RocketReviews.com - Estes - Goblin (1255) [1970-1982]

Brief:
OOP for many years, a single Stage, light streamer recovery, D engine mount, 4FNC rocket. This kit was provided as a free bonus by Estes if an order exceeded a certain amount.

Construction:
one BT-55 body tube, balsa nosecone, 4 balsa fins from BFS-40 fin stock (fins cut from a provided pattern, not pre-cut most of the way like they are now), D engine mount, crepe paper streamer and rubber shock cord.

Instructions were easy to follow, although with a different layout than now. The instruction sheet can be found at JimZ Rocket Plans web site. The fins are not through-the-wall, so you must either modify the cut pattern and cut the slots in the body tube; OR just build per plan and use the method of attaching wood fins proscribed by Doug Pratt on his Tomahawk. I as a 12 year old didn't do either and popped off a fin on one landing. I have since added healthy glue fillets, and painted over with orange enamel and brush.

Finishing:
The main rocket body can be spray painted either yellow like the instructions called for, or orange like I did which seemed more Halloween-ish. The decals I had are the same as on JimZ plans except for a black and white band instead of a solid black band. The nose cone and one fin are painted black.

Flight:
Recommended engines are D13-5 (or C6-5, B6-4, or A8-3 with an EM2050 adapter) Obviously, Estes does not make a D13-5 any more, but the D12-5 is certainly about the same. With no added weight on the nose cone, this rocket has flown well with an A8-3, B6-4, C6-7, D12-3, and D12-5. You would think that a D would be too heavy for the rocket with no weight in nose, but I think it accelerates so quickly that it is up to speed by the time it leaves the launch rod. The estimated max height in the instructions is 1700 ft. This is probably at Colorado Springs altitude. I think mine only goes about 1000-1200 ft high on a D in Minnesota.

Recovery:
The 25 year old rubber shock cord was too brittle and failed after one flight. It was replaced by a elastic shock cord somewhat longer than the original. The crepe streamer attachment was also replaced, and a longer nylon streamer is now used.

Summary:
This is only one of two vintage rockets my Mom did not throw or give away. It is responsible for my being a BAR as my Mom insisted I take it home with me one time when I was visiting. It had been kept all those years without ever flying, and flew for the first time 22 years after it had been built. Good construction technique will build lasting rockets! It is fun to bring it to club launches and show it off to the other BARs who remember it.

Flight Log

Date	Rocket Name	Motor(s)	Altitude	Notes
1997-11-05	David Fergus's Estes Goblin	B6-4	-	broke off one launch lug
1999-04-29	David Fergus's Estes Goblin	D12-3	-	after flight, tugged gently on original rubber shockcord and it came right out. surprising it...
1999-08-14	David Fergus's Estes Goblin	A8-3	-
1999-08-14	David Fergus's Estes Goblin	C6-7	-
1999-08-14	David Fergus's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	took a 20 degree from vertical angle after it came off the rod, but streamer recovery still...
2000-07-02	Joe Cacciatore's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Another flight with a fin almost knocked off. Must be 5 second delay too short.
2000-07-23	Joe Cacciatore's Estes Goblin	D12-7	-	Lost rocket in forest on its 10th flight. Later I was told owner of the land found it and threw it...
2002-04-27	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Goblin	C11-7	-
2002-05-19	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Another great flight. Landed in swamp, but not damaged.
2002-06-22	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Great flight.
2002-07-06	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Hard landing just in front of the cars caused two fin fillets to break. Easily repairable.
2002-07-21	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Goblin	D12-7	-	Great altitude, but a hard landing claimed a fin.
2003-04-27	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Goblin	C11-7	-	A great engine for the Goblin. It still screams.
2003-06-21	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Goblin	D12-7	-	Slightly wobbly off the pad, but overall a beautiful flight and recovery. Recovered less than 100'...
2004-02-29	Bill Eichelberger's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Great flight, straight up with a slight drift on recovery. Caught in a tree on field's edge, but...
2004-05-15	Bob Bernatchez's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Another old rocket returned to flight status after a long hiatus.
2004-08-24	Chan Stevens's Estes Goblin	D12-3	-
2005-03-20	Bob Bernatchez's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Looks like I found a pack of C11-5's with bonus delay.
2005-04-17	Bob Harrington's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Perfect flight with streamer recovery within 50 ft of pad.
2006-11-04	Sam Thompson's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Nearly out of sight, should have stuck to the C's. Even on a streamer it drifted out of sight.
2006-11-04	Sam Thompson's Estes Goblin	C11-3	-
2006-11-04	Max Thompson's Estes Goblin	C11-3	-
2007-03-18	Gene Wolski's Goblin-I	C11-5	-	First flight - great flight & recovery.
2007-07-01	Chan Stevens's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Lost in knee-high weeds/grass
2007-07-15	Gene Wolski's Goblin-I	C6-5	-	Great flight. Used 18mm adapter for the C6-5.
2007-08-19	Gene Wolski's Goblin-I	C6-5	-	Used an 18mm adapter for the C6-5. Lost visual on the rocket and didn't recover it despite using...
2008-02-23	Moe Bertrand's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Great first flight of my Goblin clone...painted, decalled and all (a rarity for me...I hope to...
2008-03-22	Moe Bertrand's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Another nice flight of my Goblin clone. Landed hard but no damage.
2008-06-15	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Great flight - recovered nicely on crepe paper streamer.
2008-09-21	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Great boost but broke one fin on landing.
2008-11-11	Mark Grisco's Estes Goblin	C6-7	-	perfect flight. you could probably use a 5 second delay and have ejection closer to apogee but its...
2008-11-11	Mark Grisco's Estes Goblin	C6-7	-	GOBLIN + C6 = SEE YA!!!!
2008-11-11	Mark Grisco's Estes Goblin	A8-3	-	maiden flight. perfect flight to about 250 feet. i am using a 2 inch streamer witch seems about...
2008-11-15	Mark Grisco's Estes Goblin	B6-4	-	windy and cold, but nice flight. flew low due to angle of launch rod/weathercocking but traveled...
2008-11-22	John Bergsmith's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Flight number 2 was an exact duplicate of flight number one. Outstanding!
2008-11-22	John Bergsmith's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	First flight on my cloned Goblin. Very straight, very fast, and very high. Perfectly flight...
2008-11-26	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Test flight - decided it was too breezy for other flights
2008-11-27	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Good flight but broke fin on landing
2009-01-10	Moe Bertrand's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Another cool flight of my Goblin clone. Almost stuck the landing with the streamer recovery but it...
2009-01-18	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	B6-4	-	Great flight. Kept it low with the B6-4 and recovered close to the pads.
2009-02-14	Moe Bertrand's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Another nice flight of my Goblin clone. Popped the black fin on landing...easily repairable.
2009-03-22	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	B6-4	-	Excellent flight - one of my favorite rockets!
2009-03-28	Moe Bertrand's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Another good D12 flight of my Goblin clone / streamer recovery. Takes a lickin' and keeps on...
2009-04-19	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Great flight.
2009-04-26	Moe Bertrand's Estes Goblin	D12-5	-	Another great flight of my Goblin clone. I needed a good flight after two consecutive failures. ...
2009-07-07	Mark Grisco's Estes Goblin	C6-5	-	it was cloudy and i lost it near apogee. i spotted it about 700+ feet. nice high flight on a C6.
2009-08-09	Mark Kulka's Estes Goblin (Clone)	B6-4	-	First flight of my clone. Went higher than I was expecting. Nice flight and recovery.
2009-11-01	Mark Kulka's Estes Goblin (Clone)	C6-3	-	Nice boost; reasonably high flight. Recovery on 12 in. chute. A bit of drift in the breeze.
2009-11-14	Mark Grisco's Estes Goblin	C6-7	-	perfect flight!!!!
2009-11-14	Mark Grisco's Estes Goblin	C6-7	-	broke fin, easy fix....
2010-03-14	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Great flight - short walk on streamer.
2010-08-14	Bernard Cawley's Estes Goblin	A8-3	-	Good boost. A bit late ejection. Landed on a hard spot on the field. Popped one fin and scraped...
2010-09-18	Bernard Cawley's Estes Goblin	C11-5	-	Zoom! Great boost and good deployment. Did pop a fin on landing (30-year-old glue joints?). Small...
2010-10-23	Mark Kulka's Estes Goblin (Clone)	C11-7	-	Larger motor this time. Really zipped off the pad and went nearly out of sight. Fair amt. of drift...
2010-11-13	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	B6-4	-	Great flight & close recovery on a streamer.
2011-01-01	Bernard Cawley's Estes Goblin	C6-5	-	18mm motor. Great flight all around - boost, deployment time, streamer, landing. Not too far to...
2011-11-12	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Excellent flight! Windy day - pretty decent drift even on a streamer.
2012-01-14	Matthew Bond's 2.00x Upscale Goblin	F40-7	1228 feet	First Flight of the Big Goblin! Nice boost, smooth and straight. Looked like a nice tailstand,...
2012-01-15	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Awesome flight as always - great rocket!
2012-01-29	John Bergsmith's Estes Goblin	Estes D12-5	-
2012-03-10	Matthew Bond's 2.00x Upscale Goblin	G53-7	1623 feet	Nice second flight of the Big Goblin. Good boost, fast and straight off the rod. Still climbing...
2012-03-31	Gene Wolski's Goblin-II	C6-5	-	Great flight - landed near the pads!
2012-05-19	John Bergsmith's Estes Goblin	Estes D12-5	-	Great flight.

Estes - Goblin (1255) [1970-1982]

Flight Log

What You Can Do