- Joined
- May 8, 2010
- Messages
- 1,280
- Reaction score
- 258
The first time I really saw high power rockets (or pictures of them, I should clarify) was in a free "Tripolitan" magazine that Blazanin sent me back in 87 or so. It was all black and white pics, but I was hooked. LOC Magnum, LOC K-Load, LOC Esoteric, all the AAA Model Aviation stuff. And of course the motors - what would it be like to fly an AeroTech J700?
Fast forward, my first HPR launch was LDRS X at Black Rock in 91. Interestingly, even though I couldn't be quite sure what the motors depicted in '87 would have looked like in real life I knew that most of the ones I was seeing in person were visually much different. Bigger flames, lots of white smoke...that's White Lightning, which was coming on super strong (and for good reason, it looks great) in that era. And of course it replaced a the AT "classic" propellant. The Vulcans looked about the same as I would have expected though. Of course, try finding a rocketeer who has actually seen a number of Vulcans/Kosdons/insert maker name here, and you will find there aren't many left.
To my point - there are basically close to zero high quality COLOR photos ( or videos) of many of the dinosaur motors that were the mainstays when HPR was (relatively) young.
I could fix that, because I have compiled a fairly large collection, some of which I would fly for the sake of getting it "on the record" as to how these things looked and sounded back when I was ten years old and all I knew was from a black and white magazine. Said motors could be flown TRA research or under the NAR expired cert program. And of course, in the same type of rockets they would have originally been flown in. You know, I'm talking paper and plywood here. Some LOC, some AAA, maybe THOY, SSRS, OG NCR, and other names from the past. Take great "action" pics and vids. Might need help with that.
Thoughts?
Fast forward, my first HPR launch was LDRS X at Black Rock in 91. Interestingly, even though I couldn't be quite sure what the motors depicted in '87 would have looked like in real life I knew that most of the ones I was seeing in person were visually much different. Bigger flames, lots of white smoke...that's White Lightning, which was coming on super strong (and for good reason, it looks great) in that era. And of course it replaced a the AT "classic" propellant. The Vulcans looked about the same as I would have expected though. Of course, try finding a rocketeer who has actually seen a number of Vulcans/Kosdons/insert maker name here, and you will find there aren't many left.
To my point - there are basically close to zero high quality COLOR photos ( or videos) of many of the dinosaur motors that were the mainstays when HPR was (relatively) young.
I could fix that, because I have compiled a fairly large collection, some of which I would fly for the sake of getting it "on the record" as to how these things looked and sounded back when I was ten years old and all I knew was from a black and white magazine. Said motors could be flown TRA research or under the NAR expired cert program. And of course, in the same type of rockets they would have originally been flown in. You know, I'm talking paper and plywood here. Some LOC, some AAA, maybe THOY, SSRS, OG NCR, and other names from the past. Take great "action" pics and vids. Might need help with that.
Thoughts?