(Complet) Rocket-15 complète Composite High Performance Planeur 1485mm (ARF)

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Customer Rated

Aug 31, 2012

Rocket 15 needs better quality control.

Wing bolts are missing. The length of forward bolt to fix V-tail is too short.

Fuselage is fragile. It needs to be reinforced. V-tail fixing bolt broke through the wall of fuselage when tightened.

Composite skin of the plane is too thin and fragile.

It is for slope sports flying. Not suitable for DS.

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Customer Rated

Jun 12, 2012

US delivery time was 45 days when I ordered on 4/20. It still stands at 45 days as of 6/11. I am still waiting for delivery. If they cannot supply the item, it should be removed from catalog.

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Customer Rated

Mar 07, 2012

(cont. again) throw and CG data if they provide any data at all, and there is only moderate Chinglish.

Build tips: I always epoxy a strip of Kevlar tape to the inside floor of the fuselage, up over the tip of the nose extending back under the wing, and two strips of carbon tow the same length as the Kevlar tape on both sides of the fuse just under the cutout for the nose cover. This will strengthen the forward half of the fuselage immensely in a crash. Likewise, I run a strip of clear, dense plastic tape over the underside of the fuselage nose extending back to the wing to keep it scratch free, and with a fiberglass wing it doesn't hurt to run a strip of the same strong, clear tape along the leading edge. Hollow molded fiberglass wings can crush easily in a crash, and this can help protect it against wing dings.

Conclusion: Packaging: 4 stars. Paint job: 4 stars. Lack of gelcoat: minus 2 stars. Parts: 2 stars. Construction: 4 stars. Manual: 5 stars. Overall, 3.5 stars. Opinion: I don't regret buying it, but next time I'll go European.

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Customer Rated

Mar 07, 2012

(cont.) have to work a little on that. The wing and tail look to be true, but I'll know for sure when I assemble it. The control rod for the V-tail is well done with a plastic guide and carbon rod. Since it's only a 1.5 meter glider it's OK that there's only elevator control, but a ruddervator would have been nice. Of course I can always add a second control rod if I want to. On the other hand it lightens the tail, which is a good thing. I'm slightly disappointed that it didn't come with a ballast tube, but I'll be adding one since it is a necessity. Most molded gliders are provided with one. One thing I was glad to see on the Rocket-15 is full span flaps and ailerons, so camber and reflex will be more effective.

The aileron and flap control rods will be trashed. Nobody uses Z-bends on gliders, they're much too sloppy. I may go with an internal RDS control system or a clevis and ball joint. The super thin light ply wing control horns will also be trashed. They look like an accident waiting to happen. I don't care much for the servo covers, either, because they stick up awfully far. I have some slimmer ones I may use unless I go with RDS, in which case I'll cover the wing servos with a thin piece of carbon prepreg. An aerodynamically clean glider is a fast glider.

The manual is pretty good, especially considering that most molded gliders come only with control

• Overall
• Quality
• Value

Customer Rated

Mar 07, 2012

This is an initial review, because I've been too busy lately to assemble the Rocket-15,. The packaging is excellent by Chinese standards, but not up to US glider vendors. Although it was double boxed and both boxes were corrugated, neither one was thick enough to keep mine from arriving with a deep dent in the top of the box. Luckily it just missed the V-tail, and there was no damage. The glider was also wrapped in thin foam sheeting, bagged in plastic, and the plastic bags were taped to the inner box to keep the parts from bumping into each other. I give the packaging 4 stars, 5 if it hadn't been dented. Once I removed all the packaging, I looked the glider over. Mine was red and white, as in the photo.

Right away I could tell it was no European or American glider, because it was painted after it was taken out of the mold. There was no gelcoat. Even bagged gliders get painted in the mold, fixing the paint to the epoxy for a near-gelcoat finish. I give it 4 stars for the paint job, but minus 2 stars for the lack of gelcoat. I'm going to spray mine with clear sealer so the paint won't scratch as easily.

The construction looks to be a bit lighter than the European standard, but this might just be my perception because of the lack of gelcoat. We'll see how well it stands up. The wiper on one aileron was sticking up, blocking the aileron from free movement. I'll