*RANT* Sparkies!

Or maybe weedeat the ditches?

cwbullet said:

Or maybe weedeat the ditches?

Click to expand...

Not always the best idea, either. Green stuff takes more to burn than brown stuff. We mow fresh for each launch the day of, and unless you rake it clean, all that tinder (even green fresh cut) starts plenty of fires with sparkys. The only thing I've seen that works well is wetting the entire area and then covering the whole spark splash zone with fire blanket (about 99% effective) or launching from an area that's 100% paved or playa with NOTHING to burn.

I love the look of sparkies (never burned one myself yet) but they are absolutely much more prone to starting fires. At "Fillible's Folly", the Oregon Rocketry launch last week, there were three fires from three sparky launches. They used a fire-blanket, but in each case numerous small fires ignited around the outside of the blanket. There were no other fires during the time I was there.

Again, I love watching them fly, but they are probably best saved for launching during low fire-danger times.

Long live the SPARKY!


TA

I like Sparkies, yes I do... I like Sparkies how about you....?

Until recent drought/fire danger... didn't know they made any other kind motor (than sparkies).

I wasn't really hooked till dark matter came out then I was sparkie only (unless the club restricted it):cry:

https://www.thejavamama.com/wp-cont...onal-Lampoon-Beverly-DAngelo-Chevy-Chase1.jpg

robbdm said:

I like Sparkies, yes I do... I like Sparkies how about you....?

Until recent drought/fire danger... didn't know they made any other kind motor (than sparkies).

I wasn't really hooked till dark matter came out then I was sparkie only (unless the club restricted it):cry:

Click to expand...

cbrarick said:

Do you have any studies to back that up?
I've wondered as I read the rant thread, if people aren't so hyperaware of sparkeys that they are treated differently - and because of this treatment, there are fewer sparkey fires then anything else.

Click to expand...

The only fire I've seen was from a Blackjack CATO..... however I think sparkies earn the reputation....



That is obviously more of a fire risk than say, a normal Blue streak launch

RocketFeller said:

I love the look of sparkies (never burned one myself yet) but they are absolutely much more prone to starting fires. At "Fillible's Folly", the Oregon Rocketry launch last week, there were three fires from three sparky launches. They used a fire-blanket, but in each case numerous small fires ignited around the outside of the blanket. There were no other fires during the time I was there.

Again, I love watching them fly, but they are probably best saved for launching during low fire-danger times.

Click to expand...

Granted, it didn't help that two of those sparky motor fires were caused by a SAUCER (two launches) with an H178DM in it each time. High drag keeps the flight low and slow, gives more time to spray sparks at the ground.

Conditions: Grass seed field w/ green grass, but in between the rows was a lot of dead, brown grass. It had rained for two days earlier in the week, but after a significant number of relatively large fires, even with the fireproof blankets, we/they shut down sparkies about halfway through the launch. Which sucked, as I'd already loaded a J340.

I want to fly rockets at a launch.. Not put out fires. If its safe. .let em rip...