Which Estes E motor are you referring too?
John Boren
This is my first summer back as a BAR, and I've seen it all summer long in different locations. At least a dozen, in various venues and rockets. Mostly E9s. Nothing new, it's been reported here and on other forums many times. Happens often enough that I know many folks that have flat out sworn off of 'em completely, and resigned mid power to being something SU or reloadable and burning AP in stead of BP.
I personally have had two different lots of E9s CATO in rockets. One pack CATO'd BOTH motors. That cured ME of any BP motors over a D.
Once is funny, in a morbid sort of way, but when you blow up two rockets, with two different lots of the same motor, back to back on the same day, it's a damn Greek tragedy!
I have some background in rockets from my youth, and imagine my surprise. I've seen newbies who, at one time would have made the step to Estes PSII builders kits, but now since the Es are CATO crap shoots, they're going to non-Estes products and more reliable (non-BP) and energetic non-Estes motors.
Not saying that AP motors don't CATO, but certainly not with the impact that a newbie rocketeer stepping into 29mm E and F motors is gonna think is a 'sure bet' with BP motors. Especially when he has only the skills and experience necessary to buy and assemble an E2X MPR kit.
Not playing the blame game, just seeing it as a shame of a missed opportunity, since BP above a certain level isn't nearly as energy dense nor as reliable as AP motors. Looks like MPR is here to stay as a definate niche market and gateway to HPR, and if Estes aces themselves out of the builder market, it would be a loss to the rocketry community of their resources and innovation. Maybe it just isn't a place where Estes wants to be?
I've seen other companies do the same (Games Workshop, anyone?), and it's a net loss for the company and a net gain for the little guy. What that means for everyone else remains to shake out.