At the last rocket launching I attended, several of my rockets greatly exceeded expectations and were likely swallowed up by the universe at large. Two things might have helped: a smaller parachute and/or a tracking device.
This tracking device is based on a design by Adam Nehr, published in the March/April 2022 issue of Sport Rocketry. Mr. Nehr’s excellent article is nine pages long, so you should probably read it for complete instructions on how to use this tracker.
My design does not require soldering or messing around with epoxy, nor do you need to buy and then modify the battery holder. The red part is 3d-printed in PLA and only takes about ten minutes on my Dremel 3D20.
Today’s model rockets aren’t anything like the amateur rockets that we “old-timers” built back in the 1960s. How was I going to learn to make rockets today, and where would I get all of the parts needed? My solution was to buy a copy of “Make: Rockets” and an Estes “Designer’s Special” kit of assorted model rocket parts.
The book shows you how to make about a dozen model rockets, including rocket-gliders, using parts from the “Designer’s Special”. Everything is explained so it is easy to understand, and there are lots of photos. The construction techniques are basic, but solid. So far, I have built and flown two rockets from this book — the Hebe and the Ceres-B, both of which I have described in previous posts.
Currently, I am working on the two-stage Romulus (second from the left, on the book’s cover). The book says it will fly to about 1500 feet, but with my modifications to it OpenRocket (a free rocket analysis program) limits it to a more conservative altitude of just over 1000 feet. Ok by me, maybe I won’t have to walk as far to recover it.
What modifications, you ask? In this book, the author glues the fins directly to the body tube. This method is outdated, since it dates way, way back to when the book was published in 2014. Rocket kits today attach the fins through slits in the body tube, so part of the fin glues directly to the motor mount inside. The Estes Crossfire and Rocketarium VK-7 both did it this way. I am doing this on the second stage (sustainer) of the rocket. Larger rockets, such as the AeroTech Mega-Initiator, suggest gluing the fins directly to the motor mount, then slitting the body tube up from the bottom so that you can just lower it down on top of the motor mount/fin assembly. I am doing this on the first stage (booster) of the Romulus, so that I will have some experience with this method in case somebody gives me a Mega-Initiator for my birthday in a few months.
Fins glued to motor mountSliding body onto motor mountComplete assembly
There are a lot of interesting designs in this book, and I still have a lot of parts left over, but once the Romulus is finished my immediate plan is to experiment with some electronic payloads and attach a miniature video cam to the larger rockets, at least until my birthday.
The Edmonton Rocketry Club was back in Calmar on July 30. So was I, with four rockets ready to go! The Crossfire from Estes had already flown three times previously, and was included as a spare. The scratchbuilt Hebe had previously flown twice, suffering water-damage on that second landing. I transplanted part of another rocket into the mid-section to attempt one more flight. The VK-7 from Rocketarium and the scratchbuilt Ceres-B were ready for their first flights.
Hebe Flies Again !
Hebe was the first rocket launched that day. It was powered by a “C” motor this time, and launched with a vengeance. The projected altitude was 1231 feet, but it went so fast and was so small, that I never saw it again!
A great success, but also my first offering to the rocket gods…
Next up was the VK-7, my first rocket to use a cluster of two “C” motors. The trick is to get them both to ignite at the same time, or else things can go awry very quickly.
The crowd was warned that this was a “heads up” launch, meaning be ready to dive for cover! To my great relief, the motors ignited perfectly and the VK-7 rose majestically into the sky, easily reaching the projected altitude of 633 feet (over 1000 feet, IMHO) and making a perfect landing.
Lift Off !Going Strong !Higher and Higher !Rocketarium VK-7Lift Off !Good-bye Ceres !Ceres-B
All of my previous model rockets flew on motors that were 18-mm in diameter. The Ceres-B was my first experience with a 24-mm motor, in this case a “D”. It easily reached its projected altitude of 1017 feet, had a perfect parachute deployment, but caught the wind and was last seen drifting south. I searched for about an hour but never found it. My fault — I should have used a smaller parachute, but instead … my second offering to the rocket gods!
Before you start feeling sorry for me, let me just say this was my best rocket launching ever! In 1964, I was a student member of the Rocket Research Institute and launched an amateur rocket to an altitude of about 1000 feet. We didn’t use parachutes back then, so we didn’t recover our rockets either. My immediate goal as a “born-again rocketeer” was to break the 1000 foot altitude, and this time around at least two (maybe three) of my rockets did that. Yes, it was a perfect day!
On July 17, 2022, the Edmonton Rocketry Club hosted a rocketry competition in nearby Calmar, Alberta.
People launched a variety of model rockets, competing in various categories, with varying success. The only thing that wasn’t variable, was the excitement! I didn’t fly anything, but had fun trying to video some of the launches.
The Edmonton Rocketry Club plans a model rocket launch almost each month, weather permitting. Recently, rain and/or high winds caused many launchings to be cancelled, but we finally gathered in Calmar on July 2, even if the field was a little soggy in places.
Hebe
The first rocket I flew was an Hebe, built from plans in “Make: Rockets.” It flew on an A8 motor to about 400 ft, and had a perfect recovery. Later, I flew it on a B4 motor to about 720 ft, but recovery failed and Hebe dived into a soggy area. Part of the airframe was damaged by the water, but the remaining bits and pieces will fly again one day!
Estes Crossfire
My Estes Crossfire also made two successful flights. Last time around, it flew on an A8 motor to about 150 ft, and this time it flew on a B4 motor to about 340 ft and next on a C6 motor to about 710 ft. The C-motors are the most powerful “normal” motors that fit the Crossfire, so I probably won’t fly it again unless I need to test something with it. There is a “composite” motor made that is in the “D” range, but I haven’t found any for sale in Canada.
Meanwhile, my Rocketarium VK-7 is finished and ready to fly later this month at the July 30th launch. It uses two motors together. If I use two C6 motors, they will be as powerful as a “D” motor.
All of my previous rockets have used motors that are 18mm in diameter. The next size up is 24mm. I have completed the Ceres B, also built from plans in “Make: Rockets.” It should fly on a D12, then again on an E12, both “normal” motors. There is also a “composite” F44 motor that will fit.
Finally, I have constructed a payload section that will fit both the VK-7 and the Ceres B, and I would like to buy or build an altimeter to put in it. Also, I now have a Mobius #32s video cam that is light enough and small enough to fly on either of these rockets, perhaps in August.
