Rookie HPR mistakes

the rocketry show
Onebadhawk
rocket sok
The Rocketry Forum

Help Support The Rocketry Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
My only mistake was not using a zipper stopper, lol. I put thin CA about 2" down and on the top edge of the tube it really saved it. But if you watch the video, you'll be surprised this is the only damage.

 

Attachments

  • 20231104_150754.jpg
    20231104_150754.jpg
    2.2 MB · Views: 0
  • 20231105_100045.jpg
    20231105_100045.jpg
    1,017.2 KB · Views: 0
  • 20231105_100028.jpg
    20231105_100028.jpg
    881 KB · Views: 0
Make sure any cuts in tubing from kits are square before you begin.

Years ago I got a popular fiberglass kit, glued on the retainer with JB weld and then when dry fitted the rocket and stood it up, it was leaning a lot to the side. The motor tube had been cut crooked on both ends.

I tried everything to remove the retainer, but it was there really well.

I contacted the company and was told it's up to the builder to ensure parts are squared. 😑

I learned it's up to you to ensure anything the kit has done already (cuts, slots, markings, etc.) should be checked before you start or glue anything.
 
KenECoyote said:
Make sure any cuts in tubing from kits are square before you begin.

Years ago I got a popular fiberglass kit, glued on the retainer with JB weld and then when dry fitted the rocket and stood it up, it was leaning a lot to the side. The motor tube had been cut crooked on both ends.

I tried everything to remove the retainer, but it was there really well.

I contacted the company and was told it's up to the builder to ensure parts are squared. 😑

I learned it's up to you to ensure anything the kit has done already (cuts, slots, markings, etc.) should be checked before you start or glue anything.
Click to expand...
Fact.

I've had more than one kit that needed a little coaxing.

I think the last LOC build I did the fin spacing for the slots in the outside tube was different from the "loc n fin" assembly. 118 degrees x2, 124 for the other....., or vice versa.

Leads to lots of glasswork.
 
I just glued in the aft centering ring without the t-nuts used for the motor mount. I ordered some M4 threaded inserts to fix this.

Then went to install the rail buttons. The drill stopped suddenly when it hit the eye bolt for the shock cord. I now have two extra holes in the body tube.
 
-Slick-Ice said:
I just glued in the aft centering ring without the t-nuts used for the motor mount. I ordered some M4 threaded inserts to fix this.

Then went to install the rail buttons. The drill stopped suddenly when it hit the eye bolt for the shock cord. I now have two extra holes in the body tube.
Click to expand...
Just call them vent holes🤫
 
Orien said:
Well, last month I was oblivious to the changing and increasing winds. I was so obsessed with flight prep and going "HSF" (high, straight, fast) that I overlooked the warning signs that the transmission lines were now in play. The launch angle was actually downwind a little so it would weathercock back to vertical. Lost 2 cameras, an RRC3, a JLCR, brand new CTI 6XL case and spacers, Aeropack tailcone, and a Marco Polo tracking unit.
View attachment 467638
View attachment 467640
Click to expand...
That has happened a few times; sometimes it is just more attractive to the rocket to land in the high trees or lines than it is to land where its owner can get to it...

FM
 
Since this is for rookie HPR suggestions I came up with a level 1 list awhile back.

Level 1 do's and don'ts,

Do follow the KISS principal.

Don't get carried away with construction.
You don't need a fiberglass rocket.
You don't need to build a super strong fin can with lots of epoxy everywhere.
I did my Level 1 and Level 2 with the same 4 inch cardboard tube rocket assembled with wood glue. Now if you have already been using epoxy to assemble your rockets, go ahead, but you don't NEED to.

DO have through the wall fin tabs glued to the motor tube. They add a lot of strength and reduce the chance of breaking a fin off which would fail certification.

Don't pick a skinny little 3 foot rocket for your Level 1.
We had a young man going for his Jr. Level 1 last year. It was a pretty little rocket, you could tell he had put a lot of work into it. It went so high, so fast, that everyone lost sight of it. It may have been a perfect flight but it was never found. This happens quite often with little high power rockets, it really sucks when it's your L 1 flight, now you have to start over. Build a new rocket, and wait for another high power launch day.

Do build a 4 inch rocket, 4 ½ to 5 ½ feet tall.
They are big enough that you can keep them in sight for the whole flight.

Don't use chute releases or Dual Deploy.
Unless you have practiced using them with your F and G rockets and you are confident they will work every time. Too often chute releases get tangled with the chute and dual deploy has a few things that can go wrong too.

Do pick a rocket that has the fins angling up from the bottom.
Rockets are usually swinging under the chute so they are going sideways when they hit the ground. If the fins hang down below the bottom of the body tube they are the first thing to hit the ground and unless it is landing in soft grass they quite likely to crack the fin.

Don't do a test flight with a G motor.
There are several things that can happen with a test flight.
Perfect Flight:
Great, put a H in it and do your Level 1.
Perfect Flight but lands in the top of a tree or in a pond.
Now you have to build a new rocket but it would have passed a L1 certification flight.
Perfect Flight but swinging under the chute and breaks a fin when it hits on a hard spot.
Repair the damage before you can try the Level 1.
Perfect Flight but catches a thermal and sails out of sight or gets lost in a cloud.
Build a new rocket before you can try the Level 1.

You did everything right but only one of these mean you get your Level 1 on that day.
 
Great advice 58pan! hopefully more people follow it.

my only suggestions
just pick a rocket that probably won't hit fin-first.
fly the field, not your ultimate desires - watch what altitude others single deploy at. If you're higher then that, use a smaller engine or choose a different site.

I used a loc vulconite it's not 4 inches but it's 53 tall which got me to like 3000 feet on a H180 but i was on a field where that's not a problem.
 
  1. painstakingly build Eggtimer Quasar & LCD tracker
  2. test both and everything works accept the RF radio to send GPS coordinates
  3. can't get GPS signal to phone or tracker
  4. spend the better part of 4 hours inspecting solder joints & reviewing the build
  5. think about how you MIGHT have fried the delicate RF board even though you carefully waited a full minute in between each solder joint
When all I did was leave off the "RUN" jumper pin...

From the instructions "Afterwards, put the shorting jumper on the RUN pins… this is REQUIRED for the GPS to work properly"

So maybe read the instructions and don't skip ahead
 
Wrightme43 said:
What happened? I don't understand. Did the rail stop lock the rocket to the rail?

Sorry I am little slow sometimes.
Click to expand...
Basically the angle iron that we use as a rail stop wasn’t fastened properly and so when the motor started to sputter it fell down and the bottom rail button slipped off the bottom of the rail just barely resulting in the bottom rail button pushing into the bottom of the rail while the motor was lit.
 
TR24 said:
Basically the angle iron that we use as a rail stop wasn’t fastened properly and so when the motor started to sputter it fell down and the bottom rail button slipped off the bottom of the rail just barely resulting in the bottom rail button pushing into the bottom of the rail while the motor was lit.
Click to expand...
That stinks.

The rail stop is broken off on one of the HP pads at BR. I am just bringing a small C clamp next time I go.
 
Add this one to the list from this weekend:

Don't drop your rocket, fin-first, on a tile floor.

I was showing my wife the 29/38mm adapter I made, and my left hand just let go. My rocket has some fin tabs and it landed at an angle that directly impacted the tail end of one of the tabs.

Luckily, the plywood cracked but didn't break. I applied some wood glue and clamped it, and it's almost as good as new. And possibly slightly stronger. The main fins sweep up and away from the nozzle with plenty of clearance for the tabs, so I'm not concerned with a fin breaking / cert failure on a live flight.
 
shanejohnson2002 said:
Add this one to the list from this weekend:

Don't drop your rocket, fin-first, on a tile floor.

I was showing my wife the 29/38mm adapter I made, and my left hand just let go. My rocket has some fin tabs and it landed at an angle that directly impacted the tail end of one of the tabs.

Luckily, the plywood cracked but didn't break. I applied some wood glue and clamped it, and it's almost as good as new. And possibly slightly stronger. The main fins sweep up and away from the nozzle with plenty of clearance for the tabs, so I'm not concerned with a fin breaking / cert failure on a live flight.
Click to expand...
Don't drop it on asphalt either!

Our club got invited to do a display at the Smithsonian Udvar-Hazy Museum of our rockets for a family day event. They give us 8 tables under the wing of the space shuttle to set up on. I brought my newly finished, never flown 4" Patriot along to display. I thought it was the best paint job I had ever done. When I lifted it out of the car, I grabbed it on the BT right below the nose cone, because all of my rocket separate at the nose cone. Not this one, it separates down the BT about 10 inches. The bottom section dropped down and dinged up the fin on the asphalt before I even got into the museum.
 

Similar threads

DJRNY
Recovery set-up/airframe packing
Replies
10
Views
808
DJRNY
DJRNY
Wrightme43
Chute protector questions.
Replies
4
Views
404
Wrightme43
Wrightme43
haon151
L2 Rocket Design Questions
2 3
Replies
80
Views
5K
Glasspack
Glasspack
M
Advice About Disposable Wadding Alternatives in LPRs
4 5 6
Replies
153
Views
10K
mh9162013
M
B
Build thread for Radical Rocketry's Tau Zero Christine
Replies
22
Views
1K
BigMacDaddy
BigMacDaddy

Latest posts

Back
Top