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The Warriors

top:  Warrior 300; left to right: 214, 56, 50, 20, 5; bottom: 60

A few years back, when the Estes Solar Warrior kit was still in production, I bought one.  I evidently liked the design because I've built a bunch more in various sizes.  Except for the original, all of them were scratchbuilt using Estes or LOC components.

Warrior 5 (downscale)

Sized for a bt-5, the smallest warrior (until I build a MicroMaxx-sized version) flies on 1/4A and 1/2A motors.  Uses a tiny streamer for recovery.

Warrior 20 (Solar Warrior, original Estes kit)

This was built in stock form according to the kit instructions (except for paint & decals).  It flies on A3-4t and A10-3t motors.  Streamer recovery.

PDF file with fin templates and sufficient instructions to scratchbuild your own Solar Warrior

Warrior 50 (upscale)

Enlarged to bt-50 size, this Warrior flies mostly on B4-4 and B6-4 motors.  12" parachute recovery.

Warrior 56 (upscale)

Sized to bt-56, this one flies either on C6-3 or C6-5 motors.  14" nylon parachute (LOC) recovery.

Warrior 60 Mk1 (upscale)

This was my favorite Warrior and one of my most-flown rockets for several years.  It was also the first Warrior that I built after the original.  It always flew nicely on D12-5's and a few times on E15's.  On its first E15 flight, the Kevlar shock cord mount snapped and the rocket took a pretty deep core sample.  Fortunately, the soft sod didn't do any further damage.  On a much later flight, it took another core sample, and I decided to replace the upper portion of the body tube.  Sometime after the repair, it suffered a stuck chute followed by a very hard impact.  This did enough damage that I ended up retiring it to the trash can.  18" nylon parachute (LOC) recovery.

Warrior 60 Mk2 (upscale)

A replacement for the 60 Mk1, it's currently on my "to be built someday" list.  It will have paint and decals per the original kit scheme.

Warrior 214 (upscale)

Built around LOC 54mm motor mount tubing (2.14"), this rocket has plywood through-the-wall fins and a 29mm motor mount.  One of my favorite large model rockets, it has flown on a variety of F and G motors (most commonly on the G35).  After an early hard landing due to a tangled chute, I reinforced the fin-tip pods with pieces of tube coupler.  28" nylon parachute (LOC) recovery.

Warrior 300 (upscale)

Da big guy.  I took the original dimensions and scaled them up for LOC 3.1" tubing.  The plywood fins go through the walls and to the motor mount.  The aft end of it is built like a tank with a layer of fiberglass cloth reinforcing all the fin/body fin/pod joints.  The fin-tip pods are reinforced with an internal tube coupler.  It was painted per the original Estes kit using Pactra Formula-U spray polyurethane.  The lettering was cut by a local sign shop, and I cut the rest of the decals from Trim Monokote.  A Rocketman R7 was used for recovery.

First flight was on an I161.  Over the next few years, it flew on such motors as the I154, I211, and I300.  For early flights, I stuffed a "Beanie Baby" into the payload section.  Later, I modified the payload section to carry a Missile Works RRC2 altimeter.  This was not used for deployment, but only for altitude measurement.  In 1999, it flew on an I211 at LDRS 18 in Argonia, KS.

In the fall of 1999, I decided to try using a deployment bag in it.  Big mistake.  After a good boost on an I300, the parachute stuck in the body tube, and the rocket had a very hard impact.  The payload section and main body tube down to the top of the motor mount were destroyed.  The altimeter was damaged, but Missile Works repaired it for me.

Well, I was disheartened at the thought of trying to repair this rocket.  Fortunately, the aft end was undamaged.  After letting it sit around for more than a year, I started repairs.  I had to cut the main body tube down past the top of the motor mount.  I had to cut an inch off the top of the motor mount tube and epoxy on a new centering ring and eyebolt for the shock cord mount.  Then, I grafted on a tube coupler and new body tube.  I also constructed a new payload section, but the old nosecone was still intact.  I took this as an opportunity to make both the main tube and the payload section both a little longer.

After rebuilding and priming it in 2001, I finally repainted it and redid the decals in the summer of 2002.  The lettering is in all capitals now, because that's what I had.  Unfortunately, the blue doesn't match between new and old paint because the manufacturer stopped making the shade originally used.

In May of 2003, it finally took flight again - twice in the same day!  First on an I211 and then on an I300.  Both flights were perfect.

Links

• PDF file with fin templates and instructions for the Solar Warrior
• Solar Warrior review at EMRR
• Solar Warrior decals from Tango Papa