Reverse Anti-Zipper

[kelltym88]

Ok , I've launched my avatar rocket twice(look at my avatar on the left), and both times when it landed it hit big tube/rings and damaged/broke the smaller tubes they were attached to.

I need to change that. I don't want to rig it to try to land flat, I'd like to make it so the pods eject and come down on their own individual chutes.

I am thinking of putting a baffle near the top of the motor mount, as close to it as possible, then getting as much length as possible out of the remaining body tube and have it slip over a coupler near the wing.

At the part where the pod tube meets the main wing, the lower end of it, is where I would put the coupler with a bulkhead. Thus the lower pod tube would slip over the coupler bulkhead, much like a zipperless design, only backwards. Then when the ejection charge goes off, it separates from the main rocket, and as it falls away, pulls the chute out that is loosely attached to the upper bulkhead.

Would I need to vent this, and would it even work? If you even understand what I'm saying. Thanks in advance.

 

[TheAviator]

I'm slightly confused. Would the pod motors cause ejection, or would the main charges cause ejection of the pods?

If the side pods are fitted with ejection charges, then yes, I would think you need something to pull out the parachutes.

If the motors on the sides eject the chutes, just do it like you would a normal rocket.

If the central ejection charge separates everything, you'll have problems because as soon as one section releases, the pressure goes away and you only get one separation.

My suggestion: boilerplate it on a model rocket. Cheap, easy, and still fun.

 

[kelltym88]

The side pods have motors. There are 3 motors total, one 54mm central and 2 29mm in each of the pods. The central does not eject the side pods, they have to do it themselves.

I'll see if I can post some pics.


What is a boilerplate? Or what does that expression mean, anyway?

 

[tbzep]

The side pods have motors. There are 3 motors total, one 54mm central and 2 29mm in each of the pods. The central does not eject the side pods, they have to do it themselves.

I'll see if I can post some pics.


What is a boilerplate? Or what does that expression mean, anyway?

It's a non-detailed, usually unpainted model. Something easily built that you don't mind getting damaged when testing out new concepts, stability, etc. Sometimes it's 1:1 scale, sometimes smaller according to what you are testing.

In the world of NASA it's a fake section, built full scale to simulate aerodynamics, payload weight, etc. An example was the whole upper section of the Ares test vehicle recently launched.