1/200 Space Shuttle (PMC)

[Saluki]

With Estes making the 1/200 scale Saturn V and the NASA SLS I was wondering if a 1/200 space Shuttle plastic model could be converted into a flying model to go along with Estes models?

I don't want the shuttle to glide. All I would want is for the model as a whole to go up and come down by parachute.

Would the motor tube have to be offset to accommodate the overhang of the Shuttle?

Who knows, maybe Estes might produce one in the future.

I like the Estes 1/200 flying models and was just wanting to add the shuttle to the collection.
Right now, there are a few different versions of the 1/200 shuttles out there with the version of the James Bond 007 version available.

 

[Jeff Lassahn]

Should be doable, if you add fins somewhere.
Putting the motor in the back of the external tank offset slightly towards the shuttle side is the most straightforward way to get it to fly reasonably straight.

It turns out at 1/200 the external tank is almost exactly a BT-60 and the solid boosters are almost exactly BT-20 sized, in case that's useful for choosing parts. Maybe using some BT-60 coupler stock inside the ET or something...

I hacked together a rough 1/200 scale shuttle mockup a while ago from Estes parts, and I offset the engine about 0.25 inch from the centerline of the ET. It flies great, so I'd expect a more detailed scale model with the same basic structure to work.

 

[Saluki]

Thanks for the information, Jeff. I know the Dr Zooch shuttle glider uses the BT-60 and 20 for his kit.
I'm thinking about downsizing the offset centering rings that ESTES used on their space shuttle glider and installing them in the model.
I'm also thinking of using the clear fins that come in the ESTES SLS mode with my conversion for stability.