Quest motors

[carldoc]

OK...forgive me for asking but....is there any difference between Quest motors and Estes motors? I found a spot that sells both. I have used Estes my whole life and have never had any problems. Is Quest just as good? Better? Worst?

 

[jflis]

it's a mixed bag. what I have noticed (and heard others talk about) is that the Quest motors tend to put out more smoke during boost and also have a denser tracking smoke.

Other than that, I think they are about equal in quality. You will note that each company has *some* motors that the other does not make

 

[cls]

it's a toss-up!! go for whatever is cheaper!!

I found a few 30x "bulk pack" of Quest motors for the "right price" (way less than $1/motor + ignitor + wadding) so we burned those up for a birthday party and some other bulk-launches. after watching 100+ Quest motors and comparing directly with Estes I think the Quest motors have just slightly more power but not as "even" a burn; definitely "smokier" as Jim says.

locally I can find Quest motors for very cheap (Fry's Electronics), cheaper than the $27 for 24 Estes bulk-pack at Toys R Bust.

 

[eugenefl]

This is an unofficial observation of mine, but it seems the Quest C6-3 has a more accurate delay. I definitely agree with the denser smoke and denser tracking smoke. I've flown my Citation Patriot on both the Estes C6-3 and Quest C6-3. Both Estes flights caused the cone to snap back and dent the body tube. Granted, this might be because Estes *maybe* packs more ejection charge, but the ejection always seems to be a tad early. I don't know...I guess for some reason the *newness* of using Quest products has definitely caused me to give them the nod for future purchases. I say go for it. Besides, it's more product you're moving for another company.

 

[carldoc]

Thans for the comments....I'll have to give Quest motors a try.

 

[powderburner]

I like the Quest motors just fine, they work just as well as any others I've seen. I am not particularly fond of the Quest igniters. Maybe that's just because I'm used to working with little wires instead of little ribbons.

 

[Stymye]

I like Quest,, a little more smoke and the C6 "seem" to have a stronger initial pop of the launch pad

 

[Austin]

I have to go with the consesus...the Quest motors are very cool! They use a micro copperhead ignitor that works, are a bit louder in my oppinion and the smoke is much cooler. Tracking smoke is also denser. My son forced me to get some at NARAM 45 this last year and it was worth it. I am going to be looking for more myself.

Carl

 

[astronboy]

I too like QUEST motors, but I am concerned about the variations in casing diameter and length.

The A6-4s I have are a bit small in diameter, allowing some ejection pressure to escape out the engine tube, and I have had at least one failed ejection due to this. I add a few coils of masking tape to solve this problem.

BTW it is nice to have a bit weaker motor like the A6 for my small rockets.

Also some of the C6-3s and 5s are 2-3mm too long to fit in a standard mount. These are usually the German made motors with the label 'sticker' wrapped around the casing.

 

[seo]

Originally posted by cls

locally I can find Quest motors for very cheap (Fry's Electronics), cheaper than the $27 for 24 Estes bulk-pack at Toys R Bust.

We just got a Fry's here in Seattle, never thought of checking there for motors! Thanks for the tip!

Scott

 

[cydermaster]

I agree with what is baying said, Brand Q motors are alot louder and smokier, than Brand E ones. They're my motors of choice, especially in saucers, for that reason

The ignitors are a bit of a pain to prep, but they do the job. As the Quest controller uses a 9v transistor battery, it makes me wonder if they need a little more juice? For this reason, I don't use them in clusters; I substitute Estes ones, in their place, just in case!

Oh ..... and I hate that medicated toilet paper stuff they use for wadding - it puts my teeth on edge almost as much as hearing somebody scratch their fingernails down a blackboard. Needless to say, the stuff goes into the bin, pronto!

 

[arthur dent]

I usually buy quest motors because they are a whole 0.25p cheaper than the estes.I think the wadding comes in handy and you don't get any with estes.
DAN..Try putting a piece of insulating tape over one side of your crocodile clips and attach the live sides to opposite sides of the tiger tail thus doing away with the sickers(hope this makes sense )

 

[cydermaster]

Originally posted by arthur dent
I usually buy quest motors because they are a whole 0.25p cheaper than the estes.

Thats another reason I use them too

I keep meaning to try the masking tape trick, you mention arthur, but keep forgetting to in the excitement of the launch.

BTW: Does anybody else end up having one knee, of their trousers, covered in the little sticky dots from the ignitor stickers, after a Quest motor launch session? I usually prep my ignitor kneeling/crouching down, and my knee is the best place to put the little £%#"$s.

 

[Mike]

Wow Dan, I was about to comment about how much I hate the little dots when your post came, great minds...!

 

[arthur dent]

oh you two are so dotty

 

[Mike]

LOL...what's worse is when you forget they're there and then go out in the evening.

 

[astronboy]

I solved the dot problem. My 6yr old nephew wanted to help out with a launch, so we sat down the day before and made up all the Quest igniters, put all of the little stickers on them, and put them in a small container in my rangebox.

This was not so much thinking ahead as it was a way to keep him involved.

 

[cydermaster]

Originally posted by Mike
LOL...what's worse is when you forget they're there and then go out in the evening.

LOL! I've not done that yet!

I have walked 1/2 mile home, from a launch, with them on my knee. I get funny looks from other pedestrians, anyway, 'cos I'm carrying a rocket; but that day people were staring at my knee, as well as my Big Bertha (which I had been out to fly). I looked down, and saw my trousers were covered in the little blighters!

 

[cls]

... my kids love putting together the quest ignitors so they have a dot party for an hour and then we're ready to hit the field.

I agree the Quest delay charges seem to be more accurate.

also, I can directly confirm, the brand Q ejection charge is "gentler" than the brand E. we were flying a bunch of Estes E2X kits like Flash and Mk109. the brand E motors ALWAYS caused a separation - shock cord knot came out of the hole. same rockets, brand Q motors always recovered nicely.


we like the Quest wadding but I understand if some folks don't. it is difficult to crumple enough for very small BT20 & BT5 sized models.

but don't throw it away, it is superior for "bedding" on top of the stuffer tube in large airframe models like the V2 and Saturn V.

 

[astrowolf67]

I buy Quest motors when ever I can find them. Mainly for all the reasons already stated. I also like the nozzle of them better than the clay estes nozzles. I don't know what they are made of, but they seem to hold up much better. Also, for the baby copperhead igniters, I just use an Aerotech clip.

I'm hoping to fly my Deuce for the first time this coming weekend, and first flight will be on Quest B6-4's. Hopefully, I'll get a pic of it.

 

[carldoc]

OK, I got a few packs of Quest motors. I did notice a bit more smoke compared to Estes. I also noticed that it leaves a nice dirty fouling in the tube. Will this fouling do anything to the paper tubing? Overall though, I like the quality of Quest moters.

 

[astronboy]

NO, Quest motors will not do anything to the insdies of your rocket that an ESTES motor will not.

 

[Stymye]

I've learned a little more about the differences in quest motors

German Quest motors look like they have a dense graphite or a graphite impregnated material in the nozzle and are more sharply formed..the U.S type have a clay-like nozzle

the German motors are 1mm smaller diameter and thinner cardboard but denser/stronger than the U.S. version cardboard..

they both produce a large amount of tracking smoke and both have vigorus ejection charges..the german brand have a slightly orange tint to the smoke.

a large batch of german motors were made to the wrong length(too long)..
in an attempt to fix the problem they went back and sawed the motors to length..although not very accuritely

I don't know the quantity of the "sawed" version

 

[astronboy]

I have examples of all of he QUEST motors that you mentioned, and launched some today. I suggest wrapping a few winds of masking tape around the smaller diameter motors to prevent ejection blow by. That works fine for me!!

I also have the extra long German motors and the 'corrected' 'sawed off' motors as well. They work fine, but are ugly...

 

[n3tjm]

Originally posted by stymye
I've learned a little more about the differences in quest motors

German Quest motors look like they have a dense graphite or a graphite impregnated material in the nozzle and are more sharply formed..the U.S type have a clay-like nozzle

The nozzles are still made of clay, it just has gray glazing on it. I believe that they use the same toolset that MRC used for their motors... they were also made in Germany.

 

[carldoc]

Does Quest make D or E size motors?

 

[shockwaveriderz]

carldoc:
not in the US they don't....the company that Quest Uses to manufacture their motors is Saxony Fireworks in Germany...they did/do produce D/E size motors under the tradename of HELD 5000 (?) , which was a family owned fireworks company purchased by Saxony.... They also manufactured some micro maxx size motors but I have also heard that the micro maxx was actually made by LunaTech in Alabama(don't know how true that is)
https://www.raketenmodellbautechnik.de/produkte/Motoren/SF-Motoren.pdf

https://www.raketenmodellbautechnik.de/produkte/Motoren/E7/start.htm

https://www.raketenmodellbautechnik.de/produkte/Motoren/E7/muster.htm

 

[powderburner]

That motor data makes those things look like some pretty cool motors, they could be good for some specialized applications in certain competitions. Assuming (I know, possibly a big mistake) that Quest could import and sell these as competitively as they do the rest of their motors, this might be a really great deal.

Do we have anyone from Quest hooked up here on TRF who can tell if their plans include D and E (or more) power?

BTW, thanks a bunch to shockwaveriderz for bringing in all that data.

 

[Johnnie]

Boy I'm kinda late on this thread...forgive me as I am trying to get back in touch with my Low Power side.

I read all 27 posts, realizing that I have never flown a Quest Motor, and yet I own Two Quest Rockets, The Apollo, and the Nike Smoke. So it made me "Google" a little while, and it suprized me to find out that the Quest facility had burned at one time, and killed two employees, and severely burned two others. Old news I'm sure, but it goes to show how out of touch I have become with my Low Power side.

Anyways, I am looking for Quest motors as well, and will hope to find some at either "We B Toys" (Toys R US), or any other local hobby shop here the Huntsville, AL area.

Smokier motors will be cool...I also have a 40% off coupon for a Local "Michaels" hobby store to maybe be able to pick up an Estes Bulk Pak.

Johnnie Paul

 

[powderburner]

to Johnnierkt:

Better late than never!

Are you thinking of the fire Aerotech had at their motor factory a couple years ago? I'm not sure I heard about Quest having a fire, at least not in a U.S. facility, and I believe they import their line of low-power motors from Europe (see above threads).

Anyway, if you are looking for this brand of motor, you might check to see if you have a local Fry's Electronics (not sure of the spelling, it might be Frye's). There is one of these mega-stores here in the Fort Worth-Dallas metroplex, over in southern Arlington. Don't ask me why an electronics store stocks model rocket stuff, but they do. The price for a three-pack is about the same as the local W-Mart price. I have not seen a motor pack bigger than that, but some of these TRF guys indicate that it is available in some markets, and a good deal price-wise.