Return of the Estes Pro Series II Nike Smoke

[Art Upton]

I was tempted to order one "In The Box", but I don't need another one. I avoided that temptation even after putting it in the cart.
Now Estes is sending me an email I left items in my shopping cart , buy them now

 

[dmaaero]

That launch2024 code only works once

 

[n3tjm]

Apparently my purchase was influential.

 

[SolarYellow]

That launch2024 code only works once

I'm saving mine for Thanksgiving weekend.

 

[ljwilley]

I got mine for only 65$ with the 25% code! Including shipping!

 

[Bruiser]

I didn't even think there might be a 4th of July sale coming up when I ordered mine last week But it's here now and I am researching possible paint schemes for the build

-Bob

 

[Art Upton]

I didn't even think there might be a 4th of July sale coming up when I ordered mine last week But it's here now and I am researching possible paint schemes for the build

-Bob

I have a Quest fin-can Nike Smoke kit that came with a Black Body tube, I should probably build that I don't think it's a collectors fluke.

 

[ljwilley]

Other than the classic and the olive drab paint jobs for the Nike, is there any other scale accurate ones?

 

[rharshberger]

Other than the classic and the olive drab paint jobs for the Nike, is there any other scale accurate ones?

The two color schemes are the predominant and afaik the only two official. The white with colored fins was a common paint scheme, but the OD Green with raw fins (magnesium iirc that has started to oxidize turns a goldish color). The OD green color was the factory color of the M5 or M5E1 rocket motor, and the white nose cone looks to be white.

You COULD paint it like the upper stage of the Nike-Nike Smoke which I have yet to see that paint scheme show up to a launch yet.
https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/scale-data-for-the-nike-nike-smoke.135272/

 

[Bruiser]

Art, I saw a picture the other day on FB with Harry Stine and a Nike Smoke that had a different color fin can assy and nose cone. I think they were red. I don't remember the body tube color but now I can't find it again as is often the case with stuff on FB

Rich, I had thought about a "might have been" paint scheme based on other Nike paint schemes at the time, like the Nike-Nike Smoke. So let's set the scene...

The Nike Smoke is in development. They have the motor direct from the Army in resplendent olive drab, a new nose cone painted in white and new fins that they haven't had the time to paint to paint yet but they need to launch it so they do. Maybe that's how the OD Nike Smoke from the no-longer-available You Tube video came to be. Then comes the next round... They realize that they really need to paint the fins for better tracking so they paint three OD and one white like on the Nike-Nike Smoke. Off it goes but they want to see it better so here comes round three. This time they paint three fins red and one yellow because not much visibility was gained with the OD and white fins. The new color fins were such an improvement that they became the quasi-essential Nike Smoke fins Not really sure about the fin can color...



-Bob

 

[rharshberger]

Art, I saw a picture the other day on FB with Harry Stine and a Nike Smoke that had a different color fin can assy and nose cone. I think they were red. I don't remember the body tube color but now I can't find it again as is often the case with stuff on FB

Rich, I had thought about a "might have been" paint scheme based on other Nike paint schemes at the time, like the Nike-Nike Smoke. So let's set the scene...

The Nike Smoke is in development. They have the motor direct from the Army in resplendent olive drab, a new nose cone painted in white and new fins that they haven't had the time to paint to paint yet but they need to launch it so they do. Maybe that's how the OD Nike Smoke from the no-longer-available You Tube video came to be. Then comes the next round... They realize that they really need to paint the fins for better tracking so they paint three OD and one white like on the Nike-Nike Smoke. Off it goes but they want to see it better so here comes round three. This time they paint three fins red and one yellow because not much visibility was gained with the OD and white fins. The new color fins were such an improvement that they became the quasi-essential Nike Smoke fins Not really sure about the fin can color...

View attachment 654175

-Bob

My guess is that many of the surplus M5E1 motors used were left "natural" instead of painted but thats just a WAG.

 

[Bruiser]

There's only a few documented though. There's the one with the copperish looking fins and there's another but it does not have standard fins. It had fins designed to take heat recording. It's tri-panel fin like the Smoke fins but the leading edge is swept more and the trailing edge is 90 degrees to the motor.



The thing that almost surprises me is that there doesn't seem to be any on display anywhere..

-Bob

 

[Ronz Rocketz]

Mine's on a slow boat to Hawaii. Supposed to arrive 7/11.

Here's Gary's on a F26.


F42. Don't know much about this rocket build but didn't seem to go as high as Gary's.

 

[cwbullet]

I ordered 2

 

[Art Upton]

Art, I saw a picture the other day on FB with Harry Stine and a Nike Smoke that had a different color fin can assy and nose cone. I think they were red. I don't remember the body tube color but now I can't find it again as is often the case with stuff on FB

Rich, I had thought about a "might have been" paint scheme based on other Nike paint schemes at the time, like the Nike-Nike Smoke. So let's set the scene...

The Nike Smoke is in development. They have the motor direct from the Army in resplendent olive drab, a new nose cone painted in white and new fins that they haven't had the time to paint to paint yet but they need to launch it so they do. Maybe that's how the OD Nike Smoke from the no-longer-available You Tube video came to be. Then comes the next round... They realize that they really need to paint the fins for better tracking so they paint three OD and one white like on the Nike-Nike Smoke. Off it goes but they want to see it better so here comes round three. This time they paint three fins red and one yellow because not much visibility was gained with the OD and white fins. The new color fins were such an improvement that they became the quasi-essential Nike Smoke fins Not really sure about the fin can color...

View attachment 654175

-Bob

If that body tube was black, that is what the Quest Nike Smoke kit I have in the see thru plastic square box. It's in one of the build pile(s) I think, not the stash boxes. [most of those stash rockets sold in 2021 and in the last 3 months]

I'll have to dig it out tomorrow and post. I got mine at random, but "I recall" Doug Pratt had several of them for sale on his site way back in the day calling them special for some reason that didn't catch on and now I forget.