Centuri F-104 Starfighter and Odd'l Rockets F-104 Background and Comparisons

The Centuri F-104 Starfighter was introduced in the second 1977 catalog.
The Fighter Fleet series must have been quite successful, there were three introduced in 1975, two more designs followed. The picture above shows the last two models.

These models (and others from Centuri at the time) had wings, fins and details die cut from thick mat board stock. This heavy card stock was fairly durable and easier for younger builders to use. There was no grain to fill in thick mat board fins. Older, more experienced builders hated it.

The upper left picture shows an original Centuri F-104 build supplied by Lonnie Buchanon.
The intakes are folded from cardstock into a long rectangle shape. The intake cone is a profile triangle. Below this is the Odd'l Rockets version with the intake cut from a body tube.
On the right is the comparisons between the original Centuri kit to the left. The inset picture to the right is the new Odd'l kit. The tail section on my version is taken directly from a side profile of the real F-104 jet.

Here's the first prototype. Many small adjustments were made before the kit will be released.

The wing tanks were enlarged to the correct scale size. The tail surfaces were adjusted and the decals tweaked. 

This is one of the more complicated kits I've ever produced. I wanted it to be a tribute to the Centuri model while improving the design.

Odd'l Rockets F-104 Starfighter Build, Part 1, Parts

Some of the upcoming kit development has been covered already on the blog.
To catch up on some of the new parts development, CLICK HERE

Above shows all the kit parts.
Note the decals are from the German F-104, much like the Centuri version. Germany's Air Force purchased many F-104 jets.

The parts of interest:
The vacu-form canopy, the same used in the F-16 kit. Centuri used the same molded canopy in all of their Fighter Fleet kits.

The thick dowels will be carved into the wing tanks.
To the right are the split nose cones for the jet intakes. In the picture the bottoms have been contour sanded to fit the curve of the main body tube. For the kit, the nose cone will be cleanly split, the builder will sand the bottom contour. (Don't worry, it's easier than you think.)

The printed cardstock piece is the intake template. This is wrapped around a BT-20 and will cut to fit the main body tube. This intake is much like the ones on the Estes Lynx and Scorpion kits, but larger.

Model Profile - The Centuri F-104 Starfighter

The F-104 Starfighter was introduced in the 1977 Centuri catalog, the fourth model of the Fighter Fleet series. For variety, Centuri picked the West Germany motif
These jets had "fibre" fins, die-cut from a .050" thick card stock. While card stock made an easier assembly for a young modeler, older builders weren't too fond of the kits.
Many design compromises were made to the jets for vertical, stable flight.



This model isn't one of my builds. Lonnie Buchanon gave me some original Fighter Fleet rockets he found in Craig's list buy. An F-16 helped the design of my Odd'l Rockets kit.

The F-104 was 15" long and 1" in diameter. The tube was Centuri's heavier walled ST-10.

Here's some of the compromises -

For stability, the wings are set farther back. The intakes aren't round but long rectangle boxes formed from thinner card stock.

The bombs (or tanks depending on which model you were building) were the same used in all six of the Fighter Fleet series.
The missiles were also used on each model. They looked a little like a Sidewinder without the forward fins. The small nose and fin can were glued into a launch lug tube.

Notice the reinforcement pieces needed for the card stock wings and missile standoffs.

The model was 15" long, 5" of that was just the nose cone!
The cockpit decal is on but the clear canopy is missing. I don't know why the nose cone was never painted.

Why am I featuring this model? Stay tuned . . .

Odd'l Rockets F-18 Hornet Development & Build, Part 1, Background

Centuri introduced three Fighter Fleet kits in their second 1976 catalog. 

The F-4 Phantom, F-15 Eagle and F-16 Fighter.

To see them: CLICK HERE

I had already produced the Odd'l Rockets F-16 and F-104 Starfighter kits. I wanted to make them  closer to the lines of the real jets and keep them stable.

There are compromises when designing a stable sport rendition of a Fighter Jet. 

My goal was to make a good representation using existing tubes, nose cones and balsa.

I go through a LOT of photos.

If I'm lucky, I'll come across an accurate line drawing like this one shown on the left.

Portions of this drawing was enlarged, wing and stabilizer shapes were directly traced. 

If you see the Centuri F-104 Starfighter model side by side with the Odd'l version you would see some differences. The Odd'l Fighter Jets are designed to look more accurate. These new kits are more of a build challenge.

I chose this model for the F-18 paint and decal pattern.

I would have loved to do the Blue Angels version, but licensing fees would set the kit price out of reach.

Test model development and the kit build start tomorrow.

Odd'l Rockets F-104 Starfighter Kits On Sale at NARCON!

The Odd'l Rockets F-104 Starfighter kit made its debut at NARCON! Here's the first nine kits at the JonRocket booth.
Roger and Bracha Smith (JonRocket.com) posted this picture on the NAR Facebook page.

They are also listed now on the Sirius Rocketry website: CLICK HERE
More kits will go to JonRocket.com when they return from NARCON.
Apogee will get their first allotment of F-104 kits sent out on Monday!

F-104 Starfighter Prototype

Here's the original Centuri F-104 Starfighter.
Note the rectangular cardstock intakes and wing tanks.

I just finished a prototype There were many changes from the Centuri kit.
The intakes are cut from a BT-20, a split nose cone is in the intake openings.
The tail shape was corrected, redrawn from profile photographs. The wing tanks are closer to the F-104 shape.
This is probably a Level 3 .5 build.

So what do you think - Should it be the next Odd'l kit? Many test flights first -

F-104 Starfighter Prototype Fix

On the first F-104 prototype I used some already cut dowels from the F-16 kit. Larger wing tanks will be used on the next build.
These larger tanks will change the C/G, I hope no nose weight is needed.

In the picture the larger new tank is set over the first one.




It's really not very difficult to shape the dowel ends. Each end takes about ten minutes of carving and sanding.

Trivia: Somewhere on line are the original plans for the the Estes Mars Snooper. The fin pods were made from just dowels, not nose cones and tubing.

Odd'l Rockets F-104 Instructions Omission

I got an email from Gary S. asking for a measurement in the F-104 Starfighter instructions. On the first run of the kit instructions were missing a measurement.
In Step 20, the back end of the intake nose cone half is glued 5 5/16" from the back end of the main air frame tube. Step 20 is shown above.
I've sold quite a few of these kits and haven't heard from anybody about the omission. Sorry for any confusion! If your build is a little off, it shouldn't matter. I've seen F-104s fly at club launches with no stability problems.

F-104 Intake Pattern Development, Part 1

The upcoming F-104 Starfighter kit from Odd'l Rockets had some interesting kit design challenges. One is the intakes on each side of the body.
The old Centuri kit folded card stock rectangles. They didn't look like the round intakes on the real jet.


I wish I could say the intake shape was developed using some complex geometry. I took the easy way out - I guessed.

Some BT-20 tube was cut into half wedge shapes. This picture shows how many tries it took to get the best fit.



Final shaping is done by sanding the rough cut edges with 220 grit wrapped around the BT-50H body tube.




Okay, here's a good fit!
To make a paper cutting pattern I could just wrap a paper around this intake and trace, but I wanted something more accurate.

More in next post - 

N.E.F.A.R. Launch, November 11, 2017

This weekend is the two day Bunnell Blast.
On the drive up we saw overcast skies and light rain. Winds were low but were increasing throughout the morning. I got in three launches before the wind got strong. Recovery walks were long.
Still plenty of flights and big crowds.

Today I launched the Estes CURVLINEAR with a Quest B6-4. The .16 oz. of nose weight was enough to compensate for the heavier B6-4 engine and gave a very stable flight.
The Chinese made Quest engine really gave a good ride to about 400'. Full chute at ejection and a long recovery walk because of the wind.

Even with wind gusts the two final test flights of the Odd'l Rockets F-104 STARFIGHTER were both arrow straight.

First was an Estes B6-4 to about 300'. The second good launch was with a C6-5 to and estimated 650'.

After being carried West by the wind, touchdown of the C6-5 flight was too close to the treeline. No damage.

I'll be able to bag up these kits soon!

Rick Boyette brought his impressive Chinese Long March rocket.

I was hoping to see the flight but he was saving it for Sunday hoping for lighter winds. 

This model will be powered by a cluster of five composite engines.

While I didn't get in many flights I did launch two rockets where stability might be questionable. The Curvilinear was converted to an 18mm engine mount to allow more engine choices. The new F-104 Starfighter was finally flown stable with the larger engine tank dowels using B and C engines. A very successful day.

Launch! (Finally) Schoolyard, September 3, 2017

It's been a while! Burn bans and water soaked fields have led to cancelled club launches.
Thanks to Manuel I have some A8-3s to use. The soccer field is perfect for A engines in 1" diameter models.
No launch pictures today. Even though I had the camera set on the burst function, overcast skies and low light left blurry images.



The Centuri NOMAD clone went up first with an Estes A8-3 to about 200 feet. The chute had a spill hole so the recovery walk was short.

The Estes GALACTIC TAXI was flown with a Chinese Quest A6-4. I would guess the altitude to be 225'. No damage on recovery.






I usually don't see the "sticky smoke" until the Wintertime. The smoke did stay in the grass. You could scare it up with a stomp of your foot.







Why two pictures of the upcoming Odd'l Rockets F-104 STARFIGHTER? I launched it twice!

I've been wanting to do more test flights with the larger (and slightly heavier) wing tanks. Both flights were with two more Estes A8-3s to 200' and very stable.

I wish they all would recover this close! While descending I thought the F-104 might hang on the launch rod. I've only done that once in the 1970s. Still, close is good.

Last up was a C6-3! (I know, BIG power.)
I haven't launched the FlisKits PHEORD X-150 saucer since 2014. This is a draggy but fun model. The C engine probably only got it to 75 feet, loud and slow.
I had paper towels with me when it was picked up. It's important to dry off the dew from a card stock rocket. The model was wet and may dry with a few wrinkles. I'll just call them dents in the truck body.

Even though the altitudes weren't staggering, it felt good to fly a few. Five up, five recovered with little damage, just wet.

Intake Cones Part 1, TIP

While the paint dries on the Starship Nova, here's a little background construction on the upcoming F-104 Starfighter kit intake.

Years back I bought and assembled the Estes Astron Streak. It was an early BT-20 Mosquito. With a C6-7 you could reach altitudes of 2,0000 feet! Or so they claimed. Who knows, you'd never see it again anyway.

The Streak instructions said you could hollow out the nose cone and get an extra 20 feet altitude!
Split the nose cone and hollow it out. My nose cone split didn't end up down the middle!
On the upcoming Odd'l Rockets F-104 Starfighter kit I'll supply nose cone halves that glue inside the front of the intakes. Here's how I'll prep them for the kit.



I scored the outside of the nose cone to get a clean split, right down the middle.
The base is scored first, maybe 1/8" in.



The shoulder is next.

With my knife blade extended I continue up the side, aiming towards the center tip.



The nose cone is turned over and the 1/8" scoring ends through the tip.

Odd'l Rockets F-104 Starfighter Build, Part 16, Silver Paint

I ended up using Rustoleum Silver Metallic on the model. The only masking was at the rear end to cover the chrome Monokote ring on the engine tube extending out the back.

I still did some light sanding between coats of the silver metallic.
On the first build of the F-104 I used aluminum paint. This Rustoleum Metallic Silver is much brighter.
The model would look best with a chrome finish but I've never got chrome paint to fully dry in the past.

Even though the humidity has dropped I still got some "bluing" and hazing of the metallic paint.

TIP: An easy fix to brighten up metallic paint is to use polishing compound. The rub out took about an hour but the finish results are worth it.

The nose cones are from Apogee and molded in yellow plastic. Be sure to prime and follow with a few undercoats coats of gloss white before the silver.

A Day In The Life - Full Time Rocketry

A lot of hobbyists dream of starting their own model rocket company. Here's a typical days activity here at Odd'l Rockets.
The morning starts with emails. I'll answer building questions and send out decal and carded model PDFs. Other days there could be orders for parts and supplies.

Most of the day was spent KIT BAGGING! 
Body tubes are cut to size and instructions are printed.
The picture shows a small part of the largest kit and accessory order I've ever received from Apogee. There are 15 Birdie kits in that bag! I've still got to make up Little Green Men and Pigasus kits, blast deflectors, parachutes and flame resistant shock cord.






Along with blog builds there are custom builds for clients.
This is an Estes Patriot with a 24mm engine mount, 3/16" launch lug and payload section.





Work continued on new products. There was some decal re-draws today.
On the right is the first draft decals for the F-104 Starfighter kit from Odd'l Rockets. It never fails, you think you've got decals right but after a few prototype builds there is always revisions.

I did some carving today.
The wing tanks for the F-104 were too small on the first prototype, shown on the left.
The scale size is shown in the center. At 1/2 inch in diameter they are too heavy, the model would then require nose weight.
On the right is a good compromise at 7/16" diameter. A little shorter than scale but workable.

Another custom build arrived. The new Shrockets Skonk Wulf will be an upcoming blog build.

The engine mount has already been assembled. The fins are cut out and filled. The body tube spirals are filled.
Tomorrow the filler/primer will be sprayed and sanded.

Last night I wrote another article for the Apogee Peak Of Flight newsletter after getting approval to proceed. That doesn't mean it will get published - Fingers crossed!

To make a living in model rocketry you work with many small income streams. Custom builds, graphic arts production for kit instructions, finished models auctioned on Ebay, articles, kits, consulting and blog advertising. It is rewarding but still a business.

So there's a typical day, most of it spent at home building, bagging and designing model rockets. You should see my living room. Boxes of parts on the floor, two models being built on the kitchen table. How do I get away with it? I'm divorced and not dating right now.

Odd'l Rockets F-104 Fuel Tank Correction

When I posted the first prototype build of the Odd'l Rockets F-104 Starfighter, I heard about it!
Most comments were positive but a few let me know the wing fuel tanks were too small.
To be honest, I didn't have many dowels and grabbed what was handy. I bought larger dowels.

Above is the first prototype. It has quite a few stable test flights.

I cut off the fuel tanks and carved two larger ones. On the left is the size comparison.

The inset shows where the paint was scraped off to glue onto the wing.

Is this better? - hope so!

Compared to the OOP Centuri kit, this version is much closer to the truth.

Now . . . more test flights.

NEFAR Launch July 8, 2017

I know, I complain every year about the heat of Summer launches.
The crowds weren't large and the wind was calm. Everything closed down about 1:30 p.m., some dark clouds and lightning could be seen coming our way from the Southwest.

The FLYING PORTA PAD (Hex - 3 variation) was first up with a C6-3. I couldn't see much of the flight, the rocket flew directly into the sun. I'd guess 100', that's what Estes says anyway.

Here's the third flight of the Odd'l Rockets prototype F-104 STARFIGHTER. With a C6-5 is was very straight and stable to about 700'. At ejection the parachute only make it half way out of the body tube. It fell flat almost like it was trying to glide. (Hmmmm) The rear stabilizer was cracked at the root edge, an easy fix.



I finally got around to flying the B32M SPIKE, a kitbash of the Estes STM-12.
Very stable with a D12-5 engine to an estimated 700'.
There was some interesting damage at ejection. I use LONG shock cords but there was some snap back. The coupler hit the leading edge of the lower fin, not the upper fin but the lower fin. Yeah, figure that one out.
I'll show the fix here on the blog.

Next up, the 13th flight of the OOP Quest TOMAHAWK ACBM. There was some coning towards the end of the coast. Probably caused by the forward fin wing and that open intake on the bottom.
The C6-5 engine got it to an estimated 550'. Full 12" chute deploy and no fin root cracks this time. (This one has a habit of root edge breaks on the paper boat tail transition.)

Here's Steve Moon's take on the Estes Executioner.
Look close at the theme.
The vinyl trim shows various methods of how a death penalty could be, well . . . "Executed". Very cool.

I wanted to test the Enerjet smoking nose cone on the new Estes NIKE SMOKE. I loaded it up with talcum powder, in the process getting it all over my jeans and car trunk.
I was anticipating a smoking contrail during boost but the C6-5 didn't have the air speed to stir up the intake tube and force the powder out the side of the nose cone.
Ignition, boost - and nothing. Great stable flight to 550' but no smoke! Ejection and recovery were good with no damage when picked up.
I walked past the RSO table and blew into the nose cone. Sure - now plenty of smoke, lots and lots of white smoke.
This one might need the old Enerjet E24-7 for more velocity and air directed into the internal BT-5 and powder.

Five quick flights and a drive home in the rain. Good, stable third test flight of the Odd'l F-104. Minor damage on two models.