Updates...

[rklapp]

Hmmm... The shoulder diameter for my Juno is .075 smaller than the ID of the BT-80 tube. I'll do some things to get it to fit, but I was disappointed.

But you got the printer grooves taken care of without sanding them out? That's good to know.

Not perfect but a decent 5ft paint job.

 

[rklapp]

Spent morning Thanksgiving day in park. The winds were 5mph when we arrived then increased to 10mph after setting up.

The Micro Teal Machine (rebuilt from the Micro Orange Machine) worked well on the 1/2A3 but don't think I'll try anything larger if I want to see it again.

The Egg Lofter killed another egg. I didn't fold the chute but still got stuck in the BT. I plan to remove the elastic and just go with Kevlar so the chute won't get trapped. It's either that or use a smaller chute which probably wouldn't work.

I've been disappointed with the Indicator's elevation and the mini motors, so I removed the MM and replaced it with an 18mm MM. The A8-3 worked well but will probably need more NC weight for the larger motors.

The Neon clone probably also needs more NC weight. It's now ready final paint. I used the Qualman BT-50 baffle which I really like (and reasonably priced).

The GoPro8 was less reliable today than the old GoPro3. It didn't capture the launch of the Mini Fat Boy. Still trying to decide if I should return the 8 and buy the 9 for a $60 more.

Timeline:
00:00 Intro
00:09 Micro Teal Machine
00:55 Egg Lofter
02:13 Orange bullet
03:02 Indicator
04:19 Neon clone
05:18 Mini Fat Boy
05:53 Max Fat Boy

 

[kuririn]

What, no launches today?
Nice and sunny, calm winds.

 

[rklapp]

Tomorrow... and maybe Wednesday... and maybe Thursday...

Tomorrow...

 

[rklapp]

Maybe Thursday evening...

No mod on the BD. Just talc and cover the NC hole...

 

[kuririn]

Hope it doesn't lawn dart. The problem seems to be the nose cone ramp.

 

[rklapp]

Hope it doesn't lawn dart. The problem seems to be the nose cone ramp.

Ground should be wet so...

 

[BABAR]

Spent morning Thanksgiving day in park. The winds were 5mph when we arrived then increased to 10mph after setting up.

The Micro Teal Machine (rebuilt from the Micro Orange Machine) worked well on the 1/2A3 but don't think I'll try anything larger if I want to see it again.

The Egg Lofter killed another egg. I didn't fold the chute but still got stuck in the BT. I plan to remove the elastic and just go with Kevlar so the chute won't get trapped. It's either that or use a smaller chute which probably wouldn't work.

I've been disappointed with the Indicator's elevation and the mini motors, so I removed the MM and replaced it with an 18mm MM. The A8-3 worked well but will probably need more NC weight for the larger motors.

The Neon clone probably also needs more NC weight. It's now ready final paint. I used the Qualman BT-50 baffle which I really like (and reasonably priced).

The GoPro8 was less reliable today than the old GoPro3. It didn't capture the launch of the Mini Fat Boy. Still trying to decide if I should return the 8 and buy the 9 for a $60 more.

Timeline:
00:00 Intro
00:09 Micro Teal Machine
00:55 Egg Lofter
02:13 Orange bullet
03:02 Indicator
04:19 Neon clone
05:18 Mini Fat Boy
05:53 Max Fat Boy

Great videos as usual.

One rare complaint (or praise for great irony!). There is something intrinsically wrong about flying a rocket named “Neon” painted and flown in primer gray.

Although the irony did work for the Fliskits Big Honkin Rocket

Big Honkin’ Rocket – FlisKits

I see you did paint it later and I like the looks and the fades!

 

[markschnell]

Okay, I'm not trying to be a jerk, you can obviously do what you want. And, yes, I don't have to read your posts. But, I kind of wish you'd make different threads for all the stuff you do. This same long thread has building updates, launches and other stuff. If everyone posted like this we'd only have about 32 threads in the whole forum that would all be a hundred pages long(obvious exaggeration, but hope you get my point). Okay, okay, just my two cents.

 

[rklapp]

Okay, I'm not trying to be a jerk, you can obviously do what you want. And, yes, I don't have to read your posts. But, I kind of wish you'd make different threads for all the stuff you do. This same long thread has building updates, launches and other stuff. If everyone posted like this we'd only have about 32 threads in the whole forum that would all be a hundred pages long(obvious exaggeration, but hope you get my point). Okay, okay, just my two cents.

Good point. I made this thread because I was losing my posts in 29,000+ messages found in the “What I did in rocketry today” thread. This is meant to be my what I did in rocketry today. I should change the name just to mess with you all, or not...

 

[markschnell]

I should change the name just to mess with you all, or not...

Or not is fine too. The way you do it now doesn't stop me from reading your stuff often, I like the stuff you post. I also like how much you launch.

 

[rklapp]

Great videos as usual.

One rare complaint (or praise for great irony!). There is something intrinsically wrong about flying a rocket named “Neon” painted and flown in primer gray.

Although the irony did work for the Fliskits Big Honkin Rocket

Big Honkin’ Rocket – FlisKits

I see you did paint it later and I like the looks and the fades!

Mahalo. I had just painted the primer the night before and couldn’t wait to try it out as this was my first tube fin rocket.

 

[BABAR]

Okay, I'm not trying to be a jerk, you can obviously do what you want. And, yes, I don't have to read your posts. But, I kind of wish you'd make different threads for all the stuff you do. This same long thread has building updates, launches and other stuff. If everyone posted like this we'd only have about 32 threads in the whole forum that would all be a hundred pages long(obvious exaggeration, but hope you get my point). Okay, okay, just my two cents.

I see the point of previous post. However, I kinda like this thread, I haven’t don’t that many launches so I have lived a bit vicariously on these. It is a consistent theme, the quality of the videos and editing is among the best I’ve seen. Especially with the improvements in the forum (thanks @Angie ) where when you go back to a thread you have seen before it either automatically or using “jump to new” can get to the current thread, it seems silly to start a new thread with each launch.

 

[rklapp]

Two weeks of trade winds have ended. Started with the rebuilt Ion Pulsar that lawndarted with the C6-5. I added 8oz of clay (not 8#) in the NC and it flew straight up. I replaced the broken MM with a retainer.

Another egg bit the dust. This time, it mortor'd into wet grass. I had replaced the elastic cord with just Kevlar. The problem now is that the C5-3 pops out the back despite the masking tape. Perhaps I'll try a C6-5 or 7. I have one more NC to try.

The DC/SAM III went like it's predecessors into the highway. I actually used an A8-5 for the second stage. It probably went 500ft which is impressive for a staged A motor. I think the problem is that I didn't have a proper coupler for the first stage, so it doesn't go straight up. In fact, we couldn't find the first stage and didn't try very hard to find it. I doubt there will be a DC/SAM IV.

The Hyper Bat worked excellent using a proper coupler in the first stage and also used a B6-0/A8-5 combo. The BB4 was the altitude champion. I didn't believe it went 951ft until I looked at the video. Not bad for a 150m field. I had cut open the BT-20 tube and inserted 8oz of clay to the NC. The next question is which flight camera to use.

The Odyssey worked flawlessly with the D12-3 instead of the 5. Now to try it again with the flight camera. I figured out why the Protostar camera didn't record. I recharged it a couple days ago and somehow inadvertently hit the record, so the SD was filled. Ooops. An otherwise flawless flight. Personally, I thought it was more impressive with the C11-3 because it was slower and reminded me of the probe ship in Wall-e.

I barely recovered the Shuttle last time with the D12-3, but lost it this time with the E12-4. Someone (@neil_w) said it wasn't going to help and sure enough, it went horizontal. We recovered the rocket on the other side of the canal but couldn't find the shuttle. Maybe I'll add more fins to the rocket and fly it as is...

I tried the Checkmate clone. However, the motor block I used was too long so the starter kept shorting out. At home, I cut off the nozzle so I can reach the motor. I also tried my new BT-80 Mercury Redstone but discovered that the launch lugs needed to be drilled a bit more to fit the 3/16" rod. I coulda tried it with the 1/8" rod. I was afraid it would be too unstable off the rod.

Timeline:
00:00 Ion Pulsar
01:19 Egg Lofter
02:42 DC/SAM III
03:31 Hyper Bat
04:27 Blank Brant IV 951ft
06:01 Odyssey
07:07 Protostar
08:20 Shuttle

 

[neil_w]

Wow, gorgeous day!

The Odyssey worked flawlessly with the D12-3 instead of the 5. Now to try it again with the flight camera. I figured out why the Protostar camera didn't record. I recharged it a couple days ago and somehow inadvertently hit the record, so the SD was filled. Ooops. An otherwise flawless flight. Personally, I thought it was more impressive with the C11-3 because it was slower and reminded me of the probe ship in Wall-e.

Very nice flight on the Odyssey. Always happy to see that one come back.

I barely recovered the Shuttle last time with the D12-3, but lost it this time with the E12-4. Someone (@neil_w) said it wasn't going to help and sure enough, it went horizontal. We recovered the rocket on the other side of the canal but couldn't find the shuttle. Maybe I'll add more fins to the rocket and fly it as is...

Sorry you lost the glider.

I also tried my new BT-80 Mercury Redstone but discovered that the launch lugs needed to be drilled a bit more to fit the 3/16" rod. I coulda tried it with the 1/8" rod. I was afraid it would be too unstable off the rod.

Good exercise of discretion. I would *never* fly a BT80 rocket off a 1/8" rod.

Timeline:
00:00 Ion Pulsar
01:19 Egg Lofter
02:42 DC/SAM III
03:31 Hyper Bat
04:27 Blank Brant IV 951ft
06:01 Odyssey
07:07 Protostar
08:20 Shuttle

Might I suggest you add chapters to the timeline bar, looks quite easy: https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/9884579?hl=en. That makes the video more useful for everyone without needing to refer back here.

 

[BABAR]

Two weeks of trade winds have ended. Started with the rebuilt Ion Pulsar that lawndarted with the C6-5. I added 8oz of clay (not 8#) in the NC and it flew straight up. I replaced the broken MM with a retainer.

Another egg bit the dust. This time, it mortor'd into wet grass. I had replaced the elastic cord with just Kevlar. The problem now is that the C5-3 pops out the back despite the masking tape. Perhaps I'll try a C6-5 or 7. I have one more NC to try.

The DC/SAM III went like it's predecessors into the highway. I actually used an A8-5 for the second stage. It probably went 500ft which is impressive for a staged A motor. I think the problem is that I didn't have a proper coupler for the first stage, so it doesn't go straight up. In fact, we couldn't find the first stage and didn't try very hard to find it. I doubt there will be a DC/SAM IV.

The Hyper Bat worked excellent using a proper coupler in the first stage and also used a B6-0/A8-5 combo. The BB4 was the altitude champion. I didn't believe it went 951ft until I looked at the video. Not bad for a 150m field. I had cut open the BT-20 tube and inserted 8oz of clay to the NC. The next question is which flight camera to use.

The Odyssey worked flawlessly with the D12-3 instead of the 5. Now to try it again with the flight camera. I figured out why the Protostar camera didn't record. I recharged it a couple days ago and somehow inadvertently hit the record, so the SD was filled. Ooops. An otherwise flawless flight. Personally, I thought it was more impressive with the C11-3 because it was slower and reminded me of the probe ship in Wall-e.

I barely recovered the Shuttle last time with the D12-3, but lost it this time with the E12-4. Someone (@neil_w) said it wasn't going to help and sure enough, it went horizontal. We recovered the rocket on the other side of the canal but couldn't find the shuttle. Maybe I'll add more fins to the rocket and fly it as is...

I tried the Checkmate clone. However, the motor block I used was too long so the starter kept shorting out. At home, I cut off the nozzle so I can reach the motor. I also tried my new BT-80 Mercury Redstone but discovered that the launch lugs needed to be drilled a bit more to fit the 3/16" rod. I coulda tried it with the 1/8" rod. I was afraid it would be too unstable off the rod.

Timeline:
00:00 Ion Pulsar
01:19 Egg Lofter
02:42 DC/SAM III
03:31 Hyper Bat
04:27 Blank Brant IV 951ft
06:01 Odyssey
07:07 Protostar
08:20 Shuttle

Looks like overall a fun day!

Shame about the shuttle.
Love the reparte between you and your son. This is a family forum, respectfully ask that you clean it up a bit at the 6 minute mark. I know, call me the Censor Nazi.

Any chance your fixed ground camera can be adjusted to portrait instead of landscape mode? And put the pad at the very VERY bottom of the edge of the screen? Pretty cool when you can get launch through apogee on on nearby fixed camera!

Thanks for these, stay healthy, and keep ‘me coming!

 

[David_Stack]

Shame about the Shuttle flight...

I wonder if the excessive horizontal flight was actually the result of the trim on the shuttle glider 'pulling' the booster off a vertical flight path. Any deflection to the elevons on the shuttle would become increasingly effective as airspeed increased. Going to the larger E motor may have actually magnified the problems first observed on the D-powered flight.

All that said, what a beautiful day for a launch! I sure miss living there.

 

[rklapp]

Might I suggest you add chapters to the timeline bar, looks quite easy: https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/9884579?hl=en. That makes the video more useful for everyone without needing to refer back here.

When I watch on the YouTube app/website, the timeline chapters appear but doesn’t when I’m watching from the forum. I was creating captions for each but stopped a couple months ago and just let YouTube do it for me when it does.

 

[rklapp]

Looks like overall a fun day!

Shame about the shuttle.
Love the reparte between you and your son. This is a family forum, respectfully ask that you clean it up a bit at the 6 minute mark. I know, call me the Censor Nazi.

Any chance your fixed ground camera can be adjusted to portrait instead of landscape mode? And put the pad at the very VERY bottom of the edge of the screen? Pretty cool when you can get launch through apogee on on nearby fixed camera!

Thanks for these, stay healthy, and keep ‘me coming!

I could try portrait mode. I have it on a selfie stick to give it stability. The difficulty is when the Parks don’t mow the lawn. This is the rainy season so the grass is swampy in some areas. We’ve only had one hurricane this year. Seems most have been heading to Louisiana.

Sorry about my son’s f-bomb. I’ll let him know. He’s not a morning person as you can see in the video. Evening launches have not been practical. The winds are less in the morning and usually free of field sports.

 

[rklapp]

Shame about the Shuttle flight...

I wonder if the excessive horizontal flight was actually the result of the trim on the shuttle glider 'pulling' the booster off a vertical flight path. Any deflection to the elevons on the shuttle would become increasingly effective as airspeed increased. Going to the larger E motor may have actually magnified the problems first observed on the D-powered flight.

All that said, what a beautiful day for a launch! I sure miss living there.

I’ve tried to watch every Shuttle video I could find. Most go sideways and some go straight up. I suspect it’s a flawed design. I’m not too sad about losing the glider. I mostly wanted the experience of building a frame rocket. I’m wondering if I should ask Estes to replace it or if I should put large fins on the rocket and see how high it will go on the E12-4?

 

[BABAR]

I could try portrait mode. I have it on a selfie stick to give it stability. The difficulty is when the Parks don’t mow the lawn. This is the rainy season so the grass is swampy in some areas. We’ve only had one hurricane this year. Seems most have been heading to Louisiana.

Sorry about my son’s f-bomb. I’ll let him know. He’s not a morning person as you can see in the video. Evening launches have not been practical. The winds are less in the morning and usually free of field sports.

As I said, the banter between the two of you is a major point of the fun of the video (he's very funny!), I don't want to discourage him from speaking up, and please let him know that the videos are certainly better due in no small way to his participation!

 

[neil_w]

I’ve tried to watch every Shuttle video I could find. Most go sideways and some go straight up. I suspect it’s a flawed design. I’m not too sad about losing the glider. I mostly wanted the experience of building a frame rocket. I’m wondering if I should ask Estes to replace it or if I should put large fins on the rocket and see how high it will go on the E12-4?

I think designs like this are always quite challenging to fly. As I discussed earlier, I think an E12 is probably a particularly rough choice for this rocket because it's slow off the rod and then thrusts for a long time after it arcs over. Although Estes' customer service is great, I personally wouldn't feel right asking them for a replacement in this sort of circumstance, but that's up to you.

I'm starting to think something like an E30 would be ideal: a quick burst to get it moving very fast and then let it coast. It would probably still arc over but not cruise-missile. Have you seen any flight videos where they used that motor?

 

[rklapp]

I think designs like this are always quite challenging to fly. As I discussed earlier, I think an E12 is probably a particularly rough choice for this rocket because it's slow off the rod and then thrusts for a long time after it arcs over. Although Estes' customer service is great, I personally wouldn't feel right asking them for a replacement in this sort of circumstance, but that's up to you.

I'm starting to think something like an E30 would be ideal: a quick burst to get it moving very fast and then let it coast. It would probably still arc over but not cruise-missile. Have you seen any flight videos where they used that motor?

I mostly see D12 and E12. It’s annoying when the video doesn’t indicate what motor they’re using in the rocket. Sometimes they say it just before launch.

There are a lot of videos where they say what rocket it is, launch in to the sky with no zoom, then end after 10 seconds. How high did it go? We’re you able to recover it? IDK

 

[shawn_rocket]

Love your videos as I "launch" vicariously through these posts! One thing I noticed and have experience with is the Protostar is just an awesome flier, whether a D12 or E12!

 

[rklapp]

As I said, the banter between the two of you is a major point of the fun of the video (he's very funny!), I don't want to discourage him from speaking up, and please let him know that the videos are certainly better due in no small way to his participation!

He actually feels bad about it. I thought it was innocuous so didn’t try to edit it. I’ll have to figure out a sound bite overlay to use next time.

He‘s autistic, so it’s a good lesson for him to learn. He’s enthusiastic about the rocket launches which makes it easier for me to build them.

 

[BABAR]

He actually feels bad about it. I thought it was innocuous so didn’t try to edit it. I’ll have to figure out a sound bite overlay to use next time.

He‘s autistic, so it’s a good lesson for him to learn. He’s enthusiastic about the rocket launches which makes it easier for me to build them.

You know something, please forget I ever said anything about it. I am glad you guys get to have fun doing this together. That’s a heck of a lot more important than a rare 4 letter word.

 

[rklapp]

Love your videos as I "launch" vicariously through these posts! One thing I noticed and have experience with is the Protostar is just an awesome flier, whether a D12 or E12!

Thanks.

I thought the Protostar looked cooler with the C11 because it was slower. I bought another one for $7.75 during the Estes cyber Monday sale so should have no fear about launching the Protostar on an E12.

I haven’t launched my Expedition in a while but really like the paint job. My Honest John and Helios rockets could go higher with the E12. I need to buy altimeters in packs. I bought the Flightsketch mini to try out for $29 They sold out of protectors though.

 

[neil_w]

You know something, please forget I ever said anything about it. I am glad you guys get to have fun doing this together. That’s a heck of a lot more important than a rare 4 letter word.

I wholeheartedly support this comment. Although I understand why it was brought up in the first place, it's just not a big deal and not worth fussing over.

 

[shawn_rocket]

Thanks.

I thought the Protostar looked cooler with the C11 because it was slower. I bought another one for $7.75 during the Estes cyber Monday sale so should have no fear about launching the Protostar on an E12.

I haven’t launched my Expedition in a while but really like the paint job. My Honest John and Helios rockets could go higher with the E12. I need to buy altimeters in packs. I bought the Flightsketch mini to try out for $29 They sold out of protectors though.

I've used the FS mini several times...great product! Have to be careful at launches...someone may pick up your FS on accident! Lol And I acquired some of those Protostars as well! Quite a bargain.

 

[wickjr]

Great video! I love everything about it.
Good thing there are rockets in Hawaii.... or how could you ever deal with living in such a dismal place?

Great rockets and great fun.