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Report a Malfunctioning Engine
- Thread starter bobkrech
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Very expensive single use motors... especially for reloads!!
I hope you filed a MESS report at motorcato.org. Posting the pictures here is interesting but the actual MESS reports are important to the process.
Another Cesaroni catastrophic failure, along with destroyed hardware . . .
CTI will replace the reload, but won't replace the hardware, even though the flyer did not cause the malfunction.
From what I have been reading, Cesaroni has been having similar problems, with increased frequency, recently.
Dave F.
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Hello Steve. Yes I filed a MESS report. Also have a phone call in to Cesaroni. Waiting to hear back from them. This is horrible customer service from Cesaroni!!!
Thank you
rfjustin
Well-Known Member
Interesting. When I had a K-1440 burn through, they replaced the load and the case (but not the aft closure). To not replace the hardware makes no sense to me (from a customer experience standpoint).
Best,
I guess that varies from dealer to dealer. I’ve had a few catos with CTI and they always replaced motor and case.
FrankumPerformance
Pad Designer Extraordinaire
Very interestingI find it interesting how this was posted 25 minutes ago and it has 2000+ views...
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I've had a few CTI failures over the years. I have always sent the information, pics, report to CTI via email, filed a MESS report, logged it with my vendor and waited. CTI always responded via email and let me know they were processing it. CTI has always been slow on delivery on production. A few months after submitting a replacement reload and new hardware were sent to the vendor for the warranty claim. I've always received both if it wiped out the hardware.
A couple of our members had a couple of Big Daddy drag races at the recent CMASS launch. The first one was on D12's and the flights looked like they were synchronized. The next race was on a pair of E12's from 2011 and, unfortunately, they synchronized again. MESS reports were filed and the third motor in the same pack will be a ground test or soaked in a bucket of water.
Credit Jeremy H. for the photo
Credit Jeremy H. for the photo
n3tjm
Papa Elf
If I remember correctly, 2011 was the bad date code for E12's?
I’m hoping they do that for me. A guy who was wanting to fly a shakedown flight on his fully built L3 rocket (I’m one of his TAPs) tried once with a Loki and had an aft closure failure. The rocket bounced up and off the rail but no significant damage happened to the rocket, but he hadn’t brung a second motor. His other TAP offered him a K550, but didn’t have the casing with him. I had the right casings, but while I was getting that casing out of the trailer, I spotted a CTI Pro-54 Motor I got in a trade. I had the case for that as well and thinking it would be easier, I offered that to him. I removed the BP and left the delay undrilled. In fact I never even pulled the forward closure out of the liner.
He put his rocket on the rail as soon as I pushed the button the top half of the rocket blew off. This was a simple over-pressure type cato that straightened the case and forced the forward closure and one grain completely through it, destroyed the Aeropack retainer cap, and broke two or three bulkheads inside the body tube, stopping before it got to the electronics.
The candidate will have to rebuild parts of his rocket.
Obviously there’s no way I can demand that he pay for the reload and casing. That would be like the North Koreans billing the family of an executed dissident for the cost of the bullets.
But I hope CTI replaces my motor and case. I’ll file the MESS report today.
I’ve got to get the remaining grains out of the case, which is going to be difficult. The aft threaded closure is jammed in place. The liner is swaged in place where it extends through the upper end of the case. I’d like to get the candidate back his Aeropack 75-54 adaptor pieces. The one piece that goes over the aft end was damaged beyond repair, but these two spacers look reusable.
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This past Saturday another guy had a Cato on a 38mm CTI and our on site vendor replaced both motor and case on the spot.
We have no on-site vendors. I’ll submit it to CTI. Unfortunately, this is a motor that I think I received in a trade. We don’t normally allow sparkies because we’re on BLM grasslands shared with ranchers who graze their cattle. Someone who wasn’t aware of that showed up with this motor and rather than him not flying I traded him a non-sparky out of my box, a K445. He gave me his reload which I’ve had now since at least last year or maybe one of the years before, but which wasn’t in the original CTI cardboard tube, so I don’t know the actual manufacture date.
However, this was not a case of blow-by like we too often see with CTI. This was a pretty impressive failure on the pad. The rail was bent as well.
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Then you should show your vendor LOTS of love because there is no requirement for them to do anything of the sort. Likely they'll be out for a year or more for replacement.
Is that their strategy now? Take so long to honor the warranty that they get the vendor to eat the cost/time? I don’t like that…
My understanding is that they don’t ship warranty replacements until the vendor has an order.
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That is also my understanding from talks with Wildman and Ken Allen.
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There is NOTHING that requires the vendor to do a one-for-one, they do that out of the goodness of their heart and have the eat the loss of inventory that would otherwise be sold to pay rent and utilities until the OEM sends a replacement. Sometimes they'll do that, sometimes it's simply impossible because they are at a large event and that's inventory that needs paid for to pay travel expenses!
We do more or less.
First flight on my 5" rocket "Jughead" after rebuilding the fincan to hold a full sized motor. I've flown at least a dozen M1297's since my L3, never had these results.
Disaster struck at about 800 ft. Fireball was very impressive, but didn't get a picture.
Here are the results:
Forward closure was found about 50 ft. from the smoking remains.
MESS report filed.
Disaster struck at about 800 ft. Fireball was very impressive, but didn't get a picture.
Here are the results:
Forward closure was found about 50 ft. from the smoking remains.
MESS report filed.
http://www.tripolimontana.org/2023Images/20230422photo05.jpg
Thanks, Steve!
I’m that candidate and this the picture of my Extreme Wildman doing the CATO. My other TAP was the great photographer who captured this.
Any worse and I’d probably be starting over with a new build.
Why does that look like it’d be an awesome album cover?
The photographer needs to copyright it.
flyingeagle
Well-Known Member
Has anyone in here ever ordered motors from Hobby Link and how good are they to deal with? I have quite a few F15-8 and hoping they are still good. Some with E9 motors I herd they are hit and miss.
Never had issues with them. The E9s were infamous regardless of seller. F15s are susceptible to the same issues but I understand the failure rate isn’t quite as high.
flyingeagle
Well-Known Member
I was going to purchase from Hobby king but not to sure about them. I have an order in my cart with Hobby Link but wanted to know if anyone in here ever ordered from Hobby Link. I am looking for F15 to use with my F15-0 for staging. I will get some Composite F motors in the near future.
This is a thread about motor failures. If you’re interested in getting feedback about a vendor you should look first and then ask in the vendor forum.
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