What if the actual Delta Heavy rocket was super-sized and then mashed with the Space-X lander concept? This is one of my most unusual (and most likely to fail) projects.
The rocket under construction is 5 1/2 feet tall, the central body tube dia. is 3.9", and the side pod tubes are 2.1" dia. The finished rocket will weight less than 10 pounds. There are four landing legs- the left leg is shown in the stowed position, and the right leg is in the deployed position. These wooden legs are reinforced with fiberglass. The deployed footprint is almost 4 feet wide.
The two side pods are permanently attached. A drogue chute will deploy from the top of each at apogee. There will be a D2.3PT 18/20 reloadable motor in each of the pods, to simulate descent engines. At 8 seconds of burn time but only 1/2 pound of thrust each, they are strictly for effect. If the RSO agrees, they will ignite at about 400 feet and in concert with the main chute deployment from the central body tube.
The reinforced landing legs are hinged in two places and will deploy via 1/2" wide braided elastic. The inside of the body tube where the legs are bolted in place is reinforced with a Blue Tube coupler section. The legs will be held in the stowed position with fishing line, which will be burned through via an igniter at maybe 200 feet. Kevlar line will be attached to the legs and to the central body tube, which will restrict the footprint width to the desired four feet. The attachment points within the central tube will again be reinforced.
I'll probably use four altimeters- two for the drogue and main chutes, housed in the main body tube ("an heir and a spare"), and one in each of the side pods- for the "descent motors" ignition, and for the cutting of the fishing line to deploy the landing legs. Already have the Perfectflite altimeters from other "one and done" projects, so I'll use what I have instead of buying some multichannel altimeters.
A high thrust 54mm "J" motor will quickly lift the rocket off the pad, but will keep it well within the 3,000 ceiling for the Jackson Model Rocketry Club- probably more like a max. altitude of 1,500 feet. My goal is for a 15 fps or less descent speed as the rocket's legs hit the ground.
Really just the shell is completed- the "plumbing" need to be done, as well as the rest of the painting. Gordon Agnello aka "Sandman" custom-turned the main nosecone, and Stickershock 23 will supply the labels to make it look a bit more authentic.
The rocket under construction is 5 1/2 feet tall, the central body tube dia. is 3.9", and the side pod tubes are 2.1" dia. The finished rocket will weight less than 10 pounds. There are four landing legs- the left leg is shown in the stowed position, and the right leg is in the deployed position. These wooden legs are reinforced with fiberglass. The deployed footprint is almost 4 feet wide.
The two side pods are permanently attached. A drogue chute will deploy from the top of each at apogee. There will be a D2.3PT 18/20 reloadable motor in each of the pods, to simulate descent engines. At 8 seconds of burn time but only 1/2 pound of thrust each, they are strictly for effect. If the RSO agrees, they will ignite at about 400 feet and in concert with the main chute deployment from the central body tube.
The reinforced landing legs are hinged in two places and will deploy via 1/2" wide braided elastic. The inside of the body tube where the legs are bolted in place is reinforced with a Blue Tube coupler section. The legs will be held in the stowed position with fishing line, which will be burned through via an igniter at maybe 200 feet. Kevlar line will be attached to the legs and to the central body tube, which will restrict the footprint width to the desired four feet. The attachment points within the central tube will again be reinforced.
I'll probably use four altimeters- two for the drogue and main chutes, housed in the main body tube ("an heir and a spare"), and one in each of the side pods- for the "descent motors" ignition, and for the cutting of the fishing line to deploy the landing legs. Already have the Perfectflite altimeters from other "one and done" projects, so I'll use what I have instead of buying some multichannel altimeters.
A high thrust 54mm "J" motor will quickly lift the rocket off the pad, but will keep it well within the 3,000 ceiling for the Jackson Model Rocketry Club- probably more like a max. altitude of 1,500 feet. My goal is for a 15 fps or less descent speed as the rocket's legs hit the ground.
Really just the shell is completed- the "plumbing" need to be done, as well as the rest of the painting. Gordon Agnello aka "Sandman" custom-turned the main nosecone, and Stickershock 23 will supply the labels to make it look a bit more authentic.
