SCALE - AQM-37 Jayhawk

[goose_in_co]

Rocketarium Jayhawk:



Nice Kit, All of the plastic parts are 3d printed, except for the nose cone.

 

[Daddyisabar]

A big improvement from the first release back in the day.

Everyone at the club looking at the crazy guy taking the 1/8" rod off the rack, slipping it on the internal scoop lug in the Rocketarium Jayhawk, then putting the whole works back on the rack. Silly sports scale flyer. Yep, flys and breaks just like every other Jayhawk!

 

[Wrightme43]

It sure is pretty man. You did awesome.

 

[Hobie1dog]

Yep, flys and breaks just like every other Jayhawk!

what breaks?

 

[Daddyisabar]

what breaks?

The outer fins attachments are the worst. The inner wing roots, especially at the bottom, will break away from the body tube and tail cone. Damage is hard to show in pictures below. This has flown a couple dozen times and had many repairs, some hasty in the field, some more careful at home. The worst damage to the fins came in a lush green grass park where it decided to land on a rough sidewalk and careen into a parking lot. The heavy nose cone has helped to create a pseudo "Estes Smile" over time in the uppet body tube's hard, heat resistant engine orange paint. It takes a hardened Cold Warrior to fly these Jayhawks.

 

[goose_in_co]

Thanks for all of the likes and kind words.

It is actually a great kit, and if you follow the highly detailed instructions and go slowly, it isn't too bad.

The outer fins attachments are the worst. The inner wing roots, especially at the bottom, will break away from the body tube and tail cone. Damage is hard to show in pictures below. This has flown a couple dozen times and had many repairs, some hasty in the field, some more careful at home. The worst damage to the fins came in a lush green grass park where it decided to land on a rough sidewalk and careen into a parking lot. The heavy nose cone has helped to create a pseudo "Estes Smile" over time in the upper body tube's hard, heat resistant engine orange paint. It takes a hardened Cold Warrior to fly these Jayhawks.

You forgot to mention that the canards fall off if you look at them sideways.

There are definitely weak points on this design. The outer fins now have a portion of the main fin that extends through them to stiffen that joint, the main fins to the body tube are always a concern, especially since the tailcone is now plastic, and the fins are balsa. I have an Estes Hawk model that breaks on this joint every time. I extended the shock cord, and I am considering flying it only on really calm days, with a rather large parachute, since, as you mention it, the nose cone is rather heavy.

For now it is sitting on a shelf with the rest of my rockets that have been built and not flown yet.

Goose