Wrote whats below last night. Spent most of the day trying to get that rocket out of the tree so It was not much after this. Its a learning experience, but I want to get these up. But it was probably the best choice to not launch anymore with what I had brought. I working on a old High-Flier XL right now that will be a test rocket. So...these were my thoughts last night. This is more than just a hobby to me right now, its keeping me going. So its a bummer with days like these more so right now than it usually is for someone who just goes for fun. Most of these rockets I built after a injury and have never flown them. Its beyond frustrating right now...
"Well went down to the SPAAR launch today at the Zell farm launch site in Elizabethtown. First time there and the wind was just not good, with a cold front that moved in. I sent my Olympus up on a C6-3 as it was the only rocket I had that was a tester or disposable. It worked out ok the video is below. I questioned what to do next, and stuck with the Olympus to get a feel for things with a D12-3. I knew it would go up pretty high but others were having pretty decent success. So I put a D12-3 in, and aimed it as best I could. Well, had I not touched the launch rod and left it go where it was, it wouldn't have caught the edge of a tree branch and that's where its at, lol. I spent about 2 hours with a modified tee shirt gun, and shoots a tennis ball that has a wire attached it, then its wrapped around the outside of a toilet bowl flange* or something like that. Its a few pieces of PVC pipes/parts mixed in too, that you pump up with a bicycle pump. I don't have a picture of it, but I came close several times to getting my Olympus down with it, lol. But it fell a little and got hung up the 2nd or 3rd time. The farmer even came over to see what we were doing an said the winds are never like this, they come in from the other direction. He said west to east or east to north or something... But, my Olympus tree hanger is the first video with all the other videos in there. This(tree hanger)was maybe 35 mins or so after we got there about 9am, I'm just getting home now. I was done after the Olympus and didn't put any more up. I watched a few, didn't get some videos or pictures of them. Even the Aerotech G-Force that had a failed ejection and went nosecone first into a corn field. The nosecone was pretty much on the top centering ring and it was in several pcs. I pulled the motor out and it ejected. But the baffle that they give you and foil or whatever that stuff is cut the ejection charge down too much that it just didn't eject, thats what I could figure. It went straight up and straight down. But the same guy got his Zephyr out of the same 4 trees that claimed mine. I found what was left of a body tube from a very small rocket sent up on a G something, it corked screwed for about 800 feet after the fin came off I presume. If it wasn't for the wind I think it would be an ok spot to do what I have. Many guys lost quite a few today, I was hesitant but stuck with that and didn't fly anymore.
Its extremely hard in with some of these sites with the wind and I just don't get to fly them enough to get know each rocket. One person would have a great flight, next guy lost his. So the choice to launch it on a proven motor was great, but unfortunately the next one up wasn't. I would have been alot more upset had it been another one of my rockets but the Olympus did its job and some is my fault. Not matter how many years you do this, once you walk away from that rocket its out of your hands even if you did your best. It makes it harder at a launch because in a spot like this, by the time you get it aimed the way you want it, and by the time they launch it the wind competely changes. Central PA on most days this year have just been gusts of wind, constantly from every direction...Oh well...Learning more everyday.
Oh and some others guys rocket either landed it front of us still under power, and I really thought someone accidentally set of a motor. Nope it was what was left of a tail section tumbling across the ground. I don't even know what to say about that right now. The best thing to come out of today for me, was Routes 11/15 North."
"Well went down to the SPAAR launch today at the Zell farm launch site in Elizabethtown. First time there and the wind was just not good, with a cold front that moved in. I sent my Olympus up on a C6-3 as it was the only rocket I had that was a tester or disposable. It worked out ok the video is below. I questioned what to do next, and stuck with the Olympus to get a feel for things with a D12-3. I knew it would go up pretty high but others were having pretty decent success. So I put a D12-3 in, and aimed it as best I could. Well, had I not touched the launch rod and left it go where it was, it wouldn't have caught the edge of a tree branch and that's where its at, lol. I spent about 2 hours with a modified tee shirt gun, and shoots a tennis ball that has a wire attached it, then its wrapped around the outside of a toilet bowl flange* or something like that. Its a few pieces of PVC pipes/parts mixed in too, that you pump up with a bicycle pump. I don't have a picture of it, but I came close several times to getting my Olympus down with it, lol. But it fell a little and got hung up the 2nd or 3rd time. The farmer even came over to see what we were doing an said the winds are never like this, they come in from the other direction. He said west to east or east to north or something... But, my Olympus tree hanger is the first video with all the other videos in there. This(tree hanger)was maybe 35 mins or so after we got there about 9am, I'm just getting home now. I was done after the Olympus and didn't put any more up. I watched a few, didn't get some videos or pictures of them. Even the Aerotech G-Force that had a failed ejection and went nosecone first into a corn field. The nosecone was pretty much on the top centering ring and it was in several pcs. I pulled the motor out and it ejected. But the baffle that they give you and foil or whatever that stuff is cut the ejection charge down too much that it just didn't eject, thats what I could figure. It went straight up and straight down. But the same guy got his Zephyr out of the same 4 trees that claimed mine. I found what was left of a body tube from a very small rocket sent up on a G something, it corked screwed for about 800 feet after the fin came off I presume. If it wasn't for the wind I think it would be an ok spot to do what I have. Many guys lost quite a few today, I was hesitant but stuck with that and didn't fly anymore.
Its extremely hard in with some of these sites with the wind and I just don't get to fly them enough to get know each rocket. One person would have a great flight, next guy lost his. So the choice to launch it on a proven motor was great, but unfortunately the next one up wasn't. I would have been alot more upset had it been another one of my rockets but the Olympus did its job and some is my fault. Not matter how many years you do this, once you walk away from that rocket its out of your hands even if you did your best. It makes it harder at a launch because in a spot like this, by the time you get it aimed the way you want it, and by the time they launch it the wind competely changes. Central PA on most days this year have just been gusts of wind, constantly from every direction...Oh well...Learning more everyday.
Oh and some others guys rocket either landed it front of us still under power, and I really thought someone accidentally set of a motor. Nope it was what was left of a tail section tumbling across the ground. I don't even know what to say about that right now. The best thing to come out of today for me, was Routes 11/15 North."