Big Bertha Model Rocket Kit

I received the Estes Big Bertha kit as a gift, my very first model rocket build. This is a very easy kit to assemble, with clear, easy to follow instructions. Parts are high quality which helps significantly with the build. I used Titebond II exclusively throughout the build with great results. The only area where I recommend extra care be taken is in sanding the fin edges. To ensure a good glue joint the root edges must have the burn (brown color) from the laser removed to expose clean balsa. Care is required to keep the edges square and flat. Using the recommended method of stacking the fins works well, although care must be taken to keep them properly aligned. Once the burn residue is gone and the leading and trailing edges have been rounded use the double glue technique in the instructions to glue the fins on. Done right you'll end up with a joint that is stronger than the materials being glued together! I chose not to use the kit paint scheme and supplied decals in order to make my Bertha unique. Red and white were used to create an old school look. Decals were a mix of US flags from a sheet of RC airplane decals and text decals created on my P-Touch printer. This rocket just asks to be customized, or you can peruse old Estes catalogs and reproduce one of the many wonderful paint schemes it has carried throughout its long life. To date I haven't been able to launch my Big Bertha (real life getting in the way, as happens) but hope to do so soon. I can heartily recommend this kit as your first model rocket build, and guarantee that once you've built one many more will follow. I already have plans for my second! And third, maybe fourth....

I have an entire fleet of Estes rockets, and this is easily one of my favorites. It is an easy build for beginners, yet even seasoned rocketeers count it among their must haves. It is always taken along on launch day due to its reliability and beautiful, comparatively slow lift-off. There are really no negatives that come to mind. It has a good price point and is a proven winner. That's probably why Estes has offered this rocket for so long. One tip that Estes seldom mentions is a tip to avoid excessive drift when launching with a C6-5: You can cut a hole in the parachute center about 3 inches in diameter. The rocket will still have a gentle landing but will not drift too far if there is a breeze. I have done this with Big Bertha and many other rockets with no mishaps due to cutting the parachute center hole.

I had this rocket as a 12 year-old that I built with my Father, and now as a 43 year-old with a 4 year-old Son this was our first. (Okay, I know I'm rushing it) My Son is a big fan of Thomas the Tank Engine, and he wanted a Hiro rocket. I couldn't find any train decals I was happy with, so I just put big letters HIRO vertically on both sides and used some of the original decals. The body tube was crushed a little on one end during shipping, so I cut a few inches off and added an extension which added 7 to the total length. I had someone run a simulation on RockSim and they told me that adding weight to the forward end of the rocket just added more stability, and that definitely turned out to be true. I had toyed with the idea of having a rocket with a huge chute for it to come down as slow as possible because I find the slower the fall the more interesting it is. I used a thin black trash bag, and cut out a chute approximately 27. One plus to the thinner chute material is it's very soft & pliable compared to factory chutes and fills with air very quickly. With a little baby powder there is no way this chute will stick together and not deploy. To me, it is more fun watching the drop than the launch. Definitely not one to launch with any breeze or any trees or obstacles nearby at all. She definitely returns to terra firma S-L-O-W-L-Y And on a C motor it seems to go as high as one without any length addition, and seems to track truer than one with the original length. I like larger rockets, and this one has the maximum diameter you can get from Estes (1.64) without going above a C motor. I highly recommend this as a first rocket due to the ease of build and slow, majestic lift-off.