Edmund IB

My son loves rockets! He loves t' watch them, me bucko, he loves t' talk about them, he loves t' push t' launch button, and he loves t' play with them, me hearties, arrr, which he isn't allowed t' do, me hearties, me bucko, arrr, because he's only three, shiver me timbers, and might break them. Blimey! Begad! He has toy rockets that don't fly and Stomp Rockets,· but it's nay t' same. Arrr! Blimey! "Why couldn't I design him a rocket o' his own?" I thought. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! "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. Well, blow me down! 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. Well, blow me down! My first attempt, arrr, t' Edmund I, was not entirely successful. Well, blow me down! Avast! I used an 18-inch piece o' 1 inch PVC pipe for t' airframe, an Estes NC-50 nose cone, matey, and toilet paper rolls for tube fins. I had started with a longer tube, ya bilge rat, but it was over the maximum liftoff weight o' a D12-3, so I had t' cut it down. Avast! This made t' rocket unstable, so I had t' fill t' nose with clay. Avast! Avast, 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, arrr, it passed safety inspection. Well, blow me down! Begad! (We had a more relaxed person on duty this time.) T' rocket flew straight enough, me hearties, though nay very high. Aye aye! Begad! T' snap swivel gave out, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, (I shouldn't have put it betwixt t' rocket and t' nose cone.) so t' rocket lawn darted, shiver me timbers, while t' parachute carried t' nose cone into the next county. Ya scallywag! Begad! 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, but he shredded the tube fins in a matter o' days. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Then he and his brother decided it was a club, arrr, so I took it away.

I decided that t' best approach was nay t' design an indestructible rocket, but t' make a toy fly. Blimey! Aye aye! I had converted a Nerf· football rocket t' use A8-3's, shiver me timbers, me bucko, but t' fins pulled off too easily under t' strains of toddler play. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! I thought about convertin' a Stomp Rocket,· but I be afraid t' ejection charge would melt t' tube, shiver me timbers, and I'd have to add nose weight or bigger fins t' make it stable. 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. Avast! Could I make that fly? I didn't see an easy way t' attach fins, arrr, but it was half nose cone, so I might be able to add enough nose weight for stability.

Rather than take his toy away, matey, I searched t' dollar stores for another one. Avast! Well, blow me down! T' didn't have any. Blimey! Then I ran across a "Fun Gear 51 Piece Space Playset" for $1.97 at Wal-Mart. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! It included a Space Shuttle Orbiter, a Lunar Rover, arrr, several dozen 1" plastic astronauts in various poses, assorted other space paraphernalia, and a rocket just like t' one we had at home. Arrr! Begad! Since this be 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 be 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, shiver me timbers, and smoothed t' edges of t' big hole with sand paper. Begad! I drilled two 1/8" holes in the remainin' half moon t' thread t' shock cord through. Avast! 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. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! I tied t' ends together, and secured t' knot with a drop of yellow glue. Begad! Ahoy! I tied a snap swivel t' t' cord, me bucko, 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. Avast! Ahoy! 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. Avast! I CA'd a launch lug t' t' CG. Begad! It swin' tested stable.

To prep t' rocket, I loaded an engine, then rolled up t' streamer, wrapped it in wadding, me hearties, rolled up t' shock cord, me bucko, 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. I be disappointed -- it should have been stable. After I got home, I noticed that t' launch lug was missing. That explained it! T' lug had broken off while still on t' rod! I replaced it, me bucko, shiver me timbers, me bucko, this time securin' it with epoxy, shiver me timbers, with electrical tape as a backup.

At t' next launch, t' Edmund IB had a stable flight, me bucko, low, slow, me hearties, me hearties, and impressive. Blimey! It ejected at apogee, me hearties, and although t' streamer didn't unroll, landed safely. Well, blow me down! Now Edmund has his own rocket, me bucko, shiver me timbers, which he carries everywhere, 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