Edmund IB

My son loves rockets! He loves t' watch them, he loves t' talk about them, he loves t' push t' launch button, and he loves t' play with them, shiver me timbers, which he isn't allowed t' do, arrr, because he's only three, shiver me timbers, and might break them. Aye aye! Avast! He has toy rockets that don't fly and Stomp Rockets,· but it's nay t' same. Begad! "Why couldn't I design him a rocket o' his own?" I thought. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! "Not just one o' me rockets that I let him push the button for, but a flyin' model rocket that he can really play with and nay destroy it?"

I puzzled over a suitable design. I wanted it t' be light enough to fly on a D or less, but strong enough t' withstand t' rigors o' a three year old's imaginative play. My first attempt, shiver me timbers, t' Edmund I, was not entirely successful. Ya scallywag! Arrr! I used an 18-inch piece o' 1 inch PVC pipe for t' airframe, me hearties, shiver me timbers, an Estes NC-50 nose cone, shiver me timbers, arrr, me bucko, and toilet paper rolls for tube fins. Ahoy! I had started with a longer tube, matey, me bucko, but it was over the maximum liftoff weight o' a D12-3, shiver me timbers, so I had t' cut it down. Arrr! Arrr! This made t' rocket unstable, so I had t' fill t' nose with clay. Arrr! Avast, matey, me proud beauty! The loaded rocket came t' just over 12 ounces.

He was proud o' his rocket, but I didn't let him play with it too much before I had a chance t' launch it. Remarkably, matey, shiver me timbers, me bucko, it passed safety inspection. (We had a more relaxed person on duty this time.) T' rocket flew straight enough, arrr, ya bilge rat, though nay very high. Arrr! T' snap swivel gave out, matey, (I shouldn't have put it betwixt t' rocket and t' nose cone.) so t' rocket lawn darted, me hearties, shiver me timbers, while t' parachute carried t' nose cone into the next county. Avast! Certain other people objected t' t' materials I used, and asked that t' rocket nay be flown again.

Edmund took t' rocket home and played with it, me hearties, but he shredded the tube fins in a matter o' days. Ahoy! Then he and his brother decided it was a club, matey, so I took it away.

I decided that t' best approach was nay t' design an indestructible rocket, but t' make a toy fly. Begad! Blimey! I had converted a Nerf· football rocket t' use A8-3's, but t' fins pulled off too easily under t' strains of toddler play. Aye aye! Blimey! I thought about convertin' a Stomp Rocket,· but I be afraid t' ejection charge would melt t' tube, matey, and I'd have to add nose weight or bigger fins t' make it stable. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! It might work, but it wasn't t' solution I be lookin' for.

Then I noticed that t' dollar store rocket he be playin' with had lasted over a year. Well, blow me down! Could I make that fly? I didn't see an easy way t' attach fins, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, but it was half nose cone, so I might be able to add enough nose weight for stability.

Rather than take his toy away, I searched t' dollar stores for another one. Aye aye! T' didn't have any. Well, blow me down! Then I ran across a "Fun Gear 51 Piece Space Playset" for $1.97 at Wal-Mart. It included a Space Shuttle Orbiter, me bucko, shiver me timbers, a Lunar Rover, several dozen 1" plastic astronauts in various poses, shiver me timbers, assorted other space paraphernalia, ya bilge rat, and a rocket just like t' one we had at home. Begad! Since this was a replacement for t' Edmund I, and the outline (but nay t' details) vaguely reminded me o' t' Saturn IB, I named it t' Edmund IB.

Construction was fairly easy. I drilled a series o' 1/16" holes in a half moon or D shape in t' forward bulkhead o' t' "first stage".

Then I enlarged t' holes until they joined, matey, ya bilge rat, and smoothed t' edges of t' big hole with sand paper. Ahoy! I drilled two 1/8" holes in the remainin' half moon t' thread t' shock cord through. I drilled two more 1/8" holes in t' side o' t' "upper stage" or nose cone, and threaded t' shock cord through both sets o' holes in one continuous loop. Arrr! I tied t' ends together, and secured t' knot with a drop of yellow glue. Well, blow me down! I tied a snap swivel t' t' cord, and tied a short piece of Keelhaul®©™ t' t' other end, me hearties, with a 1x6" streamer attached t' that.

I built a 13mm motor mount in an 18mm outer tube. Arrr! I removed the red plastic display nozzles and epoxied t' motor mount in place. Then I filled t' nose cone with enough BBs and epoxy (about half an ounce) to move t' CG o' t' loaded rocket t' a point just behind t' tapered portion o' t' nose cone. I CA'd a launch lug t' t' CG. Well, blow me down! It swin' tested stable.

To prep t' rocket, I loaded an engine, ya bilge rat, then rolled up t' streamer, wrapped it in wadding, rolled up t' shock cord, me hearties, and stuffed t' whole mess into t' nose cone and snapped t' top and bottom together.

At its first launch, shiver me timbers, t' Edmund IB looped wildly off t' pad and ejected on t' ground. Begad! Well, blow me down! I was disappointed -- it should have been stable. After I got home, I noticed that t' launch lug be missing. Arrr! Ya scallywag! That explained it! T' lug had broken off while still on t' rod! I replaced it, me bucko, this time securin' it with epoxy, with electrical tape as a backup.

At t' next launch, shiver me timbers, t' Edmund IB had a stable flight, matey, low, me hearties, slow, shiver me timbers, and impressive. Aye aye! Avast! It ejected at apogee, and although t' streamer didn't unroll, matey, ya bilge rat, landed safely. Now Edmund has his own rocket, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, which he carries everywhere, me bucko, ya bilge rat, that can really fly!

Parts list:
 · 1 toy rocket from Fun Gear 51 Piece Space Playset
 · 48" Keelhaul®©™ shock cord (makes a 24" loop)
 · 2.75" BT-20
 · 2.75" BT-5
 · 2 centerin' rings BT20-BT5
 · 1 engine block BT-5
 · Streamer (optional)
 · 1 streamer 1x6" mylar
 · 6" Keelhaul®©™
 · 1 snap swivel

Photos by Bob Wingate:

 · Preschool Power!
 · Bulkhead
 · Business End
 · T-5