Can you actually use sugar/pottasium nitrate in a pvc tube or will it explode?

[Soteris Antoniades]

I've read Richard Nakka's http://www.nakka-rocketry.net/pvcmot5.html that states that the motor will explode if you use sugar in a pvc motor, but I also saw many videos like Tkor's sugar rocket video.

 

[prfesser]

PVC is strongly NOT RECOMMENDED for motor casings. It breaks into sharp-edged fragments (I have personally witnessed it) that penetrate skin and tissue easily. Contrary to popular opinion, PVC pipe has fillers that will usually show up on an x-ray...but those sharp pieces will hurt. Both when the original motor CATOs and when the Emergency Room doctor begins removing them.

Centuries of pyrotechnicians could tell you what kind of tubes to use. And why they're used.

YouTube videos on motor making generally show only the successes---not the failures and not the injuries.

Discussion of motor making requires access to the [Restricted] Research forum. One must be Level 2 certified and a U.S. citizen for access. Sorry.

Best regards,
Terry

 

[fyrwrxz]

All the nopes in Nopeville! While we encourage your interest in rocketry, we'd like to see other posts from you in the future. Typing with all your fingers. Nakka did good stuff, in controlled, scientific, incremental experiments. These were alternative routes to rocketry, pretty much eclipsed by progress in consumer grade propellants created by chaps known to provide military grade items under rigorous quality control to strict specifications. I note you are posting from Cypress, and as such, appreciate the supply chain issues you may have. Do not confuse the hobby of rocketry with pyrotechnics or the making of fireworks. Both have safety concerns you must be versed in to prevent injury to yourself, innocent bystanders or even property. You can and will be held liable not only for your own injuries, but those you cause others. Please....ask questions, much like you have done here. We always welcome newcomers and we need the fresh blood in our hobby to keep it alive. What we don't want is negative press coverage of someone attempting an 'experiment' without the proper safety precautions or depth of knowledge required for even minimal success. Even a small, successful black powder motor requires in investment in tooling and the raw materials. Remote initiation of said motor removes you from the blast radius and would be what I consider the very most basics of rocketry. Note there is a certain amount of math involved, even just basic center of gravity and center of pressure can take a while to understand. Keep learning, keep asking questions. We are all here for you. Be safe and keep on posting! Best, -dave-

 

[Soteris Antoniades]

All the nopes in Nopeville! While we encourage your interest in rocketry, we'd like to see other posts from you in the future. Typing with all your fingers. Nakka did good stuff, in controlled, scientific, incremental experiments. These were alternative routes to rocketry, pretty much eclipsed by progress in consumer grade propellants created by chaps known to provide military grade items under rigorous quality control to strict specifications. I note you are posting from Cypress, and as such, appreciate the supply chain issues you may have. Do not confuse the hobby of rocketry with pyrotechnics or the making of fireworks. Both have safety concerns you must be versed in to prevent injury to yourself, innocent bystanders or even property. You can and will be held liable not only for your own injuries, but those you cause others. Please....ask questions, much like you have done here. We always welcome newcomers and we need the fresh blood in our hobby to keep it alive. What we don't want is negative press coverage of someone attempting an 'experiment' without the proper safety precautions or depth of knowledge required for even minimal success. Even a small, successful black powder motor requires in investment in tooling and the raw materials. Remote initiation of said motor removes you from the blast radius and would be what I consider the very most basics of rocketry. Note there is a certain amount of math involved, even just basic center of gravity and center of pressure can take a while to understand. Keep learning, keep asking questions. We are all here for you. Be safe and keep on posting! Best, -dave-

Thanks for your interest! What's a good place to learn apart from youtube which is not very trustworthy?

 

[smstachwick]

Thanks for your interest! What's a good place to learn apart from youtube which is not very trustworthy?

The forum, for one. Take a look at some other postings in this subforum and see if you find anything useful. You may also find neat stuff in the “similar threads” box at the bottom, but be mindful of awakening dead threads.

Estes is the largest provider of beginners’ model rockets and motors, they have all kinds of information on their website, estesrockets.com.

You may also want to check out G. Harry Stine’s Handbook of Model Rocketry. The last edition was published almost 20 years ago now but much of the information of the first four or five chapters is still relevant.

 

[tsmith1315]

What's a good place to learn

Nakka's site is a great place to learn. Designed to communicate information, not to get a reaction.
Notice these two quotes from the home page:

"This site originally posted July 1997"​

"Latest update: August 5, 2022"​

There's a lot of experience speaking in those pages.

I'll also plug the book written by our own @prfesser, who has been helping rocketeers learn composite motor making for decades. It's where I would start if I had to make my own motors:
https://www.rimworld.com/book/index.html

Otherwise, if you primarily want to fly rockets into the air, I'd suggest looking for commercially made motors. You'll be flying much quicker, with less initial expense, and more successful flights.

 

[patbunn]

Long time ago I mixed cane sugar and potassium nitrate in the proportions recommended for a cooked motor. I packed used estes motors with it and they flew. None blew up. I would not think f doing it now, but I did it in my teens.

I did the same with sulfer/zinc and they seemed to blow up, but I never found any pieces of the Estes motor.. I think they just burned really fast.

Pat

 

[cerving]

yeah, there's a reason why Zn-S is not approved by Tripoli...