Estes - (Astron) Ranger (K-6 or #1206) Gallery

[chadrog]

I like it! A three finned Big Bertha?

Or is it a "Big Betty"? The Quest Big Betty has only three fins.

 

[nosecone]

Well, it came out of the package as a Big Bertha Kit but I have 4 BB's built already so I deleted a fin and swapped nose cones with another Estes cone. I also sanded off the sharp parts of the fins. I guess it is a hybrid, a Partial Bertha you might say :wink:

I also installed an ejection baffle and nylon chute. I plan on making this my go-to rocket for lots of launches.

 

[chadrog]

I plan on making this my go-to rocket for lots of launches.

It should serve you well, it's a workhorse!

 

[Stymye]

I like it! A three finned Big Bertha?

aka: Quest Big Betty



*edit-oops sorry that already been mentioned

 

[Captain Ron]

Here's my Big Bertha!

 

[JAL3]

Here's my Big Bertha!

Interesting. The scheme looks like a mix from the 60s and 90s.

 

[Captain Ron]

Interesting. The scheme looks like a mix from the 60s and 90s.

well the all black paint scheme didnt do anything for me and i wanted a retro look. Then as i was finishing up i wanted to show that it was a current build so i used the decals only on the black portion. So yeah , a bit from both periods.

 

[Micromeister]

Down Scaling the Old Ranger cluster for micro maxx motors is fun. At BT-20 (.736") body diameter we can easily get a 4 motor cluster in the business end.

It's actually pretty amazing the amount of smoke and fire ya get from these little guys!

This model is also set up with LED's in the payload section for Night flying with a 3V lithium battery.

Post copied with permission

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[roy_lappalainen]

Here is mine to get things started.

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[Micromeister]

I bought a dozen Baby Bertha kits when they went on sale a year or so ago. Basicly for the Nosecones.

Believe it or not I don't have a Baby Bertha in my fleet LOL! but the Better 2/3rds has one she built at a Club build session (her second rocket in 20+ years).. Finished it in her own way with craft paints. Flys well and has a special mylar Balloon chute..can't recall the message.

 

[Boosterdude]

I built this one last year.

 

[MrGneissGuy]

Wow, after seeing the finish on that US Army one there, I'm almost embarassed to post a pic of mine.

This Baby Bertha was my first build (not counting the rockets made in shop class waaaayyyyyy back in junior high school) after helping my girls with their two E2X rockets.

I like to think my finishing has improved since then.

 

[jeffgeraci]

Made this for my daughter; it's an estes "Baby Bertha" painted like MUNO from yo gabba gabba.

Post copied with permission

 

[Captain Ron]

Here is my "D Big Bertha" featuring a Estes E/D engine mount... I used some left over decals that I had laying around and this is what I came up with....

 

[bjphoenix]

I built this rocket for a junior high school science project, and launched a white rat in it. I have photos of the launch dated spring 1968. In those days the largest engines we had were B, both end burning and the high thrust core burners. I built a special launch pad for it and used a longer 1/4" diameter rod. I also set it up for dual parachute- one for the booster and one for the payload section, with a harness attached to the fins so the booster would land on its side rather than fin-down. I don't remember how many flights it has had, probably not very many. It was flown twice with the white rat and had good flights both times, with no apparent affects on the payload.

The launch photo is from 1968.

 

[Micromeister]

Very nice photos!
All mine from back then are mostly b&w Poloriod, hard to see now. but still bring back very fond memories

 

[Fishhead]

Love the vintage pics.

 

[ECayemberg]

I love the vintage photos as well! I recently built a Ranger clone alongside a Semroc Goliath, and gave the pair inverse paint schemes of each other. Here's the Ranger prior to flight on a trio of B4-4's in the early evening.

-Eric-

 

[jeffk813]

Found my all-black Big Bertha after about 10 years of sitting in a moving box. One of the fins was missing and the upper 3/16 of the body tube was badly crunched.

So, I trimmed up the tube, replaced the fins, sand her down and repainted her in a new color scheme. Then I cam up with a lame slogan "Big Bertha Evolved" and cut out some decals on the vinyl cutter.

For this one I was trying out new paints and a new technique and I have to say I'm VERY happy with the way she came out:

 

[goose_in_co]

I made a family photo of the bertha's in the house a long time ago. Left to right: Clone Mini-Bertha, Polar-1 (baby Bertha bash), Baby Bertha, Big Blue Bertha, Boat-tailed Big Bertha, Super Big Bertha.

.

 

[BEC]

My Ranger clone based on parts from a whole bunch of places. So far it has been flown on As and Bs only. Perhaps it'll get a ride on three Quest C6-5s at the Blue Mountain Rocketeers' Rolling Thunder event in September.

 

[Scode68]

We christened this one last year and it has well over 20 flights on it. This was built from spare parts but is all stock design wise.

Have more Bertha's and some Ranger's planed.

 

[chadrog]

We christened this one last year and it has well over 20 flights on it. This was built from spare parts but is all stock design wise.

Have more Bertha's and some Ranger's planed.

Excellent paintjob!

 

[caveduck]

Wow, I like a lot of these. Somehow I've never built a BB...gonna have to make one pretty soon. As far as a paint theme I'm thinking "COW" (the Pig Bertha is hysterical, we need more farm animals!).

Pretty cool to see Vern flying BB#1 recently. I recall seeing him fly it at NARAM 32 or 34, and it was old then. It's gotta be the oldest model rocket still in semi-regular operation, flown by the longest-serving rocketeer ever.

 

[chadrog]

Wow, I like a lot of these. Somehow I've never built a BB...gonna have to make one pretty soon. As far as a paint theme I'm thinking "COW" (the Pig Bertha is hysterical, we need more farm animals!).

Pretty cool to see Vern flying BB#1 recently. I recall seeing him fly it at NARAM 32 or 34, and it was old then. It's gotta be the oldest model rocket still in semi-regular operation, flown by the longest-serving rocketeer ever.

I've been thinking cow for awhile myself. It will be a nice addition to our "Barnyard Bertha" collection, which so far includes the pig and a chicken. I really should get a chick-pic in here...

 

[FatBoy]

Here is my BIG Baby Bertha.... It is an up-scale based on a 2.6" diameter body. The fins, body tube, nose cone and 24mm motor mount are parts I collected from Semroc, and the vinyl decals are from StickerShock. It stands almost 20" high....

 

[FatBoy]

I flew this today on a D12-5....

 

[JPVegh]

Bigger Bertha, a long time ago in galaxy far away.

 

[StefanJ]

I based my Ranger clone's paint job on an early catalog photo:

Of course, I'm only assuming it was red.

 

[Fishhead]

I won a vintage payload section in an Ebay auction and left it as it was, pairing it with a newly built booster. I built it as I would have in 1977, no filler after the primer. It hasn't flown as yet.