What did you do rocket wise today?

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(a lifetime ago) that using a B6-4 was taking a risk, and anyone flying a C6-5 was flat out crazy-
As an adolescent I thought that to be true. Most fields were clandestine and on the small side. When I taught rocketry to 4H, we got to use a farmer's field. We built Alphas and flew them on A8-3s. The kids were not impressed. We launched one a C6-5. Now, I had their attention. We could only see it because of the tracking smoke. We were able to recover the rocket because the field was so big. The next launch we used only C6-5s. Now decades later I belong to a club that launches at a farmer's field (different field, different state). After a couple of "not enough gas" comments, I bought a bulk box of C6-5s. No more comments. I use smaller motors for park flights.
 
I've done this with aluminum angle and no padding, since the compression of the padding allows the tubes to move a little. If you don't clamp too hard the angle won't damage the tubes, though polishing the edges might not be a bad idea.

I suggest using either rubber bands or velcro straps for the "clamps". And use two on each tube, since it takes two points of force applied to apply a torque. If you clamp hard in one place then the contact with the angle can provide the other force*, but if you use two then they don't need to be clamped so hard, and the angle's only job is to sit there and be straight.

* A force is a force, of course of course.
In the horizontal orientation I plan to allow the weight of the tubes to hold the alignment. No clamps or bands needed. Lightweight tubes might require a length of sched 80 pvc pipe inserted inside to provide weight.

(Vertically, rubber bands would be the first choice in clamping...and I have another unmodified piece of aluminum channel for that purpose. Actually I have several sizes and length of that material I use for a variety of rocket tasks (laying out fin lines, marking rail button holes, etc). Note: Aluminum channel is not recommended for use as a straight edge when cutting stout material. Heavy steel rules are my go-to tools in that regard.)

The end cuts of the aluminum channel have been rounded and smoothed to prevent unfortunate accidents. The rubber feet have been screwed in place through chamfered holes drilled with my drill press. The foam strips cover the flush mount screw heads.

You’re talking to Mr. Overbuildit here! Haha!
 
I can remember thinking (a lifetime ago) that using a B6-4 was taking a risk, and anyone flying a C6-5 was flat out crazy- this was true for any small rocket, which all of mine were at the time... 🤔 :rolleyes::D
You are correct about using a C motor in a small rocket. My friend had a Scout III painted yellow and flew it on a C6-7. It went up on a clear blue sky day and we never saw it again. Forget about seeing the tracking smoke. We calculated @2000 ft.
 
As an adolescent I thought that to be true. Most fields were clandestine and on the small side. When I taught rocketry to 4H, we got to use a farmer's field. We built Alphas and flew them on A8-3s. The kids were not impressed. We launched one a C6-5. Now, I had their attention. We could only see it because of the tracking smoke. We were able to recover the rocket because the field was so big. The next launch we used only C6-5s. Now decades later I belong to a club that launches at a farmer's field (different field, different state). After a couple of "not enough gas" comments, I bought a bulk box of C6-5s. No more comments. I use smaller motors for park flights.
I can see that for more attention on C's vs. A's. However, small motors for small fields is smart. When I flew my first Mid Power rocket, a NCR 29mm Aerobee Hi Test coming in at 43 inches with 2.6 tube, that rocket seemed a giant to my smaller 18 and 24mms. Now everyone couldn't wait to see that one go up rather than the others because of an F or G motor. Here is a photo of it now,built in 1988.
 

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I built this ridiculous thing. Will it help me get my rocket out of the tree? Stay tuned.

Such a casting pole has often been used to retrieve rockets from rocket-eating trees.

There may even be GoogToob videos showing it in use.

I personally have seen it used on Snow Ranch.

Seriously. One haggard old oak tree on the whole flying field and of course, rockets land in it's branches.
 
...
Seriously. One haggard old oak tree on the whole flying field and of course, rockets land in it's branches.

One of the most mysterious fundamental forces in physics is the Rocket Strong Force. It attracts rockets to the only tree or pond in the field and rockets with screamers to overhead power wires. Perhaps its most mysterious manifestation is in rockets with trackers. When the tracker is working properly, it attracts the rocket to the pad. When the tracker malfunctions, it attracts the rocket far away. It's Heisenbergian that way. 😀
 
Currently rebuilding my wrecked Estes Outlander. It hit the ground before ejecting on a C6-3 a long time ago. I'm hoping with the advent of the C5-3 and Q-jets, it might actually be able to fly decently.
 
If it hit the ground in less time than the three second delay then I assume it achieved very little altitude; is that right? How heavy is that rocket?

The C5 has less total impulse than the C6 (7.8 Ns vs. 8.8 Ns) so I really doubt it will make the apogee any higher. I'd suggest going with the Q-Jet D16 (12.4 Ns).
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If it hit the ground in less time than the three second delay then I assume it achieved very little altitude; is that right? How heavy is that rocket?

The C5 has less total impulse than the C6 (7.8 Ns vs. 8.8 Ns) so I really doubt it will make the apogee any higher. I'd suggest going with the Q-Jet D16 (12.4 Ns).

I don't recall the exact weight, but the Outlander is infamously heavy and draggy and this issue was pretty frequent. The kit wasn't in production for very long, probably for this reason.

I'm going to weigh it when it's complete again and compare it against the max takeoff weights for my different options before settling on which motor to use.
 
The hurricane knocked out power in a wide area here, including me for a few hours. No chance to go attempt to get the sustainer stage of my Way To High kit out of the tree. I actually drove to the park when the storm had abated, hoping the winds - which have knocked over dozens of trees in my town - had kicked it lose. Nope, it's still up there. :confused:

Meanwhile a giant pile of A, B, and C engines came for me to refill my stocks, along with some Bob Smith epoxy.

Finally, my FlightSketch Mini arrived (see below). It really is tiny! I'm going to try not to lose this into trees like my JollyLogic AltimiterTwo, which is still in the rocket mentioned above....

flightsketch.jpg
 
The hurricane knocked out power in a wide area here, including me for a few hours. No chance to go attempt to get the sustainer stage of my Way To High kit out of the tree. I actually drove to the park when the storm had abated, hoping the winds - which have knocked over dozens of trees in my town - had kicked it lose. Nope, it's still up there. :confused:

Meanwhile a giant pile of A, B, and C engines came for me to refill my stocks, along with some Bob Smith epoxy.

Finally, my FlightSketch Mini arrived (see below). It really is tiny! I'm going to try not to lose this into trees like my JollyLogic AltimiterTwo, which is still in the rocket mentioned above....

View attachment 427056
Mine arrived today as well.

TINY!

It took a moment to determine the power switch “clicker” is actually on the side of the switch housing.

I might have drawn the arrow a bit differently on the info card to indicate the direction of the push.
 
It took a moment to determine the power switch “clicker” is actually on the side of the switch housing.

I might have drawn the arrow a bit differently on the info card to indicate the direction of the push.

I had this same experience. I might provide that as feedback to the designer - he's actually part of my local club.
 

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