Can you drill a delay without the tool

[Hazza_Rockets]

Hi, I have a g80 motor for my apogee aspire and want to shorten the delay time from 14 sec to 10, can I do this without the proper tool.

Thanks,
Harry

 

[dhbarr]

You need to remove ~4/32" of delay. The tool is one of the least imprecise ways to do that, but a bit that fits and is tapestopped can get the job done.

What kind of reinforcement did you do to the Aspire to help it withstand those kinds of speeds? :-D

 

[tim cubbedge]

Yes. Using a 1/4” drill bit, for every 1/32” you remove will reduce delay by 1 second.

 

[Rocketjunkie]

Yes. Using a 1/4” drill bit, for every 1/32” you remove will reduce delay by 1 second.

**Include the tip of the drill!** The reduction is to the **deepest** part of the hole. Some Aerotech delays use a slower delay material (usually Black Jack) and it requires less than 1/32" to reduce the delay by 1 second. Not sure about CTI delays.

 

[XrayLizard]

Get the tool.

 

[XrayLizard]

Then again, you probably won’t see the Aspire again anyway. Lol.
I have a G80 for mine as well!
Not built. Going to use G10 fins

 

[Hazza_Rockets]

You need to remove ~4/32" of delay. The tool is one of the least imprecise ways to do that, but a bit that fits and is tapestopped can get the job done.

What kind of reinforcement did you do to the Aspire to help it withstand those kinds of speeds? :-D

Thanks for your help.
To withstand the speeds I have giving the fins a paper skin. I have also used a heap of glue on the fins followed by epoxy clay. I hope it withstands the flight. I'm going to launch it in the next week or two. (sorry theirs no nose cone in the photo)

Thanks for your help

 

[blackjack2564]

I would NOT shorten delay. With a steamer rather than chute it will not matter.
if late deploy there will not be a shock load on rocket

 

[Hazza_Rockets]

I would NOT shorten delay. With a steamer rather than chute it will not matter.
if late deploy there will not be a shock load on rocket

Okay thank you very much for your advice, I will not change the delay

 

[Zeus-cat]

How old are you? Not being nosy, but my eyes have gotten noticeably worse as I age. You NEED a kid or 5 with good eyes to follow/spot this rocket. A friend of mine launched an Aspire at a club launch years ago. We (mostly 40 and 50 year old guys) never saw it again.

 

[Joshua F Thomas]

Try some tracking dust?

 

[1MTRNTENF]

Hi, I have a g80 motor for my apogee aspire and want to shorten the delay time from 14 sec to 10, can I do this without the proper tool.

Thanks,
Harry

Of course you can, Use a small drill bit, double check the depth of the hole with a tire tread depth gauge. They are calibrated in 32nd's of an inch.

 

[teepot]

Of course you can, Use a small drill bit, double check the depth of the hole with a tire tread depth gauge. They are calibrated in 32nd's of an inch.

what a good idea.

 

[Five]

I started a thread with this same question. I got a lot comments with different ways and suggestions on drill bits. I eventually bought the Aero Tech delay drilling tool. Which does the job perfectly.
After using the tool on a few different motors, I realized I probably could of scraped out a few seconds with a paper clip but it wouldn’t have been accurate and I wouldn’t recommend it either but it’s possible.

 

[Hazza_Rockets]

How old are you? Not being nosy, but my eyes have gotten noticeably worse as I age. You NEED a kid or 5 with good eyes to follow/spot this rocket. A friend of mine launched an Aspire at a club launch years ago. We (mostly 40 and 50 year old guys) never saw it again.

Hi, I'm 13 so I have pretty good eyes. I also have many other people viewing so I'll have plenty eyes. I'm launching it in a large farm in New Zealand so I have plenty of room as well as access to farm quads and motorbikes. I also have access to a large drone (matrice 210rtk) so I can also get an aerial view. I hope I find it because I want to try it on an f (I dont no why I'm doing a g first, probably cause all I want is to achieve supersonic).

I will launch in the next week or two, I'll keep you updated

 

[Zeus-cat]

Good luck.

 

[Alan15578]

Hi, I'm 13 so I have pretty good eyes. I also have many other people viewing so I'll have plenty eyes. I'm launching it in a large farm in New Zealand so I have plenty of room as well as access to farm quads and motorbikes. I also have access to a large drone (matrice 210rtk) so I can also get an aerial view. I hope I find it because I want to try it on an f (I dont no why I'm doing a g first, probably cause all I want is to achieve supersonic).

I will launch in the next week or two, I'll keep you updated

Good luck. I supervised a team of Aerospace Engineering seniors that hit Mach 1.42 with am F80, amd Mach 1.1 with an E50. We flew from a farm at night to photograph the exhaust trail. We launched several rockets with different slightly different designs. Some rockets were actually recovered the next day. At the time there were no good contest certified model rocket G motors, although the G60(?) could have carried electronic instrumentation to low supersonic speed. A G80 would be interesting.

 

[ZEDL1]

Back in the 80s, we didn't have any delay drilling tools as we do today. We did use drill bits, by hand, based upon experience. It worked fine.

 

[RocketRev]

Back in the early 90's we used drill bits for shortening delays. At a launch, I once used a pocket knife to get the job done. As long as you get the depth correct, the tool itself matters less.

 

[Nytrunner]

Back in the early 90's we used drill bits for shortening delays. At a launch, I once used a pocket knife to get the job done. As long as you get the depth correct, the tool itself matters less.

I still use an xacto knife half the time. There are too many delay types and sizes and different delay tools to have all of them (plus having done machining as an undergrad research assistant, my eyeball micrometer is relatively well calibrated)

 

[jqavins]

Hi, I'm 13 so I have pretty good eyes. I also have many other people viewing so I'll have plenty eyes. I'm launching it in a large farm in New Zealand so I have plenty of room as well as access to farm quads and motorbikes. I also have access to a large drone (matrice 210rtk) so I can also get an aerial view. I hope I find it because I want to try it on an f (I dont no why I'm doing a g first, probably cause all I want is to achieve supersonic).

I will launch in the next week or two, I'll keep you updated

Putting your name and contact information somewhere on the rocket is a pretty good idea too. There have been a few times I wish I had done it. Attached to the shock cord lets it be seen easily after the rocket lands who knows where, but doesn't mess up the look before launch.

 

[Banzai88]

Putting your name and contact information somewhere on the rocket is a pretty good idea too. There have been a few time I wish I had done it. Attached to the shock cord lets it be seen easily after the rocket lands who knows where, but doesn't mess up the look before launch.

Those $5 stainless steel dog tag engravers are perfect for this. I have several that I made and attach to every rocket that'll need one for the day.

 

[Five]

If you are worried about recovering your rocket, shortening the delay will make your chute eject at a higher altitude, which will cause it to drift further.

 

[jqavins]

Not if it's still on the way up.

 

[Ez2cDave]

Not if it's still on the way up.

Indeed . . . Destroyed, but recovered, versus not recovered . . . Decisions, decisions !

Dave F.

 

[jqavins]

Deployment can come a little before apogee or a little after Too far off in either direction means high speed deployment and damage. A little early can mean successful recovery from less total height than a little late.

 

[Ez2cDave]

Deployment can come a little before apogee or a little after Too far off in either direction means high speed deployment and damage. A little early can mean successful recovery from less total height than a little late.

Frankly, I'm surprised that no one suggested a chute release . . .

Dave F.

 

[tim cubbedge]

Frankly, I'm surprised that no one suggested a chute release . . .

most likely reason because it won't fit.

 

[heada]

The Aspire is a 29mm MD rocket. Launched on an F10 it goes near a mile high. If you were to use something like the new AT H13, I'm sure it'd go 2+ miles.

Apogee has a 29mm av-bay for sale. If you're launching an Aspire on a G80, I'd suggest you also look at retro-fitting an av-bay and making it dual deploy if you want any hope of recovering it.

https://www.apogeerockets.com/Electronics_Payloads/Electronic_Bays/29mm_Ebay_Kit

 

[midpower_madness]

Good luck. I supervised a team of Aerospace Engineering seniors that hit Mach 1.42 with am F80, amd Mach 1.1 with an E50. We flew from a farm at night to photograph the exhaust trail. We launched several rockets with different slightly different designs. Some rockets were actually recovered the next day. At the time there were no good contest certified model rocket G motors, although the G60(?) could have carried electronic instrumentation to low supersonic speed. A G80 would be interesting.

We did a home brew build of several Apogee Aspire kits using a AeroTech G125, G80NT, G79W and a few G75Ms. Without severe reinforcement the rockets broke up. We got 2 back of 6 rockets. Top speed was on the AeroTech G125 - 1850 km/h..... stupid fast. G75M got the rockets to 1338 km/h. The best altitude was obtained on the G80NT-14A. The most easily track-able was the good old G79W. No surprise! It was a great way to get students hooked on model rocketry.