Anyone have any experience with the LOC High Tech rocket

Onebadhawk
madcow rocketry
rocket sok
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I don't own one but there's an extensive discussion of building and flying this rocket in Mark Canepa's 'Modern High Power Rocketry 2' pp 194 - 209. Loc have upgraded the shock cord etc since Canepa's book was written but it might still be useful.
 
I built one and I disliked it. However, they may have upgraded the kit since then.

I've disposed of it, so I don't remember all of the problems, but it doesn't come with rail buttons, and it shipped damaged. The directions where unexceptional, but got the minimum job done. The fit and finish were also less than impressive. Personally, I think that the binder designs excel is a much better kit.

If you already have it, I think you should order some rail buttons at the very least, because at least in California, few fields have 1/4 inch launch lugs. I hope you have a better experience than I do and that LOC has improved their manufacturing methods since then. Also, I had to replace the original motor mount, as it was dented enough that the RMS motor casings wouldn't fit inside. It's fairly common, but if I remember correctly, it doesn't have any form of positive retention included in the kit, so you will have to sort that out yourself. I don't hold that against the kit as many high power kits do not.

As for flight, they perform alright. I wouldn't trust it with a J or very high thrust engine, but it would certainly work for a L1 flight if you keep things modest.

A final bit of advice, is that for future rockets such as your L2, I would strongly recommend going up to a 4" body tube. It allows you to get your hand down inside, which is really helpful, is easier to see, and is better for electronic bays when you start to get into that. Also, I'd get one with a 54mm mount and a 38mm adapter, as you will eventually want to fly larger motors.
 
I will disagree with Rocket 501 completely.

I have built many loc rockets, never had a problem. Sure, an individual kit may have issues, most likely caused by shipping. LOC are good people and aren't going to send junk out deliberately (but accidents happen when you're stuffing bags). He's right about rail buttons. Rail buttons are the best way to go, but most manufactures don't add them. Most high power kits come with nothing so you have to buy whatever...
As far as thrust goes, I've taken a bone-stock built with titebond and flown it on J's. My vulconate has survived the CTI J600 bone stock as well
I generally fly mine on Hs and Is as it really goes high on J's
 
LOC website states this model will fly on 29mm F's and G's with motor adapter. So far all the F motors I've seen the maximum take off weight is too low. I can see launchng it on say a G76 motor or possibly a G64.
Anyone have experience flying this model or similar models on F's or G's?
 
I flew mine (albeit without payload bay) on F51 motors with a DIY 24mm to 38mm adapter. It worked fine, staying nice and low. I wouldn’t try it if the wind was any more than about 5 mph, but it does work. Just be careful packing the chute and with the delay. If you build it right, the flight weight was around 1.5 pounds.

At the time I owned this rocket, I only had 24/60 and 29/180 RMS cases, so those were the two main family of motors I used with it.

My coworker broke his trying to fly it on a J270. He seemed to know what he is doing, which is why I recommend staying a decent bit under that. It took H motors with little issue.

As for the vulcanite, it is a slightly smaller rocket and has smaller fins, so I think it can go a decent bit faster.

As for what you said, LOC overall is a decent company. I prefer binder for my rockets of this type, but I have built the LOC IV and everything went much smoother. However, everyone I built the HiTech with had various construction problems. I think we may have received a bad batch, but I would personally stay away from that model.

What I have used since then is the 3” version of the binder designs Excel. It’s basically the same price (maybe cheaper when you include the extras the hitech needs) and comes with both rail buttons and a very basic form of motor retention. I’ve flown mine on J270, J350 and once on J425 all with basically no damage. It also has great instructions and goes together with minimal fuss. If you end up wanting another rocket, consider checking it out.
 
Last edited:
Rocket501 said:
I flew mine (albeit without payload bay) on F51 motors with a DIY 24mm to 38mm adapter. It worked fine, staying nice and low. I wouldn’t try it if the wind was any more than about 5 mph, but it does work. Just be careful packing the chute and with the delay. If you build it right, the flight weight was around 1.5 pounds.

At the time I owned this rocket, I only had 24/60 and 29/180 RMS cases, so those were the two main family of motors I used with it.

My coworker broke his trying to fly it on a J270. He seemed to know what he is doing, which is why I recommend staying a decent bit under that. It took H motors with little issue.

As for the vulcanite, it is a slightly smaller rocket and has smaller fins, so I think it can go a decent bit faster.

As for what you said, LOC overall is a decent company. I prefer binder for my rockets of this type, but I have built the LOC IV and everything went much smoother. However, everyone I built the HiTech with had various construction problems. I think we may have received a bad batch, but I would personally stay away from that model.

What I have used since then is the 3” version of the binder designs Excel. It’s basically the same price (maybe cheaper when you include the extras the hitech needs) and comes with both rail buttons and a very basic form of motor retention. I’ve flown mine on J270, J350 and once on J425 all with basically no damage. It also has great instructions and goes together with minimal fuss. If you end up wanting another rocket, consider checking it out.
Click to expand...
Thank you!
 
The Hi-Tech and EZI-65 are both great little kits, always loved the look of them.

rl1GkQ1.jpg
 
Big fan of LOC stuff here as well. Using a lot of LOC materials for scratch building lately, and did my L2 on a mega magg with an AT J340M. I wanted to keep my L2 low and the mega magg was perfect - 1355' L2 flight according to the JL3 onboard :)

Building an upscale 4" bertha using LOC ingredients and so far it is coming along well!
 
Finished one this spring and finally got to fly it 3 weeks ago. I used Titebond 2 throughout. I added an e-bay to mine. Flew great on an H180.

LOC makes great rockets in my opinion.
 
Rocket501 said:
I flew mine (albeit without payload bay) on F51 motors with a DIY 24mm to 38mm adapter. It worked fine, staying nice and low. I wouldn’t try it if the wind was any more than about 5 mph, but it does work. Just be careful packing the chute and with the delay. If you build it right, the flight weight was around 1.5 pounds.

At the time I owned this rocket, I only had 24/60 and 29/180 RMS cases, so those were the two main family of motors I used with it.

My coworker broke his trying to fly it on a J270. He seemed to know what he is doing, which is why I recommend staying a decent bit under that. It took H motors with little issue.

As for the vulcanite, it is a slightly smaller rocket and has smaller fins, so I think it can go a decent bit faster.

As for what you said, LOC overall is a decent company. I prefer binder for my rockets of this type, but I have built the LOC IV and everything went much smoother. However, everyone I built the HiTech with had various construction problems. I think we may have received a bad batch, but I would personally stay away from that model.

What I have used since then is the 3” version of the binder designs Excel. It’s basically the same price (maybe cheaper when you include the extras the hitech needs) and comes with both rail buttons and a very basic form of motor retention. I’ve flown mine on J270, J350 and once on J425 all with basically no damage. It also has great instructions and goes together with minimal fuss. If you end up wanting another rocket, consider checking it out.
Click to expand...
 
I have one that I've flown since Y2K and it has 39 flights on it. It's set up for dual deploy.
These are the flights I have data for. Weight is 39 oz on the pad with a 29/40-120 G motor installed.
Altitude, motor, date.

5374 I85 (38/720 D) 4/9/00
3615 I357 8/12/00
2777 H100hf (vulcan) 9-9-00
3150 H45 (38/360 D) 11-11-00
3099 H45 (38/360 D) 7-7-01
1234 G80 8-12-01
1220 G64 3-10-02
1071 G40 8-10-02
3314 I150 Ellis 12-8-02
1047 G64 6-7-03
3005 H153 Pro38 8-9-03
2088 H110 EX 7-11-04
1830 H73 1-9-05
2078 H140 38/240 4-10-05
1823 G54 CTI 6-11-11
2160 H210 7-3-11
3388 H999 9-4-11
2867 H55 (38/360 D) 11-12-11
3104 H45 (38/360 D) 11-13-11
4211 I49 1-8-12
2941 H268 9-1-12
1867 H140 (38/240) 11-10-12
1882 H163 4-14-13
2310 H148 6-8-13
1034 H90 (38 2g EX) 7-5-14
2041 H90 (38-3g EX) 9-1-14
3206 I130 (38-4g EX) 9-1-14
1685 G138 10-11-14
4257 I55 4-11-15
1296 G200 (Vulcan) 11-14-15
4192 I55 5-12-16
1061 G33 11-12-16
1089 G33 5-6-17
2804 H45 (38/360 D) 7-8-17
2097 H100 (38/240 ex) 9-2-18
2033 H100 (38/240 ex) 2-9-19
 
Rocketjunkie said:
I have one that I've flown since Y2K and it has 39 flights on it. It's set up for dual deploy.
These are the flights I have data for. Weight is 39 oz on the pad with a 29/40-120 G motor installed.
Altitude, motor, date.

5374 I85 (38/720 D) 4/9/00
3615 I357 8/12/00
2777 H100hf (vulcan) 9-9-00
3150 H45 (38/360 D) 11-11-00
3099 H45 (38/360 D) 7-7-01
1234 G80 8-12-01
1220 G64 3-10-02
1071 G40 8-10-02
3314 I150 Ellis 12-8-02
1047 G64 6-7-03
3005 H153 Pro38 8-9-03
2088 H110 EX 7-11-04
1830 H73 1-9-05
2078 H140 38/240 4-10-05
1823 G54 CTI 6-11-11
2160 H210 7-3-11
3388 H999 9-4-11
2867 H55 (38/360 D) 11-12-11
3104 H45 (38/360 D) 11-13-11
4211 I49 1-8-12
2941 H268 9-1-12
1867 H140 (38/240) 11-10-12
1882 H163 4-14-13
2310 H148 6-8-13
1034 H90 (38 2g EX) 7-5-14
2041 H90 (38-3g EX) 9-1-14
3206 I130 (38-4g EX) 9-1-14
1685 G138 10-11-14
4257 I55 4-11-15
1296 G200 (Vulcan) 11-14-15
4192 I55 5-12-16
1061 G33 11-12-16
1089 G33 5-6-17
2804 H45 (38/360 D) 7-8-17
2097 H100 (38/240 ex) 9-2-18
2033 H100 (38/240 ex) 2-9-19
Click to expand...
 
Rocketjunkie said:
I have one that I've flown since Y2K and it has 39 flights on it. It's set up for dual deploy.
These are the flights I have data for. Weight is 39 oz on the pad with a 29/40-120 G motor installed.
Altitude, motor, date.

Needs a J........
Click to expand...
 
Ooops, don't tell mine that. Tite-bond and bone stock. It's done a bunch.... I guess what it doesn't know won't hurt it.
Of course, fly yours like you will, we're all different.....
 
Hi-Tech with a 29/38mm adapter
 

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cbrarick said:
I will disagree with Rocket 501 completely.

I have built many loc rockets, never had a problem. Sure, an individual kit may have issues, most likely caused by shipping. LOC are good people and aren't going to send junk out deliberately (but accidents happen when you're stuffing bags). He's right about rail buttons. Rail buttons are the best way to go, but most manufactures don't add them. Most high power kits come with nothing so you have to buy whatever...
As far as thrust goes, I've taken a bone-stock built with titebond and flown it on J's. My vulconate has survived the CTI J600 bone stock as well
I generally fly mine on Hs and Is as it really goes high on J's
Click to expand...
I have to disagree with you on the subject of loc’s shipping and packing methods. The first kit I purchased from loc(Nano Mag) there was a bloody bandage I’m guessing from someone’s finger mixed in with the peanuts. Accident or not, that’s disgusting.
I agree with everything that rocket 501 said about the hi tech. The airframe had bubbles, fortunately I was able to primer, sand, paint several times to get to my liking but when it was all finished I wasn’t too impressed by the durability. I expected more specially come from a rocket handles 38mm motors.
 
It's called the High Tech H45 for a reason. It's designed for the long burn Aerotech H45 motor back in 1990 or so. This motor has been reintroduced :) Light weight. However, it will withstand a H999 :) just don't expect it to survive supersonic.
You got an exception, never had problems with LOC in the over 30 years I've been buying from them.
 
all of my loc rockets have been supersonic. They have all done fine...I just don't fly slow, it's not my way. I've given up overbuilding them, tightbond only. Even my mega-magg flew it's first flight on a J1799.

everyone has their own way.....
 
cbrarick said:
all of my loc rockets have been supersonic. They have all done fine...I just don't fly slow, it's not my way. I've given up overbuilding them, tightbond only. Even my mega-magg flew it's first flight on a J1799.

everyone has their own way.....
Click to expand...
Forgive me if I give off the impression that I’m inexperienced it’s because I’am. What do you mean by tightbond?
 

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