skaffgeorge2
Well-Known Member
I know there was an attempt to restart FSI some years ago but apparently it fell through, would that even be a possibility now?Seems to be more of a demand for those motors now than I can recall.
FSI reboot?
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I have a beta downscale of the FSI black Brant II for 24mm motors I build and put in a build thread here for the new owner.
I think something happened and the new owner got a new income stream, Pic to come after I find my way upstairs to take it.
I think something happened and the new owner got a new income stream, Pic to come after I find my way upstairs to take it.
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There was not any real talk of bringing back motors, just popular kits. The new owner did own the new FSI, but something happened that I guess was more profitable and fun after he made a few of the Beta 24mm Black Brants.
skaffgeorge2
Well-Known Member
What I heard is that one of the new owners was very ill and died shortly after.Any truth to that?
skaffgeorge2
Well-Known Member
Boy would it ever! With modern manufacturing methods the old style motors could be made to be more reliable and consistent than ever.Been trying like hell to get my grubby little fingers on some FSI Motors but they're proving to be as rare as hen's teeth.
I did not hear that, but I was out of touch with him about 6-8 months after I built the Beta Black Brant II in a build thread for him.
Actually probably not. If it were easy , Estes would be selling the FSI F100s [E50s actually] out of a Cored version of their F15 motors. Someone here says they saw a few of those prototype Estes Cored motors.
skaffgeorge2
Well-Known Member
I really wish some one would consider it.I definitely think it would be worthwhile.With modern production methods those motors could be made to be more reliable and consistent than ever before.And I really like the quality of the kits.I have two Vikings and they were in very good condition when I got them.Thechutes were inexcellent condition, you would never know they were close to 50 years old
You can't ship them legally unless your a motor manufacture or dealer. The folks that have them are not going to ship them as they don't have the Hazmat on them. Estes E motors need hazmat even.
As I posted again above, modern methods are not going to solve the problem of making reliable BP cored motors that don't Cato. Look at the larger BP motors that CATO, like even E9s back when.
That is really Sad,...
skaffgeorge2
Well-Known Member
You are correct. Dave Bucher, the co-owner of the assets of FSI, suffered a massive heart attack a few months before they would have been ready to re-activate the company. A few folks in Kansas and Missouri did receive FSI kits assembled out of original stocks of parts. Sadly, I wasn't one of them. The 18mm BP motor machine was included in the purchase but they never got as far as actually finding a place to set it up, let alone operate it.
skaffgeorge2
Well-Known Member
I believe I may have one of those kits.I have a Viking 2 kit that I recently completed that appeared to have the original parts but it also had the 18mm motor mount included, which surprised me some considering that it seemed to be at first glance a first run original.It looks great even without paint.
I am assuming ( yes, I know . . . ) that, since FSI did not continue to develop and grow, after Dave Bucher's death, was that he was the "financial force" behind the endeavor.
While I do not have the assets, a "logical question" would be, "how much would it actually cost to revive FSI (with and without motors) and bring it back to full function", as a viable company ?
Depending on the amount, a small group of Rocketeer's could "pool their resources", perhaps with some assistance from a "GoFundMe" account, and make this a reality ?
While I do not have the assets, a "logical question" would be, "how much would it actually cost to revive FSI (with and without motors) and bring it back to full function", as a viable company ?
Depending on the amount, a small group of Rocketeer's could "pool their resources", perhaps with some assistance from a "GoFundMe" account, and make this a reality ?
skaffgeorge2
Well-Known Member
That would be great indeed,but I really don't see it happening any time soon.I for one don't have the resources for that, and I think it would take more than just a few.
A "starting point" would, of course, be determining a cost involved, and proceed from there.
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Wow, you guys bring up some memories. I was in touch with Dave for many months before he died. I believe he told me that he owned the machines for the motors and was thinking about introducing new ones.
Personally, I flew many, many E5, F7, F100 motors back in the 80s and NEVER had a cato.
Semi-related, it seems as if AVI, Enerjet, Estes (and Centuri)... all adopted the USB-C convention while FSI went Apple Lightning on the world and they weren't even the market leader! Why the non-conventional motor diameters?!!
Personally, I flew many, many E5, F7, F100 motors back in the 80s and NEVER had a cato.
Semi-related, it seems as if AVI, Enerjet, Estes (and Centuri)... all adopted the USB-C convention while FSI went Apple Lightning on the world and they weren't even the market leader! Why the non-conventional motor diameters?!!
Initiator001
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FSI used fireworks tubing sizes for their motors. Lower cost.
Interesting.
Now you’ve got me wondering about the rest of the common diameters. Some correspond to convenient inch conversions, some look like common body tube IDs, others are nothing I recognize.
One issue with BP coreburners is that either the propellant must be slower-burning than endburner propellant, or the nozzle must be very large. The BP-type propellant typically used by amateurs has less oxidizer and more fuel than the 'ideal' composition of blackpowder. Such motors typically have a nozzle throat one-third to one-half the i.d. of the casing.
Estes would probably need to alter the composition of their propellant, perhaps by simply adding (rather a lot of) extra fuel...or the nozzle throat would be huge, maybe a half-inch in diameter for a 29mm F motor. Or even nozzle-less; amateurs have experimented successfully with such motors that have a long core and fast-burning BP.
[I would like to see Estes move into longer 18mm motors, some of which could be coreburners. True, their business is largely based on 18x70mm motors and most of their rockets' motor mounts are designed for that. Still, they could bring out some 18x120mm full-D or even baby-E motors and a few kits designed specifically for those motors. How about a three-stage kit that uses a D35(?) booster? A minimum-diameter Skyscrapper that might rival SoLong? Etc.]
