Binder Design Excel Plus 54mm Build Thread
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Ooh it's on! This Saturday, I'm putting my Binder Design Excel Plus up on a J330 Classic for L2 cert. Limited motor availability has me launching on whatever I can get my hands on.
Huge thanks to AMW for calling me close to 9pm on a Saturday to talk about what they had. Great help there!
Wish me luck.
(please don't blow up)
Huge thanks to AMW for calling me close to 9pm on a Saturday to talk about what they had. Great help there!
Wish me luck.
(please don't blow up)
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Break A Fin!
rharshberger
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Better yet don't, bring that rocket back in perfect shape, good luck!
Good luck with the cert.
This time, reminding myself while packing tonight:
I will not forget my motor adapter. I will not forget my motor adapter. I will not forget my motor adapter. I will not forget my motor adapter.
I will not forget my motor adapter. I will not forget my motor adapter. I will not forget my motor adapter. I will not forget my motor adapter.
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There you go again... Reminding me of what I lost...
I had a 95% finished Binder Design 3" Dragonfly .ork file on my HD when it crashed. <- one wasn't enough.
I had a 95% finished Binder Design 3" Dragonfly .ork file on my HD when it crashed.
<- one wasn't enough.
I remember seeing a game show on TV. One of the contestants described his job as a data recovery expert. He said it was a combination of IT/hardware expert and grief councilor.
Data density on HDDs these days is nuts (and only getting worse). Treat anything on a HDD as if you could lose it tomorrow (or today). Backup. Backup. Backup. Except for stuff you don't care about.
SSDs are not immune to glitches either.
I successfully passed my L2 cert flight yesterday! Woo! And this time around, my wife remembered to take pictures and launch video. The onboard camera also worked. I flew nice and straight to 3,672' with the main popping at 600'.
Arming the dual Eggtimeer Quantums (how do you stop this image rotating! grr):
Launchpad video:
[video=youtube;DlPadVwQv5o]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlPadVwQv5o[/video]
Onboard video:
[video=youtube;z-Ft5uJAwXA]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-Ft5uJAwXA[/video]
Bonus, I also successfully put up my scratch built 3" cardboard tube rocket on its first L1 motor, and I also got pics and video. It's flow before on G78 motors. Flew to 2600'. I used motor eject and a Jolly Logic Chute Release to hold the main bundled until 600'.
Launchpad video:
[video=youtube;qTPQwC54ZAM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTPQwC54ZAM[/video]
Onboard video:
[video=youtube;D5dMgisByfs]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5dMgisByfs[/video]
Arming the dual Eggtimeer Quantums (how do you stop this image rotating! grr):
Launchpad video:
[video=youtube;DlPadVwQv5o]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlPadVwQv5o[/video]
Onboard video:
[video=youtube;z-Ft5uJAwXA]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-Ft5uJAwXA[/video]
Bonus, I also successfully put up my scratch built 3" cardboard tube rocket on its first L1 motor, and I also got pics and video. It's flow before on G78 motors. Flew to 2600'. I used motor eject and a Jolly Logic Chute Release to hold the main bundled until 600'.
Launchpad video:
[video=youtube;qTPQwC54ZAM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTPQwC54ZAM[/video]
Onboard video:
[video=youtube;D5dMgisByfs]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5dMgisByfs[/video]
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Congrats!!!!
Thanks! Thinking about what I would do for L3 now. If I go kit, it will be a Madcow 8" DX3. I might go scratch built with glassed mailer tubes. Either way, going to make some fiberglass L2 models in the meantime to hone my glassing skills: glass layups, tip to tip...
Interim goals:
- >mach 1
- >mach 2
- >5k
- >10k
- >15k
- all fiberglass airframe
- cluster
- 2 stage
Binder Design
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Congrats! Thanks for flying Binder Design!
rharshberger
Well-Known Member
Congrats, definitely start planning for the L3.
Congrats on the L2!
As for the windmilling on the way down, I have considered changing fin configuration slightly to prevent this. Maybe making two fins slightly wider, or at slightly different angles apart (rather than the regular 120deg). It is something I want to experiment with in my next 54mm performance build.
Your roll rate on the way up was quite good. You must have built it quite straight!
As for the windmilling on the way down, I have considered changing fin configuration slightly to prevent this. Maybe making two fins slightly wider, or at slightly different angles apart (rather than the regular 120deg). It is something I want to experiment with in my next 54mm performance build.
Congrats on the L2!
Your roll rate on the way up was quite good. You must have built it quite straight!
As for the windmilling on the way down, I have considered changing fin configuration slightly to prevent this. Maybe making two fins slightly wider, or at slightly different angles apart (rather than the regular 120deg). It is something I want to experiment with in my next 54mm performance build.
Thanks!
The Binder Design rocket has pre-slotted fins and a rock solid airframe. Any reduction in roll rate is a credit to Binder's kit quality. I'm proud of the straight flight and little roll of the second rocket. That was all measured, slotted, and cut by me from 2 x cardboard mailing tubes. The fins were also designed, cut, and beveled by me as well. I was surprised at how little roll that had. Also, no corkscrew and a super straight flight.
Binder Design
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Thank you! The tubes are slotted on a CNC rotary axis. We currently use a helix cutter, but may switch to laser slotting soon for cleaner cuts.
Do you ever have plans to put out fiberglass kits? Would be nice to see some of these favorites in an FG frame to take the roughest L3 motors.
I did a fiberglass upgrade to my Velociraptor after it sat in a field for 11 months and went all squidgy. The ply fins have a little twist in them now but it still flies very well, and regularly.
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Photos please!!!
Binder Design
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We've looked into the feasibility but it goes against our business model. The fiberglass kit market is very competitive with slim margins and goes against what has made us successful. Any of our larger kits can be ordered with larger motor mounts and reinforced by the customer to fly M motors.
I don't want to hijack the thread, but the link you seek is here. It flies with the 3D printed NC:
https://www.ausrocketry.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1782&hilit=velociraptor&start=60
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Nick@JET
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I like this ^^.
Mine is almost same except for adding Airstart and without the 15K. Going to be a lot of fun!
Nice flight - looked the binder landed pretty fast maybe just the video. But based on the video I'd consider bigger chute.
Congrats again!
The flight data from the I242 launch showed it landed at about 7 m/s which was a tad fast, but it came down with no damage at all. Seems ok for field landings. Keeps drift down to a minimum.
I had another thread here filled with much angst over the size of the main. :y: I settled with the Binder-provided chute since he said it was fine.
I had another thread here filled with much angst over the size of the main. :y: I settled with the Binder-provided chute since he said it was fine.
Ooh. Zombifying this thread. While working on rewiring my electronics, I see that I never downloaded the flight data on my L2. The flight was really close to thae prediction.
