What did you do rocket wise today?

Cl(VII) said:

That is truly 10 lbs of -stuff- in a 2 lb sack. Well done.

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After doing 24 & 29mm avbays, there's SOOO much room in these 38mm rockets. The 54mm bay on my Broken Arrow is full-up cavernous.

It looks like an EasyMini will fit in there if I move my switch. So, a single break 38mm rocket with either single deploy or a cable cutter should be pretty easy.

Flyfalcons said:

Is that going to be an Aerobee?

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That would be it! It will be a 26% scale model of a Aerobee 150.

I've been sitting on this project ever since I got back into rocketry full bore last winter, and had a false start when I ordered tubing from PML in January, then destroyed two sections of the tube when my attempt at vacuum bagging fiberglass on them resulted in multiple bubbles and voids. I put the project on hold until I finished the ARCAS, and I was impressed with the material from MAC, so I ordered my components from them, and had them custom cut and slot the tubes for me (one less thing for me to worry about!). The fins were custom cut by Mike at Binder Design and custom decals printed from Stickershock back January!

Began building fins for Estes Protostar.

Well, the first test print looks alright. All the electronics fit and the sled fits snugly in the nose code. I still need to test the eye bolt, washer & nut when they get in.

With just a battery, switch & Eggfinder in there, I need to think about a way to let me know the power is on. The magnetic switches are great for keeping extra holes of of things, but it's tough to tell if they're on. Maybe I should solder up a few of Cris' wifi switches instead. Hmmmmmm.

EDIT: I'll skip the magnet switches & just use Featherweight screw switches. Good enough!

Just put the last ring of epoxy on the fin can of my scratch L2 build. Tomorrow will be "baffling"!

Lost the tiny bag of blind nuts and rail buttons I bought for all the rockets on my workbench. Super.

EDIT: Found it!

I built my labor day sale Eggtimer Quark. Went together pretty smooth and initial testing look like its working great... Thanks Cris for the amazing products and great technical assistance.

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Got the fins mounted on my Rabid Weasel MD build, a Blue Tube minimum diameter clone of the Loc Weasel. Its also been stretched an extra 5.75" for a nose tracker bay.

Started on my super bat ray as my L1 (that I can still fly on a G at my local non-hpr field). Got the motor tube and forward center ring in last night, and first fin setting today.

Listed more of my prized possessions to deal with life, which IMHO, isn't all that great anymore.
I'm an old worn out, broken down, used up, worthless, excuse of a human man what society has deemed not worthy of their time or the benefits I have worked all my life for, Yet says I'm employable.
Some of you are business owners, so tell me...If I walked into your business hobbling in on a cane and asked for work, what could you employ me to do with a minimal High School Diploma (meaning just enough of a GPA to graduate and the minimum of points) to do to benefit your business? I am not book smart.
I have been one to work with my hands all my life and I prided myself on that fact. I learned by watching, doing and experiencing, not by books.
I am a self thought Auto Body Tech which I did on my own vehicles, took the test's including custom painting and passed, and for 17 years made a good living at it working for other people and doing custom painting out of my own garage. But can no longer do that work.
Then I went into construction as a common laborer in low slope EPDM (Rubber) and ThermoPlastic roofing. I went online on rain and snow days to study manufactures specs and installment procedures to further my knowledge.
I worked my way to a Field Foreman position which I prided myself upon having the least amount of punch list item of all the company. But that wasn't enough. Because then I was sent in to finish up others projects to make them meet specs and blamed for going over budget because the basics were over looked.
Then I worked myself into the office after turning in my 2 week notice to take a Hi-Lo job because I could no longer take the winters in the field.

In the mean time I got married at age 40, started a family, bought a house and built the Wood Shop I had always wanted and set myself up for retirement.
Then the Great USA financial system went to hell in a hand basket in 2008, and our great grand children will be paying for it and their great grand children.

And I was laid off due to my knowledge was no longer needed as I could be replace with a younger, more educated individual right out of college.

My daily dilemma is when do I start selling off the only things I have to leave my son's to deal with life? I had a good life as long as my body could support the needs of others. And it's over.
I'm tired, I live in pain and on pain pills, and I am not afraid to die. In fact, I wish for it. At what point in life is enough is enough?
Buy what you can while you can. Because my wife will throw everything of mine in the dumpster when she moves away when I'm gone.
Just give me a fair price, please don't take advantage of me, at least not more than everyone else has.

Great job Groucho. What CAD tool do you use?

I'm weak. I just bought another Go Devil 38. The last one I flew I put 40 inches into the desert floor. The fin survived great.

Eric,
What are the light bulb looking thingies? Are they for ground test? Do they burn out or just light up? Where do you get them?
Tom

TomSmith58 said:

Eric,
What are the light bulb looking thingies? Are they for ground test? Do they burn out or just light up? Where do you get them?
Tom

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Those are christmas tree light bulbs, and they work great to test altimeters in a vacumn chamber. They dont burn out and are easy to get.

Yes, they are just cheap Christmas light bulbs. Grabbed the spares that came with a few sets. I just use them for ground testing. They don't burn out. Some people snap the ends off and load them with 4F to make there deployment charges. But I just use a glove finger tip and zip-ties.

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Mr Harshberger
Do I know you from Boeing or Rockwell ?

TomSmith58 said:

Great job Groucho. What CAD tool do you use?

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Thanks Tom. It's just TinkerCAD. For the tapered part at the pointy nosecone end, I generated a VK shape in Thingiverse and imported it into TinkerCAD (plus some cuts).

I just bought a Go Devil 38 too. I don't even remember how long I've waited for them to be in stock.

Added another size clone of the Estes NASA Pegasus to the fleet... Top to bottom- BT-70 upscale, BT-60 upscale, BT-55 original size, BT-50, BT-20, BT-5.

Next up: 2.6”, 3”, & 4” upscales...


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Ordered the new Missileworks tracker, and some Lipos for it...I'm weak.

Printing parts for the Ox Metal build, and checked in and organized the parts I received for it over the last week.

Yesterday I lucked into a 4' long piece of mill work with 4 drawers, cabinet, and a not matching top for free as we are doing some lab remodeling at work. Took some work to make the top fit the cabinet, but I only have 2 hours and about $1 in wood glue, nails and screws in it. Going to be perfect for the router.

Re-did my Blue Tube Rabid Weasel MD OpenRocke file, for some reason the old one had the rocket doing all kinds of unstable things. After re-doing the entire rocket, it now sims stable up to a J510.....(yes the fins get tip to tip). And just for S&G's (its cool looking but not likely to fly) yes that's a CHAD'ed 54/427...:dark:



My goal for this rocket is to see how much punishment it can eventually take.

I did a little work on my Mouse 38 and my kids' two Formula 38s today. My kids were supposed to help me epoxy the rear rail button nuts and the motor mount forward centering rings, but we watched Star Wars Ep VII instead. So, I epoxied for them. My Mouse is tagging along in their builds.

Here's the Mouse, Formula & Formula:



Fins and the forward rail button nuts are next!

Ordered my first gps tracking kit from @cerving this weekend (two eggfinder mini transmitters and an LCD receiver)

Also air-foiled my first balsa fins. It's definitely a subtle skill. Removed a little too much material on the first one - I might need to CWF and resend it a little. I'll post pics in my apogee aspire build thread later once the kids are down.

I didn't do a darn thing rocket-wise. But I did spend a major part of the day helping to curve-generate a telescope mirror.

It's an 18" boro-silicate glass blank, being ground into an f/5.6 Newt mirror, for a fixed focuser height telescope, appropriate for viewing by wheel-chair bound individuals. When the SAS "mirror guru" announced his intention to make such a scope, I donated the $1K blank to the effort, with the single caveat that it be named for Bruce Orvis.

This will be the Bruce Orvis Memorial Telescope, being built by the Stockton Astronomical Society, for use at public star parties. Bruce was a big supporter of Stockton. Bruce was also a huge supporter of LUNAR, and we still hold high power launches at Snow Ranch, during the wetter months.

Ad astra, Bruce. And thank you.

Painted a couple of nose cones.


Painting is not so bad when you don't have a zillion nooks and crannies to work around.

neil_w said:

Painted a couple of nose cones.
View attachment 329254

Painting is not so bad when you don't have a zillion books and crannies to work around.

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So nosecone are basically the only place you get to do that Lol.

Nytrunner said:

So nosecone are basically the only place you get to do that Lol.

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Basically, yeah.

cherokeej said:

I didn't do a darn thing rocket-wise. But I did spend a major part of the day helping to curve-generate a telescope mirror.

It's an 18" boro-silicate glass blank, being ground into an f/5.6 Newt mirror, for a fixed focuser height telescope, appropriate for viewing by wheel-chair bound individuals. When the SAS "mirror guru" announced his intention to make such a scope, I donated the $1K blank to the effort, with the single caveat that it be named for Bruce Orvis.

This will be the Bruce Orvis Memorial Telescope, being built by the Stockton Astronomical Society, for use at public star parties. Bruce was a big supporter of Stockton. Bruce was also a huge supporter of LUNAR, and we still hold high power launches at Snow Ranch, during the wetter months.

Ad astra, Bruce. And thank you.

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A very cool tribute.

cherokeej said:

I didn't do a darn thing rocket-wise. But I did spend a major part of the day helping to curve-generate a telescope mirror.

It's an 18" boro-silicate glass blank, being ground into an f/5.6 Newt mirror, for a fixed focuser height telescope, appropriate for viewing by wheel-chair bound individuals. When the SAS "mirror guru" announced his intention to make such a scope, I donated the $1K blank to the effort, with the single caveat that it be named for Bruce Orvis.

This will be the Bruce Orvis Memorial Telescope, being built by the Stockton Astronomical Society, for use at public star parties. Bruce was a big supporter of Stockton. Bruce was also a huge supporter of LUNAR, and we still hold high power launches at Snow Ranch, during the wetter months.

Ad astra, Bruce. And thank you.

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Awesome! So you guys have a dark sky star party site? Blue Canyon up by Tahoe is great, but always looking for other good sites. I've got a 12" SCT.

Went to our rocketry club meeting in Lafayette Indiana tonight. Due to a slight error in who was going to get the keys to the normal meeting location...had to relocate around the corner to a local restaurant.
Small chain restaurant with an "Irish" name/motif per say...Lots of Potatoes, Reuben Sandwiches...Soups etc. on the menu.
We sat down on their vacant/quiet patio to begin the meeting and, TWO...HOT...PALE SKINNED...LONG CURLY HAIR...RED HEADED Girls showed up and, ate supper about 30 feet away-
I can't even remember a single word that was said for the rest of the night. IF you have too ask, don't. :no: I still have drool marks on my hoodie.

Finished putting together a Fletcher!
I do believe this is my first Super-Rocket!