Originally posted by nialloswald
Playing with fast rockets in RocSim indicates that conical is the way to go, I haven't experimented with any of the more 'exotic' styles yet - mainly because they're not readily available.
I'm no expert on optimal nose cone shapes, but here is an excerpt from Apogee Newsletter #75:
"... a lot of people will tell me that the
cone shape gives them the best performance in RockSim (that it has the lowest drag of all the shapes). Unfortunately, RockSim uses the DATCOM method, which is an semi-emperical method of computing drag that isn't specifically designed for this purpose.
The equation that governs the nose cone drag for the DATCOM
method (and hence, RockSim) is listed in the book: "Topics in
Advanced Model Rocketry."
If you look at chapter six, equation 166, you'll see that the
software calculates the Cd based on the "wetted surface area of
the body" and the "maximum cross-sectional area" of the body.
The shape of the nose really is ignored and only is taken into
account by the affect it has on the surface area of the nose.
Since the "cone" has the smallest surface area, the DATCOM
method predicts that it will have the lowest drag. The DATCOM
method gets us in the ballpark, and it is easy to calculate, but it is
not a perfect method."