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Is anyone here from the Long Island New York area? I looked up local clubs and the website is years out of date.

I am from Lawn Guyland but I moved to So Cal in 1980.

The NAR website may have contact info for clubs or people who are officers in clubs on the a Island, but if not you can join NAR and request a list of members from your region ( often with a zip code range).
 
Chute popping early can zipper* your rocket. You really need to use the correct delay, not the shortest.

* zipper - a huge rip down the side of the rocket caused when the chute comes out while the rocket is still moving upward. The drag created by the chute stops the chute, and as the rocket continues upward, the shock cord has nowhere to go but straight down the side of the airframe.

i mean the engines listed on the box with the shortest delay. But that is good info to know I never would have thought of it.
 
And the reason Estes has such wimpy motors recommended for the first flight is actually a good one. The lower and slower motors, means that the rocket will have a lower altitude, increasing the odds that you'll get it back in your field. What's more, you'll likely be able to see the whole flight, instead of just seeing a trail of smoke, and wondering where your rocket went, only to lose it because you never were able to re-acquire it.

One thing I'm thinking about doing from now on is attaching some kind of silver mylar in my recovery system (even just a small strip applied to the bottom of the nosecone's base). I had the smallest of bands of silver Trim MonoKote on my L1 rocket (Deep Space OFFl (awful) puns & jokes), and as it descended, I could see a flash as the rocket spun down on its parachute. I never lost sight of that rocket, but it seems to be a small thing I can do to help insure that I won't loose a rocket that flies beyond my vision.

[video=youtube;lUy7qOt6mWw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=46&v=lUy7qOt6mWw[/video]
 
Welcome Magic, wise move to find this forum early on took me a year to find.
That's how I got hooked too, started my boys just to do something together having fun...until I flew an E9-4 then Dad's rockets started getting bigger! Still enjoy all sizes though.

Sounds like you find a place to launch as well, that can present a challenge to some.

The mistakes I made when I started was using longer delays to get it closer to the ground before the chute came out - this causes zippers and always the gasp ... "Come on, open OPEN OP awwww dang it". Instead cut out the hole in the chute or tape to chute lines together about halfway up it's called reefing the chute or if it's a pretty light rocket you can use a streamer instead of a chute.

The rocketry Forum opened up a new world that I didn't know even existed! Have fun!
 
And the reason Estes has such wimpy motors recommended for the first flight is actually a good one. The lower and slower motors, means that the rocket will have a lower altitude, increasing the odds that you'll get it back in your field. What's more, you'll likely be able to see the whole flight, instead of just seeing a trail of smoke, and wondering where your rocket went, only to lose it because you never were able to re-acquire it.

One thing I'm thinking about doing from now on is attaching some kind of silver mylar in my recovery system (even just a small strip applied to the bottom of the nosecone's base). I had the smallest of bands of silver Trim MonoKote on my L1 rocket (Deep Space OFFl (awful) puns & jokes), and as it descended, I could see a flash as the rocket spun down on its parachute. I never lost sight of that rocket, but it seems to be a small thing I can do to help insure that I won't loose a rocket that flies beyond my vision.

[video=youtube;lUy7qOt6mWw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=46&v=lUy7qOt6mWw[/video]

Min not so worried about how wimpy the engine is. As long as it goes up its good enough for my son and I. I'm more concerned with just being able to buy 1 or 2 engines in bulk to save some money. I have been buying rockets that have different engines listed but all have 1 in common so if I avoid the 1st flight engine it makes life much easier.
 
You could look into buying bulk packs of engines. Whereas the initial cost is higher, the unit cost per engine is lower. I'm not sure if online purchases require HAZMAT shipping, but if so, check Hobby Lobby. And use the 40% off coupon for even bigger savings.

Meanwhile, the first flight of my Formula 200, after all is said and done, is looking like it's going to total out at about $1500. :facepalm:
 
You could look into buying bulk packs of engines. Whereas the initial cost is higher, the unit cost per engine is lower. I'm not sure if online purchases require HAZMAT shipping, but if so, check Hobby Lobby. And use the 40% off coupon for even bigger savings.

Meanwhile, the first flight of my Formula 200, after all is said and done, is looking like it's going to total out at about $1500. :facepalm:

Definitely recommend the bulk boxes of motors and such. AC supply has some decent pricing on bulk packs: https://www.acsupplyco.com/estes/bulk.htm

John, I feel you. My Formula 200 is looking about the same just shoving the baby M in it, much less the N I really want to fly it on...
 
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