The first time I tried to remove a friction fit engine from an Estes Beta, the tube was bent and the rocket unusable.
Now available from JonRocket.com:
BT-20H HEAVY WALL BODY TUBES!
To see the listing, CLICK HERE
On the left is a Estes BT-20, on the right the Odd'l BT-20H tube.
Standard Estes BT-20 style tubing is thin walled (.013") and prone to buckling and bends. Thin wall tubes can’t insulate against the heat of ejection charges. Paint above the engine mount area can blister.
This new tubing has the same wall thickness (.021") as a BT-55 or BT-60 tube.
The inside diameter is the same as a BT-20 tube. (.710")
Thicker wall tubing is less likely to shrink or “coke bottle” when a glue fillet dries.
Standard engine blocks (5/20 rings) will fit as an engine block.
Existing centering rings can be easily peeled or sanded to fit the slightly wider outside diameter.
Applications:
- Engine mounts - Perfect for the new C and D Quest Q-Jet engines.
- Ejection Stuffer Tubes - Stronger when exposed to ejection charges. Longer life, more flights.
- Strap-On Boosters - Less damage on landing under streamer recovery.
- NAR Superroc Competition - Stronger tubes equal longer length designs.
- Sport Models - Stronger as a main air frame tube. More success for school, Scout, 4H and general sport rocket projects.
The yellow plastic nose cones from Apogee are a great fit for the thicker wall tubes. These nose cones have a wider shoulder than standard nose cones. To see them, CLICK HERE