MarkABrown
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- Jul 12, 2001
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I've just posted the pictures of the construction of my Public Enemy 3" Bullpup.
Public Enemy Bullpup Pictures
This kit comes with a 29mm MMT. I built the kit pretty much stock however, I ordered some scale decals from Tango Papa Decals. Tom was very easy to deal with and he upscaled the decals to fit a 3" model for me. Another modification was to add the ability to carry an altimeter. The Public Enemy kits that I've seen always separate in the middle using a bulkhead rather than separating the nosecone. Since the nosecone doesn't need to separate, I modified the nosecone base and screwed the noscone shoulder to the payload section using #6 machine screws. I can now add an altimeter into the payload section and secure it with the nosecone. I didn't make any modifications for altimeter deployment of chute though. The altimeter is just along for the ride so I can determine altitude. Overall, the quality of the kit is very impressive. It was a pleasure to build and relatively easy. The instructions were clear and easy to follow.
On its maiden flight, I had made the mistake of getting some paint into the launch lugs which made it fit much too tightly on the launch rod. I didn't want to fly it with it being so tight on the rod so, I went looking for a thinner rod. However, the rod that I chose was much too short. When the G64W-7 lit, the rocket weather cocked. I was anticipating about 1,000 feet in altitude but, the altimeter said that the total height was only 475 ft. The chute deployed in time but, it landed in the very top of a very tall tree. Ironically, the tree was directly in front of the hood of my truck! We watched it sway in the tree top all day merrily beeping out its altitude. Luckily, our club has a very proficient rocket retrieval person named John Hamil. He retrieved the Bullpup later that day with no damage other than a broken elastic shock cord. The shock cord will be easily replaced (I should've known better than to use the supplied bungie anyhow) with some tubular nylon or kevlar.
Public Enemy Bullpup Pictures
This kit comes with a 29mm MMT. I built the kit pretty much stock however, I ordered some scale decals from Tango Papa Decals. Tom was very easy to deal with and he upscaled the decals to fit a 3" model for me. Another modification was to add the ability to carry an altimeter. The Public Enemy kits that I've seen always separate in the middle using a bulkhead rather than separating the nosecone. Since the nosecone doesn't need to separate, I modified the nosecone base and screwed the noscone shoulder to the payload section using #6 machine screws. I can now add an altimeter into the payload section and secure it with the nosecone. I didn't make any modifications for altimeter deployment of chute though. The altimeter is just along for the ride so I can determine altitude. Overall, the quality of the kit is very impressive. It was a pleasure to build and relatively easy. The instructions were clear and easy to follow.
On its maiden flight, I had made the mistake of getting some paint into the launch lugs which made it fit much too tightly on the launch rod. I didn't want to fly it with it being so tight on the rod so, I went looking for a thinner rod. However, the rod that I chose was much too short. When the G64W-7 lit, the rocket weather cocked. I was anticipating about 1,000 feet in altitude but, the altimeter said that the total height was only 475 ft. The chute deployed in time but, it landed in the very top of a very tall tree. Ironically, the tree was directly in front of the hood of my truck! We watched it sway in the tree top all day merrily beeping out its altitude. Luckily, our club has a very proficient rocket retrieval person named John Hamil. He retrieved the Bullpup later that day with no damage other than a broken elastic shock cord. The shock cord will be easily replaced (I should've known better than to use the supplied bungie anyhow) with some tubular nylon or kevlar.
