Capsule Rocket??

[mark schnell]

I'm just curious. Has anyone ever built an Apollo or Mercury capsule that launched under power from motors on the escape tower only. So I guess, in effect, the motors would be pulling the capsule from above instead of pushing it from below. Is that possible, would it be stable? Just wondering, it seems that would be a cool looking launch. The motor config. would be similar to the Fliskits Tres.

 

[Bill]

Originally posted by mark schnell
I'm just curious. Has anyone ever built an Apollo or Mercury capsule that launched under power from motors on the abort tower only. So I guess, in effect, the motors would be pulling the capsule from above instead of pushing it from below. Is that possible, would it be stable? Just wondering, it seems that would be a cool looking launch.

Somebody did just that with an Apollo capsule and tower about 30 years ago and wrote it up in the column named The Escape Tower in Model Rocketry Magazine. Stability should not be a problem: a lot of your weight (motors) is up front and the cone of the capsule pulls the CP way back.


Bill

 

[shockwaveriderz]

some pics are here:

https://www.ninfinger.org/~sven/rockets/ModelRocketry/Model_Rocketry_v02n07_04-70.pdf

This is a 9mb file..

The plans are here:

https://www.ninfinger.org/~sven/rockets/ModelRocketry/Model_Rocketry_v02n02_11-69.pdf

This is a 12mb file......

I am attaching just a pic of the cover

 

[sandman]

QUARK is doing a 16" Little Joe II boilerplate version with an operational escape tower.

The tower, I believe, will have 4 "G's" in it.

Yes, I made the nose cone for the capsule.

I haven't heard anything from them for quite some time...Carl...you know these guys, what's happening?

sandman

 

[mark schnell]

Thanks for the info. guys. This would make a pretty spectacular rocket!

 

[Peter Alway]

The biggest prolem with a Mercury or Apollo capsule with a functioning escape tower is the nitty-gritty of fitting adequate motors into the space available in the three or four nozzles. On the real things, there are motors with multiple canted nozzles, and the volume of the nozzles is a small fraction of the motor volume, and an even smaller fraction of the vehicle volume. But to reproduce it as a model rocket, you have to have entire engines in the spaces occupied by the individual nozzles.

James Duffy has done a couple of Beach Abort Mercury capsules and he ended up just putting the motors in the main capsule body, poking out the rear. That was the only way there would be enough space.

 

[Mike Howie]

A few NARAMs ago I remember seeing an Apollo capsule that
used mini motors in the tower. It was flown for the scale event.
Unfortunately I don't remember who or when.

Jmikeh

 

[Ray Dunakin]

Originally posted by shockwaveriderz
I am attaching just a pic of the cover [/B]

Really nice rocket!

(That hair, though!)

BTW, I saw video of a large Mercury Redstone that flew at an early LDRS -- after burnout of the main motor(s), the escape tower lit and pulled the capsule off the rocket. Pretty nifty.