Easy DIY Launch Pad That Will Hold a 1/4” Rod?

[brockrwood]

Does anyone have a suggestion for an easy to build, do it yourself launch pad that will hold a 1/4 inch launch rod?

I would like for the design to allow me to easily set it up at the launch field while also allowing me to take it apart easily for storage when launching is done.

I have seen some interesting homemade pads on the forum that seem to use some sort of electric drill chuck thing to hold the rod. What is that chuck thing? A disassembled electric drill? Something else?

 

[milehigh]

Yep, you got it.
A drill chuck is the answer. It allows you to quickly interchange different rod diameters.
It also can accommodate different launch pad configurations.
If you want to build a platform for a tower or rail, just build it with a shank at the bottom that can be tightened into the chuck.

 

[Kallahan11]

https://www.harborfreight.com/1-2-h...m=social&utm_campaign=shortener&cid=go_social
It has a 1/2-20 hole in the bottom so you can just bolt it to things. Give it a spray of wd 40 if your blast plate is below it every launch.

 

[kuririn]

https://www.harborfreight.com/1-2-h...m=social&utm_campaign=shortener&cid=go_social
It has a 1/2-20 hole in the bottom so you can just bolt it to things. Give it a spray of wd 40 if your blast plate is below it every launch.

I would go with a keyless chuck, so you don't have to carry the key around with you to every launch.
Very easy to lose.

 

[DerRedMax]

I second the keyless chuck!

 

[Blast it Tom!]

That's a great idea, even as an upgrade to my super-stout 2x4 pad.
However, I prefer to maintain the dignity of said device and call it "Charles". <ducks and runs away>.
Seriously, though, you can mount about anything you want into the drill <ahem> Charles.

 

[prfesser]

For a single pad you can't get much simpler and cheaper than a piece of 1 1/2" or 2" PVC pipe, cut into leg-lengths, and a fitting like the one below. Drill a hole through it to mount the rod or a drill chuck. Don't glue the legs in place, friction will hold them well enough and allows disassembly. To provide tilting capability, cut a few pieces of PVC---say, 4", 6", 10"---and add a coupling to one leg. Add a piece of PVC to that leg to give the approximate tilt desired. This was the kind of pad that Estes once sold for larger rockets.

 

[lawn dart]

The more I use keyless chucks, the more I like keyed chucks. You're never really sure how tight you get a keyless.

You can use a well lubricated, properly operating keyed chuck "keylessly" for initial setting anyway. Then just tighten it down with the key and you know you're solid.

Always having the key on hand is easy. Just tie it to the pad on the end of a short length of cord or chain.

 

[SolarYellow]

For a single pad you can't get much simpler and cheaper than a piece of 1 1/2" or 2" PVC pipe, cut into leg-lengths, and a fitting like the one below. Drill a hole through it to mount the rod or a drill chuck. Don't glue the legs in place, friction will hold them well enough and allows disassembly. To provide tilting capability, cut a few pieces of PVC---say, 4", 6", 10"---and add a coupling to one leg. Add a piece of PVC to that leg to give the approximate tilt desired. This was the kind of pad that Estes once sold for larger rockets.
View attachment 604296

Add one of these for tilt:

https://www.amazon.com/VIELKNOV-Profile-Rotatable-Aluminum-Camcorder/dp/B0C9919XSP
A 1/4-20 bolt up through the middle of that tri-fitting goes into the bottom of the ball mount. A 1/4-20 stud on top is easy enough to connect to a variety of launching guides.

 

[brockrwood]

The more I use keyless chucks, the more I like keyed chucks. You're never really sure how tight you get a keyless.

You can use a well lubricated, properly operating keyed chuck "keylessly" for initial setting anyway. Then just tighten it down with the key and you know you're solid.

Always having the key on hand is easy. Just tie it to the pad on the end of a short length of cord or chain.

Or steal the key and that weird piece of leather from your old Craftsman electric drill!

 

[brockrwood]

Ok. I found a link somewhere to one of those easy to build “spider leg” PVC launch pads. I can’t get back to it to save my life.

Found it…

Thread 'Homemade Pads and Controller'
https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/homemade-pads-and-controller.129872/

 

[SolarYellow]

Ok. I found a link somewhere to one of those easy to build “spider leg” PVC launch pads. I can’t get back to it to save my life.

Found it…

Thread 'Homemade Pads and Controller'
https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/homemade-pads-and-controller.129872/

With that many PVC fittings, it adds up to where I'd be shopping cheap tripods at the thrift stores instead.

Also, three legs can't wobble. Four legs almost always will.

 

[lawn dart]

Or steal the key and that weird piece of leather from your old Craftsman electric drill!

Guess my Craftsman drill isn't old enough. It's about 35yo and has a pretty lame keyless chuck.

 

[bjphoenix]

When I was a kid I built more than a couple of launch pads. My first serious LPR pad was built from 2 pieces of 1x4, maybe 12" long each. Nail one to the center of the other to form a T shape. Lay it on the ground so if you look straight down on it it looks like a T. Now in the top board you drill a 1/8" diameter hole straight down and stick a launch rod into it. From the center of the launch rod to the edge of the board is only about 3/8" so the engine exhaust goes past the face of the board and hits the ground. You could adapt this to 1/4" rods by using longer 2x4 boards and the bigger rod. The problem with this design is you can't adjust the tilt of the rod.

When I decided to build a Ranger with cluster of 3 18mm motors I wanted a stronger pad. I got some wider boards and nailed one to the other to form an L shape- one part of the L would lay on the ground the other part would stick straight up in the air. I also found a piece of sheet metal and bent the edges so one edge would set on top of the board sticking up in the air and the rest of the metal would angle down at a 45 degree angle to make a blast deflector. Drill a 1/4" hole in the board sticking up in the air and put a 6' long rod in it from the hardware store. It was plenty tough but again could not adjust the angle. Well I guess you could adjust the angle if you really wanted to by putting some small rocks under one edge.

After searching for photos I remembered an earlier design I made. It was made from 3 short pieces of 1x2 wood and a short piece of 2x4. The 3 smaller boards are put together in a 3-pointed star, the other board is put where they all come together and they nail into it. Drill a hole in the top and put in a launch rod in it. I had scrounged up a piece of sheet metal and bent it to slant and form a small blast deflector.

I dug through old pictures and these were the best I could find. The first picture with the red rocket is the smaller launcher in action, that photo was taken in the 1980s. The second picture with the blue/white rocket is the larger launcher. The rocket is my old Estes Astron Ranger, that photo was taken in 1968.

 

[brockrwood]

Guess my Craftsman drill isn't old enough. It's about 35yo and has a pretty lame keyless chuck.

I am thinking of the one I borrowed from my mom in the late 70’s or early 80’s. It might have been made in the 60’s.

 

[bjphoenix]

I am thinking of the one I borrowed from my mom in the late 70’s or early 80’s. It might have been made in the 60’s.

My Craftsman corded drill that I bought in 1977 has a keyed chuck. My harbor freight corded drill I bought 5 years ago has a keyed chuck. My DeWalt and Rigid cordless drills have keyless chucks however I think my first Craftsman cordless drill had a keyed chuck.

 

[BigMacDaddy]

I sometimes just stick the rod down in the dirt and slip a metal plate with a hole in it around the rod.

 

[jsdemar]

Here's my design on the NAR website. From 2012. Lots of people have made these. I still use mine.

https://www.nar.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Mid-Power-Launch-Pad-John-DeMar.pdf

 

[kuririn]

Here's my design on the NAR website. From 2012. Lots of people have made these. I still use mine.

https://www.nar.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Mid-Power-Launch-Pad-John-DeMar.pdf

I stole used your design as the basis for my launch pad.


Needed tilt/pan capability, so I added a keyless chuck and a Panavise.
I use it for heavier rockets on a rod.
Takes all sizes.

 

[86mustang408w]

Metal flower pot stand, lol.

 

[goose_in_co]

18 year old write-up on a PVC launch pad.
https://www.rocketreviews.com/scratch-el-cheapo-launch-pad-by-mike-goss.html
I stopped using it because It was too close to the ground, went to a tripod that was higher.

Here is one made of fence parts.
https://www.rocketreviews.com/scratch-home-brew-launch-pad-by-ed-bertschy.html
There are lots of ideas out there.

 

[brockrwood]

I would go with a keyless chuck, so you don't have to carry the key around with you to every launch.
Very easy to lose.

You guys continue to encourage me to spend money. At least these were low cost items from Harbor Freight and local thrift store:

*Keyed “Jacobs” brand chuck from Harbor Freight.

*Big stainless steel serving pan from thrift store as blast deflector

*Wood “serving platter” thing from local thrift store to bolt the chuck to. Launch pad “base”.















Man, I did not realize how fat a 1/2 inch diameter bolt is. It’s a big bolt! I have no such hardware in my collection. I must go to Home Depot to get one and a couple of nuts and some washers.

 

[brockrwood]

I stole used your design as the basis for my launch pad.

View attachment 604404
Needed tilt/pan capability, so I added a keyless chuck and a Panavise.

I use it for heavier rockets on a rod.
Takes all sizes.

Nice! What diameter PVC pipe did you use?

Oh wait. I can see see it in the picture. 1 inch.

 

[brockrwood]

I stole used your design as the basis for my launch pad.

View attachment 604404

Needed tilt/pan capability, so I added a keyless chuck and a Panavise.
I use it for heavier rockets on a rod.
Takes all sizes.

How do you attach the PVC “elbow” to the bottom of the wooden disc?

 

[kuririn]

How do you attach the PVC “elbow” to the bottom of the wooden disc?

The wooden disc (medallion) is just used as an attachment medium for the panavise, since I could not attach it directly to the tee. It is attached to the PVC by a bolt and wing nut going through a hole in the center of the tee.
If you are just using a chuck without the panavise you don't need the medallion, just drill a hole through the center of the tee and secure with a wing nut up top. Then screw in your chuck and put your choice of deflector over it all.
As someone mentioned three legs instead of four will self stabilize on uneven ground but tees are easier to find around here.

 

[brockrwood]

Half way through the project. Chuck bolted to board. Holds 3/16” launch rod securely. Now to drill four holes in the board so I can hammer stakes to hold the board stable at the launch field.

 

[86mustang408w]

Half way through the project. Chuck bolted to board. Holds 3/16” launch rod securely. Now to drill four holes in the board so I can hammer stakes to hold the board stable at the launch field.

View attachment 606725


View attachment 606726


View attachment 606727


View attachment 606728

View attachment 606729

Thats cool, are you putting a blast plate over that?

 

[brockrwood]

Thats cool, are you putting a blast plate over that?

Yep. A big, stainless steel serving dish thing from the thrift store. That task is reserved for tomorrow.

 

[86mustang408w]

Yep. A big, stainless steel serving dish thing from the thrift store. That task is reserved for tomorrow.

Cool! Hahaha, I swear I just found a pan lid at the Thrift Store across the street I drilled a hole in it.

 

[bjphoenix]

Thats cool, are you putting a blast plate over that?

If the hole in the plate is not real tight it might let some exhaust through onto the chuck. Black powder residue is very corrosive and I would worry that eventually might make the chuck where it would be difficult to loosen or tighten. Maybe if you keep it well doused with oil that would protect it enough.