RocketReviews.com - Estes - Mach-12 (2130) [1997-2001]

Brief:
This kit is part of Estes "E2X" series of kits which are easy to assemble 'almost ready to fly' types. The Mach 12 comes with pre-colored body parts, and needs only plastic cement to build. It comes with an 18" parachute.

Construction:
This kit is BT-55 based, and come w/ a body tube in two sections which are joined via a plastic coupler which has an integrated launch lug. The nose cone is plastic, and was the best I'd ever seen from Estes. Not one imperfection or any bit of flashing.

Two interesting things about this kit -- the motor mount & the fins. The mount is simply a plastic tube glued together, which also serves as the fin can. Motor retention is done via a screw on plastic tail piece. The kit comes with 3 sets of 4 fins which allow for up to 12 different fin configurations, so says the box. The fins can be easily changed, and fit nicely into slots on the fin can. The parachute was 18", and I have opted to use a 12" in its place. This is a light kit, and any wind would blow it away in no time. the shock cord was too small.

This kit is the easiest Estes kit I've ever assembled. The instruction are clear, and leave no room for questions. It doesn't take much to finish this off. I did use a length of Kevlar® thread as a shock cord anchor, but otherwise I build it stock. The decals are self adhesive, and look good. As stated above, I swapped out the 18" chute for a 12".

The only thing I didn't like about this is the plastic-to-paper joints. They don't inspire much confidence, although they did hold together for the 2 flights it has had.

Finishing:
PROS: no finishing required, since all parts are pre-colored. Can't say the black/yellow/orange scheme is the best I could think of, but it will be hard to lose in green grass :). Decals go on easily

Flight:
I've flown it twice, both times on B6-4's since that was all I had kicking around. Nice straight flights each time, w/ nice recovery. The 12" chute works fine. I used the same fins on each flight, but may experiment in the future. On a C6, this kit would go nicely. No damage on either flight.

Recovery:
The 12" chute is sufficient for this kit. I'd keep the 18" for some other kit that needs it.

The Kevlar® thread used as an anchor is now standard procedure for all my kits, and I've not had a burn through failure yet.

Summary:
If you are looking for a real easy to assemble, fun kit and want to fly it soon, this is your baby. I bought it since it on sale for $4, and my visiting nephew would probably like to see it fly. Its a great kit to have for when you want to fly a small, but interesting rocket.

Flight Log

Date	Rocket Name	Motor(s)	Altitude	Notes
2000-03-27	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	18 parachute Nice high flight. I reefed the parachute a lot, but there was still a lot of drift....
2000-03-29	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	18 parachute Nice wobbly boost. Good flight.
2000-04-14	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	18 parachute Tipped into the breeze. Deployed fast, ripping 2 shroud lines. No damage.
2000-04-18	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	18 parachute Way up, landed over fence.
2000-04-18	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	B6-2	-	18 parachute Nice flight. Deployment a bit early.
2000-05-04	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	18 parachute Ripped a line. Not a bad flight (over the fence).
2000-05-21	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	18 parachute Again nice!
2000-05-22	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	18 parachute Very high boost. Nice deployment and recovery.
2000-05-30	MikeyR's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	18 parachute Very nice flight. Close landing.
2002-04-07	Jason Vennard's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	Nice easy flight and recovery, 12 chute.
2002-05-19	Jason Vennard's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	Our 2nd Mach, built by son Devin, 9 years old. Good flight, shock chord burnt through at mount to...
2002-07-27	David Logan's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-
2002-10-26	David Logan's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	Nice flight, stripped the shroud lines from the chute, landed with no damage.
2002-10-27	David Logan's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	Crimped upper end of body tube on it's sixth flight in one day. All flights on this date were...
2003-04-12	David Logan's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	Perfect flight, recovered about 50 yards down wind on a stock 12 inch chute.
2003-06-01	William Beggs's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	Great flight and recovery.
2003-06-01	William Beggs's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	Great flight and recovery.
2006-01-15	Aaron Stanley's Estes Mach-12	A8-3	-	My first flight of 2006. It was a great flight even though the ejection was late.
2007-04-16	William Beggs's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	Perfect flight and recovery.
2007-04-16	William Beggs's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	Perfect flight and recovery.
2007-06-19	Frank Broughton's Estes Mach-12	C6-5	-	Excellent flight, landed 150 feet from pad
2007-07-22	Steve Lindeman's Mach-12	B6-4	-	Because of wind chose a B6-4 for this launch. Nice straight lift into the wind with ejection...
2010-04-10	William Beggs's Estes Mach-12	B6-4	-	Perfect flight and recovery.

Estes - Mach-12 (2130) [1997-2001]

Flight Log

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