Level 1 Rocket Plan Advice

[Mason T]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to this hobby and this forum. I am looking to build a rocket for my level 1 certification. A little background on me I have an engineering background and I am good with my hands. I have been reading through this forum and google on the characteristics of a good level 1 certification rocket and from that I am currently planning on building a Loc Precision Iris. https://locprecision.com/product/iris/ Is there something I am missing that makes this a bad choice? At this point I am conflicted on keeping it simple and using no electronics which would make for an easy certification launch on a small motor. I am concerned that this would limit me on future launches not being able to take full advantage of the rocket because of how far it would drift. I am very tempted to go with dual deployment making it less likely to loose the rocket on higher flights and opening the rocket up to more motor options. I am not concerned about the added cost of the electronics and from what I have seen and read dual deployment is not that much more complicated.

I would like to hear your thoughts!
Mason T.

 

[thzero]

Keep it simple for L1, practice with mid power launches. And if you want "dual deployment" later, get a JollyLogic Chute Release. Then build a new rocket for BP based dual deployment.

 

[gtg738w]

Maybe. If you’ve flown lots of mid power flights with dual deploy, the electronics will definitely increase your odds of keeping it on the field and a successful recovery. If it’s your first flight like this, then yes, it does add risk. The right answer depends a lot on your field and what you’re flying now.

 

[Midnight777]

No to the dual deployment and a minor no to the Iris. Get a LOC 4” Goblin. Easy L1 on an H115 to around 1000ft. You do not want anything that could go wrong and ruin the cert such as dual deployment.

 

[teepot]

Keep it simple. Motor eject, main at apogee. I would suggest a 38mm motor mount and a 29mm adapter. That offers you a wide selection of motors. If you want to build a dual deploy you could make the normal drouge bay large enough to hold the main and fly motor eject or add the electronics and fly dual deploy. Quite a few of my rockets are set up like that.

 

[OverTheTop]

It is your flight and your choice. That's what rocketry is about .

As others have said, keep it simple. Maybe motor eject, or maybe electronic ejection with motor as backup? Your flight so set your own goals and what you want to achieve with the flight.

Take a spare igniter if you have one.

BTW, give a friend a camera to document the day, or use their phone. You will likely be a little stressed and either get distracted by having to take pics or forget to get them. Make sure they get the top of the rocket in the pic with you at the pad .

Don't stress too much, enjoy the journey.

 

[cbrarick]

can't go wrong with 3 fins and a nose cone. If you're field allows, mains at apogee is ok, if it's tight then dual deploy is a must so you can get it back.
It's your L1, do what you like My only advice is to keep it as simple as possible.

 

[MikeyDSlagle]

Dual deploy does add complexity to the flight but its not that much. If that's what you want to do then do it. It is no less risky than relying on a delay, which is allowed +/- 3 seconds. And drilling the delay. And making sure your delay is in the correct way. Unless maybe you use DMS, I don't know what that entails. Dual deploy eliminates all that. The JLCR is handy and has made dual deploy available where it previously wasn't but I have seen and experienced more failures with that device, for a number of reasons, than with double break dual deploy.

I'm not familiar with that rocket and not sure the altitude you will get on H motors. I would suggest shoot for 1200 - 1500 feet and use an altimeter to pop the main at apogee When you get closer to 2K then maybe consider flying dual deploy. My L1 went a little over 1200 and used an altimeter to deploy the main at apogee. Same rocket loves I motors, 1800+ feet, and always flies double break dual deploy. I fly double break dual deploy whenever I can get it into a rocket, and prefer it to JLCR any day.

 

[Nytrunner]

You sound like you enjoy a learning ooportunity and challenge. Go for dual-deploy, and use the motor ejection as a backup.

A hybrid approach is to build the av-bay for dual deploy, but fly it motor eject the first time if you want. That keeps your option to use electronics open later.

 

[T-Rex]

Keep in mind that you can build a rocket to be able to fly dual deploy, but fly it as a simple single deploy. The only difference is be sure the upper portion of the rocket is tight (friction fit, rivets or shear pins), and put the main in the lower section so it will be kicked out by the motor.
I have several rockets that are dual deploy capable (av bay in the middle), but they have never been flown that way.

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

Keep in mind that you can build a rocket to be able to fly dual deploy, but fly it as a simple single deploy. The only difference is be sure the upper portion of the rocket is tight (friction fit, rivets or shear pins), and put the main in the lower section so it will be kicked out by the motor.
I have several rockets that are dual deploy capable (av bay in the middle), but they have never been flown that way.

This is exactly what I was going to say. Just secure the nosecone in the payload bay for the cert flight and use motor eject for simplicity. That's what I would do

Is this rocket sold with a simple payload bay or with a full dual deploy av bay setup? Either way, you don't have to permanently glue the nosecone into the bay to fly it, so you can do a simple motor eject flight with the nosecone temporarily secured for one flight, and if you have an av bay, do s dual deploy flight on the same rocket for the next flight. Your options are not closed off. Plus LOC sells all kinds of av bays and parts for retrofitting rockets very easily. Options are wide open.

Good luck with your cert flight!

 

[Antares JS]

It's okay to dual-deploy on a cert flight, but do NOT make your cert flight your first dual-deployment flight. I dual-deployed for the first time on my level 2 rocket, but I flew it on an I motor a couple of times to make sure I had the process down before attempting the certification flight. If you really want to dual-deploy, find a rocket that can fly on a G as well as an H and test it at least once on a G before trying the H.

The LOC Deployer is a good rocket for this. I have one that I use to try out new altimeters on before putting the altimeters in more valuable rockets.

 

[Dustin Lobner]

I second (or 5th or whatever) the KISS principle. Motor deploy, no dual deploy, etc etc. I know the LOC guys and they're great to work with, great for support, and their kits hit a good bang/buck ratio.

The Iris should be fine. Build and fly one you like. I would suggest the 38mm...I don't know that a 54mm makes sense unless you plan to strengthen it with fiberglass.

 

[g.pitts]

I know the advice of keeping things simple is the prevalent thinking. I took a different approach when I entered high power after a 50 year hiatus from launching a LOT of Estes low power rockets as a kid. My L1 cert flight was done as dual deployment. I truly believe that the answer to Mason's question is that dual deploy can be done if the person is detail oriented (maybe even OCD ) and thinks things through with the mindset of "what could go wrong". Also not being bashful about asking for advice will help avoid re-do efforts or even an unsuccessful flight.

 

[thzero]

I used a JollyLogic ChuteRelease on mine. But it wasn't my first rodeo with the CR either.

 

[Orien]

I just got the same kit! This thing is HOT, man! I got the "lightweight" 3" av bay with it, but still haven't settled on what configuration to fly. Single motor deployment? Jolly Roger? Traditional dual deploy? The beauty of it is I can fly it in any of those configurations for any launch. I'm in your same shoes, coming back into it after many years, so I'm in no position to offer advice. But I can tell you this is a versatile and stylish kit.

Here's my build thread for the 3" Iris, "The Comeback Kit":

Build Thread: LOC/Precision 3" Iris 38mm. "The Comeback Kit". First build in 20 years! | The Rocketry Forum