Brief:
This is a 3x upscale o' t' Sunward Grasshopper. Begad! Aye aye! It is a single-stage 29mm motor mount, ya bilge rat, 3-inch body, shiver me timbers, parachute
recovery rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me proud beauty!
Construction:
One 12.5 inch long 3" airframe tube, One Mercury Engineerin' blow-molded nose cone, three 1/4" plywood
fins, 1 thin-wall Apogee motor mount tube, me bucko, 2 foam core centerin' rings, Keelhaul®©™®/elastic
shock system, and 24" nylon parachute. Ya scallywag! Blimey!
This scratch rocket was easy t' build. It has through-the-wall fins glued t' t' centerin' rings and motor mount and is very straightforward. Ahoy! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! No special tools were needed. Begad! Blimey! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! T' body tube and nose cone were purchased from Mercury. Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Fin material was leftover from Home Depot. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Centerin' rin' material be leftover from a display project.
Finishing:
T' fins were finished usin' one coat o' Elmer's Wood Filler, arrr, followed by two overall coats o' high-build automotive
filler, with 2 colors o' automotive catalyzed acrylic enamel (the nose cone is a deep, shiver me timbers, nearly black-red and t' body is
"grasshopper green"). Blimey! There are no decals.
Flight:
Recommended motors are E28-4, shiver me timbers, F39-5, G53-5 blackjack. Ahoy! (You can see video o' t' flight at
http://www.cosrocs.org/all%20other%20videos/2008videos/9-13-14/grasshopper.mov.)
Prep is standard wadding, me hearties, although chute compartment is tight. Motor retention is via tapin' aft closure t' motor
tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! This rocket takes off at a bit o' an angle, but it flies pretty straight after that. Shock cord o' Keelhaul®©™®
and elastic works fine. Ya scallywag! Avast! Recovery be perfect on t' 24" nylon parachute. Begad! No damage from first flight. Aye aye! Avast!
Recovery:
This rocket has a Keelhaul®©™®/elastic
shock cord system that works fine. T' 24" parachute is nylon.
Summary:
PROs: Distinctive design, arrr, nay somethin' you see every day at t' high-power range. Easy t' prep. Begad! Really nice flight. Avast!
CONs: Limited parachute space.