THE INCREDIBLE
SCISSOR WING TRANSPORT
"Explore this advancement in boost-glider technology. Lifts-off vertically with main wing parallel to the fuselage. At apogee, internal power pod ejects and main wing pivots to perpendicular position initiating gentle glide phase."
I don't know if I'd call it a "gentle" glide phase. I remember mine did glide, but it was fast!
This was a very complex pop-pod boost glider. I knew that Wayne Kellner had a hand in it's design, he also developed the first pop-pod Bomarc model for the Citation Line. That Bomarc also ejected an internal pod, lifting the elevator to transfer the rocket into a glide. This design adds the swinging wing.
The original model had die-cut plywood in the center wing pivot. This reissue from 2004 has a molded plastic pivot and plastic wing hold down tip.
To see the original instructions: CLICK HERE
It's interesting that this 2004 reissue kit face card shows an original Scissor Wing wing pivot from the 1974 design. You can see the launch lugs under the wing edge.
I did a post on the original design inspiration for the Estes kit
To see that post: CLICK HERE
Does this Popular Science cover look familiar? it came out a year before the Estes kit did.
Comparing the weight listed in the catalog, would seem to indicate that replacement of the wood parts with plastic came at the cost of weight. The original version is listed as having a weight of 2.5oz (71g). The reissue version is listed at 3.1oz (89.1g). This could explain some of the difficulty people may have had with the reissue. I do recall when flying the original version, the glide was quite fast. Also it was a bit heavier than a similarly-sized "chuck" glider built from sheet balsa.
ReplyDeleteHi Naoto,
DeleteCatalog weights were always off. I was told for a while it was the naked finished weight (no paint), an average weight or whatever the prototype weight was.
The plastic central hub pieces are pretty light, probably about the same as the old plywood was. The hub disk is scalloped on the underside to keep the weight down.
It seems if you raise enough up elevator you can raise the nose and get a lot of things to "glide".