I hope your are not referring about me 
Best colors for visibility to spray my rocket??
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Rschub
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I am leaning toward trying this stuff on my level 1 https://www.ebay.com/itm/2334084172...1291&msclkid=27921a0d12d91108aeb97b876df93d46
I've not flown it yet, but that color, and the royal blue is what I've painted my Tiny Pterodactyl with. With the chrome base coat it really is impressive. I'll try to remember to snap a photo and post it today when I get home.
Grant_Edwards
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Yep, I've got a couple of them with a factory-printed MSRP of 19¢ on the cap. They're probably around 50 years old. I haven't even tried to remove the caps...Me too....lots of little square bottles of Testors, some pushing 30 years...
boomtube-mk2
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I have used https://www.amazon.com/Dupli-Color-...6,B082QNRG3W,B001DKQ41A,B000994BUM&srpt=PAINT in various colors with outstanding results. Looks like glass and is tough as nails.
Fly low and use a big shiny streamer... or wait until the rocket drops below 500ft.
Must be good stuff...
Must be good stuff...
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Doug Holverson
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Black, Creme, Aluminum, and Persian Orange #2. Did I ever tell you about Grandpa Skow? :3
You might be onto something. If I recall correctly, the air force did a study to determine what color was the most visible for airplanes. The result was boring white. I expect that's why so many civilian aircraft are white with color trim. I can only speak for myself, but all I see is a silhouette after a couple of hundred feet into the boost phase. Color strategies above are for post-ejection like colorful parachutes and shiny streamers, or on the ground - not green for grassy fields etc. I think these are good strategies.
I got pretty busy yesterday and didn’t get a chance for the phots then, today however……
Here it is. The blue is for the lighter motors, purple for the heavier motors (weighted tip)
There’s not much sun in my area today, so it appears rather dull. If full sunlight it is pretty bright.
Here it is. The blue is for the lighter motors, purple for the heavier motors (weighted tip)
There’s not much sun in my area today, so it appears rather dull. If full sunlight it is pretty bright.
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Sun or not, looks great!
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Dealer's choice. I've done so many different colors and combos over the years. All have benefits and drawbacks. It all comes down to where you're flying really. Obviously stay away from the most resonating background color scheme. Add a little reflective film or mylar streamer to give it some shimmer to track it visually otherwise have fun with it.
+1 on the neon colors. I have a Semroc Goliath three engine cluster rocket. On anything but A engines it goes WAY up there. I painted it neon pink and purple to improve my chances of getting it back.
Sooner Boomer
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"Things I Learned at AirFest"
When your rocket drops into knee-high milo, it doesn't matter what color it is.
When your rocket drops into knee-high milo, it doesn't matter what color it is.
I'm trying to find the perfect fluorescent orange paint and always like to stay far away from the cheap home improvement brands. The automotive based aerosols/high end cans have higher pressure for Superior atomization and a much better nozzle for a more even spray pattern.
DabCat
Well-Known Member
What I've found is, the color of the body tube doesn't really matter. You mainly see just the parachute as it's coming down. I have a few high altitude rockets painted sky blue, and I've never lost one. (To be fair though, I launch at a dry lakebed, so I'm not sure if this applies to other launch sites.)
I had a Quest Nike Smoke I flew on AT F20 motors. I painted it Neon Yellow, then put a wide, fluorescent orange stripe on it. Several times I could not see where it landed, but someone in the club always found it. I think it's due to the fact that bright spiral stripes are not found in nature, so they get our attention.
BTW, John Deere colors are bad if you live in the Midwest. Blend perfectly with grass and weeds.
does anyone know of where to Source the highly reflective streamer material that was sold by Shadow Aero rocketry company? As highly reflective and visible as it was, it almost made up for any type of color that would blend in with the sky.
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Combine something florescent or similarly bright with black. Black and yellow, black and orange, black and hot pink, or black and white even. One will stand out against light backgrounds the other against dark ones. Cover all your bases that way.
Emergency (space) blanket cut into 4" sections. Costs about 25c each...
The gotcha with red, orange, bright yellow is fall in the Minnesota with Maple
leaves. Florescent orange rockets don't stand a chance. I had a fluorescent rocket boosted orange glider that landed in a park with leaves everywhere and I never did find it.I have aluminum duct work tape that I sometimes add as shiny accents.
(Fyi @rharshberger it's best practice to search then reply... Get used to it.)
shockie
High Plains Rocketeer
You said red-orange. I Agree! HK was right.
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For Heaven's sake... Don't use ACME Clear...
the typical space blanket material is always silver and the one that Shadow Aero made had a gold / copper finish on it that was rather unique and had a prismatic type of texture to it that made it even more reflective so it's really not space blanket material
As an orange/black flyer, this is a useful reminder.
It can matter when you get close. I thought my rocket had gone about 20-30 rows into the milo, without a tracker. Turned out it was 140 rows deep. I had taken a good bearing and was rechecking it every few steps, but I wasn't able to see the rocket until about row 132 as I recall. My recollection of the details is fading fast, but I think I told myself about row 120 to give it 15 more rows and then give the rocket up as lost.
It was painted fluorescent orange and black, and I reckon had it not been so bright, I wouldn't have seen it before turning back.
When you're not getting close, I like the idea of the 100' streamer someone flew at Airfest.
Could it have been bird tape?
could have been Gold bird scare tape, it's a shame that Shadow Aero website is gone but it was called, " Shadow Aero's flash-recovery streamer ". I found that in a search call Google and it directed me back to a thread on here several years ago.
For me the easiest to track is Chrome or rockets with Chrome parts. While I'm not a huge fan of the style of the Estes Majestic, it is a very easy rocket to track even at 3K+ feet due to the nosecone and fins. As for other colors, really depends on the conditions. Generally dark colors show up easily in the sky regardless if it's cloudy or clear. Bright Reds and Oranges are also very easy to track.
About the best thing you can do is attach a chrome streamer to the recovery system. I did this with a 24mm Alpha that I built and it's easy to see when the ejection pops.
About the best thing you can do is attach a chrome streamer to the recovery system. I did this with a 24mm Alpha that I built and it's easy to see when the ejection pops.
sounds like if I paint the fin can section black, then do the main airframe in fluorescent orange, and have a chrome nose cone ,with a gold Prismatic streamer, then that should be the ultimate in visibility. 
DAllen
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Wheeeeeee!!! 10 year necro!!!
anyways when flying in a field full of corn silage balsa brown works great.
anyways when flying in a field full of corn silage balsa brown works great.
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