What did you do rocket wise today?

[neil_w]

Laid down a new topcoat on my IRIS-T, Rusto 2x Ultra Matte Perfect Gray. Anyone ever used one of the Ultra Matte colors before? Is it smooth enough to lay down decals directly, or do I need a gloss coat clearcoat first?

 

[shooze]

The original body tube I got was the wrong diameter compared to the nose cone, but they shipped out a free replacement right away.

Sadly, I haven't flown my Mouse yet. I need to decide on the amount of nose weight to add first. It looks like I need to add about 3 to 4 oz to fly full sized G motors, but I might just limit it to F motors since I don't plan on putting electronics in it. It'd be really fun to fly on an F120.
View attachment 356649

Well, I got my Madcow Mouse 38 model today in the mail. My first fibreglass kit, and overall nice looking parts. I noticed a couple issues with the kit as I attempt to dry fit it. Same as you stated, the body tube and nosecone diameters don't match - probably two thousandths difference in size. It seems odd that the two diameters would not be dead on. #2, the fin slot spacing is slightly off even as well. Time to call the manufacturer I think.

 

[T-Rex]

Painted Fat Daddy's fins. The yellow doesn't cover well (Valspar), shows the spots that got sanded down to bare wood. But it will be good enough for a flight this weekend.

 

[Flyfalcons]

Pushed the Easy button today and built and painted a Wizard and SuperNova for a launch tomorrow.

 

[RocketFeller]

I placed a 15% off order with Madcow today. 32" of 38mm fg tubing, a half dozen bulk plates/CRs, one square foot of .0625" and two square feet of .125" fg plate.

 

[krislhull]

Couldn't resist the Madcow sale and ordered a Frenzy, some G10 sheet, and a fiberglass nosecone for my next project.

 

[lakeroadster]

Pushed the Easy button today and built and painted a Wizard and SuperNova for a launch tomorrow.View attachment 356857

I had a few super Nova's back in the day...

 

[MikeT]

Pushed the Easy button today and built and painted a Wizard and SuperNova for a launch tomorrow.View attachment 356857

Extra in the background?

Mike

 

[roytyson]

A little Fourth of July action. But the weather is not cooperating for launching today...

 

[Flyfalcons]

Extra in the background?

Mike

That's a 43% Edge 540.

 

[terryg]

Ordered an AeroPack 3 inch/38 mm tailcone motor retainer from the Madcow sale.

 

[jlabrasca]

A little Fourth of July action. But the weather is not cooperating for launching today...

View attachment 356864

I think you got the colors upside down on one of those.

I spent an hour or so in the shop with my 10 y.o., working on a Sky Dart II (which is now her Sky Dart II).

Unhappy with the look of epoxy mushrooming through the holes in the hinge plates, she asked "Hey, can we sew the hinges on?"

If the weather cooperates, we'll find out how this works on Saturday.

 

[liv3mind]

Wife started her custom Mac Performance MPR 29 today

 

[Keisling]

Just got done launching 100's of tiny little rockets. They all exploded at apogee

 

[Flyfalcons]

Flew at an impromptu get-together, including maidens on my Wizard (C6-7, went high, got it back), and the Supernova B6-B6-6. Always fun to watch the sustainer of a two-stage accelerating away after shedding the weight and drag of the booster.

 

[BEC]

That (the Super Nova) was a nice flight. My 9-year-od granddaugther and I put up 16 flights at the impromptu get-together that Ryan mentioned....probably jalf of those flights after everyone else left (we arrived kind of late relative to most folks). She flew her first model - an Alpha III she built last night - for four flights. An A, two Bs and finally a C. The last flight recovered on the road between the north and south fields with only a few scrapes.

I also got two flights trying out an Adrel ALT-BMP as sold by North Coast Rocketry (Nova Payloader on an Estes C6-5 in both cases). Other than having trouble seeing the screen on this cheap Lenovo Win 10 machine in the daylight, it seemed to perform well.

 

[rharshberger]

Received my TRA membership package today. Now I can officially get involved in some EX fun!

 

[krislhull]

Received my TRA membership package today. Now I can officially get involved in some EX fun!

I joined a couple of weeks ago, so hopefully Ill be getting my packet in a week or two.

Received a box of goodies from Jim at Missileworks, and another Chute Release today.

 

[snrkl]

A little Fourth of July action. But the weather is not cooperating for launching today...

View attachment 356864

Are these rockets called the “Flying Frenchmen”?

[emoji12]

 

[rharshberger]

Purchased a vacuum pump for composite layups and veneer work. I can get started on the Nuclear Sledgehammer soon.

 

[JonathanOtt]

I built a Hi-Flyer XL on July 4th. Went together quick. First time using the Estes fin alignment jig. Don't know how I got along with out it before.

 

[jlabrasca]

Worked on the rotors for a Mini "A" Heli




The kit comes with laser-cut cardstock formers to impress an airfoil contour onto the rotors. There is a score line running diagonally on the top of the rotor, which you are instructed to deepen with an Xacto before pushing the former onto the rotor blade.

Then, pushing the bottoms of the formers flat onto the bench, you are to put a drop of CA in the score line on both sides of each former, to harden the balsa so that it keeps the airfoil shape.

So far I haven't had great success with this. As shipped, the paper formers bend more easily than does the balsa. I soaked them in CA to harden them, which helped, but the rotor is coming out of the formers pretty much as flat as it went in. The CA on the rotor is not holding the curve.

Also did a toss test of the Sky Dart II (bad stills grabbed from shaky and over-exposed video, out of which I photoshopped a lawn-sign that might have distracted some folks from the glider gliding). It looks like it will fly tomorrow.

 

[Lugnut56]

Reluctantly went with my wife to Ross to look at some garden decorations. Glad I did, because look what I found in the bargain bin.

 

[blackjack2564]

Finished up with the guts of my Nike Apache.
RRC3 alt.in sustainer...Spherachute 18 drogue..30 main

Booster Pet-2 timer seperation charge
Perfect flight CF alt......36in Topflight recovery
All shock cord...buttons...etc.

Took all day,hope to fly some part tomorrow!

 

[dhbarr]

Helped the boys with some R2F

 

[Tobor]

Just ordered a JL Chute Release. After losing my very first MPR on it's maiden flight last fall and almost losing my Momba at GARLO 2018, I figured it was time.

 

[rocketjet787]

Purchased a vacuum pump for composite layups and veneer work. I can get started on the Nuclear Sledgehammer soon.

What vacuum pump did you get? I am currently looking at purchasing one.

I continued designing a 38mm MD.

 

[rharshberger]

What vacuum pump did you get? I am currently looking at purchasing one.

I continued designing a 38mm MD.

A Robinair 15310 3cfm single stage.

 

[Charles_McG]

First flight.

 

[jlabrasca]

First flight.

View attachment 357066

How did it do?

At the club LPR launch today, got 7 flights up, including the Sky Dart II and the Mini A Heli. The Skydart did ok. It weather-cocked a little so that it as almost inverted when it deployed, but the engine pod ejected and the glider righted itself and did a credible impression of gliding for a few seconds before touching down on the grass.

The Min A Heli went up arrow-straight, but the rotors did not deploy -- so it came down arrow straight.

The thread broke on impact, so I do not know if it was tangled somehow, or if it did not burn through when the ejection fired. The damage is repairable, so it will fly again (although it is going to be a pain trying to match that candy-cane stripe on the section of replaced airframe).