SkySailer Build. 3 Stage E - D rocket

[Orion14ed]

Orion here with a brand new build. I have been thinking about this design for some time, and finally got around to making it. The rocket is called SkySailer, and has a projected apogee of 3,400 ft. This is with 3 E-9 motors. For the first flight, I plan on using a combination of Ds and Es to increase the chance of getting her back. This is what it looks like.


Each stage is connected by a coupler, and the motor mount will be modified to help increase the chance of proper staging. Due to the projected altitude, it will use a streamer recovery rather than a parachute. If I did a parachute, I fear there would be no chance of me getting the final stage back. I will also find a way to cram a streamer into each stage, or on the outside of each stage, to find them more easily. The fins will be made of 3.32" balsa, and 4 will be on each stage. I have all the parts picked out, and am going to be purchasing them soon.

And I also have a question, I plan on purchasing the Estes Fin aligner to help build my smaller rockets. Is this a good idea?

[aditat2]

I have never used one. I have always just used a paper pattern ( like the one in the old Estes or Centauri publications). Always seem to turn out all-right. Just take your time when putting them on.

[JPVegh]

It's a cool design, multistage is a alot of fun and a real crowd pleaser when all works as it should. Everyone should build atleast one in their rocketry career. One thing to consider when staging is that the spent stages should tumble back to earth and not come in ballistic, you don't want to put a dent in someones car or head.

I have an Estes fin jig and it does work pretty well. Over the years I've managed to lose the motor mount pieces and had to make new ones. It's been a while since I've actually used it, I mostly eyeball my fin alignment now a days. As I and my eyes get older I may have to go back to using the jig. Paper patterns work well for finding correct spacing and they don't cost anything but a sheet of paper.

[StefanJ]

Following up on what Jeff said:

Consider making the booster fins trapezoidal rather than swept. Ideally, you want a booster stage whose CP and CG (with a spent motor) are together. This encourages a tumble rather than a ballistic trajectory.

[dwmzmm]

With that combination of engines, the chances of upper stage not being visible after burnout is pretty high. I launched a two staged, four engine cluster in each stage model (24 mm core and three 18 mm outboards) back in 2005 with an Astrocam as the payload and lost the model after burnout because it was so high we couldn't see it anymore, even though we heard four distinct pops of the ejection charges. The model was painted with high visibility colors and the parachute was a 20" nylon bright yellow. It was partially cloudy with blue sky. As suggested here, the fins of the booster stages were trapezoid. All four boosters were recovered close to the launch pad.

[Rocketbuilder]

I assume you meant E12's, since there aren't any E9 booster motors. Even with the E12's, I think you're close to the upper limit of the maximum liftoff weight. Just be sure to use a fairly long rod, and you should be fine.
Also, unless it's for looks, I would suggest making the stages a little shorter so the motors are closer together and more likely to stage properly.
Good luck! Should be a cool (and expensive ) flight!

[aditat2]

To get back to your question about fin alignment jigs - a useful little tool that you can make yourself, and very cheaply I might add, is to get a length of outside corner moulding at your local hdwr. store. You know the stuff that looks like angle iron. Place it on your trusty table saw and cut a slot in the point of the angle equal to the thickness of your fin stock. All you have to do is line it up to your fin lines, secure in place with a couple of rubber bands and glue your fin in place - being careful not to glue your guide to the bt. I haven't used this trick yet, but I plan on trying it soon.

[[POW]Eagle159]

I was thinking about something like this.... Just with smaller engines and a larger rocket! Low slow 3 stager with gap staging and a clustered first stage... Still designing though.

[Orion14ed]

That would be really cool. The launch would be awesome. I built this one for performance, rather than looks though. My next few builds will be for looks :3