Estes Model Rockets Athena, Brown/a

The media could not be loaded. This Estes Athena rocket looks and functions great. It comes pre-assembled, meaning, as long as you already have the launch pad and ignitor, all you'll need to be launch ready is load an engine, stuff in the wadding and the parachute and put on the nosepiece. The rocket is built substantially yet is still relatively light so it flies great. There is also an engine clip (instead of an endcap) on the bottom of the rocket that makes putting an engine in even easier, especially after multiple launches because sometimes the end caps and threads on the rocket warp from heat and/or rough landings. This rocket worked great, until such time it was lost in the branches of a high tree. We liked it enough to have ordered a second one.Have fun, I attached a photo of the unfortunate demise of our first Athena rocket for laughs.

A lot of the charm of model rocketry is assembling the rockets. But that takes at least a day or two (for the glue and paint to dry) and you have to have that interest.If you have the launch kit, motors and recovery wadding, and want to launch a rocket THE DAY you get it, then this is the rocket for you. Works great. The only "assembly" is tying the parachute to the nosecone. Just follow the instructions. Takes a minute.I strongly recommend an A8-3 motor because you can SEE the rocket's entire flight. With a bigger motor, you will lose site of the rocket and may be unable to recover the rocket.

Launched this rocket with a B "engine" and it shot up at least a few hundred feet, probably more. That's the fun part. Then the parachute comes out at said hundreds of feet and you watch it drift off with even the slightest wind. After learning my lesson previously, I shot this off early in the morning (like NASA) when it appeared very calm. The rocket headed east and kept going until it got past our 120' white pine trees with ease into surrounding properties. We have 3.5 acres and it's not nearly enough to contain these things. My daughters and I took a walk to the next street over and asked the neighbors to search their yard for a stray rocket during a pandemic. Luckily, they didn't even act like this was weird. The projectile was lost somewhere in some deep foliage and poison ivy. That said, my daughters thought it was awesome and we got to meet the neighbors across the way (200yds?) so this is a 5-star rocket. Just but a few of them and don't expect them to come back home. We lost 2 out of 3 launches due to parachute drift. Very impressive launch velocity and height though.

Fun

The media could not be loaded. If you're looking for a rocket to fire off with an Estes C6-5 or a C7 engine, you should get this rocket. The rocket comes pre-assembled in a secure box. It's very well built and even tested by Estes people before shipping. It's a light rocket that is impressive to look at and even more impressive to fire off.I have a few of these rockets as they're fun to fire off simultaneously together and they go incredibly high up. They're not exaggerating with 1100 feet, either. You can probably get even higher up on a still day with the right conditions. Several launches I actually lost sight of this thing in low cloud cover, Cumulo Nimbus, but saw the chute deploy and watched it descend. These go up so high that they often come down some distance from the launch sight and you might find yourself tracking it. It's a good idea to launch these in the wide open and free of structures. Other rockets you can get away with launching in small parks if you're smart about wind direction.For the price and the sturdiness, you can't beat it. This is a great entry level rocket for anyone just getting going and a good addition if you like to collect some of the high fliers.

This is the best rocket so far. Pre assembled no need for cement and even the chute is knotted inside.

Bought this for my daughter to do the NARTREK cadet program, which is a kids' rocketry skills program. She has already built and flown several Easy to Assemble kits, so this was no big deal. We bought it specifically to do the 40 sec parachute duration challenge and it passed on the first try on a B6-4. The chute was ever so slightly tangled, so it could probably push 50 sec under ideal circumstances. To be sure you reach 40 sec, you might need to swap in a bigger chute. The body tube can handle more.If you haven't flown rockets before, I would buy a starter set first. This does not include a pad or controller, which you absolutely need. If you already have a launch set and are looking for a gift for a young child to pique interest, this is a good choice.

For a ready to fly rocket where you don't have to glue and paint and wait for a couple days to fly this rocket goes pretty far for the money.