning nosecone recovery. I noticed that the kit stickers had been applied to the BTs, but it didn't really register as a possible warning of what was to come. When I started to build the rocket, I realized that this kit had not been dinged up at the store but rather purchased and returned. The coupler was glued in place to one BT. The other BT had glue smeared inside it but was not affixed to the coupler. Further examination found that the fin can had been assembled, but then failed. Finally, one of the eyehole pivots that takes the post of the rotor blade on the nosecone was broken off.
Near as I can figure, someone bought this kit and used the wrong type of glue to assemble it. There is dried glue on every mating part, but most are not joined to their partner. If I had to guess, it would seem to be Testor's glue... maybe the blue tube? I see some poor kid getting frustrated with his brand new rocket when the day after building it the rocket fell apart. It makes me a little sad to see that some new rocketeer had such a bad experience that they chose to return their failed model.
It would have at least been something to see that it had been flown, but the motor retainer was clean and the shock cord and parachute were still bagged. The poor soul didn't even get one flight out of it.
I'm still pleased with the purchase - I have a perfectly suitable pad and controller and a couple of scrap parts that could be used down the road. It really is a shame that the previous owner didn't get some enjoyment out of it.
I happened upon a HeliCat kit at a local Michael's store. The box was dinged up a bit but was marked down to $5. I couldn't resist so I picked it up. When I got home I unpacked the box. The launch pad was not assembled and in the original bags. The launch controller was bagged new as well. I put the HeliCat parts aside without much of a glance and put the pad and controller into circulation.
A couple weeks later I came back to the rocket, thinking I'd put it together quickly for my kids. I also wanted to check out the spinning nosecone recovery. I noticed that the kit stickers had been applied to the BTs, but it didn't really register as a possible warning of what was to come. When I started to build the rocket, I realized that this kit had not been dinged up at the store but rather purchased and returned. The coupler was glued in place to one BT. The other BT had glue smeared inside it but was not affixed to the coupler. Further examination found that the fin can had been assembled, but then failed. Finally, one of the eyehole pivots that takes the post of the rotor blade on the nosecone was broken off.
Near as I can figure, someone bought this kit and used the wrong type of glue to assemble it. There is dried glue on every mating part, but most are not joined to their partner. If I had to guess, it would seem to be Testor's glue... maybe the blue tube? I see some poor kid getting frustrated with his brand new rocket when the day after building it the rocket fell apart. It makes me a little sad to see that some new rocketeer had such a bad experience that they chose to return their failed model.
It would have at least been something to see that it had been flown, but the motor retainer was clean and the shock cord and parachute were still bagged. The poor soul didn't even get one flight out of it.
I'm still pleased with the purchase - I have a perfectly suitable pad and controller and a couple of scrap parts that could be used down the road. It really is a shame that the previous owner didn't get some enjoyment out of it.