Pdr K-21

fred22 said:

Glad to hear it went well Mine goes like heck on two B4-4's Two C6-5's sounds like it might go :flybye:
Cheers
fred

Click to expand...

So you really think two C6-5's will push it to the edge?! Somewhat what I was afraid of last June, during the Day - 2 of the Moon, Mars & Beyond Regional Meet at JSC, I flew my Estes Gauchito (for the Future Scale/Science
Fiction event) on a cluster of four 1/2A3-2T's. Used the shorter delay in case
one or more engine failed to ignite and allow the chute's the chance to deploy
should the model go ballistic. In fact, all four engines lit, and the model went
pretty high. The Apollo style capsule returned on its' own 7" parachute while
the main body section used the 12" chute. With the somewhat tall grass
typical at JSC, I was lucky to find the capsule almost hidden in the grass
about 600 feet down range...

I think if I can give the GT-3 a try on the C6-5's at JSC in good weather, it
should work out ok. The weather we had at Rushing Park on August 4th was
absolutely perfect (except for the heat!), as we had virtually no wind to contend with. I even got to fly my Centuri 1/35 scale Mercury Redstone (C6-3) and Centuri 1/100 Saturn - V (three C6-3) and those flew excellent.

Glad to read about this again. I was thinking about this very thread a few days ago, and wondering what was up with that rocket. Glad to know it's still alive. Since my GTs are still just tubes and parts in a box, I just have to enjoy flying yours.

dwmzmm said:

So you really think two C6-5's will push it to the edge?! Somewhat what I was afraid of last June, during the Day - 2 of the Moon, Mars & Beyond Regional Meet at JSC, I flew my Estes Gauchito (for the Future Scale/Science
Fiction event) on a cluster of four 1/2A3-2T's. Used the shorter delay in case
one or more engine failed to ignite and allow the chute's the chance to deploy
should the model go ballistic. In fact, all four engines lit, and the model went
pretty high. The Apollo style capsule returned on its' own 7" parachute while
the main body section used the 12" chute. With the somewhat tall grass
typical at JSC, I was lucky to find the capsule almost hidden in the grass
about 600 feet down range...

I think if I can give the GT-3 a try on the C6-5's at JSC in good weather, it
should work out ok. The weather we had at Rushing Park on August 4th was
absolutely perfect (except for the heat!), as we had virtually no wind to contend with. I even got to fly my Centuri 1/35 scale Mercury Redstone (C6-3) and Centuri 1/100 Saturn - V (three C6-3) and those flew excellent.

Click to expand...

Dave I have got to see some of your stuff go up in person man What I meant was on C6-5's you will need a large recovery area as this thing IMO will go suborbital on those engines A clusterred gauchito? man where are the pictures
Cheers
fred

fred22 said:

Dave I have got to see some of your stuff go up in person man What I meant was on C6-5's you will need a large recovery area as this thing IMO will go suborbital on those engines A clusterred gauchito? man where are the pictures
Cheers
fred

Click to expand...

Sure, come on down to the Houston area; we're a hot bed of model rocket
activities anyway!! Rushing Park has a pretty good recovery area when the
wind is coming from the north, northwest or northeast (any other direction from the south will take your models to the cow pasture across the street).

You mean you haven't seen/heard about my Gauchito from the Moon, Mars &
Beyond Regional at JSC last June?! Go to this link:

https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=7724&posts=21&start=1

Be sure to read through the entire thread (you'll find a great source of scale
data on many of the X-Prize entries in a zip file). Some "action" pictures of
the four engine cluster Gauchito is on page two; scroll down a bit and you'll
see a great picture (and LARGE) by David Laney caught right after ignition.
Since I've already gave a good account of the flight in the NASA SpaceFlight
thread, I won't recount it here. Hope you like it.

More later...

fred22, I see your Avatar's a Saturn - V, so I assume you must like the Saturn's as much as I do. Well, I got another treat for you; go to the link
below and follow the thread and you'll see plenty of pics I took of this launch
we had at Rushing Park last August 4th. I have the Centuri 1/100 Saturn - V
flying for the first time on three C6-3's; also have Centuri's 1/35 scale Mercury Redstone (and the GT-3 mentioned a few posts ago, pictured on
the pad prior to launch).

https://forums.rocketshoppe.com/showthread.php?t=1998

Enjoy!!

dwmzmm said:

fred22, I see your Avatar's a Saturn - V, so I assume you must like the Saturn's as much as I do. Well, I got another treat for you; go to the link
below and follow the thread and you'll see plenty of pics I took of this launch
we had at Rushing Park last August 4th. I have the Centuri 1/100 Saturn - V
flying for the first time on three C6-3's; also have Centuri's 1/35 scale Mercury Redstone (and the GT-3 mentioned a few posts ago, pictured on
the pad prior to launch).

https://forums.rocketshoppe.com/showthread.php?t=1998

Enjoy!!

Click to expand...

Dave all of your stuff is awesome Four engine gauchito thats really neat. I am working on a saturn V right now but I am using 4x18mm and one 24. The roll pattern is neat. Its the estes anniversary edition Thanks for the links I really like the pictures. The GT finish is amazing
Cheers
fred

fred22 said:

Dave all of your stuff is awesome Four engine gauchito thats really neat. I am working on a saturn V right now but I am using 4x18mm and one 24. The roll pattern is neat. Its the estes anniversary edition Thanks for the links I really like the pictures. The GT finish is amazing
Cheers
fred

Click to expand...

A five engine clustered Saturn - V?! I'm working on one myself, as we speak!
It's with the vintage Estes K-36 kit, no less:

https://forums.rocketshoppe.com/showthread.php?t=1931

Plenty of pictures in that thread, too....

Any ideas on what it would take to modify the GT-3 to be a Titan II ICBM? I think the only difference would be the nose cone, but I haven't been able to find a Titan II cone for the BT-70 that the GT-3 uses. Also, has anyone ever tried to convert the GT-3 to a 2-stage, using a single engine for the upper stage? I might try some ground tests to see if the canted engine mounts make it possible.

James

dwmzmm said:

A five engine clustered Saturn - V?! I'm working on one myself, as we speak!
It's with the vintage Estes K-36 kit, no less:

https://forums.rocketshoppe.com/showthread.php?t=1931

Plenty of pictures in that thread, too....

Click to expand...

It looks a lot like the one i am working on What does your recovery system consist of?
Cheers
fred

hedgie6 said:

Any ideas on what it would take to modify the GT-3 to be a Titan II ICBM? I think the only difference would be the nose cone, but I haven't been able to find a Titan II cone for the BT-70 that the GT-3 uses. Also, has anyone ever tried to convert the GT-3 to a 2-stage, using a single engine for the upper stage? I might try some ground tests to see if the canted engine mounts make it possible.

James

Click to expand...

Those sound like great ideas. The sandman (Gordon) may be able to help you with a nosecone. I would like to hear about any or all progress on such a neat project. Have you built any other ICBM's?
Cheers
fred

No others, I am only interested in the Titan II. I live in Tucson and have become interested in the silos around town and have been to the Titan Missle Museum a couple of times. Also, my father-in-law was on a missle crew while he was in the AF. I have also thought about building a scale silo to launch it from.

James

hedgie6 said:

No others, I am only interested in the Titan II. I live in Tucson and have become interested in the silos around town and have been to the Titan Missle Museum a couple of times. Also, my father-in-law was on a missle crew while he was in the AF. I have also thought about building a scale silo to launch it from.

James

Click to expand...

Sounds like a great project
Cheers
Fred

fred22 said:

It looks a lot like the one i am working on What does your recovery system consist of?
Cheers
fred

Click to expand...

Recovery system consists of the baffle ejection system (as shown in a number of the photos, before the SI-C & SII tubes were joined together).
The main body section will use three 24" parachutes; the upper section (from
the SII/SIV-B adapter to the Apollo spacecraft) will return on its' own 24"
parachute. Due to the fact that I know plenty of nose weight will be needed
to bring the CG to the proper position (and, yes, I will use clear slip on fins
for the SI-C), and the added weight of the five engines & their casings will
make it necessary for the third 24" chute as opposed to the two parachutes
previous 1/100 scale Saturn - V kits used.

The pictures of that Centuri Saturn - V noted several posts ago is also
configured for using three 24" chutes, too, but in that flight of August 4th,
I just used only two as the model had already been pre-prepped weeks
earlier (as had the Mercury Redstone & GT-3) and I didn't want to "rock the
boat" and disturb anything that wasn't broken already (know what I mean?!).

dwmzmm said:

Recovery system consists of the baffle ejection system (as shown in a number of the photos, before the SI-C & SII tubes were joined together).
The main body section will use three 24" parachutes; the upper section (from
the SII/SIV-B adapter to the Apollo spacecraft) will return on its' own 24"
parachute. Due to the fact that I know plenty of nose weight will be needed
to bring the CG to the proper position (and, yes, I will use clear slip on fins
for the SI-C), and the added weight of the five engines & their casings will
make it necessary for the third 24" chute as opposed to the two parachutes
previous 1/100 scale Saturn - V kits used.

The pictures of that Centuri Saturn - V noted several posts ago is also
configured for using three 24" chutes, too, but in that flight of August 4th,
I just used only two as the model had already been pre-prepped weeks
earlier (as had the Mercury Redstone & GT-3) and I didn't want to "rock the
boat" and disturb anything that wasn't broken already (know what I mean?!).

Click to expand...

Tha baffle system sounds cool as it looks in the photo. I can tell you that one of my previous incarnations returned safely to earth on a single 24" chute after the other melted. I agree that a 24" chute will be necessary for the top with the added weight. I was thinking of using a single 30 inch nylon chute in the main section with a nomex cloth and a 24" nylon chute for the upper section. I hear you about the dont fix it if it aint broke thing and agree there as well. I just about finished doing my Sat V roll pattern today and I am getting a little excited. I would add recovery has always been the main problem with clusterred saturns for me and I thank you for letting me know what you think. It all helps
Cheers
fred

fred22 said:

Tha baffle system sounds cool as it looks in the photo. I can tell you that one of my previous incarnations returned safely to earth on a single 24" chute after the other melted. I agree that a 24" chute will be necessary for the top with the added weight. I was thinking of using a single 30 inch nylon chute in the main section with a nomex cloth and a 24" nylon chute for the upper section. I hear you about the dont fix it if it aint broke thing and agree there as well. I just about finished doing my Sat V roll pattern today and I am getting a little excited. I would add recovery has always been the main problem with clusterred saturns for me and I thank you for letting me know what you think. It all helps
Cheers
fred

Click to expand...

The other thing to keep in mind is the five tubings for the engines; I made them pretty long so that it'll be impossible for the ejection charge to accidently ignite should one engine fail to ignite at ignition. Also, there's no
way the recovery system can fail due to a misfired engine. In the past, I've
flown clusters similar to this, but only the core engine was capable of activating the recovery system. This is what led to the destruction of my
2nd (and last) Cineroc in 2004 when the core (an E9-6) failed to ignite but
the three C6-7's (strapons, but used indepentent pods) did ignite and the
Cineroc was doomed immediately.

BTW, when are you going to post pics of YOUR Saturn - V?! I'd like to see them!

Heres one I am not quite done. I still need to tidy up the paint and attach chutes but it looks like a Sat V.
Cheers
fred

fred22 said:

Heres one I am not quite done. I still need to tidy up the paint and attach chutes but it looks like a Sat V.
Cheers
fred

Click to expand...

Looks to me it's just about done; now go out and fly her!! Keep up the great
work...

Man if this rain keeps up i can stage a real splashdown :banghead:
Cheers
fred

fred22 said:

Man if this rain keeps up i can stage a real splashdown :banghead:
Cheers
fred

Click to expand...

:lol: I hear ya. Doesn't really sound too great in reality, but that sure would beat the other recoveries you've had!

foose4string said:

:lol: I hear ya. Doesn't really sound too great in reality, but that sure would beat the other recoveries you've had!

Click to expand...

Any man who has not pummelled the earth with a rocket has not been launching nearly enough
Cheers
fred

fred22 said:

Any man who has not pummelled the earth with a rocket has not been launching nearly enough
Cheers
fred

Click to expand...

Guilty. But I haven't built a Saturn V yet. Man, I know it's got to be tough to see that one crash.:cry:

foose4string said:

Guilty. But I haven't built a Saturn V yet. Man, I know it's got to be tough to see that one crash.:cry:

Click to expand...

Ya it is but as I go on in this hobby one becomes a little more philosophical about such things
Cheers
fred

It's been nearly one year, and I'm back reviving this thread once again!

This time I got to fly my PDRocketry's Gemini Titan - 3 last Saturday (August
9th) at our club's new launch site down in Needville, TX.

Since I almost always pre-prep my models at home before hitting the road
toward the launch site, I discovered that I didn't have two B6-4's to fly this
model and "settled" for two C6-5's! Yep, I was willing to take the chance to
"lay it up there." On this model's previous flight on B6-4's, one of the clear
plastic fin broke off shortly before touchdown (during recovery), so I knew
using two C6's would increase the stress and pressure on the plastic fin can
somehow.

As it turned out, the boost and most of the flight was excellent on through
burnout, then during the coast phase the model started going squirrely, a
sure indication that one or more fin(s) came off (as it turned out, two on the
same side came off, but were found by Mikus Superfly, Christopher Stewart and Michael David). The recovery was otherwise uneventful (used a 12" yellow nylon parachute for this flight) and only one of the paper shroud that
forms the engine nozzle had some minor damage on landing (the same paper
shroud that got slightly damaged on the unsuccessful first flight attempt at
JSC).

Below are some pics of the most recent flight. Some were taken by me, the
others by Christopher Stewart. Overall, a lot of fun flying this model, and I'm
looking forward to doing it again!

View attachment Daves Titan.JPG



View attachment Daves Titan Liftoff.JPG

Nice rocket! Glad you bumped it, I think I'll get one!

Gym_Class_Hero said:

Nice rocket! Glad you bumped it, I think I'll get one!

Click to expand...

Good luck; the PDRocketry version (as far as I know) is already OOP, as the
company/vendor apparently went belly-up either late last year or early this
year (depends on who you talk to). You can get most of the parts to build one from SEMROC, and Tango Papa has the decals.