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You can also go directly to the 80/20 website. They used to have a yard sale page where drops of various lengths could be purchased a bit cheaper (they may be marred, but I didn't care too much). Not sure if it is still there or not. Been a long time since I looked.
 
Check with your club, I bet they already have rails. Having a 8' rail for personal use is kinda extreme unless you have your own HPR waiver.
 
heada said:
Check with your club, I bet they already have rails. Having a 8' rail for personal use is kinda extreme unless you have your own HPR waiver.
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For the cost I feel it's worth it. The rail is only $30 on Amazon and I've seen a large number of home made setups on here for the pads to hold it. I feel like I can be in the whole thing under $100.

I recently joined a club but haven't flown with them yet. I really only joined as I need someone to sign off on my Level 1 flight. I'm sure I'll like flying with them as I've heard great things about this club but honestly I prefer to fly more often than once a month and like to get more than 4 or 5 flights in during an outing. Having my own equipment lets me head out anytime I like and I'm not looking to go high enough to need a waiver.

My latest builds are border line too large for 1/4" rod. My recent Brighton build is 16oz but it's long. I have a Micro Magg 4" that flies OK off the Rod as it's short but it's just a hair shy of 37oz so that is pushing it and I'd really like a better option for launching my mean machine. I had a mean machine fold in half on an E30 due to Rod whip. About 20 feet off the pad it folded up and went for a ride. Playing the video back I can see the 1/4" rod whip and kick the tail of the rocket sideways.

Some of the builds waiting in the wings are the Zephyr, LOC IV, LOC Goblin 4", V2 4". T-LOC 4" and a replacement Ultimate for the one I crashed (have I mentioned I hate clusters). All of these are going to need something with a rail so I figured I'd use the winter to get setup.
 
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For upper mid power (Fs and Gs), or Frank Burke's rocket gliders, a six footer is often used. Six feet (minimum) is the requirement for TARC flights, which are usually F-powered.

My personal rail pad has a six foot rail. But I almost never fly anything more than a G.
 
6' 1010 rail seems most common but would like an 8' rail just to allow a little more velocity before the rocket leaves the rail. This can allow for higher weight and/or lower motor peak thrust and still have safe velocity.
Also nice for those Long rockets.
 
Back_at_it said:
I'm not looking to go high enough to need a waiver.
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FYI, waivers are not required based on altitude. They are required for any class 2 rocket, i.e., high-power rocket. If you're flying an H motor, doesn't matter whether you go up ten feet or ten thousand feet, a waiver is required. Obviously, it may be easier to get a waiver for a lower ceiling, but a waiver is still required.
 
waltr said:
6' 1010 rail seems most common but would like an 8' rail just to allow a little more velocity before the rocket leaves the rail. This can allow for higher weight and/or lower motor peak thrust and still have safe velocity.
Also nice for those Long rockets.
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Our club has rails from 6'-12' and yes a longer rail can be beneficial for getting the proper speed for stability before leaving the rail.
 
tsmith1315 said:
I have no experience with rails, but am also looking. Is 8' length typical?
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It seems like 6ft and 8ft are the most common. I like the idea of having it a bit longer as it allows some additional length for some of my rockets to get up to speed on motors that don't hit as hard. Take my Micro Magg as an example. On a 66" (66 is about the usable length of my 72" rod) rod the Magg is traveling between 30 and 31 mph on the E30 and F32 motors. This is what I would consider the minimum speed off the rail for a short stubby rocket like the Magg.

Magg 1.jpg

If we run the SIM again at 90" (approx. usable length of a 96" rail) we are in the mid 35mph range for both motors. This leads to a more stable flight with less change in direction off the pad.

Magg 2.jpg

The E30's and F32's are easy to find in my area and can be picked up locally for around $18 with no shipping. The E30 also makes the Magg an excellent park flier. Makes a lot of noise and doesn't go real high. :)
 
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Bat-mite said:
FYI, waivers are not required based on altitude. They are required for any class 2 rocket, i.e., high-power rocket. If you're flying an H motor, doesn't matter whether you go up ten feet or ten thousand feet, a waiver is required. Obviously, it may be easier to get a waiver for a lower ceiling, but a waiver is still required.
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Sort of....FAR 101 compliant rockets weigh less than 1500 grams and that have less than 125g of propellant may be flown without a waiver. There are a number of H motors that fall into the less than 125g of propellant category, those motors do still require a HPR Level 1 certification. So many rules from different sources its hard to follow them sometimes. Altitude by itself is not a requirement for a waiver, true.
 
Bat-mite said:
FYI, waivers are not required based on altitude. They are required for any class 2 rocket, i.e., high-power rocket. If you're flying an H motor, doesn't matter whether you go up ten feet or ten thousand feet, a waiver is required. Obviously, it may be easier to get a waiver for a lower ceiling, but a waiver is still required.
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Doesn't the waiver requirement come into play based on propellant? Either way, I don't see myself flying H motors that often as I really don't have the room to recover them :)
 
tsmith1315 said:
@Back_at_it, Those 4" rockets are what 5-ish pounds? I'd be curious to hear what you end up doing.

I have rods up to 3/8". But I'm looking for something to launch up to about 15 pounds/ mid-K.
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The heaviest 4" rocket was the Ultimate before it met it's unfortunate end. Loaded ready to fly it was right at 77oz so just shy of 5lbs. Others are in the 50 to 70oz range.
 
I have a 4' section of 1010 rail, a 6' section of 1/4" rod, 8' section of 1010 and a 8' section of 1515.

For the 4' rail, I use it for LPR where I want to ensure 100% straight flights. I use the 6' 1/4" rod for the rest of my LPR/MPR. I only have the 8' 1010 and 1515 for when I go to club launches and the rails are overly dirty and crusty. I have a full size pickup and even with that transporting the 8' rails is a pain. There is nothing wrong with buying the 8' 1010 rail for personal use but for the vast majority of people/cases it isn't warranted. If you can get it at a really good price, do it. Shipping on the 8' rails is normally more than the rail itself.

There are G motors that require an FAA waiver due to propellant mass. There are H motors that don't require an FAA waiver. Know the limits and if you fall on the waiver side of the line, make sure you fly with a waiver.
 
Back_at_it said:
The heaviest 4" rocket was the Ultimate before it met it's unfortunate end. Loaded ready to fly it was right at 77oz so just shy of 5lbs. Others are in the 50 to 70oz range.
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Any rocket over 3.3lbs requires an FAA waiver and it sounds like you haven't been flying with one. Keep in mind that this also means you wouldn't have insurance as you would be breaking TRA and NAR rules.
 
Amazon shipping to my location is $11 but I've been doing some searching and found a person on a FB rocket group that said they have a piece that they would sell. Just waiting to see how long it is.

If I can pick it up cheap enough I might spurge for one of the launch pads that are available instead of building my own.
 
If you order from 8020 you may want to order the 1010S rail. It has two channels rather than four and are a bit sturdier than the four channel rails.
 
bobbyg23 said:
Keep in mind that there is a $30 shipping charge on that also. When I got mine, I ordered it through grainger and picked it up at the store.
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Don't forget to check Zoro.com.

It's Grainger's "e-commerce" site, and often offers 20% discounts and free shipping.

I've heard that there are things that Grainger carries that aren't available on Zoro, but I've never run into any when I was shopping for stuff.
 

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