Manufacturer: | LOC/Precision |
Brief:
A large high-powered rocket that should be considered for a Level 2
certification flight.
Modifications:
Several minor changes were made and are described below.
Construction:
The rocket comes with: A plastic Nosecone, 2 thick paper body tubes, three
motor mount tubes, 2 1/4" plywood centering rings, 3 1/4" plywood
fins, a Bulkhead assembly, a shockcord(elastic) and a 58" nylon parachute.
All parts were of high quality when I bought them (from Ken Allen of
Performance Hobbies).
After building many High powered kits, I did not refer to the instructions at all. They looked to be the normal LOC instructions, very precise and short. The parts all fit nicely with little or no sanding. The kit only came with two centering rings, but a rocket of this size really needs three. Also, the 29mm outboard motor mounts were very short, and should be lengthened to at least 9" to allow the use of large motors in the future. The rocket went together like a normal rocket, with through the wall fins. I fiberglassed the fins to the motor mount, which I highly suggest on all rockets 3" in diameter and larger. The only other modifications were to add an electronics bay in the coupler and to extend the Payload bay for more room for the Main Parachute.
I would rate construction a 4 out of 5 because of the 2 centering rings and short 29mm tubes, but both are easily fixed.
Finishing:
Pros: Spirals are small, no need to fill
Cons: Rocket takes A LOT of paint :), nose cone is very rough
Construction Rating: 4 out of 5
Flight:
The first and only flight so far for the Magnum was on a J460T 54mm motor. The
rocket was prepped with an RRC2 altimeter in the coupler. The drogue chute was
a 30" Spherachute, with a 52" Skyangle Main Parachute. The motor was
retained by a pair of Kaplow Klips, and the nose was held on to the Payload bay
with two shear pins. The rocket shot off the pad on the Blue Thunder motor to
an apogee of 1650', where the drogue chute was deployed. The rocket fell to
500', where the main chute deployed, and the rocket landed less than 500 feet
from the pad!!
Recovery:
I replaced the Elastic shock cord with 9/16" mil-spec tubular Nylon, which
worked well. Both chutes worked well, but the 52" Skyangle was a little
small for the 12 lb. rocket, which resulted in a crease in the lower tube just
above the fins. Also, the rocket zippered upon main chute deployment, for
unknown reasons. All damage has been repaired.
Pros: extremely stable rocket, nice straight flier
Cons: None, all damage was my fault, and the zipper was not the fault of the rocket
Flight Rating: 5 out of 5
Summary:
Great Rocket!!! It will fly again, next time on a cluster of some sort. I
reccomend this rocket to anyone wanting a Level 2 rocket or looking for a good
sport rocket that will fly on large I motors to large K motors, with minor
modification.
Overall Rating: 4 out of 5
( Contributed - by Walter Kjellander - 08/10/02) Brief: The LOC Magnum is single-staged with a main 54mm motor mount and two 29mm outboards. A good rocket for level 2 certification. Construction: The parts were all OK. I was surprised that the slots for the fin tabs had to be cut. The other LOC kits I have done have precut slots, like the Forte, EZI-65, Expediter, LOC IV, Graduator, ...
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C.E. (February 1, 2001)