Daughters Phoenix Bird thread

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kcobbva

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My daughter has been asking for quite some time to build another rocket. Finally more rain today and more rained out games leads to "let's do it". So this time around, I'm going to sit back and answer questions but keep my old hands off. We'll see how she does. Should be a great learning experience for her.
phoenix bird start.jpg
 
My daughter has been asking for quite some time to build another rocket. Finally more rain today and more rained out games leads to "let's do it". So this time around, I'm going to sit back and answer questions but keep my old hands off. We'll see how she does. Should be a great learning experience for her.
View attachment 291588

Fantastic. I Love to see this kind of thing. I will be eagerly watching to see her progress. Oz
 
Fantastic! My daughter has this as well. She didn't like the cover paint, and wanted it white, purple, with one blue fin. She called it "Bluefin," and it's flown at least 100 times on C-6's. Her brother, a couple years later, calculated out how big it would be if upscaled to a 4" tube, and we painted that one the same. Nice flying rocket! Enjoy!


Later!

--Coop
 
I wish my daughter wanted to build a rocket. My son does, but he's only four (for two more days). Soon!

Congrats on instilling good habits, I mean hobbies, in her. :wink:

BTW, looking at the thumbnail of the picture, I thought she had tattoos all over her arms. :facepalm:
 
After church, she took care of her engine mount. After I took the picture, I looked at the rocket closely and realized she made a mistake.. Thankfully we caught it. Look closely at the picture and I bet you can pick out what she's doing wrong. Great learning lessons!! I'll have to give this to her though. The instructions did a very poor job of telling her where to put it. The next step doesn't show the engine retainer where it should be, so again...I can't fault her; but at least she get's it now.

engine mount.jpg
 
After church, she took care of her engine mount. After I took the picture, I looked at the rocket closely and realized she made a mistake.. Thankfully we caught it. Look closely at the picture and I bet you can pick out what she's doing wrong. Great learning lessons!! I'll have to give this to her though. The instructions did a very poor job of telling her where to put it. The next step doesn't show the engine retainer where it should be, so again...I can't fault her; but at least she get's it now.

View attachment 291682
From the look of the fin slots, I'd say she was placing the motor mount in retrograde mode.:smile:
 
Since I didn't have a fin guide I taught her how I used to eyeball shafts when straightening them. Then gave her a ruler to measure each fin to fin measurement when she finished. Dead on! Proud daddy! :)
aligning.jpg
 
Now THAT is great way to say it!!! Thankfully I caught it in time. ��

I had a great radiology instructor in med school. He'd ask students questions in front of the class. No matter how far off your answer, he would never tell you you were wrong.

He'd just say, "That's a wonderful answer to a different question."
 
I had a great radiology instructor in med school. He'd ask students questions in front of the class. No matter how far off your answer, he would never tell you you were wrong.

He'd just say, "That's a wonderful answer to a different question."

Oh man. I want to steal that!
 
Hey Kevin,

Thanks for sharing! It's really awesome when your child shows interest in the same things you like. Rocketry has an added advantage of teaching one to learn science and building techniques. Kudos and best luck to her with the rocket! :)
 
Another learning lesson this evening. After rubbing glue fillets on the fins; I'd told her to set the end of the tube up on a block I had for her so it would lay flat. We went off to my son's soccer game in the pooring rain and when I returned, I found it laying on the table at an angle with glue pooled up at the end. I've done it before myself. I called her up to the room and we looked it over real good and now she knows why I'd said to place it on the block. Thankfully she'd gotten caught up in a show while we were gone and it was still fairly wet, so we corrected it right then and leveled it out. Overall she's really doing great so far.
 
Kevin,
this is such a great thread!! From the pictures it looks like your daughter is doing an awesome job! I really think there is something for kids to sit down with a project like this and take the time to read the instructions and assemble the kit and then best of all....get to watch their work actually fly! I wish i cold tell you my son was into building kits...he is not. When I was a BAR my first rocket back in the hobby was Dr. Zooch Saturn 1b...so when the kit arrived my son came in from playing baseball and eagerly watched me open the box only to see a box filled with paper wraps, balsa sheets and card bord tubes and string...he looked at me and asked where is the rocket?? I told him I am going to build it! he told me "Dad..you are NUTS!"....I tried to explain the the fun is in the build for me....he was expecting an assembled rocket...your daughter is doing an awesome job!!
 
Kevin,
this is such a great thread!! From the pictures it looks like your daughter is doing an awesome job! I really think there is something for kids to sit down with a project like this and take the time to read the instructions and assemble the kit and then best of all....get to watch their work actually fly! I wish i cold tell you my son was into building kits...he is not. When I was a BAR my first rocket back in the hobby was Dr. Zooch Saturn 1b...so when the kit arrived my son came in from playing baseball and eagerly watched me open the box only to see a box filled with paper wraps, balsa sheets and card bord tubes and string...he looked at me and asked where is the rocket?? I told him I am going to build it! he told me "Dad..you are NUTS!"....I tried to explain the the fun is in the build for me....he was expecting an assembled rocket...your daughter is doing an awesome job!!

Thanks Rick. I appreciate that my friend. It's fun watching her, although we've gotten into the school week and clearing weather, so it's gonna sit here a while as softball games start up again and then off to TN for Memorial weekend. At least she wants to get it done, so it will happen. My oldest was excited about the level 2 launch so I bought him a Madcow Patriot. Still sitting in a bag downstairs. I guess xbox wins there. It's tough not to jump in with her though. I saw she'd not put the fillets on one set of fins and really thought about it last night, but I made my self stay away! :)

And you have it right. The fun IS in the building (minus maybe the sanding). Again thanks. I'll post more once the crazy schedules provide her time.
 
Softball is over and the holiday weekend is past. Time to get back on it. My daughter finished the Launch lugs and recovery gear today and then got out to lay some primer on it. I loved the initial painting. Spray on either side of the rocket w/o hitting the rocket! Takes talent! :) In the end she got it down and did well.
launch lugs.jpgpaitning primer.jpg

Another coat or two of primer, then she'll get on to painting.
 
My Daughter finished painting and finally, with it dry was able to apply her decals today. She finished it and I only had to help here and there when she asked! Very cool. Look forward to launching this on the 16th.
megancompleted.jpg
 
Looks great. My kids like painting their rockets as much as flying them.
 
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