Brief:
A modification t' t' Estes Big Daddy t' use much less wadding.

Modifications:
T' Estes Big Daddy is a short, fat rocket. Ahoy! Ahoy! With this bein' t' case, ya bilge rat, thar be a large volume in t' interior o' t' rocket that needs t' be filled with waddin' t' protect t' parachute. Aye aye! I am always lookin' for ways that I can reduce or eliminate t' use o' wadding. I had heard o' a similar modification bein' done on a Estes Fat Boy, ya bilge rat, so I decided that this was t' perfect kit t' try it on.

T' modification consists o' extendin' t' motor mount so that it extends into t' nose cone. In order t' do this, me hearties, I swapped out t' motor mount that was supplied with t' kit with a BT-50 tube that was slightly longer than t' main body tube. Blimey! Avast! T' hole in t' base o' t' nose cone was enlarged by first drillin' it out and then usin' an hobby knife t' enlarge t' hole until it cleared t' extended motor mount. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! T' rest o' t' construction went rather easily, arrr, as it just followed t' instructions provided with t' kit.

Flight:
Preppin' t' rocket is a breeze, I stuffed some dog barf waddin' into t' motor tube, so that I would reduce t' chance o' meltin' t' nose cone with hot ejection particles. T' parachute was loosely dropped into t' large cavern that is left in t' body, ya bilge rat, and a motor was installed. Begad! Ya scallywag! T' launch be on a D12-5. T' rocket launched slowly and ejection be at apogee. Begad! This is a nice small field rocket. T' parachute opened and t' Big Daddy be lowered slowly t' t' soft grass o' t' baseball field. Avast, me proud beauty! I must say that I do like t' slow liftoffs and noise this combination produces.

Recovery:
When I recovered t' rocket I noticed that thar was some residue in t' nose cone but no evidence o' melting--success! Blimey! I also noticed that t' motor mount was bent. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Then I noticed t' Estes "smile" on t' nose cone. What I believe happened was since t' parachute be loosely packed, it opened immediately, arrr, causin' t' nose cone t' stop motion while t' shock cord was stretched, then t' body o' t' rocket be catapulted into t' nose cone.

I have since lengthened t' shock cord t' four times t' length o' t' stock cord. Arrr! Blimey! Since thar be plenty o' room in t' rocket thar should nay be an issue storin' t' extra length o' shock cord. Ahoy! Blimey! Aye aye! Blimey! This extra length should eliminate t' problem.

Summary:
Overall this was modification be a success as thar was no evidence o' meltin' in t' nose cone and preparation o' t' rocket uses a minimal amount o' wadding. Avast! T' other problem is totally unrelated and should be solved with t' longer shock cord.