L3 - really?? Tekcub 3L

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Also drilled the holes to mount the camera

It is on the payload section in line with a fin (and not the AV bay vent holes)

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How did I miss this one until now? Great design, can't wait to see it in paint.

The tail has some structural similarity to a design I'll be building next year (albeit mine will be... somewhat smaller ;)). I learned a thing or two (or three) from how you built it. End result looks fantastic.
 
Finally - started painting the top

3 pix - 1st coat, 5th coat. And my ugly mug reflecting off the paint - no clear coat yet

I'll be painting the lower half later today...

Ooops - sorry for the sideways pix - forgot to massage them. But you can still see the paint job

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Meanwhile, I lost something.

Thought I knew where it was - except it wasn't there.

Thought of some alternative locations - still no luck

Ended up spending hours going through various containers

Guess what I lost -

If you said "my mind" you may be close

But the ironic answer is - my tracker.

Finally found it

But a question.... I only have one tracker. The cone and the body come down on separate chutes. Which one to attach the tracker to?
Nose cone is smaller and may be more difficult to locate
The main body is bigger and worth a lot more.

Both sections will have screamers attached though and hopefully land close to each other
 
Meanwhile, I lost something.

Thought I knew where it was - except it wasn't there.

Thought of some alternative locations - still no luck

Ended up spending hours going through various containers

Guess what I lost -

If you said "my mind" you may be close

But the ironic answer is - my tracker.

Finally found it

But a question.... I only have one tracker. The cone and the body come down on separate chutes. Which one to attach the tracker to?
Nose cone is smaller and may be more difficult to locate
The main body is bigger and worth a lot more.

Both sections will have screamers attached though and hopefully land close to each other

Hey Les your build looks amazing I can’t wait to see it fly. I am also building my L3 bird and have a build thread posted elsewhere on this forum. I also plan on making my cert attempt at URRF 5.

I do plan on flying two trackers and possibly a third home brew unit as my design is similar to yours in that the NC will come down under its own chute. As long as we are not flying at the same time I do have an Eggfinder Mini in a little sleeve that can be taped to your recovery harness you can borrow if you like. I will only be there Sat and Sun so let me know and good luck.
 
Hey Les your build looks amazing I can’t wait to see it fly. I am also building my L3 bird and have a build thread posted elsewhere on this forum. I also plan on making my cert attempt at URRF 5.

I do plan on flying two trackers and possibly a third home brew unit as my design is similar to yours in that the NC will come down under its own chute. As long as we are not flying at the same time I do have an Eggfinder Mini in a little sleeve that can be taped to your recovery harness you can borrow if you like. I will only be there Sat and Sun so let me know and good luck.

Sounds great - I would like to borrow the mini if possible. Just make sure it won't impede your attempt (just in case things go wrong)
I hope to fly mine Sat before noon.
And I looked at your thread - wish I had the tools and skills to do the machining you've done. Wow. Nice job
 
Hey Les your build looks amazing I can’t wait to see it fly. I am also building my L3 bird and have a build thread posted elsewhere on this forum. I also plan on making my cert attempt at URRF 5.

I do plan on flying two trackers and possibly a third home brew unit as my design is similar to yours in that the NC will come down under its own chute. As long as we are not flying at the same time I do have an Eggfinder Mini in a little sleeve that can be taped to your recovery harness you can borrow if you like. I will only be there Sat and Sun so let me know and good luck.

Andrew,
Seeing as you state that you are flying your L3 Cert at URRF 5 I'm guessing you have your Cert team all set up. I also have not seen a registration for your L3 BFR come in yet either. Please make sure you do that for me, thanks,
Mike Dutch
URRF 5 BFR Coordinator
 
Andrew,
Seeing as you state that you are flying your L3 Cert at URRF 5 I'm guessing you have your Cert team all set up. I also have not seen a registration for your L3 BFR come in yet either. Please make sure you do that for me, thanks,
Mike Dutch
URRF 5 BFR Coordinator

I will send it over this afternoon. Thanks
 
OK - NOW I'm seeing RED :mad:




Of course, that was somewhat expected.....

Sorry - take after my father - he was always a punny guy - whoops - I did it again

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Masking off....

A few minor issues. From a few feet away they are not noticeable. I will probably leave them as I want to display the rocket this Saturday at the Kopernik Observatory Rocket Festival

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Masking off....

A few minor issues. From a few feet away they are not noticeable. I will probably leave them as I want to display the rocket this Saturday at the Kopernik Observatory Rocket Festival

Hey Les, don't worry too much about the minor paint blotches, they are not what counts for your L3.

ALL my rockets look great, (from 30' away).
 
Soooo.... a slight change in direction

I had been concentrating on getting the finish complete so I could display the rocket at the Kopernik Rocket Festival

But the AV bay wasn't wired up yet....
To further complicate things, I had a problem with my Raven altimeter and sent it back to Adrian at Featherweight to look at it. He has been busy and wasn't certain if he would be able to check it out in time.
So do I hope the Raven will be ready or go to plan B???
At NSL I was able to pick up a Marsa33LHD for $30 off. Decided to grab it for Plan B.
Then Adrian got my Raven back to me and it works.
So what to do??? Plan A or Plan B????

I decided to change the design and use BOTH the Raven and the Marsa33LHD (Plan C I guess). Each altimeter has 4 channels. Might as well use them.
I changed the terminal blocks on top to add 2 more sections.

I also changed from the screw switch to a Lab Rat dual pull pin switch. I decided on the dual so I could wire the switches in parallel. Just in case there is any contact bounce due to vibration/shock, hopefully both would not open at the same time.....

The wiring will be as follows:

Tekcub 3L Electronics A.jpg
 
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Spent some time to mount the components and wire things up.

The wiring was done assuming the bulkhead for the main is always attached to the sled.
Connectors are in line for the drogue bulkhead

Two tie wraps will help secure the 9V battery. The power perch secures the lipo for the Raven

The connectors will be either taped or heat shrunk for the flight to prevent shorting or coming apart.
NOTE - For the picture I did not fully insert the connectors together (a bit of a pain to pull apart - guess that is a good thing!)

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Sorry I've let this thread languish - some significant life events kicked in
I have not even downloaded the pix from my cameras yet.
But - successful launch and now I have my L3

It probably won't be until next week before I can really get involved with this and get the pix - still working the "life event"

BTW - still need to clean the motor parts. I believe I recall that vinegar can help in a delayed cleanup. Other suggestions?
Thanks
 
That is great news! I feared the worst when your main popped out at apogee. You’ve gotta share the details on how you found and recovered both pieces.
 
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