The Mirage Lives!!!

Phil, I hope you don't mind me stealing your thunder...

Well as some of you who have followed the fate of the Mirage (see the Salisbury Launch thread https://www.rocketryforum.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=284) it is my pleasure to announce that the Mirage is safely back in the stable.

Several things made it happen.

1) The sure shooting of Kent (KenParker's son)
2) A weaker bow (set to about 45 lbs instead of 80 lbs)
3) Tieing the fishing line to the back of the arrow (instead of the front)
4) Lots of patience as the arrow slowly returned to earth after it was shot over the shock chord.

The rocket suffered only minimal damage, I few scrapes along the body tube and the shock chord snapped in two. But everything is recovered.

Once it was down you could hear our shouts of jubilation for a country mile.

Rocket eating trees 0, Rocketeers 1!!!

We had our own get-the-rocket-out-of-the-tree adventure today... The Estes Sidewinder, modified to be recovered in one part landed near the top of a tree about 8 m AGL (26 ft). A lot of climbing, breaking of branches and fishing for the rocket as well as swinging the branch it was sitting on finally made the rocket fall down where it could be retrieved nearly intact. The weak plastic chutes got ripped on two attachment points each. Scotch tape did the trick and it flew again on a C6-3. _Very_ slow liftoff, I think it was much too heavy after another major repair before (feels like 160 g, which is 5.6 oz and way too much for a C6). We should try again on a C5-3 or an Aerotech 18 mm motor (thinking of the D9, mmmmh...)

Rocket eating trees 0 : Rocketeers 2!!!

Oliver

Hooray! Hooray for us!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Now I owe Ken's son a Mustang kit. Very well earned!!! -doing the cabbage patch-

Now you have to go to Whitakers the weekend of 10/27-28. I mean, after all, you now have your Level 1 cert rocket back. So you have every reason to go, and no excuse not to go.

You will have to fix/replace some fins first. There is currently only one fin that is structurely intact or worthy of level one certifcation.

Wait, what happened to the other fin? I had one cracked and one broke. The cracked one could fly and so could the broke one? What kind of dammage are we talking about here?

I hope to see it tomorrow...

That's all the damage there is. But I figured for certification you'd want all your fins unbroken and fit. Isn't one of the required bits for cert is to have an undamaged rocket before take off and after landing?

Well, as I understand it, they have to inspect the rocket. But the crack and snap shouldn't keep it from going up. The other requirement is that when it is recovered, it has to be able to go back up without any major repairs. I think I will be alright. The H that I have chosen is the lower powered H.

Well then you are definitely ready to go then.

Well, she is back home. And in better condition than I expected. Thanks to Ken, son and Craig for all their help. Sniff, what an emotional moment.

It was a tearful scene. Like a boy finding his long, lost puppy.

As they say in Jersey, youse guys are jus tearin' me up.

C'mon, now, we all know the truth..... Phil is a man whose head was literally yanked off the guillotine chopping block at the last possible second. I know what his lovely wife was gonna do to him if that rocket wasn't recovered..... jeeez.... probably more moolah in the accessories than the rocket itself.... the AeroPack engine retainer, the 29mm RMS hardware, the 48" PML chute.... my bank account is shuddering to think about it....

Seriously, Phil, we had fun retrieving the rocket. The whole FAMILY had fun.

Of course, Milo's imitation of a you-rang-a-tang that he did when he climbed a tree might have had something to do with it.... if you could have heard him chittering and shaking the tree... I thought Anna, Kent, and Lea were gonna die laughing.... if only I had thought to bring my video camera.....

...and to think I missed the entertainment....dang!

oh yea...uhhh...Phil...you ARE gonna glass those fins BEFORE you go to Whitakers, RIGHT???!!!

You had BETTER of answered yes, because I will tell you now, if someone showed up with a rocket that had a broken fin and a cracked one and he wanted to put an "H" in it...well...

...once I stopped laughing...I would say "NO"!!! The guys at Whitakers probably will too. Make your L1 launch both SAFE and memorable; you worked hard for it!

But, look at the bright side, you have nearly two weeks to prepare and glass those fins and you have had ALOT of practice lately with the A4, so there are no excuses. With the way you work, it could be done in one nite, just pretend it's the A4

Cya,

Carl

Last night I did some work on the rocket. And yes the cracked fin has been glassed. That was the first thing I did. However, I did not glass the entire fin, just a large portion of the cracked area. I also cut the other two fins to match the broke one. It looks hardly noticable now... In fact, the fins seem to be less "bendable" than they were. So, I think we are good to go. I will try to take some pictures tonight.

I took time to test the shock cord and it seemed in good condition. It is possible that it snapped because the wind was causing it to rub up against the tree limb. But anyway, I tied them all up and they are back in business.

When (not if) we go to Whitakers I plan on launching it one more time on a G before I go for certification. This will ensure to me that it is still in good condition after sitting out there in the elements. And if anyone tells me I can't use it for level 1, I'll Roshambo them for cert.

Originally posted by PGerringer
And if anyone tells me I can't use it for level 1, I'll Roshambo them for cert.

Click to expand...

Who gets to go first?

definitely me!!!!

OK, based on all the grief I've been getting, the fins were sanded down to fin and primer. Tonight I will try to sand some more. I will be glassing the entire fin. You guys suck...

Now that's a good boy. Sand the fins Daniel-son.

Phil...did somebodies give yunz a hard time bout doze fins???

If you are having a hard time and whining about it, you can always call...

1 - 800 - WHHAAAA

OK, enough ribbing. Glad to hear you decided to glass the fins; it was a good decision as they have really tightened up inspections at the checkin table and only allow sound HPR models to fly.

btw, did you ever get your cert reload? Since Aerotech burned down, you may have a hard time finding one.

Carl

I got one today. I'm having it sent to Ken Parkers house though. Got it from Ross at Magnum Rockets. So, as long as the powers that be say GO, I will be Cert level 1 in 2 weeks. Knowing my luck, it will be raining...

Here are the pictures of the modfications. I still have to put a clear coat on but I thought you may be interested in checking them out. I don't have any pictures of the actual process as I didn't enjoy doing it. )) Anyway, here they are:

https://scooby.cybergatetech.com/Projects/Rocketry/Pictures/Mirage/fin_modification1.jpg
https://scooby.cybergatetech.com/Projects/Rocketry/Pictures/Mirage/fin_modification2.jpg
https://scooby.cybergatetech.com/Projects/Rocketry/Pictures/Mirage/fin_modification3.jpg

You will notice the tips of the fins are now gone. I removed them with my compound miter saw. They used to extend more below the rocket and end in one point instead of 2. The fins look better now and you can't tell where the fin cracked or where it snapped. The rocket is incredibly stable anyway, so I don't think the fin modification will affect the flight of the rocket.

Now that I look at them, these pics don't do a good job at showing the glassing but rest assured, the fins are glassed.

I'm ready for Cert 1. Now, lets pray for sunshine and calm...

Looks good man. Can't wait to see it fly again.

Great job on the fins, Phil. I actually like them a lot better that way. Makes it look f-a-s-t just sitting on the ground.

Ya done good, young Skywalker.