Hello folks.
Slight predicament with an old Wizard I built 30 years ago but never flew.
Recently I've been trying to get my girlfriends son into Model rocketry. (Still waiting for a good flying day here in the Northeast). Naturally we swing tested our rockets. My Bullpup 12D swung out fine, as did his Supernova (both single and double stages). Then the other week I remembered I had an old wizard that I assembled but never finished, hiding in the closet. I went ahead and rehab it so we would have something else to fire off, in case something went awry with the other two. Replaced the shock cord, re-glued brittle fin joints, etc. Then I went to swing test it with the heavier engine, (Worst case scenario and all).
And it stabilized perfectly.. backwards!.. repeatedly..
I did a check by working up a file for open rocket, and weight and CG are spot on between simulation and prototype. I understand swing tests aren't the be-all end-all, but did find it curious if anyone else has seen this with theirs?
Admittedly, I haven't tried with the lighter A or B motors. But since we will likely be making a 40 min trip to NH where a friend has a nice open 800 x 1400 ft field to play with (especially for the Supernova), it would be nice to go Max without hurting anyone. Hoping not to have to add weight to the nose that has been sealed shut since my college days.
Thanks in advance for any info on this weirdness..
Fritz K.
Slight predicament with an old Wizard I built 30 years ago but never flew.
Recently I've been trying to get my girlfriends son into Model rocketry. (Still waiting for a good flying day here in the Northeast). Naturally we swing tested our rockets. My Bullpup 12D swung out fine, as did his Supernova (both single and double stages). Then the other week I remembered I had an old wizard that I assembled but never finished, hiding in the closet. I went ahead and rehab it so we would have something else to fire off, in case something went awry with the other two. Replaced the shock cord, re-glued brittle fin joints, etc. Then I went to swing test it with the heavier engine, (Worst case scenario and all).
And it stabilized perfectly.. backwards!.. repeatedly..
I did a check by working up a file for open rocket, and weight and CG are spot on between simulation and prototype. I understand swing tests aren't the be-all end-all, but did find it curious if anyone else has seen this with theirs?
Admittedly, I haven't tried with the lighter A or B motors. But since we will likely be making a 40 min trip to NH where a friend has a nice open 800 x 1400 ft field to play with (especially for the Supernova), it would be nice to go Max without hurting anyone. Hoping not to have to add weight to the nose that has been sealed shut since my college days.
Thanks in advance for any info on this weirdness..
Fritz K.