rocketgeek101
Well-Known Member
Welcome to the build thread for my Ultimate Wildman which I'll be using to attempt my Level 4 with the Canadian Association of Rocketry this summer. 
And yes, that "4" is not a typo. In Canada HPR certification is broken down into four certification levels (L1 = H; L2 = I; L3 = J, K & L; L4 = M, N & O). Level 4 is equivalent to TRA or NAR Level 3.
Note: Dimensions are in mm and are accurate for the specific kit I received.
OpenRocket screen shot:
Without further ado, let the build begin!
The parts:
After unboxing everything and inspecting each of the components, the first order of business was to clean up the fibreglass parts. I set up the garden hose in the middle of winter to do this while there was a few feet of snow on the ground, as some of the parts were much too large to fit in the basement sink (and there is no way I'd be allowed to rinse off these parts in the shower
).
The first assembly step was to drill 12 circularly spaced 1/4” holes in the rear centering ring to attach the 98mm AeroPack retainer. An 8-32 PEM nut (McMaster-Carr part no. 95117A444) was installed in each hole by means of a sophisticated installation tool (hammer) to provide a secure threaded metal attachment point for each of the twelve 8-32 hex-screws holding the retainer to the rocket.
With the installation of the AeroPack done, the rest of the motor mount was then assembled. Throughout this build all of the fibreglass surfaces were prepped for bonding with epoxy by thoroughly scuffing with 60-grit sandpaper. The surfaces were also wiped with a paper towel wetted with isopropyl alcohol to remove any skin oils or other contaminants that may be present on the surface of the parts prior to bonding. A simple water break test was often used to validate a surface as being ready to accept epoxy. I used RocketPoxy for all structural joints. For non-structural joints, Gorilla 5-minute epoxy was occasionally used.
All three CR's were epoxied onto the motor tube. The middle and rear CR's were positioned so that they respectively touch the top and bottom of the the through-the-wall fin tabs. This will essentially result in the thrust of the motor being transferred to the airframe without directly stressing any of the epoxy joints. The shock cord is attached to the booster section by means of two steel lifting eyebolts bolted through the forward CR. The nuts holding the eyebolts in place were coated with epoxy after securely tightening to prevent them from loosening over time.
And yes, that "4" is not a typo. In Canada HPR certification is broken down into four certification levels (L1 = H; L2 = I; L3 = J, K & L; L4 = M, N & O). Level 4 is equivalent to TRA or NAR Level 3.
Note: Dimensions are in mm and are accurate for the specific kit I received.
OpenRocket screen shot:
Without further ado, let the build begin!
The parts:
After unboxing everything and inspecting each of the components, the first order of business was to clean up the fibreglass parts. I set up the garden hose in the middle of winter to do this while there was a few feet of snow on the ground, as some of the parts were much too large to fit in the basement sink (and there is no way I'd be allowed to rinse off these parts in the shower
).The first assembly step was to drill 12 circularly spaced 1/4” holes in the rear centering ring to attach the 98mm AeroPack retainer. An 8-32 PEM nut (McMaster-Carr part no. 95117A444) was installed in each hole by means of a sophisticated installation tool (hammer) to provide a secure threaded metal attachment point for each of the twelve 8-32 hex-screws holding the retainer to the rocket.
With the installation of the AeroPack done, the rest of the motor mount was then assembled. Throughout this build all of the fibreglass surfaces were prepped for bonding with epoxy by thoroughly scuffing with 60-grit sandpaper. The surfaces were also wiped with a paper towel wetted with isopropyl alcohol to remove any skin oils or other contaminants that may be present on the surface of the parts prior to bonding. A simple water break test was often used to validate a surface as being ready to accept epoxy. I used RocketPoxy for all structural joints. For non-structural joints, Gorilla 5-minute epoxy was occasionally used.
All three CR's were epoxied onto the motor tube. The middle and rear CR's were positioned so that they respectively touch the top and bottom of the the through-the-wall fin tabs. This will essentially result in the thrust of the motor being transferred to the airframe without directly stressing any of the epoxy joints. The shock cord is attached to the booster section by means of two steel lifting eyebolts bolted through the forward CR. The nuts holding the eyebolts in place were coated with epoxy after securely tightening to prevent them from loosening over time.
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