What did you do rocket wise today?

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beantownJPL said:
Edit: Found it! Bristol Bloodhound, a British SAM. The 4 SRB's get it up in the air and going fast enough for the ram jets to take over.
Click to expand...
The Brits also had a smaller, shorter range little brother to the Bloodhound: The Electric Thunderbird.
Here's a b/w video from 1957. Strap on booster separation is epic. Long flight time to a successful kill.

beantownJPL said:
Whoever designed this thing had some fun!
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I'm sure Jim Flis had a lot of fun (and headaches) designing this Thunderbird:
0918190429.jpg
Laters.
 
05043-strap-on-booster.jpg

Ideas are being made, i found something that may work as proper fall off boosters

more at https://www.apogeerockets.com/Rocket-Kits/Skill-Level-2-Model-Rocket-Kits/Strap-on-Booster-Pods
 
It’s an interesting kit for sure. Wish more were like it. It is definitely going to test my finishing skills. I’m a fan of balsa building also. Got the itch to work on some 1/2A planes. Going retro and putting on some old cox Tee Dee motors.
 
readytorock556 said:
It’s an interesting kit for sure. Wish more were like it. It is definitely going to test my finishing skills. I’m a fan of balsa building also. Got the itch to work on some 1/2A planes. Going retro and putting on some old cox Tee Dee motors.
Click to expand...
Hey Rocker,
Here's one that has lots of balsa, tab and slot construction, like the QCC Explorer, and it's a plane!
https://estesrockets.com/product/007230-conquest/
I think it's going to be discontinued, available now at a big discount.
Cheers.
 
Don’t worry a lot of it will come off. After thinning and added micro ballons then much of it is sanded off. Also when the epoxy dries some of the weight is lost also. Been doing this for a few years now. Never noticed any performance issues.
 
How much mass is lost in epoxy "drying"? With glies that actually do dry it's significant, but I always assumed epoxy curing wouldn't change it noticably.
 
Estes finally got their 4" Mega Der Red Max nosecones back in stock. I ordered one and also the 4" slotted tube that they used for the MDRM. :p I've wanted a Mega ever since I saw one fly a couple of months ago. I'll be building it for 38mm mootors.
 
readytorock556 said:
I don’t know? I’ll slap a E-9 or bigger in it. It’ll still go up.
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Unlike most glues which cure as the solvent evaporates, the two parts of the epoxy undergo an exothermic chemical reaction that causes them to harden through polymerization. Glues dry, epoxies cure. Glue gets lighter and tends to shrink some, epoxies don't lose any significant amount of mass and tend to have little or no shrinkage.

But yeah ... bigger motor works. :cool:
 
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beantownJPL said:
Unlike most glues which cure as the solvent evaporates, the two parts of the epoxy undergo an exothermic chemical reaction that causes them to harden through polymerization. Glues dry, epoxies cure.

But yeah ... bigger motor works. :cool:
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I overbuilt a Estes Bullpup 12D out of, well what if? Epoxied everything. Thick fillets, fins, body tube. It’s pretty much indestructible unless you stomp on it. Put an extra square and a half of clay in the nose. She still screams on D-13 reloads!!
 
beantownJPL said:
Hey @readytorock556, I like your P-51 on the wall in the background ... what's the kit manufacturer?

Here's my Mountain Models P-51 I built many moons ago...

View attachment 393761 View attachment 393762 View attachment 393763 View attachment 393764
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Oh man! It’s just a FMS foamy 800mm series! I wish it was as nice as yours. It flys great though on 3s. I’ve been sourcing old cox engines and getting ready to build a Ace Simple Extra. Looking at Mountain Models, Select hobbies and Willy Nillies, I got a .020 tee dee coming in today.
 
I haven't had the time for planes in a looong time now, using rockets to scratch the itch these days.

I'll get back to it again probably when my son is a little older. He's got the interest, but not the dexterity yet.

Crashed rockets get fixed/replaced a lot easier than crashed planes!
 
readytorock556 said:
I overbuilt a Estes Bullpup 12D out of, well what if? Epoxied everything. Thick fillets, fins, body tube. It’s pretty much indestructible unless you stomp on it. Put an extra square and a half of clay in the nose. She still screams on D-13 reloads!!
Click to expand...

I tend a bit toward "overbuilt" myself, especially on models that I expect to see a lot of pad time. I'd much rather be flying them than fixing them.

I also tend to only have smaller fields available for me to fly in. So, if a little extra weight means a lower apogee, and a faster descent ... that's a feature.
 
beantownJPL said:
I tend a bit toward "overbuilt" myself, especially on models that I expect to see a lot of pad time. I'd much rather be flying them than fixing them.
Click to expand...

My philosophy as well. Although our fields out here are huge, with standing waivers to 50,000 ft. for the TRA/PHX club. Another good reason to "overbuild a bit".
With two HPR launches every month from September to May, most of my rockets get a lot of pad time.

Today I packed our old truck "Grosser" for a one day launch with the Superstition Spacemodeling Society, the local NAR club. They have a new site a bit further South than the old Salome emergency airfield. No chance of drifting over I-10 now. Still planning to keep everything under 10,000 ft. until we get to know the area better. They have a call in waiver to 15,000 ft. MSL.
 
Wayco said:
My philosophy as well. Although our fields out here are huge, with standing waivers to 50,000 ft. for the TRA/PHX club. Another good reason to "overbuild a bit".
With two HPR launches every month from September to May, most of my rockets get a lot of pad time.

Today I packed our old truck "Grosser" for a one day launch with the Superstition Spacemodeling Society, the local NAR club. They have a new site a bit further South than the old Salome emergency airfield. No chance of drifting over I-10 now. Still planning to keep everything under 10,000 ft. until we get to know the area better. They have a call in waiver to 15,000 ft. MSL.
Click to expand...

I live in New England. Big wide-open spaces are not really what this region's known for. The largest field my club flies from is about an hour away and they get a 5,000' waiver, but due to the presence of high-tension wires in the area, that ceiling is only available when the winds are favorable. When the winds are from the East, the ceiling drops to 1000'. The field is only available after the hay's been mown, and only by town permit. The fields they use that are closer to me are limited to Low/Mid power flights under 2000', conditions permitting. Of course, that 2000' is pretty generous ... most flights stay under 1000' to avoid decorating the local vegetation with rocket-shaped baubles.

I try and launch with the club whenever possible, but I also use some of the larger schoolyards and parks in the area. Definitely helps work on those spot landing skills, and I do need that practice! ;)
 
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