Chubby Warrior

[ActingLikeAKid]

I really like the Estes Solar Warrior kit (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0069WJTZK/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20). I did one per the instructions. Then I did a semi-upscale, putting a 29mm mount in it and an extra BT-60 with a baffle and coupler and a little nose weight. It flies GREAT on Es and Fs.

I was mucking around in OpenRocket and said "well OK, but what happens if I make a stubby/chubby version of this rocket? The more I looked, the better I liked it. 29mm motor mount, shortened body tube, drop the canard fins, and fiberglass the fins and body tube.

OpenRocket says it'll fly everything from a C6-3 (100 feet up, great for a small soccer field) to a mach-busting 3g CTI H motor.

The only concern I have is that the fins aren't TTW, but I figure if I'm careful and fillet and/or fiberglass them on, I should be fine....

What do y'all think?View attachment swshorty (1).ork

 

[Bat-mite]

Lots of people do Mach+ with minimum diameter rockets with glued-on fins. But you will definitely need to FG the airframe and fins. Cardboard could crumple under stress, and fin flutter would be very likely.

 

[neil_w]

Put a round nose on it and make it a Goonie Warrior.

Sorry, just been thinking about Goonies lately.

 

[Cabernut]

Looks great! The (now OOP?)Solar Warrior is a cool rocket stock as well as a good platform for variants. Last night I finished up an (otherwise stock) 12" streched SW.

As for the H motor - looks like you'll have to watch the stability, I'm showing 0.4cal and ~70g of nose weight would bring it up to near acceptable stability but drops below mach.

Isn't there a general rule of thumb that for mach+ flights, you need a higher cal of stability like 1.2 minimum?

 

[ActingLikeAKid]

Looks great! The (now OOP?)Solar Warrior is a cool rocket stock as well as a good platform for variants. Last night I finished up an (otherwise stock) 12" streched SW.

As for the H motor - looks like you'll have to watch the stability, I'm showing 0.4cal and ~70g of nose weight would bring it up to near acceptable stability but drops below mach.

Isn't there a general rule of thumb that for mach+ flights, you need a higher cal of stability like 1.2 minimum?

Not sure about minimum stability for mach... What I like about OpenRocket is that (generally) you can get an idea of how much it will take to knock the rocket off-course. For example, some of the configurations for my Wildman Punisher put it under 1 cal of stability, but when you sim it, it's rock solid unless the wind gets up to about 40. And then you're not launching, you're running to your car and screaming profanitites.

As for your stretched SW, I HIGHLY recommend putting some sort of reinforcement on it. I put some thin wooden strakes on mine (you can't see them really well in this picture, but they're there). When I did my first test launch, the body tube was a little banged up from the landing. Nothing really worrisome, I think it's just near the edge of what unreinforced BT-60 can take.

 

[ActingLikeAKid]

... and thanks! I'm a big fan of the SW too. My stock OOP SW has survived a tree landing. The @#$! finlets WILL NOT stay on without breaking, but other than that....