Contest Rocket Techniques Website

[GL-P]

I don't know if this should go under techniques or contests so I put it here.(for more exposure)

Anyone know of a good contest rocket site? I'm getting real interested in altitude competitions but there is absolutely no info on the previous record holders.

Thanks guys!!!

 

[DynaSoar]

Originally posted by GL-P
I don't know if this should go under techniques or contests so I put it here.(for more exposure)

Anyone know of a good contest rocket site? I'm getting real interested in altitude competitions but there is absolutely no info on the previous record holders.

Thanks guys!!!

Model Rocketeer (old NAR magazine) and Model Rocket News (old Estes magazine) used to carry some contest winning designs. Things have progressed since those times, but if you want to get into it, you'll probably also want to progress beyond those things. That means knowing what they were. You don't want to reinvent any square wheels. Check the scans at Ye Olde Rocket Shop. There are also some scans of old newsletters from various clubs like MIT's rocket club around. Look for those too.

 

[illini]

Two off the top of my head:

1) The contestroc yahoo group - sorry don't have an url. All the BTC's seem to hang out there and provide all kinds of obfuscating information.

2) The competition page on the NAR website, with links to plans and records.

 

[hokkyokusei]

https://www.spacemodeling.org/

Click on "Construction, Supplies and Technical Info".

 

[Micromeister]

for existing National records try
www.nar.org/NARrecords.shtml

 

[GL-P]

k, I am more thinking of hpr alt. competition tho , esp G alt I think some info will still apply.

Thanks, I am on the Contestroc group.

 

[Micromeister]

If any such thing exists I am unaware of it. HPR is mostly Sporty flying. Every once in a while you'll hear something about a Bowling ball loft or Waterjug lofting, pumpkins or such. I seem to recall a few years ago someone got a minimum dia. aluminium tube rocket on an M motor to 50 some thousand feet??? didn't impress me as it didn't deploy a recovery system, and had a metal airframe!!! To me another Just plain Dangerous HPR stunt.

You want a challange?
Design and build a 6xC cluster model:
fly, track and close the flight within 3% above 2,185 feet, and get it back to fly again.

 

[DynaSoar]

Originally posted by Micromeister
If any such thing exists I am unaware of it. HPR is mostly Sporty flying. Every once in a while you'll hear something about a Bowling ball loft or Waterjug lofting, pumpkins or such. I seem to recall a few years ago someone got a minimum dia. aluminium tube rocket on an M motor to 50 some thousand feet??? didn't impress me as it didn't deploy a recovery system, and had a metal airframe!!! To me another Just plain Dangerous HPR stunt.

That's not HPR nor a stunt. That's experimental flying in the larger sense, rather than the sense of just making your own motors (although they may have). It's amateur rocketry such as CSXT did in their 77 mile flight. It takes a lot of speed to coast to that altitude and common rocketry components won't stand up. The people doing these things are more likely to be working towards the "cheap access to space" concept than for just sport flying. There are currently two open prizes for such altitude flying, both for reaching 200 km.

 

[GL-P]

You want a challange? Design and build a 6xC cluster model

fly, track and close the flight within 3% above 2,185 feet, and get it back to fly again.

I think the G alt. rocket I'm building should be difficult enough for me:

single 24mm G55
Carbon booster section (1 inch diameter)
1/32 inch fins w/ light fibreglass reinforcement
mini altimeter
rf locator
all under 0.6 lb w/ motor
7000 ft expected at optimal mass