Anyone got any " retrieve rocket from tree" strategies?

shop deals on amazon
the model rocket show
The Rocketry Forum

Help Support The Rocketry Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
R

RocketMike

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 26, 2012
Messages
276
Reaction score
14
I lost a rocket to a tree. It's not low enough to reach with a pole saw or anything like that but not so high as to make me think it's impossible to get to. Normally I'd just chalk it up as a loss and move on but the thing is hanging right on the tip of the tree branch which is sticking out in open space. It's tantalizingly visible which is the problem. It's like the tree is mocking me....LOL. Was thinking of maybe a slingshot or a fishing pole to try and get a line up there to snag it and pull it free. Any other ideas besides hoping the wind blows it free?
 
Some ideas:

https://www.rocketryforum.com/showthread.php?9187-Tree-Recovery

I tried to recover a friend's rocket from a tree by tying a plastic bag filled with small rocks to the end of some kite string and throwing it over over the limb. Having flown kites in the past, I should have thought to wear gloves. I ended up with pretty good cuts on a couple of fingers. So, whatever you do, be careful and play it safe.

-- Roger
 
Last edited:
keep getting rockets stuck up there until the branch breaks from their collective weight?
 
FruitPicker.jpgPoleHook.jpgMrLongReachTelescoping pole.jpgTreePruner.jpgDid not say how high it is.
I have used either of these items that i have . 12 feet to 18 feet.
Maybe a neighbor has one you could use.
If higher any friend or neighbor with a "JLG" lift?
Or a friend in the tree trimming business.
 
When I was a kid, we got a lot of rockets hung in trees. Usually we'd tie a kite cord to a portion of broken brick, or a stone with a bit of curve or "V" kinda gap, (so the string wouldn't slip off) and just keep tossing it till we looped the right branch.
 
I'd say it's 35 to 40 feet high. Don't know if I can actually throw anything that high. When I go back over there ( It's right down the road) I'll get a pic and post it.
 
Slingshot device with weighted fishing line. The key is to get it over the right branch and THEN pull up a more stout line or rope one can pull on to eviscerate branches or snag the rocket. Kurt
 
2 things come to mind.
I used a 20' step ladder with 2 10' sections of 3/4" conduit and taped a bent hanger to the end.
One I haven't tried yet is get a chunk of cord saw and attach it to some light line on both ends.
As suggested, add weight to one of the cords and go throw your shoulder out.

There is a third, if ya got the right shot gun and shot shells....:y:

Or go by one of those mini chopper things Estes sells and hook a drag line with a [h]ook on it.
At least the kids will have fun with it when your done. :fly:
 
I have a Swedish Army pole set for stringing wire for field telephones which gets ocassional use. Once used a spool of nylon twine with a weight tied to the end to retreive my rare Estes Jupiter C from an oak tree. Also snapped up a telescoping golf ball retreiver to use for model rockets.
 
I feel your pain. Lost the pop pod to my boost glider in a tree yesterday. At least 25 feet up, just out of reach of my longest pole and duck tape rig. Today was a breezy day which I hoped would shake it loose, but no dice. It just sat up there flapping its streamer at me. I think it's mocking me. Unfortunately I used Kevlar cord as a shock cord...that sucker will probably outlast the tree.
 
Last edited:
What I really need is a good neighbor who owns a boom lift. Or maybe we should call the hobby ballistic tree decorating. Then we'll all be complaining that we can't get the darn things to stick.
 
Last edited:
361s-and-friends-jpg.69154
 
Here's a video of how a R/C model of a P-51 Mustang was retrieved from the top of a tree just 2-3 minutes after it landed in the tree.

[youtube][video=youtube;1K2I1bbrh2E]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1K2I1bbrh2E[/video][/youtube]

This is the most impressive "model retrieved from a tree" story, ever.

- George Gassaway
 
RocketMike said:
I lost a rocket to a tree. It's not low enough to reach with a pole saw or anything like that but not so high as to make me think it's impossible to get to. Normally I'd just chalk it up as a loss and move on but the thing is hanging right on the tip of the tree branch which is sticking out in open space. It's tantalizingly visible which is the problem. It's like the tree is mocking me....LOL. Was thinking of maybe a slingshot or a fishing pole to try and get a line up there to snag it and pull it free. Any other ideas besides hoping the wind blows it free?
Click to expand...

If it's hanging by a long shock cord, I suggest a 20 guage shotgun loaded with bird shot.
 
I have a 20 foot pole saw. You can usually loop around the rocket, or cut the branch it's in. Somewhere in Oregon, late at night a large oak tree in a park lost an 8-inch limb and my Loc Graduator was safely back home.

I really would like a 500mW portable laser. :)
 
Woody's Workshop said:
2 things come to mind.
I used a 20' step ladder with 2 10' sections of 3/4" conduit and taped a bent hanger to the end.
One I haven't tried yet is get a chunk of cord saw and attach it to some light line on both ends.
As suggested, add weight to one of the cords and go throw your shoulder out.

There is a third, if ya got the right shot gun and shot shells....:y:

Or go by one of those mini chopper things Estes sells and hook a drag line with a [h]ook on it.
At least the kids will have fun with it when your done. :fly:
Click to expand...

You may laugh...but as a youngster, a .410 was how we harvested mistletoe in rural SC...come to think of it, that's a very appropriate plant for this discussion! :D
 
That guy was really lucky to have such nice guys just happen over the sceen.
Nice to know there is some real people in this world that pays attention other real people.
Instead of walking along amongst a 1000 other people, too busy on those super phones to notice there is even a population out side 0f their screen.
 
Whoa that's up there! Good luck. I'll be watching to see how you get it.
 
How about a friend with an r/c plane or multi/rotor heli and drop along line over the rocket, or a network wire cable caster, or a bow and arrow with a line tied to the arrow250px-Fulton_system2.jpgGrenleeCableCaster.jpg
 
I've got a conventional RC heli but I'm not confident enough in my skills with it to fly it up close to the tree. I'm a ham radio operator and I had a slingshot I used to use for putting lines in tress to hoist up antennas with but unfortunately I cannot put my hands on it right now. Right now my strategy is just to wait for the wind to blow it down but of course we haven't really had a very windy day since it got stuck up there.
 
Telescoping fiberglass kite pole. Available in 20-40' lengths for $25-50. They have various uses including for windsock kites (desert launches), thermal detectors, recovery.
 
Myself and others at MMMSC launches have called the local tree guy. He's down to about $30 per retrieval, a small price to pay if there's a few hundred $$ worth of casing and electronics hanging in a tree. He rigs the harness, climbs up chain saw in hand and takes care of the offending branch in about five minutes.
 
I'm not sure what the deal is with getting your hands on that sling shot you own, but, I truly believe finding it, or getting a wrist rocket sling shot and using what ksaves2 says, is about the best idea I've heard so far. At least, (with all those trees around ) a good wrist rocket would be a wise investment. That tree is teasing you by holding your rocket hostage. Time to let it know just who da boss is! Can't count on mother nature to help you out, she got real finicky the last couple of years.
 

Similar threads

U
First launch...
2 3
Replies
77
Views
2K
user 45155
U
D
More Tall Boy
Replies
0
Views
997
DirkTheDaring
D
eJar0k
Composite Nose Cone Mold from 3D-Printed Parts
Replies
0
Views
303
eJar0k
eJar0k
S
Adam Laakmann's Rocket Facts LinkedIn posts #1 - #10
Replies
8
Views
921
John Kemker
John Kemker
billdz
Any tips for finding rocket in cornfield?
2 3
Replies
86
Views
6K
Spitfire222
Spitfire222

Latest posts

Back
Top