Mike Reiner was a friend here in Houston. I met him at the NASA Houston Rocket Club (NAR) in about 1988. We both were in Tripoli also. We launched many rockets together and discussed what we wanted to do in rocketry. He said he wanted to get into selling motors and I told him that I could not afford to get into the business. I created some all fiberglass rockets to sell as kits but did not have a lot of money or time to continue with it but did get to sell/build one with Al Jackson to 20,955' at LDRS-11 and Mike was helping me to promote them and sold us the AT K-250. My family were friends with his and we both had children of the same age. He became our family
physician. He later moved to NV and I lost track of him so I don't know when he stopped making them since I was no longer flying rockets by that time.
Mike Rappe
From:
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/rec.models.rockets/x4BJ77dv9wk
rec.models.rockets
Chip Wuerz
9/1/92
***********************************************************************
LDRS-11 / BALLS-2 TRACKING RESULTS August 1992
data reduced by: Fred Brennion
trackers: Bill Wood; Chuck Rogers; Tom Blazanin; Gary Berg
base station: Phil Saeli; Mike Curtis
LCO's; RSO's: Jay Orr; Kelly Badger, and many others.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ROCKET MOTOR launch % down angle
Name note dia len mfg type wgt,lbs ALT error range fm vert
(in.)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
i Tom Binford a. 4.75 112 Vul O3000 74.0 24,662 2.1 4,437 10.2
2 Deb Schultz b. 2.26 51 Aer K-250 7.2 21,659 1.2 1,398 3.7
3 Al Jackson/M.Rappe 2.26 56 Aer K-250 8.5 20,955 8.1 1,498 4.1
4 Doug Dinse 5.00 77 Aer M-500 34.0 20,589 3.1 5,676 15.4
5 Univ. Central Fl c. 4.34 181 Enr N1700 77.0 17,409 2.0 5,018 16.1
to Enr L-700 (2-stage)
6 B.Baker/F.Kosden d. 2.75 81 Kos M3700 23.0 15,525 2.7 3,053 11.1
7 Martha Sienkiewicz 3.10 78 Aer K-250 30.0 14,071 8.3 2,287 9.2
8 Michael Ward 4.00 96 Enr L1100+ 30.0 13,345 0.2 2,307 9.8
9 Benjy Levy 2.25 53 Isp J-125 5.5 13,318 0.9 2,578 11.0
10 Charles Weddington 4.00 76 Isp K-250 11.8 12,158 1.1 5,339 23.7
11 Mike Keller 4.00 84 Aer K-250 10.5 10,143 7.0 4,294 22.9
12 David Kuhnle 3.20 78 Isp K-550 10.0 9,140 5.4 2,195 13.5
13 Mike Dolan 3.00 32 Isp J-275 3.7 8,592 3.4 1,959 12.8
14 B.Baker / F.Kosdon 2.25 88 Kos M3700 23.0 7,786 1.4 1,639 11.9
15 Stu Barrett 3.00 50 Isp J-275 5.0 7,413 1.8 1,629 12.4
16 Kent Schraeder 4.00 68 Aer J-125 6.5 7,314 1.1 2,786 20.9
17 Rod Howden 3.10 54 Aer I-65 4.0 6,967 0.7 424 3.5
18 William Meyer 5.40 60 Isp J-180 23.0 6,077 8.6 2,322 20.9
19 Lisette Goff-Maness 5.00 .. Isp K-550 ... 5,940 2.2 443 4.3
20 Dave Bucher 3.00 58 Aer I-65 4.6 5,282 0.0 1,691 17.7
21 Alex McLaughlin 4.00 90 Isp J-275 8.0 4,645 1.2 2,025 23.6
22 John Sicker 3.90 56 Aer I-65 5.0 4,364 0.1 5,014 49.0
23 E.Conger /B.Levy e. 2.60 57 Aer J-275 9.5 4,003 1.9 520 7.4
------------------------------------------------------------------------
notes:
Enr = Energon Aer = Aerotech ISP = Industrial Solid Propulsion
Kos = Kosdon Vul = Vulcan
a. Binford remarked he doubted the motor delivered the promised total
impulse.
b. Rocket was LOC's Laser Loc 3.1. Probably model rocket all-time
highest filght by a woman. K-250 motors were really the star
performers of LDRS!
c. Appeared to fly substantial trajectory. Booster motor appeared
to make popping; crackling noises as it flew. Was predicted to
hit 30,000 feet. Carried 7 lbs of tracking chalk and had a
40-second delay.
d. Awe-inspiring acceleration and noise, Great flight.
e. Computer flight w/accelerometer, pressure sensor, data recording.
*********************************************************************
The above is an unadultered version supplied (faxed) to me by
Fred Brennion.
Now for my comments and corrections:
a. Second all time highest flight of a non-professional /
non-metallic rocket. Highest tracked flight at the Black Rock Desert.
This flight was 99 feet short of the Kline / Rogers record.
Nice single stage flight.
b. A very well finished rocket (had a waxed texture). Tower launched.
A very straight flight.
c. The booster motor performed flawless. It produced a noise which
was expected based on some parameters of the motor design (some
thing to do with preventing motor casing burn thru, ie liner).
Rocket was predicted to hit 50,000 feet. It carried 3 lbs of tracking
chalk, a Tommy Billings flight measurement package (thanks to Pius
Morozumi), ham radio transmitter (UCF), and an on board
flight sequencer (UCF).
Rocket had upper stage ignition on time but some thing strange
happened. The upper stage ejection went off early. Half a dozen
theories - best explainations.
Timer circuits functioned flawless on the ground prior to launch.
Best theory yet (more research being done)-
Static charge build up in and on the rocket set off the
flash bulb ejection charge at about mach 1.2 (~after staging).
Upper stage continued, without a payload and nose, till upper
motor burnout (tracked to this point). Due to structural stresses
on the substainer, the fiberglass twisted apart above the substainer
motor. Energon was a integral part of this projects. Energon is
known to be a very honest motor manufacture, delivering exactly
what is promised!!!!!!!!!
*********************************************************************
Other notes from the fax
An 'N to N' 4" aluminum-airframe rocket built by Larry Ligget was
unable to be flown. This is a Ligget-Kline-Rogers-Moose project.
ALT-4 predicts 56,000 feet. Will fly later at Black Rock.
Chuck Sacket from Florida headed a team which fired the "Down Right
Ignorant" rocket. 24" X 38 feet (my note: exactly 34' 7") long;
liftoff weight around 900 pounds. Powered by a central Ace Aeronautics
'N' motor and assortment of L's and K's (My note: motors were exactly
1 - O (almost a P) Ace, 5 - L1100 Energon, 1 J415 (for recovery) Aero,
and 8 ISP K550 RMS). Attained an altitude of several thousand feet.
Probably the largest 'model rocket' ever flown. Flew beautifully.
Energetic ejection charge partially scorched 1 of the 3 lower section
chutes; another fouled; another fully inflated. Probable minor damage
to lower section. 3 top section chutes deployed perfectly.
Several rockets carrying barometric altimeters were flown by
a team at "pad 99", some distance from the main launch site.
Detailed technical information will be sent to Bill Wood, head of
Tripoli motor testing, for evaluation. At that time a revised
altitude listing will be published.
pad 99 flights: (altitudes are tentative)
N motor ........................23,875
J to J .........................39,000
M2000 to K300 ..................50,000
Chip Wuerz TRA # 681
Electrical Engineering Dept.
University of Central Florida
Orlando, Fl.
