The "Rheintochter"

[SkyFire]

The "Rheintochter"
This was a WW II German surface to air missile, that was made of metal, but used plywood for the control surfaces. Here is a model of what it would have looked like. 82 test launchings were made, but the weapon was never used in combat by the Germans during the war.

 

[BEC]

There was a fellow named Ray King who entered one of these in Sport Scale at NARAM-60. Very interesting model. As I recall the flight didn't go all that well, though. Clustered and staged. Pictures from the November/December 2018 Sport Rocketry.


Your second picture looks like the one at the Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles airport....

 

[rharshberger]

There was also a build/design thread here on TRF some years ago about someone building or wanting to build one, might have even been one of our German members.

 

[CalebJ]

There was also a build/design thread here on TRF some years ago about someone building or wanting to build one, might have even been one of our German members.

https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/rheintochter-rhine-maiden.62727/

 

[rharshberger]

https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/rheintochter-rhine-maiden.62727/

And heres the one I remember

https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/somone-talk-me-out-of-this-please.51832/page-2

 

[Nytrunner]

There was a fellow named Ray King who entered one of these in Sport Scale at NARAM-60. Very interesting model. As I recall the flight didn't go all that well, though. Clustered and staged. Pictures from the November/December 2018 Sport Rocketry.
View attachment 463046

Your second picture looks like the one at the Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles airport....

I saw that flight! Sub-optiimal flight, great model

 

[BigMacDaddy]

I am working on my own BT80 version of this model... 2x D12-0 engines in Booster and 1x D12-3 engine in sustainer. My model is on the right obviously, my 3D mock-up in the middle, and a photo of prototype on the left. I actually patterned my version after the one at the Udvar Hazy that I saw last month (slightly different nose cone). Finally, getting around to painting / staining and assembling mine so will post more pics once it is done. Still trying to gauge how much weight is needed in nose cone. Have this modeled in OpenRocket but need to see where CG winds up once everything is put together.

 

[neil_w]

I am working on my own BT80 version of this model... 2x D12-0 engines in Booster and 1x D12-3 engine in sustainer. My model is on the right obviously, my 3D mock-up in the middle, and a photo of prototype on the left.

Beautiful!

Still trying to gauge how much weight is needed in nose cone.

I would guess... all of it?

 

[BigMacDaddy]

Beautiful!

I would guess... all of it?

Thanks and hahaha... bit over 29" tall and around 510 grams when I simulated it - it was pretty stable with 2oz in nose. Not quite as stable as most people would want with the booster but more stable with the sustainer so I think that it will be ok (launching off 6' rail).

Finishing Progress (I am painting / staining parts before assembly which I hope works):

• Stained Fins - Check (I decided to do all same color even though the boosters look a bit lighter in most of the pictures)
• Painted Body Tubes - Check (Finally figured out color is more terracotta than orange). Need to mask rear body tube to do dark gray band over where fins mount (I decided to just paint that difference instead of an extra 3D printed part / weight).
• Painted 3D printed parts - Check (still need to print some of the small parts, I think I will do dark gray instead of silver since the 3D parts are not good enough to get a shiny paint job).

Here is OR simulation (maybe I should make my own thread).

 

[icyclops]

Very nice!

 

[Doug Rocket]

This is great! Would you be willing to share any of your 3-D printed files, I've been wanting to build one of these as well.

 

[BigMacDaddy]

This is great! Would you be willing to share any of your 3-D printed files, I've been wanting to build one of these as well.

Thank you! I have been scared to launch the full rocket with both booster and sustainer so have not published files... I did launch it with the sustainer and it flew great (I posted a separate thread)...

Here is ground level camera angle:


Here is drone view (for a moment):

 

[aerostadt]

OK, this is the model I was thinking of. Has the 2-stage version flown?

 

[BigMacDaddy]

OK, this is the model I was thinking of. Has the 2-stage version flown?

Not yet, I have been too scared to lose it

 

[BigMacDaddy]

FWIW -- I did finally launch the 2-stage version in case folks did not see my post on the R1 "Successful launch" thread...

 

[aerostadt]

A really nice looking model! I love the way the fins look like they are made wood like the real thing. The first stage parachute deployment is simple and worked well! Getting the parachute to work for the first stage is not an easy task. There is not much room to work with. I would love to buy this model as a kit.

 

[BigMacDaddy]

I recently printed 9 more sets of parts for this model. Despite the saying, "if it ain't broke don't fix it", I decided to revisit the front nosecone section and make the canard fins pivot (I have flown this successfully multiple times but if the canard fins rotate I should be able to fly with a bit less noseweight).

I think I came up with a good design including some internal structure to isolate the moving parts from weights that might be added to the nosecone. This is just me test fitting everything with a template piece I printed to cut some of my earlier canards to allow the new parts to work with them.

Note: This nosecone piece quarter twist locks into the other nosecone part so would be an easy swap for someone who already built the model (could use different weight in different front NC portions).

 

[BEC]

My wife and I were at Udvar-Hazy on Monday before flying home from the TARC finals and spent some time looking at the one on display there, pondering what it would take to make this work. And then up this thread popped again. Cool!

 

[Daddyisabar]

Any reduction of no good, stinking, performance robbing nose weight is a good thing!

 

[Cape Byron]

Any reduction of no good, stinking, performance robbing nose weight is a good thing!

It’s about looks, not performance. <insert self-deprecating joke here>.