AeroPac Retainer Parts

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Crazyrocket

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Ok. Stupid question. I’ve been using AeroPac retainers for years. I just got another one and there is a silver ring included that is about 1/2 inch in width. I thought it might be a spacer for thinner motor tubes but it does not fit in the end that is glued on the mount. It does fit on the aft end of the retainer. What is this for?

Thanks!


Sent from my iPhone using Rocketry Forum
 
Ok. Stupid question. I’ve been using AeroPac retainers for years. I just got another one and there is a silver ring included that is about 1/2 inch in width. I thought it might be a spacer for thinner motor tubes but it does not fit in the end that is glued on the mount. It does fit on the aft end of the retainer. What is this for?

Thanks!


Sent from my iPhone using Rocketry Forum

It's a spacer for different motors manufacturers, specifically I know the one that comes with the 3"-54mm AeroPac tailcone works with the new Loki 54mm hardware, but it is not required for CTI and or Aerotech.
 
Hi Crazyrocket and Michael, this is Bob from Aero Pack. As Michael assessed, you must have a tailcone type retainer if it came with a spacer ring. The reason for the ring is due to the difference between aft-closure type motor hardware (such as CTI and AeroTech) and snap-ring type motor hardware (such as AMW). The aft-closure length is shorter than the distance the external snap-ring (thrust ring) sits from the end of the casing. The spacer ring makes up that difference.

Since the cone on a tailcone retainer seats against the end of the airframe it stops threading on at that point. Standard motor retainers do not need the spacer as the retainer cap just stops when it seats against the motor. The retainer cap and retainer body have sufficient thread length to captivate either motor type.

If the motor tube is installed in the rocket so it extends the exact distance past the end of the airframe as specified in the tailcone retainer instructions then both types of motor hardware (aft-closure type and snap-ring type) can be used. The spacer is used for aft-closure type motors and is dropped into the retainer body before the motor is installed. Snap-ring type motors do not require the spacer.

Regards,
Bob
 
No, the aeropac retainer I have is just the 54mm standard one. I may not have been clear on what I have. The metal ring looks like tubing that is ~0.5" tall, it has a very thin wall section and fits into the aft section of the retainer. It is not a spacer to make up the difference in the height/length of the aft closure. This "part" would make the diameter slightly smaller around the closure. I thought it was for thin walled motor mount tubes to increase the thickness a bit so there would be a closer fit between the retainer and the motor mount tube. Sometime I get a loose fitting retainer and put small strips of tape (at 120 degrees) to tighten up and center the retainer when I glue it on. Guess I need to post a picture when I get home.
 
Where did you buy your retainer? I think Wildman includes a spacer with the ones he sells to improve the fit with his thin wall FG motor tubes.
 
I got it from Wildmans. I was thinking it was for thin walled motor tubes, but the funny thing is that it does not fit in the front portion of the retainer. The diameter is a bit too large.
 
OK, sorry for the misunderstanding and thank you for clarifying. Yes, Wildman does include a spacer ring for use with their thin-wall tubing. If it doesn't fit into the retainer body on the forward end where the motor tube fits then it seems something is wrong. Either the spacer ring is too large in outside diameter or the wrong ring was added to the retainer package, or you have the wrong retainer.

The correct retainer is RA54P (not RA54L). The inside diameter on forward end of the RA54P, where motor tube fits, is 2.278" (the RA54L is smaller at 2.265"). If the ring you received from Wildman has an outside diameter larger than 2.277" then you may have the wrong ring, or they changes something I'm not aware of. Contact Tim at Wildman and give him the outside diameter of the ring you received so he can confirm if it is correct or not.
 
the spacer I got from Tim for his thin wall motor tube, was a very tight fit...how tight you might ask? tight enough that I used a soft blow hammer to install the spacer and retainer (I was half tempted to leave out the epoxy it was that tight, but since it was for my L2 bird). the spacer gets epoxied to the motor tube 1st, then after cleanup and the epoxy cures the retainer gets installed. since it is a Wildman part, contact Tim (the Wildman).
Rex
 
OK, sorry for the misunderstanding and thank you for clarifying. Yes, Wildman does include a spacer ring for use with their thin-wall tubing. If it doesn't fit into the retainer body on the forward end where the motor tube fits then it seems something is wrong. Either the spacer ring is too large in outside diameter or the wrong ring was added to the retainer package, or you have the wrong retainer.

The correct retainer is RA54P (not RA54L). The inside diameter on forward end of the RA54P, where motor tube fits, is 2.278" (the RA54L is smaller at 2.265"). If the ring you received from Wildman has an outside diameter larger than 2.277" then you may have the wrong ring, or they changes something I'm not aware of. Contact Tim at Wildman and give him the outside diameter of the ring you received so he can confirm if it is correct or not.

https://aeropack.net/webstore/products.asp?groupid=2

It would be helpful to include these details and dimensions on your webpage. I am looking at 38mm retainers, and 6 options are given: L, L2, LH, L2H, P, PH. However, there is no explanation to what these mean nor their dimensions. Some have an icon next to them, some do not. Also, what is the dimensional difference between "thin-wall" and "regular?"
 
https://aeropack.net/webstore/products.asp?groupid=2

It would be helpful to include these details and dimensions on your webpage. I am looking at 38mm retainers, and 6 options are given: L, L2, LH, L2H, P, PH. However, there is no explanation to what these mean nor their dimensions. Some have an icon next to them, some do not. Also, what is the dimensional difference between "thin-wall" and "regular?"

There’s this:
https://www.aeropack.net/referencelist.asp


Steve Shannon
 

Well, then. That is what I needed. Thanks. Too bad the essential info is not more prominently displayed on the product page.

In fact, I browsed through the websites of 3 notable vendors who carry Aeropack products and couldn't find enough detail and dimensions to make a purchase. I finally found everything and more within Apogee's webstore. They even put calipers to some of the parts to double check. Kudos to Apogee, and thus they got my money. Yes, I paid a whopping $1.75 more than the other guys, but Apogee goes the extra mile to keep the buyer informed, and I value that.
 
Well, then. That is what I needed. Thanks. Too bad the essential info is not more prominently displayed on the product page.

In fact, I browsed through the websites of 3 notable vendors who carry Aeropack products and couldn't find enough detail and dimensions to make a purchase. I finally found everything and more within Apogee's webstore. They even put calipers to some of the parts to double check. Kudos to Apogee, and thus they got my money. Yes, I paid a whopping $1.75 more than the other guys, but Apogee goes the extra mile to keep the buyer informed, and I value that.

I agree that Aeropack’s website is not the most intuitive. The data/info i sent is menu choice “Data/Info” on the menu bar displayed when you first get to their site, but it wasn’t terribly obvious to me at first either.
 
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