The Path to Level 1: Acquisition, Build, Test, and Certification Attempt Thread

[kjhambrick]

Shane --

I just stumbled onto your thread and there are all kinds of great memories here !

I certified level 1 ( the first time ) in Ocitillo in 1995 with an Aerotech Astrobee D on an AT H128W with the medium delay drilled out to 8-sec.

I really loved that rocket and flew it a lot on H128 and then on H180 motors until I finally snapped off the tail end of a fin on an Ocotillo rockpile.

I even flew it once on a calm day at Fiesta Island on a G80 but that was nerve wracking with the lagoons surrounding the OTL fields where we flew.

Thinking back, that G80 might also have 'tickled' the FI 1000 ft waiver a tad ...

Good luck with your Level 1 -- I've got a feeling that you're going to nail it !

-- kjh

 

[smstachwick]

Shane --

I just stumbled onto your thread and there are all kinds of great memories here !

I certified level 1 ( the first time ) in Ocitillo in 1995 with an Aerotech Astrobee D on an AT H128W with the medium delay drilled out to 8-sec.

I really loved that rocket and flew it a lot on H128 and then on H180 motors until I finally snapped off the tail end of a fin on an Ocotillo rockpile.

I even flew it once on a calm day at Fiesta Island on a G80 but that was nerve wracking with the lagoons surrounding the OTL fields where we flew.

Thinking back, that G80 might also have 'tickled' the FI 1000 ft waiver a tad ...

Good luck with your Level 1 -- I've got a feeling that you're going to nail it !

-- kjh

That H128 seems to be the default certification reload, in 29mm at least. How would that 8-second one work for you? I’m looking to have mine ticking until 10.

My sims indicated that the G80T would send it to around 1500, although results will always vary. Maybe that would be a good warmup selection out in the desert but I’ve also got a G74W picked out for Fiesta Island. That’s a baby G to keep it under the ceiling. Best flown in calm winds IMO.

 

[kjhambrick]

That H128 seems to be the default certification reload, in 29mm at least. How would that 8-second one work for you? I’m looking to have mine ticking until 10.

Yes, I've not looked at the total impulse of a recent H128 but in the olden days is was barely a baby H -- i.e. just barely 160 N-sec ( if that ).

The 8-sec delay was just about right-on for my Astrobee with a 1994 H128 .

I also made a few mods to my Astrobee ( payload section and motor tube ) so it was a tad heavier than a stock AT and can't say about for yours with a newer H128.

I recently got a PM from TRF member @DeltaVee who is still flying his Astrobee ... maybe he has an idea ?

My sims indicated that the G80T would send it to around 1500, although results will always vary. Maybe that would be a good warmup selection out in the desert but I’ve also got a G74W picked out for Fiesta Island. That’s a baby G to keep it under the ceiling. Best flown in calm winds IMO.

By the time I flew at FI, I was flying the AltAcc in it and I only got around 1200 ft inertial altitude ( don't tell anyone ) but my Astrobee was also a tad heavier.

If I recall, the speed off my BSR ProPad Rail was a tad higher on the G80 than the H128 but still only about 45 ft/sec, but the White Lightning H128 made for a beautiful flight because it was so majestic

I don't recall there being a G74 back in those days but the G80 was about 120 N-sec or so back then.

Today the G80 specs out at 137 N-sec at ThrustCurve.org and it kicks hard upon ignition while the G74 takes longer to come up to full thrust ...

You might want to watch your speed off the rail with the G74 ?

And yes, ***EVERYTHING*** is best flown at FI on calm days

HTH and good luck on your L1, Shane !

-- kjh

 

[DeltaVee]

Yes, I've not looked at the total impulse of a recent H128 but in the olden days is was barely a baby H -- i.e. just barely 160 N-sec ( if that ).

The 8-sec delay was just about right-on for my Astrobee with a 1994 H128 .

I also made a few mods to my Astrobee ( payload section and motor tube ) so it was a tad heavier than a stock AT and can't say about for yours with a newer H128.

I recently got a PM from TRF member @DeltaVee who is still flying his Astrobee ... maybe he has an idea ?

By the time I flew at FI, I was flying the AltAcc in it and I only got around 1200 ft inertial altitude ( don't tell anyone ) but my Astrobee was also a tad heavier.

If I recall, the speed off my BSR ProPad Rail was a tad higher on the G80 than the H128 but still only about 45 ft/sec, but the White Lightning H128 made for a beautiful flight because it was so majestic

I don't recall there being a G74 back in those days but the G80 was about 120 N-sec or so back then.

Today the G80 specs out at 137 N-sec at ThrustCurve.org and it kicks hard upon ignition while the G74 takes longer to come up to full thrust ...

You might want to watch your speed off the rail with the G74 ?

And yes, ***EVERYTHING*** is best flown at FI on calm days

HTH and good luck on your L1, Shane !

-- kjh

Opinions? Got a million of them! My Astrobee D (modified to separate at the payload section instead of the middle with a 36" chute etc.) weighs in at about 2 lb 4 oz (ok, 36 oz). The modification follows from a conversation KJH and I had back in 1997 on rec.models.rockets! I *had* planned on doing an L1 with that but by the time this rocket was finished (2018!) I was back in Massachusettes (from Utah...) and was discouraged somewhat by our club's more experienced members! That said I would have used either the H128 or the H165.... the latter I used on a 3" dia cherokee d upscale which weighed in at 53 oz w/o the motor! That said my openrocket sims indicate that my "D" would hit around 1600 feet with either the H128 or H165 (which I've never attempted of course... chicken! We have high tension lines at one end of our HP field) . My sim with the G80 puts it at around 1400 feet. The ONE regret I have is using those fin gloves... then painting over them...

Now the sims are fine but I've never flown the D with an altimeter so I don't know for sure how accurate those figures are but I usually see (at least with rockets equipped for my altimeter 3) about a 10% variance.

 

[86mustang408w]

Im Also working on my L1, doing research. Going to use a Bigger 4" diameter rocket myself, probably with URRG in NY. And after seeing a L2 cert last weekend I'm going that far. Good luck!

 

[DeltaVee]

Im Also working on my L1, doing research. Going to use a Bigger 4" diameter rocket myself, probably with URRG in NY. And after seeing a L2 cert last weekend I'm going that far. Good luck!

Big diameter means more manageable altitude !

 

[86mustang408w]

Big diameter means more manageable altitude !

I started to realize back in May or June after not doing this for 10 years, I was making it a little too complicated for an L1. I have one I was working on but it shows 2200 ft on a H165. Might be too risky, but I found a great club near me that has a vendor for launch days. And they did a L2 cert last weekend with a K360. I'm definitely hooked!

 

[smstachwick]

I started to realize back in May or June after not doing this for 10 years, I was making it a little too complicated for an L1. I have one I was working on but it shows 2200 ft on a H165. Might be too risky, but I found a great club near me that has a vendor for launch days. And they did a L2 cert last weekend with a K360. I'm definitely hooked!

Mine is simmed out to 2200. I’ve gone higher than that on rockets with smaller bodies and parachutes and I had no trouble recovering. Lucerne Dry Lake is something special.

I think it helps that it’s so long at this diameter though, and I may be flying with some kind of altimeter. I know for a fact that I want to fly a Universal Astrocam or a used GoPro on it, so I’ll have a little extra weight and drag when I finally go for it.

My thinking is, what’s the point of having all this payload capacity if I’m not going to use it? Why fly a scale model of a sounding rocket if I’m not going to use it like one?

 

[DeltaVee]

Oh and btw my "D" flies great on an AT F50-4. It'll hit just shy of 600 feet, and 30 mph off a 5 foot rail (1 foot to place the standoff on my jawstand launcher!) Almost a "park flyer"... the sim shows optimum delay of 4.5 seconds but when you watch it fly for real it looks like a perfect apogee deploy.... A G74 is 4 NS over a full F... and the Astrobee D sims out to 720 ft. G77 and G79 are good candidates as well simming out at around 920 and 970 feet respectively.

 

[Wrightme43]

Well, plastic wood is out. It’s no more survivable with 400 grit than it is with 320. Since this is much finer than what other people are using, I’m calling it with that product.

Sorry, Plastic Wood. As far as I’m concerned, you’re defective. Into the trash you go!

I ordered Elmer’s Carpenter’s Wood Filler (Natural Indoor, 3.25 ounces) through Amazon and it showed up today. I popped off the cap, cut off a large portion of the applicator tip, and squeezed to test consistency.

Damp sawdust. Sticks to nothing, dries instantly. Useless in this state.

I took it to the sink and filled up the remainer of the bottle with water, then shook it until it felt mixed. I tried again and this time it came spurting out like milk. Not quite as useless, but still difficult.

View attachment 561595

Even so, I figured that fiddling around with it further wouldn’t get me anywhere, so I set to work. Only one turn along the spiral, just like last time.

Between trying with my hobby knife and a Q-Tip, I’m not convinced that I got a sufficiently thick layer at any spot on the tube.

View attachment 561598

The bottle is crimped shut like a toothpaste tube and it can only stand up on the cap, and I didn’t realize how inconvenient that is compared to the can of Plastic Wood and the classic Elmer’s White Glue Bottle. I can’t just set it down once I’m done dipping, I have to close it immediately.

What I’m going to do is leave the bottle open for an hour (leaning against the rocket’s box) and leave my handiwork overnight. I’ll try one more application and sanding with this stuff, but I don’t think I can afford to play around with it beyond that. The white layer of paper is starting to pull up at one end of the tube. If the next attempt doesn’t work, I’m giving up and proceeding with the build, and filling the spirals with the primer.

Sir, I do not know alot, but I know this. Timbermate wood filler from Australia is the easiest, finest, most bestest, filler you will ever use. If you try it, you will never use another wood filler as long as you live. It is water based. Thinable with water, dries quickly, and sands like a dream.

This will make you happy, everyone I have convinced to try it, raves about. I am a woodworker and that is why I have it. It makes filling spirals easy, and quick, but more importantly it sands like a dream.

https://www.woodcraft.com/products/timbermate-wood-filler-water-based-8-oz-maple-beech

 

[bad_idea]

Sir, I do not know alot, but I know this. Timbermate wood filler from Australia is the easiest, finest, most bestest, filler you will ever use. If you try it, you will never use another wood filler as long as you live. It is water based. Thinable with water, dries quickly, and sands like a dream.

This will make you happy, everyone I have convinced to try it, raves about. I am a woodworker and that is why I have it. It makes filling spirals easy, and quick, but more importantly it sands like a dream.

https://www.woodcraft.com/products/timbermate-wood-filler-water-based-8-oz-maple-beech

Interesting. There's a Woodcraft near my house. I notice there are several other varieties (ebony, etc.). For the purposes of rocketry, do these make any difference, or are they all about the shade of wood when used in woodworking?

 

[OverTheTop]

Interesting. There's a Woodcraft near my house. I notice there are several other varieties (ebony, etc.). For the purposes of rocketry, do these make any difference, or are they all about the shade of wood when used in woodworking?

Different shades for filling different timbers. I did a Victorian Ash floor in a house reno about ten years back. With the correct shade of that filler you couldn't even tell the boards had been nailed down.

 

[Wrightme43]

Yep, just different colors. I just know it works great. On fins and body tubes.

 

[smstachwick]

I finished the scale launch lugs a few days ago.



Not the neatest cut job ever done on these, but it works. If I were to do it over again I might make the the top edge with a steel ruler for guidance instead of doing it by eyeball and a line drawn from the template.

I would need to find a different way to make the bottom edge straight though, as that’s curved to attach to the tube.

I’m very happy with that color.

I also made a good bit of progress on the antenna shoes. The one with tape on it I’m very happy with, the other I touched it too soon and had to sand off my fingerprints. Once this drizzle stops I’ll put another coat on.



I’m going to bring it to a friend’s house to install the motor mount and attach the fins before I start adding all the scale details and decals.

 

[smstachwick]

So here’s the scoop:

I brought the kit over to my friend’s house so he could see how the thing goes together and decided to share some of the work. Any of the stuff that could be duplicated, we’d share and I’d inspect.

I began with taking the tape off some of the fins and he followed suit. I obviously failed to give clear instructions because as soon as the masking tape came off one fin root, so did the decals on the leading edge! D’oh! I intervened but the damage was done. I managed to stick the thing back together but it’s more wrinkly than ever.



You might be surprised to learn that I wasn’t too terribly upset by this. I had found the decal instructions earlier and saw it recommended they be applied with soapy water for adjustability and fewer wrinkles, so this was merely an excuse to redo this one. The rest of the day went off without a hitch. The motor mount, three fins, and the parachutes are installed, with some actual, non-destructive help from this guy. I elected to defer the last fin, rear centering ring, retainer, and scale details until I could get replacement decals.

From a fantastically easy email exchange with the @AeroTech customer service rep I learned that the decals could be purchased on their website for like $20. Thank you Madison!

When I placed the order on Thursday, AeroTech’s site expected 2-4 weeks for delivery. My first thought was something like this:



USPS came through, though, and they arrived today! They are very well-protected, much more so than the tight scroll roll they had gotten into inside the original box. I should have replaced these as soon as I’d gotten them, they look great when packaged properly.

Somebody also took the time to hand-write the warning label on here, which I notice and fully appreciate. Special thanks to whoever that was.





I’ll be cutting them out and attempting installation today. If all goes well I might be able to repaint as well.

I don’t think I’ll go for the rest of the fins just yet. Maybe one of these days if one pops out after a flight.

 

[smstachwick]

This fin went from the worst of the bunch to the cleanest. I’m impressed.

Only a few pesky air bubbles close to the leading edge that I suspect will NEVER come out, but the adhesive next to the edge of the decal is pretty strong so I don’t expect a ton of problems. I’ll let all the moisture evaporate from there before repainting this evening.

 

[smstachwick]

The fin is taped up again and painted on one side.



I also applied some glue to the tabs and Fin-Loks inside the rocket. To get to the really hard-to-reach places I picked up some cheap paintbrushes at Wal-Mart and used the one with the long handle and fine tip to get inside the glue bottle and apply CA inside the tube.

As I suspected, the bristles bonded together so it acted somewhat like a hardened, heavily used Q-Tip. I’m guessing the brush that’s supplied in the bottle cap has bristles made of Teflon or similar.

So far it looks like I got glue on most of the joints it needs to be on, but it’s very difficult for me to inspect visually and almost impossible to get a good photo. Here’s my best attempt.



Picture of the aft end and the supplies.



I’ve been very careful to avoid that unoccupied Fin-Lok. I don’t want to mess that up and have the last fin not be able to snap in.

 

[jmasterj]

The CA isn't that structural anyway, so you'll be fine.

 

[smstachwick]

The CA isn't that structural anyway, so you'll be fine.

I guess that makes sense. If it were that structural, it would be JB Weld or plastic cement instead.

 

[smstachwick]

The fin is completed and installed, with CA spread on the fin root. So is the rear centering, secured mostly with friction but also with more CA, and the retention screw threads, with the mighty JB Weld epoxy. It’s as smelly as I remember.



Snag:

My drivers’ license expired on my birthday (three days ago) and the new one may take a while to get here. Therefore it may take a while to get my hands on a certification motor. Maybe if I get my paperwork in order, the DeHates might cut me a bit of a break at Holtville Havoc. I look 18, right? That’d be pretty neat to certify L1 and score in G-TARC on back-to-back weekends.

In the meantime I *can* order a delay drilling tool. Apogee has a few in stock so I may buy from them. I had originally intended to buy my certification motor from them but they’re fresh out!

But yeah, the rocket is ready for a test flight on an F67W. Maybe Discount Rocketry will have some on Saturday, if so I might be tempted to fly it as close to “naked” as it can be after all that finishing work. I don’t think I want to go for G74W power until I can confirm recovery characteristics at a safer site. That’d be awful to put such a pretty, painstaking project in the bay before getting certified.

 

[fyrwrxz]

The fin is completed and installed, with CA spread on the fin root. So is the rear centering, secured mostly with friction but also with more CA, and the retention screw threads, with the mighty JB Weld epoxy. It’s as smelly as I remember.

View attachment 608919

Snag:

My drivers’ license expired on my birthday (three days ago) and the new one may take a while to get here. Therefore it may take a while to get my hands on a certification motor. Maybe if I get my paperwork in order, the DeHates might cut me a bit of a break at Holtville Havoc. I look 18, right? That’d be pretty neat to certify L1 and score in G-TARC on back-to-back weekends.

In the meantime I *can* order a delay drilling tool. Apogee has a few in stock so I may buy from them. I had originally intended to buy my certification motor from them but they’re fresh out!

But yeah, the rocket is ready for a test flight on an F67W. Maybe Discount Rocketry will have some on Saturday, if so I might be tempted to fly it as close to “naked” as it can be after all that finishing work. I don’t think I want to go for G74W power until I can confirm recovery characteristics at a safer site. That’d be awful to put such a pretty, painstaking project in the bay before getting certified.

Shane, what drilling tool? I have an extra Cez I can loan or sell. I have Dabcat one for $10.00 if you need it. I can also loan you an Aetotech, just need to know which one. Sounds like an excuse for breakfast again?

 

[fyrwrxz]

Shane, what drilling tool? I have an extra Cez I can loan or sell. I have Dabcat one for $10.00 if you need it. I can also loan you an Aetotech, just need to know which one. Sounds like an excuse for breakfast again?

Stupid auto correct: "gave...Dabcat". I really do speak American, so technically English is my second language...lol!

 

[kjhambrick]

Shane --

Sorry, I lost track of your thread for a while but your Astrobee D is looking great !

I am glad to see you used the AT-recommended CA and not Epoxy to attach your Fins.

The worst and eventually fatal mistake I made on my Astrobee was when I repaired a popped fin with Epoxy.

The AT Fin-Loc System is very well engineered -- it is better to pop an undamaged fin out of the lock than to snap the fin material which eventually happened to my Astrobee -- on the same fin that I re-installed with Epoxy !

AARG !

Good Luck on your flight !

And please take pictures and videos !

Thanks.

-- kjh

 

[smstachwick]

Shane --

Sorry, I lost track of your thread for a while but your Astrobee D is looking great !

I am glad to see you used the AT-recommended CA and not Epoxy to attach your Fins.

The worst and eventually fatal mistake I made on my Astrobee was when I repaired a popped fin with Epoxy.

The AT Fin-Loc System is very well engineered -- it is better to pop an undamaged fin out of the lock than to snap the fin material which eventually happened to my Astrobee -- on the same fin that I re-installed with Epoxy !

AARG !

Good Luck on your flight !

And please take pictures and videos !

Thanks.

-- kjh

I think on a couple of these I applied a little bit of CA on ends of the tab but I don’t think that’s providing the bulk of the strength on any of them.

Shane, what drilling tool? I have an extra Cez I can loan or sell. I have Dabcat one for $10.00 if you need it. I can also loan you an Aetotech, just need to know which one. Sounds like an excuse for breakfast again?

Currently I’m looking at running an AeroTech H115DM DMS. I’ll pay a fair price for that tool, or just borrow/“lease” it and get my own later. I’m assuming that this is the kind of thing that only accumulates light wear and doesn’t immediately lose half its value when you drive it off the lot.

But send me a DM or something and I’ll gladly set something up. Doesn’t have to be fancy.

 

[smstachwick]

I’m tempted to park this right outside my front door and have it be a gate guard. That’d be a neat thing for people to trip over!

 

[smstachwick]

The first test flight went up today. I’m going to have to re-glue the fin with the good decal and I think I may upgrade the lower section chute too, knowing that it wants to land like a SpaceX booster.


View attachment IMG_0422.mov

 

[smstachwick]

I broke out the CA glue tonight.

Since the sections separated more slowly than I would have liked, I used my knife to trim down some layers of paper that were peeling up on the coupler, than applied CA to hopefully “seal” that edge. I’ll go after it with sandpaper too.



I found my momentarily-misplaced F67-4W and noticed that inserting and removing it peeled the sticker. Since I don’t think it’s a good idea to have a 5-foot, 2-pound rocket going on an unlabeled motor, I gave my motor mount tube the same treatment. This one will also require sandpaper later. I also wiped down the body tube with a damp washcloth to remove various scuffs and smudges that occurred during handling. To ensure I didn’t glue or lose the motor, I stuck it in the payload bay for now and left a note for myself.





I applied CA glue to the root and tab of the popped fin, and pushed it in place. I have committed to ordering a larger chute as well, since it landed with a pretty good bonk! on the fin corner and I don’t need that happening on a concrete taxiway or a rock at Holtville.

 

[smstachwick]

The Astrobee D is complete!

Mindy and I spent two separate nights getting decals cut out and applied, along with the scale rail guides and the antenna shoes. She has wanted to be a bigger part of this project from the get-go but I knew that I’d have to do the work that related to the airworthiness of the rocket, and I also felt more comfortable doing spray painting work. The fiddly decals and scale details were a good compromise that made good use of her ability to work more precisely than I usually can.

I regret that I don’t have photos at this time but I will get some tomorrow!

 

[smstachwick]

Thanks for the support, here are the goodies!



In the mail came my G74-6W motors for G-powered test flights, a 36” Top Flight chute, and a screamer. I ordered two, one for each section, but only one showed. My email requesting another has as of yet gone unanswered

Rolling the chute felt more like packing a tent than anything else, but it fits nicely. The screamer is clipped to a section of shroud line used to tie the chute onto the loop in the shock cord. What is the general experience with this model, if any? Does the pin generally pull at ejection or do I need to pull it on the ground and tolerate that horrible noise while trying to get the thing packed and out to the pad?

Last item in the goody bag: a Mobius Mini camera (an anniversary gift) and in Inverted Pursuits Lab 3D printed shroud. These will not be installed on F-powered flights to save weight and reduce drag, but they will be present and running for the G-powered and certification flights.



Now, the rocket photos!















Special thanks to Mindy, who lent her steadier, more precise, more patient hands to the decal job, plus a simulated rail guide and an antenna shoe.

Eagle-eyed observers on the range will notice that the decals are a bit displaced around the model from where they’re supposed to be relative to the simulated rail guides. I misread/didn’t fully understand the instructions, using one of the functional rail guides as a reference point. The correct alignment reference was a line extended from the leading edge of one of the fins.

The confusion stemmed from one of the differences between Flight and Launch mode, which themselves stemmed from a funny little design feature of the original Astrobee D that I found out about by doing a bit of research in vintage publications written by one of the fathers of model rocketry, G. Harry Stine.

The original Astrobee D was placed on the launcher with a forward rail guide bolted onto a metal band situated at the very rear of the dark gray portion. This is modeled as Launch Mode. As the rocket cleared the tower, this guide and the band would be sheared off, and the rocket in this configuration is modeled as Flight Mode.

The instructions included a placement guide for this guide (?), which would be modeled in Launch Mode and was thus included on the template. Not fully understanding the instructions or how the real rocket worked led me to confuse this simulated guide in Launch Mode for the functional guide in Flight Mode, which is the mode I chose to build it in. This confusion displaced the bulk of the rocket’s decal work and the antenna shoes by about 90° around the rocket, even though the aft simulated rail guides were in the correct position.

Still, the thing looks all kinds of cool, even if it’s not precisely scale. Maybe if I ever trash or lose the forward end I’ll redo it, but for now I’m OK with it as-is.

 

[boatgeek]

Thanks for the support, here are the goodies!

View attachment 611942

In the mail came my G74-6W motors for G-powered test flights, a 36” Top Flight chute, and a screamer. I ordered two, one for each section, but only one showed. My email requesting another has as of yet gone unanswered

Rolling the chute felt more like packing a tent than anything else, but it fits nicely. The screamer is clipped to a section of shroud line used to tie the chute onto the loop in the shock cord. What is the general experience with this model, if any? Does the pin generally pull at ejection or do I need to pull it on the ground and tolerate that horrible noise while trying to get the thing packed and out to the pad?

Last item in the goody bag: a Mobius Mini camera (an anniversary gift) and in Inverted Pursuits Lab 3D printed shroud. These will not be installed on F-powered flights to save weight and reduce drag, but they will be present and running for the G-powered and certification flights.

View attachment 611950

Now, the rocket photos!

View attachment 611943

View attachment 611944

View attachment 611945

View attachment 611946

View attachment 611947

View attachment 611948

View attachment 611949

Special thanks to Mindy, who lent her steadier, more precise, more patient hands to the decal job, plus a simulated rail guide and an antenna shoe.

Eagle-eyed observers on the range will notice that the decals are a bit displaced around the model from where they’re supposed to be relative to the simulated rail guides. I misread/didn’t fully understand the instructions, using one of the functional rail guides as a reference point. The correct alignment reference was a line extended from the leading edge of one of the fins.

The confusion stemmed from one of the differences between Flight and Launch mode, which themselves stemmed from a funny little design feature of the original Astrobee D that I found out about by doing a bit of research in vintage publications written by one of the fathers of model rocketry, G. Harry Stine.

The original Astrobee D was placed on the launcher with a forward rail guide bolted onto a metal band situated at the very rear of the dark gray portion. This is modeled as Launch Mode. As the rocket cleared the tower, this guide and the band would be sheared off, and the rocket in this configuration is modeled as Flight Mode.

The instructions included a placement guide for this guide (?), which would be modeled in Launch Mode and was thus included on the template. Not fully understanding the instructions or how the real rocket worked led me to confuse this simulated guide in Launch Mode for the functional guide in Flight Mode, which is the mode I chose to build it in. This confusion displaced the bulk of the rocket’s decal work and the antenna shoes by about 90° around the rocket, even though the aft simulated rail guides were in the correct position.

Still, the thing looks all kinds of cool, even if it’s not precisely scale. Maybe if I ever trash or lose the forward end I’ll redo it, but for now I’m OK with it as-is.

You might think about changing the way you pack the chute. The approach shown above with the shroud lines wrapped around the canopy can either get tangled up and keep the chute from deploying or just delay chute opening long enough to cause problems. I like to fold the shroud lines into the chute and then roll it up. That gives me really consistent deployment.

How is the white part of the screamer retained, on the pull pin or on a separate tether? I've never used one before.