Checklist for buying a new rocket.

The Rocketry Forum

Help Support The Rocketry Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Bat-mite

Rocketeer in MD
Joined
Dec 5, 2013
Messages
11,959
Reaction score
2,798
Location
Maryland
If you are like me, when you buy a new rocket, you like to buy everything you need in one fell swoop, so as to save time and shipping. But there is always that one thing that you forget, that you have to go back and order and pay extra shipping for.

I put this in the HPR forum because I have HPR rockets with DD in view here.

I thought it would be helpful to compile a checklist of everything you need when buying/building a new kit. I am not including epoxy, shear pins, rivets, BP, and other things that people buy in bulk and have lying around the house/workshop.

Please add things that you think of. At the end, maybe we all have a nice checklist to print for the next Happy Humpday Sale!

  1. The rocket
  2. Switchband
  3. Retainer
  4. Main parachute
  5. Drogue parachute
  6. Harnesses
  7. Rail buttons/guides
  8. Av sled
  9. Electronics (if not reusing)
  10. Hardware (allthread, nuts, eyebolts, washers, swivels, quick-links)


What am I forgetting?
 
You guys have it pretty well covered, with the possible exceptions of:

Deployment bag.
Camera shrouds
rotary switches
pigtails.

I usually pick up some neoprene washers locally for sealing up the allthread on the removable lid of the av-bay.


Later!

--Coop
 
The last few taught me to not build in a restriction John..
Especially on an item that can be adapted like a motor tube....
I start off with low and slow flights..
After many flights I want to push it as hard as it'll go..
Keep that in mind during the build..
You've seen my Green Hornet fly..There's pics of it on my site..
What a dynamite flying rocket.. super cool to fly....
It's 3" all glass with a 54 mm mount...........
The booster tube is 1/2" too short to accept the longest 54 mm case,,,,,,,
Which I now have .............

Teddy
 
5 min Epoxy
JB Weld
sandpaper - 400 grits, other Grits, etc
Proline 4500 Epoxy
masking tape/blue tape
Primier - your favorite color
Spray paint - your favorite color
Tracking device - your favorite style
Syringes if your injecting internal filets
shrink warp for connectors
Welded eyebolts - normally three
access to drill, drill bits,
dremel, dremel sanding discs
pencil to mark
Tape measure
scale to weight
90% Alcohol to clean Fiberglass...
9 volt battery retainer
Kevlar shock cords
etc

Basically build it at my place... I've got all the stuff.
 
I typically wake up hung over and have several emails form places i bought entirely random things from. Sometimes these things are rockets. Usually it'll need a motor I don't own, and can't afford. And that I don't have the electronics for. or chutes. or harnesses.

I typically get the kit and excitedly inspect it. I spend the next three to five days only thinking about how I'm going to build it. Lunch? no time to decide, I'm planning important stuff here! Then I see a squirrel or something. After the squirrel passes and I go back to the kit. It's likely been 3-4 years since I bought it now, and I still lack any supporting gear. And probably out of epoxy. Time to post a parts shot and claim to be starting a build thread.

then I'll have another kid and the rocket will be stalled another year.....

thats usually how things go.
 
Everything else seems to have been listed, so I'll add this:

The juice from one bottle of the Ol' Janx Spirit
One measure of water from the seas of Santraginus V -- Oh, that Santraginean seawater, it says. Oh, those Santraginean fish!
Three cubes of Arcturan Mega-Gin to melt into the mixture (it must be properly iced or the benzene is lost).
Four liters of Fallian marsh gas to bubble through it, in memory of all those happy hikers who have died of pleasure in the marshes of Fallia.
Over the back of a silver spoon float a measure of Qualactin Hypermint extract, redolent of all the heady odors of the dark Qualactin Zones, subtle, sweet and mystic.
Drop in the tooth of an Algolian Suntiger. Watch it dissolve, spreading the fires of the Algolian Suns deep into the heart of the drink.
Sprinkle Zamphour.
Add an olive.

Drink...but... very carefully...
 
Everything else seems to have been listed, so I'll add this:

The juice from one bottle of the Ol' Janx Spirit
One measure of water from the seas of Santraginus V -- Oh, that Santraginean seawater, it says. Oh, those Santraginean fish!
Three cubes of Arcturan Mega-Gin to melt into the mixture (it must be properly iced or the benzene is lost).
Four liters of Fallian marsh gas to bubble through it, in memory of all those happy hikers who have died of pleasure in the marshes of Fallia.
Over the back of a silver spoon float a measure of Qualactin Hypermint extract, redolent of all the heady odors of the dark Qualactin Zones, subtle, sweet and mystic.
Drop in the tooth of an Algolian Suntiger. Watch it dissolve, spreading the fires of the Algolian Suns deep into the heart of the drink.
Sprinkle Zamphour.
Add an olive.

Drink...but... very carefully...

You know they sell pre mixed Pan-Galactic Gargle Blasters now...
 
Rocket........ CHECK!

14546620865_f061193736_o_zpsu7kouzt3.jpg
 
I typically wake up hung over and have several emails form places i bought entirely random things from. Sometimes these things are rockets. Usually it'll need a motor I don't own, and can't afford. And that I don't have the electronics for. or chutes. or harnesses.

I typically get the kit and excitedly inspect it. I spend the next three to five days only thinking about how I'm going to build it. Lunch? no time to decide, I'm planning important stuff here! Then I see a squirrel or something. After the squirrel passes and I go back to the kit. It's likely been 3-4 years since I bought it now, and I still lack any supporting gear. And probably out of epoxy. Time to post a parts shot and claim to be starting a build thread.

then I'll have another kid and the rocket will be stalled another year.....

thats usually how things go.

And for some reason I think I can build it in a day... At least I'm not the only one

I'll add timer to the list for a hpr cluster... Because that's what I'm missing
 
5 min Epoxy
JB Weld
sandpaper - 400 grits, other Grits, etc
Proline 4500 Epoxy
masking tape/blue tape
Primier - your favorite color
Spray paint - your favorite color
Tracking device - your favorite style
Syringes if your injecting internal filets
shrink warp for connectors
Welded eyebolts - normally three
access to drill, drill bits,
dremel, dremel sanding discs
pencil to mark
Tape measure
scale to weight
90% Alcohol to clean Fiberglass...
9 volt battery retainer
Kevlar shock cords
etc

Basically build it at my place... I've got all the stuff.

That's why I wrote "I am not including epoxy, shear pins, rivets, BP, and other things that people buy in bulk and have lying around the house/workshop." in my OP. :wink:
 
I typically wake up hung over and have several emails form places i bought entirely random things from. Sometimes these things are rockets. Usually it'll need a motor I don't own, and can't afford. And that I don't have the electronics for. or chutes. or harnesses.

I typically get the kit and excitedly inspect it. I spend the next three to five days only thinking about how I'm going to build it. Lunch? no time to decide, I'm planning important stuff here! Then I see a squirrel or something. After the squirrel passes and I go back to the kit. It's likely been 3-4 years since I bought it now, and I still lack any supporting gear. And probably out of epoxy. Time to post a parts shot and claim to be starting a build thread.

then I'll have another kid and the rocket will be stalled another year.....

thats usually how things go.

They have surgeries to prevent the kids.... :grin:
 
You know they sell pre mixed Pan-Galactic Gargle Blasters now...

Yeah, but those are rather like having your brains smashed out by wedges of lime dripped on a bale of feathers. I think it has to do with how the benzine is lost.
 
I do: one too many pan-galactic gargle blasters. Heh.


Later!

--Coop
 
I typically wake up hung over and have several emails form places i bought entirely random things from. Sometimes these things are rockets. Usually it'll need a motor I don't own, and can't afford. And that I don't have the electronics for. or chutes. or harnesses.

I typically get the kit and excitedly inspect it. I spend the next three to five days only thinking about how I'm going to build it. Lunch? no time to decide, I'm planning important stuff here! Then I see a squirrel or something. After the squirrel passes and I go back to the kit. It's likely been 3-4 years since I bought it now, and I still lack any supporting gear. And probably out of epoxy. Time to post a parts shot and claim to be starting a build thread.

then I'll have another kid and the rocket will be stalled another year.....

thats usually how things go.

This is perfect, much of this is how I do it. Lately I've been getting kits from Rocketry Warehouse. with $5 shipping it's so easy to just buy the kit and not worry about all the other crap you need. then I slowly work all the other bits into other orders for stuff. that way I have no idea how much the rocket actually costs so I don't mind launching it :)
 
I came up with an amalgamated list. Tried to eliminate as many details as possible, and also mark things as optional based on preferences.

The rocket

AV sled
Switchband (optional)
Extra CR (optional)

Retainer
Hardware (allthread, nuts, eyebolts, washers, swivels, quick-links)
Rail buttons/guides
Shear pins (optional)
Plactic rivets (optional)

Main parachute
Drogue parachute (optional)
Harnesses
Chute/harness protection (optional)
D-bag, pilot chute, etc. (optional)

Electronics (if not reusing)

Adhesives
Tools and build supplies
Paint (optional)
Decals (optional)

Charge wells
AV wiring
Battery/holder
Clustering accessories (optional)
 

Latest posts

Back
Top