Level 1 Cert Rocket Choices

Loc just re-released the Wolverine. It would be my choice, and could do both L1 and L2 certification flights.

Go with what tickles your fancy.

We are literally living in the golden age of L1 rockets. Someday I'll tell my grandkids about it.

Arsenal78 said:

Honestly? Go with something unique. Everyone and their mother chooses the LOC-IV because it’s a classic but it’s also very generic. Get a kit that you want to be remembered with. I’d suggest the BSD/SBR Thor or hell even the LOC Goblin. Be different and don’t follow the herd. If you’re more into scale stuff, look into PML’s stuff. Their Mini BBX is a showstopper if done right.

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Arsenal:

Thanks for input... A lot of LOC kits have been posted a couple of Apogee and a few others... PML Quicksilver is a cool design, fins sweep up and can go Level 1 or 2 pending amount of money spent... For the price with upgrades is still a great value from PML...

Victor

IF you've successfully built a few low power kits, I second the idea of thinking outside the box. Especially the cardboard kind...

Build a composite rocket; PML or maybe a small Wildman if you're more self-sufficient (look at the 1.5"-2.6" kits...that 2.6 goblin is nice). PML's have nice decals, good instructions...their easy,great looking kits and they're tough. Wildman have fiberglass tubes, fins & sometimes nosecones (a few smaller ones have plastic cones). But they admittedly have little-to-no instructions, no decals, not sure about launch lugs or buttons, either, but many do have chutes & shock cords. And there are a LOT of build threads here that can easily get you thru a build, and the price is really about the same, or less, than many cardboard & ply kits.

A few other thoughts;

• don't get a kit where the fins that extend to..or beyond...the bottom of the body tube. Cuz Level one single-deploy rockets can & do drift a lot farther than much larger, dual-deploy rockets. Unless you want to walk a ton, you'll want a smaller chute, and that comes down faster & harder (that's where toughness & fiberglass comes in!)
• Fatter/chunky rockets are great options, too. They don't go as high, they're a LOT easier to build/work on/install recovery gear...and they're just fun!
• Same logic with comes in with fiberglass vs. cardboard & wood; it's a bit heavier, so it doesn't go as high & drift too far.
• HAVE FUN!

I am heading down the L1 path also, and Santa brought me the Apogee Zephyr.

I picked the Zephyr because of the on-line build videos.

It’s a level 1, nobody but you will remember it. Have fun and roll with what you like.

If you're opening it up to scratchbuilds, then you could go the route I did...



That's Deep Space OFFl (Puns&Jokes), it's a 38mm powered, 4" scratchbuild based on Binder Design's body tubes and centering rings. The nosecone is 3D printed. Decals by Stickershock.

While L1 is way, way down the road for me yet, I've kept a list of potential L1 kits. No surprise, they are LOC IV, Zephyr, and DX3. The LOC IV is kinda falling off the list as -- from what I understand -- the kit has been redesigned to have a payload bay.

As I learn so well from watching videos, I want the videos to match the build and none of the LOC IV videos are for the newer kit.

[Self-Correction] turns out Wildman has a GREAT, photo-heavy instruction manual on his website. They say they're for the Jr. kits (great L1 options!), but the steps it covers are things that apply to any & all fiberglass builds.

QUOTE="deandome, post: 1954659, member: 372"]IF you've successfully built a few low power kits, I second the idea of thinking outside the box. Especially the cardboard kind...

Build a composite rocket; PML or maybe a small Wildman if you're more self-sufficient (look at the 1.5"-2.6" kits...that 2.6 goblin is nice). PML's have nice decals, good instructions...their easy,great looking kits and they're tough. Wildman have fiberglass tubes, fins & sometimes nosecones (a few smaller ones have plastic cones). But they admittedly have little-to-no instructions, no decals, not sure about launch lugs or buttons, either, but many do have chutes & shock cords. And there are a LOT of build threads here that can easily get you thru a build, and the price is really about the same, or less, than many cardboard & ply kits.

A few other thoughts;

• don't get a kit where the fins that extend to..or beyond...the bottom of the body tube. Cuz Level one single-deploy rockets can & do drift a lot farther than much larger, dual-deploy rockets. Unless you want to walk a ton, you'll want a smaller chute, and that comes down faster & harder (that's where toughness & fiberglass comes in!)
• Fatter/chunky rockets are great options, too. They don't go as high, they're a LOT easier to build/work on/install recovery gear...and they're just fun!
• Same logic with comes in with fiberglass vs. cardboard & wood; it's a bit heavier, so it doesn't go as high & drift too far.
• HAVE FUN!

[/QUOTE]
UPDATE: I was mistaken about the Wildman kits; there's a GREAT online, photo heavy, instructions on his site. Really nice

deandome said:

IF you've successfully built a few low power kits, I second the idea of thinking outside the box. Especially the cardboard kind...

Build a composite rocket; PML or maybe a small Wildman if you're more self-sufficient (look at the 1.5"-2.6" kits...that 2.6 goblin is nice). PML's have nice decals, good instructions...their easy,great looking kits and they're tough. Wildman have fiberglass tubes, fins & sometimes nosecones (a few smaller ones have plastic cones). But they admittedly have little-to-no instructions, no decals, not sure about launch lugs or buttons, either, but many do have chutes & shock cords. And there are a LOT of build threads here that can easily get you thru a build, and the price is really about the same, or less, than many cardboard & ply kits.

A few other thoughts;

• don't get a kit where the fins that extend to..or beyond...the bottom of the body tube. Cuz Level one single-deploy rockets can & do drift a lot farther than much larger, dual-deploy rockets. Unless you want to walk a ton, you'll want a smaller chute, and that comes down faster & harder (that's where toughness & fiberglass comes in!)
• Fatter/chunky rockets are great options, too. They don't go as high, they're a LOT easier to build/work on/install recovery gear...and they're just fun!
• Same logic with comes in with fiberglass vs. cardboard & wood; it's a bit heavier, so it doesn't go as high & drift too far.
• HAVE FUN!

Click to expand...

Here's the PML Mini BBX. Closest to true scale as you can get. An H115 sims around 1800ft which is perfect. Being quantum tube and fiberglass fins, it can take a bit more of a beating than standard cardboard/wood. If you have any questions, just shoot me a pm.

I used a MadCow Patriot. I'll do my L2 with the same rocket using a Jolly Logic altimeter just to keep it simple.

My L1 I used Aerotech Sumo. Great rocket. You can practically build it in a weekend and everything snaps into place. Now with their new kits they come with an upgraded engine retainer. They eliminated the "hook" retainer. I used an H250 not sure how high went, but I think it was over 3000 feet or something close to that. I even used the stock nylon / elastic shock cord that came with the kit. Not too expensive and good value for what you pay.

A few points I'll toss out there:
Fiberglass being heavier means you need more punch off the pad, which often means a bigger motor usually resulting in higher altitude anyway. So now you are paying more for the rocket and more for the motors and still going high. If course, there is always a sweet spot.

Lots of folks preach keep it simple. The first time I used electronics was my L1 flight. My L2 was full redundancy. Don't be scared of altimeters, they are every bit as reliable as drilling delays and you don't have to worry about the allowable variable in delays and/or drilling it wrong. Takes a little more prep work but nothing to it. And you'll know how high it went in case you wanna know for your records.

I'll mention PML again. They are tougher and more durable than paper, cheaper and lighter than canvas and glass, easy to build and finish. They are at a pretty good price for a durable rocket. They also do custom work for a reasonable price. Quantum tube has it's downfalls but so does all of the other airframe materials.

AfterBurners said:

My L1 I used Aerotech Sumo. [...] I used an H250 not sure how high went, but I think it was over 3000 feet or something close to that.[...]

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Sumo is VERY civilized on an H115. It's plenty fast to get the fins working but total impulse is underwhelming. Cool flight with sparks up to 1600ish and you don't have to build a motor which is nice on cert days. It's one of the easier cert options for sure.

Eljay said:

Sumo is VERY civilized on an H115. It's plenty fast to get the fins working but total impulse is underwhelming. Cool flight with sparks up to 1600ish and you don't have to build a motor which is nice on cert days. It's one of the easier cert options for sure.

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Thats why I suggested it. Get the L1 and experiment later. KISS

Chad said:

i was biting my tongue given that the search had been narrowed to those three but I really love the 4" cardboard DX3. It's an awesome L1 (and L2) rocket.

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I'll second that. I got my L1 with the 4" DX3 in 2019. I flew the DX3 on an AT H219T DMS to about 1200 ft., used a big chute for a nice soft landing. Building the AV Bay this winter for the L2 attempt in 2020. Sims to 4400 ft. on a J270W. Dual deploy and an Eggfinder in the nose cone should result in a good recovery.