Nike 10 Degree Cone Tranfer

PeterAlway · Oct 23, 2018

rharshberger said:
I am not sure if the fins used on the Nike 10degree Heat Transfer are standard fins or not they do not appear in this document about the standard fins, and yes the fin shroud two pieces if the fins are not bolted on via the 6 bolts each side. My opinion is that the rocket on the rail actually uses the standard 2.0 or 2.75 sq ft. Modified Diamond Fins, its the angle of the fins to the camera that give the impression of a swept style fin. In one of the pictures of the Mod Diamond fins it has the fin mounting system pictured, including the two part upper and lower shrouds.

The Heat-transfer Nike predates the standard fin document you link to by at least 13 years! The Heat Transfer flight was an NACA Wallops test, long before those usual Nike fin shapes were settled on. The photograph of the heat transfer flight was printed in the same document as the drawings I used to make my drawing. The details of attachment are open to question, but the fin planform is consistently documented in two NACA reports with drawings and a photo.

Peter Alway

Bruiser · Oct 23, 2018

I think sometimes you have to make an educated guess. I am going with a welded fin like this

And what I am calling a split can like this

I figure that's a good chance of how they would have done a one-off design. I have an image of my build under the title Nike Heat

Thank you,
-Bob

PeterAlway · Oct 24, 2018

Bruiser said:
I think sometimes you have to make an educated guess. I am going with a welded fin like this

Yes, this design, with the quadrants held together by those long rods, seems reasonably likely (but with the different fin planform). It seems to be how the NACA was attaching fins around that time. I feel like I have a homework assignment, to go through all my data and photos, and sort out which organizations were using which fin attachment methods at which times.

Peter Alway

Bruiser · Oct 25, 2018

I have my fins glued on. I am planning to make my fillets with epoxy and try to simulate the look of the welds.

Thank you for all the help with information,
-Bob

Ez2cDave · Dec 30, 2018

The attached PDF file may be helpful . . .

Dave F.

Bruiser · Dec 30, 2018

That file is saved on my hard drive. It's a must have for anyone researching Nike rockets. It's a real good source for once fins had been standardized. It seems that most of the rockets I have built so far are prototypes and therefore, were built before anything was standardized

It was still help though like with the "banding" that goes around the motor nozzle area that the fins actually mount to. Also a lot of the prototype work moved forward into the standardized fins.

-Bob