Goony Curiosity
 

OK, I did a little search and really could not come up with some concrete numbers and current methodology about the goonies of yesteryear and today.

The originals were 13mm but people today seem to use the Baby Bertha kit to make goonies. Does that mean the current batch of goonified models are 18mm models? Also what are the tube lengths? Are people keeping the BB kit intact and just modding the fins/canopies/etc? The old Estes catalogs just state the goonies are about 8" long.

With the surfacing of the original sketches I am getting the bug to make some goonies. While I might make larger versions later on, the 13mm would be great for my small areas to launch. I did see a post (by scigs30?) showing some original kits and it appeared that the tubes were 5" long. I am going to ask on that thread also but am also wondering about some of the other things I asked just above.

The Baby Bertha is a great Goony starting point, but the decision on how to make them is yours. I go with the original length 5" tube and 18mm power. A lot of the time this requires some nose weight, so I go the BB and epoxy route. They're more fun as 24mm BT-80 birds. (Trust me on this. ;) :rolleyes: )

Like Bill said.

You can build them any way you like. Download the Estes instructions and fin layouts (you can get most if not all here). You might also download the 1974 Custom Parts Catalog from Jimz - it will tell you how long the body tube is based on its part number (BT-60R is 5" long). Or you can look up the same info on Ninfinger.

As for motor mounts, that is up to you. Personally, I think one thing that makes a Goony a Goony is the 13mm motor mount. Just substitute a 1.75" length of BT-5 and two RA-560 centering rings for those in the Baby Bertha.

Upscales and downscales are definitely possibilities. Upscale by building from a Fat Boy (or buy a length of BT-80 and a PNC-80BB). To downscale, use a BT-5 and PNC-5V (Mosquito nose cone - you can still get them in the PNC-5 Nose Cone Packs). I would personally use a micromaxx motor mount in a BT-5 downscale if you want to get them back.

Just remember that Goony is as Goony does! ;)

Greg

I can't speak for everyone, but I built my clone Goonies from BB kits, and went with the 18mm mounts. They fly great on a mild A8-3 without any ballast; they might need some in "B" and "C" power, though.

Why not downscale with BT-20 and a 13mm engine mount? ... hmm, 5" == 2 3/8" at that scale. You'd need an appropriate nose cone, perhaps a Semroc BNC-20A (not exact, but it wouldn't be hard to sand it down to shape). It would still be small enough to tumble recover.

Dang, I may have to build one of these now...

BT-20 might be a little too small, but I'd think an ST-10 size might be more workable for 13mm. That gives you enough room for at least some leader line and maybe a streamer for recovery. It might be easier to see, too...

Seems I have gotten the Goony bug too! I just ordered some BB's to bash!LOL And ordered some kit/decal plans from Phred...Gonna throw together the 'Goony-Dent'..Should go nicely with my Astron Trident...lol..The Trident and it's short pudgy cousin..lmao

Or you can use the even handier Estes body tube reference chart that John Brohm made for us located here:

http://www.rocketshoppe.com/info/Es...y_Tube_List.pdf

I had thought about those charts as soon as I posted and realized all I had to do was look up the part number off of the plans, I searched but I did not search hard enough I guess.

Thanks for all the input, I think the 5" with 13mm mount says goony all the way. Now to get some supplies and start goonifying. Clone the originals and create the original originals!

I guess I started the latest GOONY boom with my decal/plansets that use the Baby Bertha as a base. I chose this for several reasons: 1) my original 13mm, BT60 Goonies did not fly very high, and 2) I bought a pile of Baby Berthas on clearence a few years ago. I figured I could build something else. My first was the Goony Goblin. I built a Baby Bertha with Goblin fins, and it well... looked goony, so it was all downhill (on several levels) from there.....

Since then, Many have build Goonys from BT-5 based micromaxx versions to Big BT-80 versions, some using the Fat Boy as a starting point.

The only real rule us that you must ensure your design is stable ....

Phred