Cosmodrome Rocketry - Black Brant II

Brief:
I bought a Black Brant II from Cosmodrome because I loved the Estes Brant kit when it was available, and I got tired of waiting for the Estes re-issue.... besides, the Cosmodrome kit is 50" tall... A bit cooler than it's counterpart.

Construction:
The rocket went together smoothly and quickly (3.5 Hrs) with 5min. epoxy used for the entire build. I replaced the steel shock cord that was included in the kit with aircraft cable of the same diameter after it was almost severed by crimping (with a hammer) the ferrule onto it. The instructions called for heavy sanding of the 3/16" plywood fins to a knife edge (about 75% of the fin area!). I deviated from this, and only sanded a 1/4" knife edge on the leading edge. (It's not to scale, but it was easy). The inclusion of motor retention is a much appreciated bonus.

Finishing:
I decided to paint the rocket true to scale, so I put several coats of primer on, then several coats of gloss white, and then spent 3 hours masking the white areas off. The included detail sheet for painting was very helpful, but it's still took a while to mask such an intricate pattern. After 3 coats of black paint the rocket was unmasked. Simply stunning. The included decals were nicely done, and made the completed rocket very authentic looking.

After reading some comments about the balsa NC of the Brant not being heavy enough to reliably pull the chute out of the rocket, I decided to give it some extra pull by adding a 12" chute to the NC eyelet. This would also help in recovery, as the only other complaint I've read about this rocket it that the included chute is just a little too small.

Flight:
I selected a F52-5T for the maiden flight. wRASP simulation showed an 1170 ft. flight with maximum altitude at 6.1 seconds, and a maximum velocity of 314.6 ft/sec. True to the simulation, the rocket zoomed off the pad straight as an arrow to an estimated 800 or 900 ft., and deployed perfectly at max altitude.

Recovery:
The rocket drifted on for ever.... right into a rocket eating tree. The extra 12" chute was a little too much. The kit chute alone would have done just fine. (My friend scaled the tree and removed the rocket for me... if you're wondering).

Summary:
Overall, I'll give the Cosmodrome Black Brant II a 5 of 5 rating. The balsa NC is prone to damage (I knocked the pointy tip off (1/8") while transporting it), but that is the only negative comment I can think of. Super Kit!

The following excerpt is from "Sport Rocketry". The intention is to allow guests to get a basic feeling about a kit. We strongly suggest that you get a copy of the referenced Sport Rocketry and read the entire article. Inside you will find many helpful hints in construction as well as other useful information. For more information, use the two links above.

"The 1/6 scale Black Brant II from Cosmodrome uses heavy-duty construction, allowing it to be flown with motors ranging from F through H."
"The 29mm motor mount has 1/8" plywood rings which anchor the steel cable shock cord mount."
"The motor mount included a threaded rod as part of a positive motor retention system ..."
"The nose cone and boattail are balsa."
"The fins are pre-cut 3/16" plywood with through-the-wall mounting tabs (you get to cut the slots in the body tube)."
"The kit instructions included a wrap-around guide to layout the roll pattern, but there was no picture of the Black Brant II paint scheme, so it was unclear exactly where to place some of the self-adhesive decals . . ."
"The Cosmodrome Black Brant II makes a fine sport model . . ."
"The model is recovered with a 24" nylon 'chute, so this bird drops fast and lands hard . . ."

The entire article gives the impression is that this model is a solid kit, but needs some work to be a good competition scale model.

The following excerpt is from "Extreme Rocketry". The intention is to allow guests to get a basic feeling about a kit. We strongly suggest that you get a copy of the referenced Extreme Rocketry and read the entire article. Inside you will find many helpful hints in construction as well as other useful information. For more information, use the link above.

"The Black Brant series of sounding rockets has been around for over 40 years."
"Cosmodrome Rocketry’s kit is a 1/6-scale version of the Black Brant II."
"The kit comes packaged in a clear heavyweight poly bag with a liner card depicting a computer drawn image of the rocket along with the kit specifications and suggested motors."
"The nose and tail cones are nicely done. The kit includes everything you need to complete this rocket."
"The instructions are straightforward…include CAD drawn diagrams to aid the builder"
"The body tube does require slotting."
"…kit comes with motor retention…"
"The fins go through the wall and tie into the motor tube centering rings for a nice strong joint."
"A painting guide is included in the instructions pages…challenging paint scheme…."
"The paint scheme really makes this rocket stand out."
"The decals are printed on clear, self stick mylar."
"This model can be flown on a wide range of 29mm motors."
"The parachute is of good quality…."

The article reviews the construction of the kit in detail including needed modifications for users of Dr. Rocket casings. The article suggests this is a good mid-power kit.

Flight Log

Date	Rocket Name	Motor(s)	Altitude	Notes
2000-05-12	Casey Smith's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G80-7	-	Chute got fowled up after an amazing boost. estimated 1500 feet, those large fins can take any...
2000-05-12	Casey Smith's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G35-4	-	pefect boost, quick off the pad, excellent 1st flight engine, beautiful deployment and recovery
2000-11-04	Casey Smith's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G64-10	-	Beautiful boost on this kit, the wind never effects it with those large fins. Unfortunately, the...
2000-12-26	Les Newman's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G40-7	-	Superb flight - straight boost until out of sight in a blue sky. Drifted c.400 yards. Some slight...
2001-03-07	Todd Moore's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	F52	-	Nice boost. Very Fast flight to apogee. Straight as an arrow. Drifted into a tree. Argh! Recovered...
2001-03-30	Casey Smith's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G35-7	-	Nice straight up boost. I think it had an extra 20% propellant in it. It seemed to keep going....
2001-04-25	Todd Moore's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G33	-	Nice slow flight on a pillar of black smoke. Perfect recovery. Nice motor for this rocket
2001-05-05	Casey Smith's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G35-7	-	Great boost, weathercocked, good deploy. Landed about 400 yards away, the parachute is working!
2001-09-03	Les Newman's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G40-7	-	Very good straight long boost - this motor suits the rocket. The chute didn't fully open. Landed...
2001-10-27	John Storey's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	F52-8	-
2001-11-04	John Storey's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G75-7	-
2002-01-19	Todd Moore's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	H128	-	Altimeter failure caused premature drogue seperation, and destruction of rear deployment airframe....
2002-05-04	Casey Smith's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	I200-L	-	Screamed off the pad, way up there out of sight. Waited forever for it to come down, good deploy,...
2004-07-24	Jason Vennard's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G64-7	-	Beautiful flight, nice flying rocket. Unfortunately sharply airfoiled plywood fins meeting up with...
2006-04-22	Jason Vennard's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G64-7	-	Another great flight, perfectly straight up and ejection right at apogee with no problems/damage....
2006-04-22	Jason Vennard's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G64-7	-	Another nice flight, perfectly straight up and ejection right at apogee with no damage, recovered...
2006-04-22	Jason Vennard's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G64-7	-	Another awesome flight and everything came off without a hitch. Good boost and recovery under 30...
2008-04-26	James Turner's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G64-4	-	First flight after almost 4 months of assembly and paint. Awesome flight. Straight up, no twist on...
2008-04-26	James Turner's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G64-4	-	Another perfect flight
2008-04-26	James Turner's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G64-4	-	Flight was perfect. On landing 2 of 3 fins stuck in the soft ground just as a slight gust caught...
2009-04-18	Tim Bearden's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G76-7	-	Perfect Maiden fligt, strait up strait down, landed 50 ft from pad.
2009-08-29	DAN KRAUSE's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	F52-8	-	I built it heavy so it was a little late. Great flight but a little zipper. It handled the wind...
2010-01-01	Tim Bearden's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G69-9	-
2010-01-01	Tim Bearden's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G69-8	-
2010-03-20	Tim Bearden's Cosmodrome Rocketry Black Brant II	G69-10	-	Last of my sparky motors, chute got a bit tangled and cost a faster than optimal landing, slight...

Comments:

C.S. (April 1, 2001)

Excellent craftsmanship easy to get replies from the manufacturer if you have questions. These kits are true to mid/high power kits, kits you get to build! These kits come out great, look great, and fly even better. I love my Black Brandt, just wish I was a better painter. The parachute attached to the nose is a definite bonus. I actually wrapped my nose in glass to protect the balsa. This rocket+H220M=Instant L1+ whiplash!

L.N. (April 1, 2001)

I agree completely with the review. The kit is easy to build, the parts are high quality and the final result is impressive. This rocket looks aerodynamic and flies straight & high in my experience - superb on an Aerotech G40-7 White Lightning. One hint, I split the BT into 30" & 4" sections and glued the 4" section and a coupler permanently to the NC - this gives a bit of extra weight. It's also about the same size of the payload bay on the real thing! Also, put lots of coats of either thin CA or balsa dope on the NC to ward off the dents.

J.B. (April 1, 2001)

I found this a very good building and flying kit. Sanding the bevels on the fins can be challenge. I glassed the fins, boattail and nose cone on mine to help reduce rash and damage on landing. I recently modified mine to carry an RRC2 altimeter as payload only. The rocket recovers two sections, each with a 24" chute. This helps soften the landing stress. I will say the unique roll pattern is the most challenging part of this kit. If you take your time and study the diagram provided there should be no problems. I used an Aeropack motor retainer rather than the supplied threaded rod and nut. For this you have to allow about a 1/4" of the motor tube to stick out past the boattail so you can install Aeropack's retainer. I, however, did away with the furnished elastic and used 1/4" Kevlar® (15' length). I don't trust elastic that much any more. For a picture of mine you can go to my web page. The review was very accurate. It's great sport scale model. Construction is very straight forward and the turned balsa parts are outstanding. Mike at Cosmodrome does all the shaping and the workmanship shows. Mike and Janine also make all their own parachutes for all the kits they produce. This would be a great second or third sport scale kit for someone.

J.M.E.S. (November 6, 2001)

I, too, love the Estes Black Brant II and bought this kit to complement it from Magnum who provided excellent service. I think the NC and tailcone are great. I spent several hours with sandpaper and finally a belt sander trying to shape the fins before giving up after ruining one on the belt sander. I went to Plan B, which was to buy some 3/16" balsa for the fins. I sanded it to the spec and then covered them with 2.3 oz glass. The rocket is lighter this way, and still very tough. I have flown it on an F52T-M and a G75J-M. The first flight could have used a shorter delay. The G75 flight was fantastic. The nose cone dings on recovery, but I am not too fanatic about that. I also added a coupler/altimeter pay using an Aerotech coupler. If you study the pattern, you can cut the tube at the bottom of the first roll pattern and have a decent size payload section. I highly recommend this kit. Construction 4 (fins too difficult) and flight 5.

N.O. (June 19, 2005)

I've seen one of these kits that someone is building at present, I noticed that the nosecone now seems to be made of fibreglass or plastic filled with expanding foam. This looks a lot stronger than balsa, it also seems to be one of the few 2.5/2.6" conical NC's around.

J.R. (October 28, 2005)

I am thinking about getting one of these cones for a carbon fiber mach buster then I am working on, it is a two stager. How long is the cone? Anybody know for sure if it is glass now or still balsa? What is a good dealer to get it from? (they are not selling stuff for a while, moving...). The rocket will hit the ground pretty hard and get some serious speed, to reinforce it I plan on using some thin resin like you would use for glassing, and soak it into the cone. On my nike cone I used a gel epoxy and it worked well but with a thin resin that soaks in the cone should be good for super high speed and rough handling flights.

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