Estes Red Alert

Estes - Red Alert {Kit} (893) [1991-1992]

Contributed by John Lee

Construction Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Flight Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Overall Rating: starstarstarstar_borderstar_border
Manufacturer: Estes
(OOP) Estes Red Alert

Brief:
This is a simple, high-performance OOP rocket from the Estes catalog of '91 and '92.

Construction:
It includes an engine block, paper shock cord mount, launch lug, lug offset, shock cord, streamer, screw eye, balsa nose cone, BT-5, and 3 die-cut fins.

The build is easy and instructions are excellent.

I sanded the fins to an airfoil shape, filled the tube spirals, and painted it with a sky blue metal flake paint for an eye candy look to try to improve on the spermatozoa look. The kit does not come with decals but does include a foil wrap that doesn't fit.

Construction Rating: 3 out of 5

Flight:
PROs: Flown on 1/4A3-3T, 1/2A-2T, A10-3T, and A3-4T. It flies great. You would think the bulbous nose cone would slow it down, but it doesn't. It is fast, straight, and high. CONs: You have to be careful not to knock the nose cone off when you're putting it on the launch rod.

Recovery:
PROs: It always comes streaming back. CONs: It always comes back.

Flight Rating: 3 out of 5

(OOP) Estes Red Alert

Summary:
Do you have a rocket in your box that's impossible to kill? Here's mine. I've launched this one probably 20 times with no damage, not even a broken fin. (I have replaced the shock cord a couple of times of course.) It is usually used for wind testing to find out if it's possible to launch a real rocket. I built this as an example at a build session. We got a closeout package deal of a large lot for cheap. This gets my nomination for the ugliest Estes rocket of all time.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5

Other Reviews
  • Estes Red Alert By John Lee (October 19, 2008)

    Brief: Next week, my club is going to have an informal 13mm duration competition. I never win these things, but I do like to take part. With only a week to go, I realized that I didn't have anything ready to enter and started looking through the inventory. I found the Red Alert. It seemed light and would go pretty high on an A despite the draggy nose cone. Besides, it was near the ...

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