TCC Helm 06/20 pseudo Dairy Aire

[cerving]

Had a lot of fun out there, I always enjoy flying with the TCC folks (but the drive back to LA is a different matter...). The Nike Smoke K2045 drag race was awesome... probably the coolest rocketry thing I've seen, and I've seen an N5800 MD launch.

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

I'm very happy about my Saturday! Stu and showed up around 9:30. It was warm but not hot, and practically windless. I got to fly Bluefin Tuba 4 on L1520 and watch many excellent flights by others.

Ari.

Ari, your Bluefin Tuba launch was great! That was a lot of fun to watch.

 

[Worsaer]

Thirsty, I felt really bad leaving you behind while you waited on PG&E. Did they ever show?

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

We had a great day at Tripoli Central California's launch today. It was warm but not too hot. I got to maiden my 3" Saab on a J430 sending it to 4081'. Sami and I spent a good half hour in the heat searching for it in the corn field across the road be fore we found it. Jacob flew my Shark's rocket and the motor blew up about 6' off the pad. It was great to see Eric Renger and meet his wife. We watched the maiden of his Warlock only to see it drape itself over the power lines. PG&E was supposed to be out to get it down. Hopefully they didn't make him wait too long. The Nike Smoke drag race was EPIC as usual. The TCC crew really does a great job putting on these launches and it is really appreciated. The only low spot of the day was that Sami started looking overheated after our safari so we decided to play it safe and head home.

Chris, the Saab turned out great! The paint color is really nice, and the design of the rocket is really good looking. That cornfield was a real menace! I'm glad you got the rocket back.

I'm happy to report that PG&E came out and rescued the Warlock at 5pm. it was a long wait, but not as bad as it could have been. The guy who came and got it down was super excited about the rocket and wanted to hear all about it! He got out of the truck, and the first words out of his mouth were, "Wow! That's a BIG rocket! That's awesome! Where do you get something like that? I've always wondered about it. I used to fly little ones with my Dad when I was a kid."

He had a cherry picker on the truck and a long tool and was able to pick up the booster side, push it over the wires and let the whole thing drop into the corn --- no problem, and nothing damaged. I thought he might have to cut the recovery harness, but he didn't. After he got it down, he got out his phone and took a picture of it! I think that was the best of all possible outcomes.

I left him with a sheet of notes about TCC, TRF, and my favorite vendors. He seemed genuinely excited about it all, so maybe TCC will get a new member out of it --- Wes from PG&E. Thanks, Wes! I really appreciate your help!

We got back to Harris Ranch before 6pm and had dinner. Now we're both about to konk out, before 9pm. The day sucked all the energy out of me.

 

[ChrisAttebery]

That's great news Thirsty.

 

[SCrocketfan]

Chris, the Saab turned out great! The paint color is really nice, and the design of the rocket is really good looking. That cornfield was a real menace! I'm glad you got the rocket back.

I'm happy to report that PG&E came out and rescued the Warlock at 5pm. it was a long wait, but not as bad as it could have been. The guy who came and got it down was super excited about the rocket and wanted to hear all about it! He got out of the truck, and the first words out of his mouth were, "Wow! That's a BIG rocket! That's awesome! Where do you get something like that? I've always wondered about it. I used to fly little ones with my Dad when I was a kid."

He had a cherry picker on the truck and a long tool and was able to pick up the booster side, push it over the wires and let the whole thing drop into the corn --- no problem, and nothing damaged. I thought he might have to cut the recovery harness, but he didn't. After he got it down, he got out his phone and took a picture of it! I think that was the best of all possible outcomes.

I left him with a sheet of notes about TCC, TRF, and my favorite vendors. He seemed genuinely excited about it all, so maybe TCC will get a new member out of it --- Wes from PG&E. Thanks, Wes! I really appreciate your help!

We got back to Harris Ranch before 6pm and had dinner. Now we're both about to konk out, before 9pm. The day sucked all the energy out of me.

So glad you got it back!

This was a great launch, although I had to brave the cornfield to recover my Mini Magg after its I540 flight. After about an hour, someone else looking for their rocket found it. The actual I540 flight went well to around 2950'. After that I flew my Mozzie for it's first flight on an F20, and then my Formula 75 for it's first flight on an I175 to 3150'. I angled the rail away from the corn and since I was using only using a 36" chute, it landed on the field away from the corn and power lines. Finally I flew my MDRM on an H54W to 985'. It arced due to the wind but flew safely.

I decided to head home after the nike drag race (which was incredible) due to the heat, but it was a great launch! I have some photos and video I'll upload later.

 

[iter]

Ari, your Bluefin Tuba launch was great! That was a lot of fun to watch.

Thank you Eric. This rocket waited a log time to fly, and the flight was just enough exciting to be interesting!

Now that it's flown on a small motor, time to plan the actual flight :=)

Ari.

 

[ChrisAttebery]

I'm sorry we missed your flight Ari. The pictures I've seen of it looked great.

Thank you Eric. This rocket waited a log time to fly, and the flight was just enough exciting to be interesting!

Now that it's flown on a small motor, time to plan the actual flight :=)

Ari.

 

[Mr G]

One out of six ain't bad - when it was wildly successful.

Between motor assembly issues, forgetting critical components, initially not being able to find the field, and generally being in slug speed mode, most of the fleet remained on static display. The Partizon, on the other hand, with an Aerotech I200W stuffed in it, soared to over 4,000 feet and practically landed back at my shade tent - within 50 feet! The cable cutter worked like a charm with chute deployment at 600 feet. It was easy to follow the descent from apogee as the booster tube slowly spun, glinting in the light like a Silverside fish at every rotation.

The Altimeter Two recorded a maximum speed of 824mph. That would be more than Mach 1, right? Is that possible? I never would have imagined that a thin walled Estes PSII kit with no reinforcement could handle it. Regardless, the speed and altitude were personal bests!

Nice to see several TRFers and projects in the flesh. And glad to read about Thirsty's conversion episode with the utility guy. It sure was hot and dusty out there and it had already been a long day.

Thirsty's BFR (Big Fat Rocket) lifting off. The Nike Smoke drag race was impressive.

 

[watermelonman]

Lots of great shots of that Blue Fin Tuba. Anyone catch one of my L, the black and blue Punisher?

 

[iter]

Lots of great shots of that Blue Fin Tuba.

Where? I wants them!

Ari.

 

[4kids49]

Lots of great shots of that Blue Fin Tuba. Anyone catch one of my L, the black and blue Punisher?

What did you send it up on? Details please.

 

[SCrocketfan]

Where? I wants them!

Ari.

Anyone catch one of my L, the black and blue Punisher?

I had a Gopro set up and left it on while recovering my Mini Magg, and got video of both your flights. I'm still working on the video but I'll upload it in the next few days.

 

[SCrocketfan]

One out of six ain't bad - when it was wildly successful.

Between motor assembly issues, forgetting critical components, initially not being able to find the field, and generally being in slug speed mode, most of the fleet remained on static display. The Partizon, on the other hand, with an Aerotech I200W stuffed in it, soared to over 4,000 feet and practically landed back at my shade tent - within 50 feet! The cable cutter worked like a charm with chute deployment at 600 feet. It was easy to follow the descent from apogee as the booster tube slowly spun, glinting in the light like a Silverside fish at every rotation.
View attachment 265971 View attachment 265969
The Altimeter Two recorded a maximum speed of 824mph. That would be more than Mach 1, right? Is that possible? I never would have imagined that a thin walled Estes PSII kit with no reinforcement could handle it. Regardless, the speed and altitude were personal bests!

Nice to see several TRFers and projects in the flesh. And glad to read about Thirsty's conversion episode with the utility guy. It sure was hot and dusty out there and it had already been a long day.
View attachment 265970 View attachment 265974
Thirsty's BFR (Big Fat Rocket) lifting off. The Nike Smoke drag race was impressive.

The I200 was a very nice flight. Glad you had an easy recovery!

I think that flight was likely in the 500 MPH range and the 824 MPH reading was caused by the Altimeter2 being set up for fairly low g-forces. When the g-forces exceed 20G (the altimeter is rated to 23) you start getting velocity readings that are way to low or way too high. This happen on an H399 flight of mine, it read only 150 MPH when it should have been around 300, and it read about 160 MPH too fast on a different 20G flight. The Jolly logic altimeters are great and most of the data for that flight should still be accurate, they just aren't designed for high acceleration flights.

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

Chris, the Saab turned out great! The paint color is really nice, and the design of the rocket is really good looking. That cornfield was a real menace! I'm glad you got the rocket back.

I'm happy to report that PG&E came out and rescued the Warlock at 5pm. it was a long wait, but not as bad as it could have been. The guy who came and got it down was super excited about the rocket and wanted to hear all about it! He got out of the truck, and the first words out of his mouth were, "Wow! That's a BIG rocket! That's awesome! Where do you get something like that? I've always wondered about it. I used to fly little ones with my Dad when I was a kid."

He had a cherry picker on the truck and a long tool and was able to pick up the booster side, push it over the wires and let the whole thing drop into the corn --- no problem, and nothing damaged. I thought he might have to cut the recovery harness, but he didn't. After he got it down, he got out his phone and took a picture of it! I think that was the best of all possible outcomes.

I left him with a sheet of notes about TCC, TRF, and my favorite vendors. He seemed genuinely excited about it all, so maybe TCC will get a new member out of it --- Wes from PG&E. Thanks, Wes! I really appreciate your help!

We got back to Harris Ranch before 6pm and had dinner. Now we're both about to konk out, before 9pm. The day sucked all the energy out of me.

Here are some pictures of my favorite PG&E employee, Wes, rescuing my Warlock from the power lines.

 

[robbdm]

Here my video of NIKE Drag Race.

https://youtu.be/uSLzwL1vE_U

 

[woferry]

Looks like a great day, really sucks that I wasn't able to attend. I managed to break my left wrist Monday evening playing volleyball, the surgery to plate/screw the radial bone back together was Friday. So that both kept me from finishing either of the two rockets I was hoping to bring to this launch, as well as me not wanting to risk the 2.5 hr morning drive which would still have been within 24 hours post-surgery. But I'm on the mend now (thankfully next to no pain, haven't even popped a tylenol since 6am this morning), hoping to have these rockets (and perhaps one more) finished-up for the next TCC launch in July.

So how was the different field location? Power lines and a corn field aren't things I've heard of dealing with before at Maddox, were those nearby or just bad luck? Without seeing it, I think I'd prefer the at-most-waist-high alfalfa over a tall corn field, was there an up-side to this site?

 

[Worsaer]

The site was actually pretty nice. Alfalfa stubble without the deep furrows, so easy walking. No Deep irrigation ditches with standing water.
There were some boundaries; trees on the north, and a few to the southeast, but actually a lot of open, clear space. With a little creative aiming to compensate for the breeze, most flight stayed away from the hazards.

I'll never complain about a site that allows me to fly, particularly one with high waivers. I sincerely appreciate the Maddox family allowing us to throw good money into the sky on their land!

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

The site was actually pretty nice. Alfalfa stubble without the deep furrows, so easy walking. No Deep irrigation ditches with standing water.
There were some boundaries; trees on the north, and a few to the southeast, but actually a lot of open, clear space. With a little creative aiming to compensate for the breeze, most flight stayed away from the hazards.

I'll never complain about a site that allows me to fly, particularly one with high waivers. I sincerely appreciate the Maddox family allowing us to throw good money into the sky on their land!

I felt more boxed in at this field than I did at the Del Norte field at October Skies. It was nice not having the adjacent field under irrigation like at October Skies --- that was a huge mess! But I think I'd rather have the problem of having to retrieve my rocket from a muddy bog, but at least be able to find it, over not being able to find it in the corn.

This site also has the road and the power lines that run along the south side of the field. In the picture, the boundary between the launch field and corn field is the road, and the power lines run along that road. The wind was blowing that direction. It probably wouldn't happen very often, but my flight proves rockets can get hung up in those lines.

With that said, I'm really grateful to have access to any field the dairy can provide. Eat Challenge Butter!

 

[SCrocketfan]

I felt more boxed in at this field than I did at the Del Norte field at October Skies. It was nice not having the adjacent field under irrigation like at October Skies --- that was a huge mess! But I think I'd rather have the problem of having to retrieve my rocket from a muddy bog, but at least be able to find it, over not being able to find it in the corn.

This site also has the road and the power lines that run along the south side of the field. In the picture, the boundary between the launch field and corn field is the road, and the power lines run along that road. The wind was blowing that direction. It probably wouldn't happen very often, but my flight proves rockets can get hung up in those lines.

With that said, I'm really grateful to have access to any field the dairy can provide. Eat Challenge Butter!

I agree, while it's great to have any field access, this was a more challenging site than the Del Norte field. I think dual deploy probably would help a lot to avoid the corn, as well as smaller chutes. My Formula 75 has a 36" chute and drops much faster than the Magg, that and a different angle kept that flight away from the corn fields.

Like you mentioned, audio beacons of some kind would probably help to find rockets in corn, as would trackers. Most dual deploy altimeters like the Stratologger have a fairly loud tone they sound on landing, I wonder if that would help for finding rockets in the corn?

Unfortunately, neither dual deploy nor tracking provides a good way to avoid the power lines. I'm really glad PG&E got your Warlock down safely.

Out of curiosity, did you check your altimeter on the G-force? That was a very nice flight by the way!

 

[RKT_ROB]

Thanks to everyone at TCC for hosting the launch on Saturday. I thought the launch equipment was excellent! The fact that it rotated and allowed for easy adjustment of the launch angle proved invaluable after losing my first flight into the corn field : ( A quick orientation to the equipment for first time fliers would have been helpful at the fliers meeting though. A port-a-potty would have been a nice addition as well. As far as the flights - Wow!! Some very impressive rocketry. I was able to get in 9 flights and successfully tested my "high power adapter" on the G-Force. Thanks to the TRF crowd for the great pictures (and video) that were posted. PS: I am glad TB was able to get his Warlock from the power lines. It was very sad to drive away still seeing it up there.

 

[watermelonman]

Where? I wants them!

Ari.

I now see that one of them was yours -

But I also found this one via TCC -

I was hoping you caught my Punisher with that fancy camera of yours! It sounds like not, though.

 

[watermelonman]

What did you send it up on? Details please.

Oh, that was the L935 I have been bellyaching so much about. Only 9800 feet likely due to wiggle induced arc, might lengthen it if I do another crazy motor. The altimeter read 3000mph but that is unrealistic. Awesome flight regardless!

 

[iter]

But I also found this one via TCC -

I was hoping you caught my Punisher with that fancy camera of yours! It sounds like not, though.

I'm afraid I posted everything I captured. Do you know who took the other photo? I'd like to thank the photographer!

Ari.

 

[watermelonman]

I'm afraid I posted everything I captured. Do you know who took the other photo? I'd like to thank the photographer!

You bet! I will dig it up when I get home today and message you. I did have some pictures of my own too.

Punisher on L935 -

Dark Star on J595 -

Bulk of the Nike Smoke drag race -

Nike Smoke straggler lighting up and about to vanish -

 

[SCrocketfan]

^Nice photos! Sorry I missed the J595, looked like a nice flight from the photos.

Here are some photos my dad and I took, including a few of BFT4 and the Nike drag race...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/130867993@N02/sets/72157654517670298

 

[o1d_dude]

Sounds/looks like everyone had a good time...except Thirsty who managed to clothesline his bird - feel for ya as I have a Madcow Squat that can find even the smallest puddle on any field.

Would have loved to have been there doing my L2 cert flight but I'm wimpy with regards to heat exposure and have been seen in ERs several times as a result. In spite of all the reports of heat not being so bad, there were an equal number of reports of leaving early due to the heat. Feeling vindicated in deciding to pass on Dairy Aire Pas Deux.

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

Sounds/looks like everyone had a good time...except Thirsty who managed to clothesline his bird - feel for ya as I have a Madcow Squat that can find even the smallest puddle on any field.

Would have loved to have been there doing my L2 cert flight but I'm wimpy with regards to heat exposure and have been seen in ERs several times as a result. In spite of all the reports of heat not being so bad, there were an equal number of reports of leaving early due to the heat. Feeling vindicated in deciding to pass on Dairy Aire Pas Deux.

It was definitely hot! Don't let anyone downplay that. The breeze made it bearable, but also tended to push rockets into corn, almonds, and power lines... The worst thing about hanging up in the lines and waiting for PG&E was that was time I could have spent in the pool at Harris Ranch!

 

[chuck5395]

That drag race looked like a lot of fun. We've been stopped from doing drag races because of the TRA safety code. What steps did you take to be able to launch that many K motors simultaneously?

 

[watermelonman]

Oh, and my flight video finally processed -
[video=vimeo;131591813]https://vimeo.com/131591813[/video]

Vimeo links do not work for some OS and browser combinations on VBulletin. If you see no video above, try navigating to vimeo.com and sticking 131591813 in the search box or at the end of the URL.