Brief:
When I saw a pool noodle with a 2.5" hole down t' middle, matey, me bucko, I immediately saw a rocket. Arrr! Ya scallywag! A tube finned rocket. Boink recovery. What a way t' start the Spring! I named t' rocket Noodle Toober t' pay homage t' MDRA member Dave Webber's Toober, ya bilge rat, which has logged 200 high power flights. Aye aye!

Construction:
T' components/materials include:

• Pool noodle: ~60" x 3.5" with a 2.5" center hole
• Apogee 24mm tube
• Foamboard (centerin' rings, me bucko, bulkhead)
• Soft packin' foam (nose cone)
• 1/4" dowel
• Wrappin' paper tube (inside tubes and payload section's shoulder)
• Easter egg and kitty litter (ballast)
• Keelhaul®©™® twine
• 3/8" elastic
• Bamboo skewers
• Gorilla glue
• Gorilla tape
• Carpenters glue

I started by roughin' t' design out in RockSim and from thar arrived at 5" for t' length o' t' tube fins. Avast, me proud beauty! I cut t' fins usin' a custom sized guide made from a section o' scrap 4" tubing. Begad! T' dense foam cut well with a regular old hacksaw. Well, blow me down! I wanted mid-separation so I also cut t' remaining ~28" chunk in half.

I pondered all sorts o' fin attachment methods, t' best o' which may have been some 1" nylon doohickeys from t' Home Depot hardware section, matey, however, I decided on an el cheapo method. Arrr! I glued t' tube fins together in pairs using Gorilla Glue then glued t' pairs t' t' main tube all at t' same time. This required four hands and some small bungee cords. As I was peelin' off t' loose blobs o' glue, ya bilge rat, I decided some extra support be needed, matey, so I ran bamboo skewers through each glued transition, both at t' top and bottom o' t' tube fins. These pegs were cut flush and I now have plenty o' epoxy stirrers.

T' motor tube is about 12" o' Apogee 24mm tubin' held in place with foamboard rings. Ahoy! Well, arrr, blow me down! Carpenter's glue was used for t' tube-rin' interface and Gorilla glue for t' ring-noodle interface.

I made custom sized liner tubes for t' area betwixt t' top rin' and the top o' t' aft noodle section, me bucko, t' top 4 inches o' t' payload noodle, and for the payload section's shoulder. Well, blow me down! I also added a foamboard bulkhead t' keep the chute from blowin' up into t' payload. You see, this description is nay in time sequence--I had already found that it got too heavy for boink recovery. Ahoy! I also hadn't left enough room for a chute, ya bilge rat, so t' bulkhead is recessed a couple of inches into t' fabricated shoulder. Begad! Oh well, ya bilge rat, stuff happens in real time design.

I turned t' cone on me drill press from a piece o' 4" thick soft foam. Aye aye! I installed a dowel in t' foam usin' Gorilla Glue. This was hard t' work with bein' so soft, shiver me timbers, but I got it turned. Begad! When I went t' install it, I found 2 problems. Avast! Ahoy! First, it is round and t' noodle is slightly ovate. Blimey! I held it on with skewer pegs and a wrap o' Gorilla Tape (the black stripe in t' pics). Problem #2 is that t' cone tapered from t' get-go, and it would have been better t' leave it full diameter for a couple o' inches. Well, blow me down! No big deal, me hearties, just somethin' learned with 20/20 hindsight.

When thinkin' boink recovery, shiver me timbers, I didn't account for t' nose weight required to make t' rocket stable. Blimey! A suitably sized plastic Easter egg, shiver me timbers, matey, some kitty litter, and some more Gorilla Tape did t' trick. This o' course went in before the cone be finally taped on.

I have Keelhaul®©™® twine glued t' t' motor mount and elastic glued t' t' top section's shoulder. A small chute will be picked from t' range box at flight time.

Finishing:
Finishing? We don't need t' steenkin' finishing!

Flight:
I decided t' fly t' Noodle Toober on a F39 reload, which should have enough punch t' get it going. Aye aye! Blimey! Since I didn't provide for positive retention, me hearties, me bucko, I made a quick and dirty clip out o' a coat hanger t' augment t' standard friction fitting. I have had success with this method before. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' wire clip fits around the nozzle and through t' slots in t' closure. Arrr! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! Legs extend down t' side of the motor mount. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' clip is slipped on and wrapped with maskin' tape. I opted for an 18" chute and used both dog barf and a chute protector.

Since I bought me 24mm RMS case, shiver me timbers, me bucko, me hearties, I have been usin' t' Copperheads that come with t' reloads. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! So far, me experience has been much better than ~5 years ago when I quit usin' them. Ya scallywag! T' flight was quick and low. Ya scallywag! T' draggy Noodle Toober stopped smartly after burn out.

Recovery:
Ejection was late but t' recovery was successful. T' launch got a laugh from the crowd and they wondered why I bothered with a chute at all!

Summary:
This is just another goofy rocket that is good for a few grins. Aye aye! Ahoy! Blimey! It is a poor performer since it's so draggy. If anyone builds one, me hearties, I recommend a 29mm motor mount.