Estes Mark/Mark II vs. Centuri Micron

[SolarYellow]

There's no question in my mind the Centuri Micron was a knock-off of the Mark.

https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/estes-astron-mark-k-2-or-1202-gallery.16132/
https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/centuri-micron-ka-5-or-5005-gallery.19833/
Which do you prefer, if you have a preference, and why? Would also love to see more posts added to the galleries.

 

[K'Tesh]

I don't see it... The angle on the fins in the Estes 1962 catalog does resemble the Centuri catalog of 1964, however I credit that to the angle of the rocket's image, as the 1964 Estes catalog shows that the fins are clearly not the same as the Centuri kit.

Estes Astron Mark (ca 1962 and 1964)



Centuri Macron (ca 1964):

 

[SolarYellow]

Now you’re making the “Astro-1 isn’t an Alpha knockoff because the root edge of the fins is a totally different side of the same shape” argument.

There was clearly an evolution, as seen by the change in the fin shape here. Not just ditching the radiused corners, but the overall shape.

Centuri 1964 Catalog

Centuri 1965 Catalog

The Mark fins are proportionally a little longer and skinnier, but the general concept is very similar, just enough different to not be an exact clone. But that still counts as a knockoff to me. The thought occurs that the design change from '64 to '65 might have been just to differentiate it enough to not totally piss off the Esteses. In particular, making the leading and trailing edge further from parallel. The Mark LE/TE and root/tip edge pairs are exactly parallel.

One thing about that 1964 drawing is it appears to have a slight boat tail. Obviously, that's not the case, but it would be fun to build a clone with a little bit of taper through the fin can to match the picture. Maybe use a body tube slightly larger than BT-30 and taper down to BT-20, whatever the scaling works out to. BT-20+ or Quest 20mm, maybe?

I also like that there are upscale options with both designs. BT-60 for the Mark and ST-18 for the Micron.