Brief:
T' MegaBandit is a scratch built 3X upscale o' t' Estes Bandit and designed as me first K powered rocket. Ya scallywag! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! It's a 4" diameter, 79.5" long fiberglassed rocket with a 54mm motor mount. Ya scallywag! It was designed for dual deployment with altimeter.

Construction:
Components consisted o' Giant Leap 3.9" phenolic body tubes cut t' 21", ya bilge rat, me hearties, 22" 1.5", me bucko, and 17" long pieces. Ya scallywag! These were custom cut by Giant Leap and t' 22" body tube be custom slotted for three fins t' me dimensions. Blimey! T' 17" airframe was for t' drogue section while t' 21" airframe section was used for t' main. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! T' 1.5" rin' be used for mountin' t' power switch t' t' electronics bay. Arrr! Ahoy! 4 Phenolic tube couplers, ya bilge rat, arrr, shiver me timbers, a 18" 54mm phenolic motor mount, and three 3/16" plywood coupler bulkplates and tube bulkplates were also from Giant Leap. Well, blow me down! Fins were cut from 3/16" aircraft plywood and were direct upscales o' t' original Bandit fins with tab extensions added for through-the-wall fin attachment and airfoiled at t' leadin' edge. Three motor mount centerin' rings were made from 1/4" plywood. A PML 3.9" nosecone finished it. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! I used t' Aero Pack retainer for motor retention.

I used 30 minute hobby epoxy for tack gluin' and West Systems epoxy throughout t' rest o' t' build includin' fiberglassing. Aye aye! Construction was similar t' all high power rockets. Aye aye! Arrr! T' motor mount comprised an 18" long 54mm diameter phenolic motor tube with three centerin' rings designed so t' fins were sandwiched betwixt t' bottom and middle ring. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! T' top centerin' rin' was fitted with two sections o' 1/4" all-thread, shiver me timbers, nuts, and washers t' allow connection t' a zipperless tube coupler. Begad! T' middle and top centerin' rings were attached t' t' motor tube and mount installed. T' fins were then tacked in place. Ahoy! All internal and external fin joints were reinforced with West Systems epoxy mixed with milled fiberglass and t' same mixture was poured on top o' t' centerin' rings t' reinforce t' paper-rin' joint. Begad! Avast! T' bottom centerin' rin' be then epoxied in place.

Construction o' a zipperless coupler started by makin' a stuffer coupler. Ahoy! This involved removin' a lengthwise slice from one tube coupler so that it fit inside another coupler. Blimey! Arrr! A coupler bulkhead and tube bulkhead were epoxied t' one end o' a tube coupler and t' stuffer coupler slid and epoxied inside t' open end o' this coupler until it met flush with t' bulkheads. Aye aye! T' excess o' t' stuffer coupler was then trimmed flush with t' outside coupler. Begad! A 1/4" U-bolt was attached t' t' bulkheads and holes were drilled t' align with t' all-thread extendin' from t' top centerin' rin' o' t' motor mount. T' completed zipperless coupler be slid onto t' fin can, me hearties, passin' t' all-thread through t' holes and by win' nuts and washers.

T' completed fin can and two other airframe tubes were fiberglassed with 6oz cloth followed by a 1.5oz veil layer. Blimey! Once completely cured, matey, t' tubes were fine sanded t' remove rough and high spots and blend seams. Begad! Superfil epoxy-based filler was used t' even everythin' out and then it be sanded smooth.

An avionics bay be constructed usin' t' coupler-in-coupler method used in makin' t' zipperless coupler with t' stuffer coupler also shortened t' allow proper seatin' o' coupler bulkheads at both ends. Well, blow me down! A coupler bulkhead and tube bulkhead were epoxied t' t' drogue end o' t' bay and t' stuffer tube epoxied in place as with t' zipperless coupler. Arrr! Blimey! A 1/4" eyebolt and two 8.5" x 1/4" sections o' all-thread with nuts and washers were installed into t' drogue bulkheads. Begad! Ahoy! Blimey! T' 1.5" section o' fiberglassed body tube was centered along t' coupler. Begad! Begad! Blimey! A 1/2" mountin' hole for t' armin' switch from Cannonball Works and four 9/64" vent holes evenly spaced were drilled in t' section o' body tube through t' coupler. A coupler bulkhead and tube bulkhead were epoxied together, arrr, ya bilge rat, me bucko, holes drilled t' align with t' all-thread and a 1/4" eyebolt epoxied in place. This bulkhead assembly can then be connected t' t' avionics bay usin' win' nuts after t' altimeter is inserted and proper igniter and electrical connections made. A sled was made from plywood and paper launch lugs t' mount t' altimeter. Aye aye! Blimey! This can then slide inside t' avionics bay along t' all-thread rods and be interchangeable betwixt rockets. Well, blow me down! Blimey! A 1/2" PVC end cap and terminal posts were epoxied t' t' bulkplates at both ends t' hold ejection charges and allow easy connection o' e-matches.

A 54mm Aero Pack retainer was epoxied t' t' motor tube with JB Weld.

Three rail buttons were then installed, 2 in t' fin can and one in t' drogue airframe. Avast, me proud beauty! Vent holes were drilled in t' main and drogue parachute bays. Begad! T' electronics bay was secured t' each o' t' parachute bays with three #6-32 truss head screws usin' T-nuts epoxied t' t' inside o' t' electronics bay. Well, blow me down! T' other airframe sections and nose cone were connected usin' styrene rod t' prevent drag separation but allow easy separation upon ejection charge ignition.

Finishing:
Preparation for finishin' was 2 coats o' gray sandable primer, me hearties, sanded with 400 sandpaper betwixt coats. Avast! Color coats were 2 coats o' each color. Blimey! Begad! Color scheme was identical t' t' original Astron Bandit usin' Rustoleum paints for t' white and black. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! T' Krylon yellow be too bright for me tastes so I chose a Home Depot brand in Butterscotch. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! Decals were 3X upscale printed on self-adhesive vinyl from Tango Papa.

Flight:
I'd been waitin' almost two months t' get MegaBandit into t' air. Avast, me proud beauty! On November 11, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, 2005, shiver me timbers, I arrived at t' launch site t' be slightly disappointed with clouds (although nay low enough t' void t' flight attempt) and fairly strong winds. Avast! I debated for some time before decidin' t' go ahead with t' launch. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, me bucko, blow me down! It took a long time t' prep t' rocket for flight since this be me first altimeter flight. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Once t' recovery system and altimeter were installed and secured, I loaded in t' AMW K530GG motor and headed t' t' pad. Blimey! MegaBandit was loaded onto t' rail, t' igniter installed and t' altimeter armed. Begad! Ya scallywag! T' LCO announced t' flight. After waitin' briefly for t' winds t' die down a bit, countdown commenced and t' was button pushed. Well, blow me down! T' AMW motor soon roared t' life sendin' MegaBandit strongly off t' pad and streakin' skyward under a beautiful green flame. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! T' strong winds caused a lot more weathercock than I had hoped but still it was beautiful!

Recovery:
Dual Deploy recovery be controlled by an Adept ALTS25 altimeter. Arrr! Avast! MegaBandit be set for drogueless recovery at apogee usin' 30ft o' 1/4" tubular Keelhaul®©™ for harness. Avast! Main chute be a 52" SkyAngle connected t' 20ft o' 1/4" tubular Keelhaul®©™ recovery harness and set t' deploy at 600ft. Clouds obscured t' exact moment o' apogee deployment visually, me bucko, but t' pop o' t' drogue ejection charge was heard. T' rocket then proceeded it's free fall descent out o' visual contact. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! It was picked up free fallin' as intended several seconds later. Well, blow me down! Tension filled moments passed as t' rocket fell and I awaited deployment o' t' main chute at 600ft. Well, blow me down! It came right on cue. Begad! T' chute inflated and MegaBandit drifted its final few hundred feet down for a safe recovery. Ya scallywag! Success!!! My first altimeter/dual deployment-based flight could nay have been more perfect. Ya scallywag! Ya scallywag! I walked t' retrieve t' rocket and found it t' be in perfect condition sprawled out on t' soft grass.

Summary:
This project be filled with firsts for me. Ya scallywag! It be me first totally scratchbuilt HPR, me bucko, me first fiberglassed rocket, me hearties, shiver me timbers, and me first rocket usin' dual deployment with t' required electronics and construction o' an altimeter bay. Aye aye! It was also me first experience with AMW motors. Arrr! Aye aye! T' objective be t' gain experience with advanced construction techniques and get familiar with flyin' electronics. Aye aye! These goals were achieved with great success culminatin' in me most gratifyin' flight t' date, even more than either o' me certification flights. And, in t' process, me bucko, I set a new personal altitude record. Avast, me proud beauty! My next goal be t' 1 mile flight.