What did you do rocket wise today?

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wait. Beer as fuel? 🤣😂

Is IPA really beer? Not to me.

In other news, I'm continuing to build research motors for the three Tripoli launches we plan to attend next month. NCR June 4th to 6th, SCORE June 19th, and TNT June 26th.

2021-05 EX motors.jpg

Today, I'm working up a 98mm 10000 Don Alexander slow white that Sharon wants to fly at Tripoli North Texas. Burn Sim says it's just a baby "N".

2021-05 DAW.jpg

It's crunch time, I still need to prep rockets for NSL in three weeks! It's a NAR launch, so only commercial loads there.
 
Glued on the nose ballast for my Little Bucky Build.
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I am hoping to start cutting the wood for my fin jig this afternoon 🤞🏻 My retired neighbor across the street has a shop in his garage, and is going to help me build it, but we have a long list of projects we have been knocking out in our yards before we hit the shop.

Last, and definitely not least, I am checking my fedex tracking number every 20 minutes waiting for my new toy 🚀 to arrive!
 
AFTER I got home from the launch I read the directions...
There's your problem!
LOX/IPA to 100.01 meters...
100.01 meters? That doesn't sound really ambitious.

I've never heard of using either kind of IPA as rocket fuel, as opposed to ethanol (instead of one kind and a lot higher concentration than the other).
Is IPA really beer?
Well, technically. I just with it weren't ¾ of the beer comimg out of small breweries nowadays.
 
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Couple of days ago, but I gathered up some bits and bobs to show on camera during the virtual build session I’m running for a local elementary school.

Yesterday we started the sessions and got the motor mounts and nose cones for the BMS school rocket kits glued up along with an optional payload bay I added to the kits.

(Example can be seen in bottom right of the photo)
 
Here are some old photos of some North Coast Rocketry rockets that we flew back in the 90's all with Single Use G motors. I miss those days. Thank you Matt Steele
 

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Thought it would be fun to get a photo of all the rockets I either built or restored last year. Finally got around to it today. It was kinda shocking! (I may have a rocket problem!) So, here are the Rockets of 2020. Enjoy!

View attachment 463390
have it, have it, want it, have it, have it, lost it, want it, in build pile, have it, have it, want it, .... :D

Nice fleet!
 
Nice! Quite a few Red Max rockets. Also, is that an Estes V2?
Yeah, I kinda went nuts on the Red Max variants. The big one is actually based on the Executioner and I have the new Big Red Max in the build pile. The V-2 is the current Estes kit with a different paint scheme.
 
Kopernik Observatory holds and annual Rocket Festival as a fund raiser.

Normally they hold 3 sessions during the day. People come to build and fly a model rocket.
They typically have 3 levels of kits.
Last year they had to cancel due to Covid

This year they are trying to have a Hybrid approach. People got to pick up their kits several weeks in advance. Then they will have staged launches 5/22. Being outdoors plus not requiring the build time and maintaining social distancing should reduce the infection risks.......

Anyway, I put together a video for building a Loadstar II.
I did not try to go into "advance techniques", such as filling body tube spirals or papering fins. And I still owe them a final installment. But..........

If anyone is bored enough and has an hour to waste....
Checkout and critique my techniques....


Not going to try to upload the video itself - Multiple GB....

I sent the files as multiple segments from my iphone. The good folks at Kopernik stitched them together into this final form.

You can scroll to the time stamps for the various stages of assembly:
00:00 Introduction
01:26 Tools required
05:07 Sanding of balsa fins
09:49 Preparation of fin marking guide and tube marking
15:55 Motor Mount preparation
21:26 Red tube coupler preparation and fin gluing & placement
24:21 Motor Mount installation and launch lug preparation
29:29 Test fit of first and second stage, launch lug placement, nose cone preparation, and secondary gluing of the fins
42:04 Shock cord preparation and placement
44:53 Preparing for painting
47:06 Painting the primer coat
49:14 Post primer sanding
51:32 Final painting instruction and first coat
53:41 Second paint coat
55:27 Final paint coat
 
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