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  #1  
Old 03-04-2024, 12:14 AM
Initiator001 Initiator001 is offline
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Default I had an idea...

If you have read my thread about Estes products which were never released one may recall the Estes F-117A Stealth Fighter box I have.

In the late 1990s Estes was planning to produce an F-117A model which would be glider recovery. The model was to be made of foam to keep the mass down. The model never made it to production due to issues with manufacturing the foam part of the model.

A box was produced for the kit and I managed to get ahold of one (Or it was the only one).

Cut to the present.

I was thinking about that box when it struck me that if I was to get one of the NCR Nightfighter models I could take the parts out of the NCR box and put it in the Estes box. I could say that I had an Estes F-117A model (Sort of). After all, the NCR kit was developed by the same people who had worked on the Estes model (Matt Steele and Dave Meyers).

I contacted Matt Steele and he was able to send me a NCR F-117A Nightfighter kit.

So far, so good.

THe NCR kit arrived. I took out the Estes box and opened it. I opened the NCR kit box and started to take the parts out.

Uh oh.

The NCR parts did not fit in the Estes box. The parts were too big!

Wha...?

I contacted Matt and asked him if the parts for the NCR Nightfighter were bigger than the original Estes design.

Matt replied:

"Ah! Yes, it is bigger!

The Estes one was going to be made of foam, so Dave used a ?scale? wing planform.

When we went to balsa for the NCR version, Dave knew it would be heavier, so the sweep angle is a little bigger and it is a little longer so there would be more wing area. That kept the wing loading the same. You can?t tell unless you put the two side by side."

It was a good idea while it lasted.

Still, the NCR kit is pretty cool and looks like it will be a little bit challenging when I get around to building it.

My thanks to Matt Steele for his assistance and comments on my project.
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  #2  
Old 03-04-2024, 07:11 AM
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astronwolf astronwolf is offline
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Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Initiator001
I was thinking about that box when it struck me that if I was to get one of the NCR Nightfighter models I could take the parts out of the NCR box and put it in the Estes box. I could say that I had an Estes F-117A model (Sort of). After all, the NCR kit was developed by the same people who had worked on the Estes model (Matt Steele and Dave Meyers).


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Old 03-04-2024, 07:41 AM
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Bill Bill is offline
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Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Initiator001
A box was produced for the kit and I managed to get ahold of one (Or it was the only one).

<snip>

The NCR parts did not fit in the Estes box. The parts were too big!

<snip>

It was a good idea while it lasted.

If you cut off some of the corners of the excess material, will it fit diagonally in the Estes box?


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Old 03-04-2024, 03:01 PM
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Blushingmule Blushingmule is offline
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Bob,

I love your fun narratives of model rocket history; you insider you.

Bob
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