Wow! That sums it up!Some people tend to bash TLP, as they're expecting an Estes type kit. And: don't have the time, patients, appreciation, skills, (certain) tools, etc.. to build them.
Some people expect explicit instructions (tailored to them), laser cut & machine beveled contest grade / hand selected balsa or finished both side ply, factory printed decals, numerous assembly & alignment jigs, a hand-sewn 12-panel silk parachute (with spill hole), premixed epoxy, a 3-view colour scale reference pack with paint chips & recommended Krylon, Rustoleum, and/or PPG paint codes, accurate flight profiles for all available motors (to the foot in altitude), etc.. and all for $12.99 at the local Hobby Lobby.. of any kit..
A kit is as good or as bad as you want it to be..
Definitely not my intent, I was thinking of a recipe I once saw that had you mix wet & dry ingredients. Then, on the next page "but first...."Usually leads to bashing a manufacturer!
I have found that the majority of my skills don't involve building a rocket "correctly", they are in figuring out how to solve issues - whether problems with the kit/instructions or my own errors...... Creative problem solving is part of what makes building things fun.
Yes Apogee uses junk parts in their "DYNASTAR" kits not sure about the other kits they sell, but Dynastar kits are garbage. I guess you never had the pleasure of building one. I emailed Tim or whoever answers their customer service support. Like I said the design is nice, but the parts are junkHmmm....Apogee using junk parts?
That doesn't sound like Tim at all.
Did you Email Tim about the problems?
The short answer is YES. TLP kits will handle the motors they are designed for just fine. TLP kits may be gone now as the owner has had health issues iirc and the kits are becoming OOS at a lot of vendors. TLP makes some of the last true builders kits, they give YOU the basics and the final product is a direct effect of YOUR building skills. I love TLP kits for the realism, and difficulty of build, having to cut my own parts from sheets of balsa using old school paper patterns is awesome. I also carefully go through the balsa and upgrade it if needed usually anything I build nowadays has basswood fins if its E-G power.I really hope nobody from TLP is on the TRF....
I don't know about you guys... TLP has fast, great shipping with a sweet website.. The reason I don't like them is that they have really bad quality parts. Are balsa fins going to handle E & F motors?? I don't think so, and the body tube is like, well think, if the rocket hits the ground a little hard the body tube would be dented, but and Estes tube PSII wouldn't be.
My brother ordered the HARM missile kit, and I might order from them again, IF I do, I will get different fins.
That's just me & my brother's opinions.
Thanks,
Well, in that case, I'll say aerotech reload "kits" have ridiculous instructions. Good thing I have built hundreds of them. If I was a noob I would be really frustrated with them.Wow, didn't expect this to be controversial. Was hoping for funny stories about ridiculous instructions and the like.