I was in Clark Rubber on the weekend and spotted this huge-ass 28cm (11") funnel. It took me about 3 seconds to figure I could launch that! The build was straight-forward, two ply centering rings, a lenght of tube for a 29mm motor and a 1/4" launch lug.

To work out where I needed to cut the funnel for the launch lug, I inserted the engine mount and used a torch to illuminate the right spot on the plastic through the launch lug.

Not yet flown, just waiting for a nice day now :)

Scratch-built "Big Nuke" with parts from Suburban Rocketry.

Parts include:
2 x 18" BT80 Tubes
1 x 9" BT80 Nosecone
24mm Motor mount
3mm Plywood through-wall fins
BT80 coupler/ejection baffle


Using an Estes "E" motor, this sims to around 400 feet, but will head past 1000' with a reload :)

Win some, lose some. Over the weekend I launched a 60mm rocket with a candy motor that seemed to be a successful design. The motor sim'ed as an E40. The rocket was constructed with through-the-wall plywood fins, a 60mm x 600mm postage tube and a balsa nosecone. Ejection was with a magnetic apogee detector (purchased from Aerocon Systems). First flight went without a hitch but the second CATO'ed. Both the forward and rear enclosure of the motors failed - appears that the glue may have given way due to overpressurisation. 2nd flight after the jump.


First Flight

Two new rockets joined my fleet:
"The Wild Weasel" - A scratch-built tube-fin rocket. First flight was terribly unstable with the rocket zig-zagging about 100 feet up; thus the name 'wild weasel'. The second rocket is a stock Estes "Baby Bertha" painted in a rotational test pattern much like the pattern seen on the test German V-2 rockets.

Baby Bertha & Scratch Built The Wild Weasel The Wild Weasel

Midnight Cruiser scratch built rocket.

 

 

And yes, they are toothpicks on the ends of the fins :)

Wile E. Coyote would be proud, this is my Scratch Built ACME rocket.

It was a piece of cake to build--I glued the stick to the body tube, glued in the engine mount, glued on the launch lugs! The nosecone was the hardest part as it was formed using a paper pattern generated by a 'cone' design package (online). Soaked the cone in CA before sanding, which made it nice and hard and came up very shiny! Short length of 60mm tube was cut down the side and a small section removed to reduce the diameter. A 3mm ply cap was glued to the end and polyurethane glue was used to attach it to the nosecone.

Kevlar cord was attached around the motor mount and run up through a notch in the top centering ring to a length of elastic shock cord, which in turn was attached to the nosecone. A 14" parachute was attached to the nosecone via 30" of nylon cord.

The body consists of a single body tube (60mm x 25mm postage tube) with a cardstock nosecone (80mm x 85mm). Single stick for stability. 3mm Plywood centering rings, 1/4" launch lugs (one at center point of motor, one near end of stick). 14" parachute.

Parachute was hand made, body tube was obtained from Officeworks and the stick came from Bunnings.

First flight was on D12-3. Ejection just past apogee at perhaps 200-300 feet. Good flight, quick off the pad but was a little wobbly, having a slight spiral. Second flight was on a E9-4, perhaps a little slower off the pad but very nice flight with ejection just past apogee again, apogee at approx. 400 feet.

Very happy with the rocket. Turned out exactly how I wanted. Nice big and bright. Got all the appropriate kudos on the flight field.

I liked the look of the old Estes Der Red Max and thought I would try and scratch-build one. The hardest part was the decals, and I only ended up making two of them, but the rocket flys well and I'm happy with the way it looks :) Comes down under a nice big red parachute.