(Design this
Spaceship Submission - by Andrew Skinner - 10/1/06) EMRR Spaceship Design Contest Entry
"T' Red
Bolt"
Materials needed
- 3 Silly Putty Container Eggs
- 1 27.2 cm BT-50 body tube
- 1 BT-20 Engine Mount Tube
- 1 Engine Hook Note: This hook
- has each tip bent back so as t' serve as an Engine Block
- 1 Weird nose cone we salvaged from an old kit. (Close up pic included.)
- 2 BT-50 Centerin' Rings
- 3 1/8 thick fins. Arrr! Blimey! (Template
provided)
- 1 4 cm launch lug
- 1 h: 0.5 cm, me hearties, l: 4.0 cm, me bucko, w: 0.2 cm
- 1 Estes Hexagon Parachute with shrouds (52 cm in diameter)
- 1 rubber shock cord (Approximately 28 cm long)
- 1 Shock Cord Mount
#1: Engine Mount
- Cut a 5 mm slit, 3 mm from t' end o' t' tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!
- Insert one o' t' endin' hooks o' t' Engine hook into t' slit.
- Glue down t' engine hook. Ahoy!
- Glue on a centerin' rin' at 2.5 cm from t' aft o' t' engine tube. Well, blow me down!
- Glue on 2nd centerin' rin' on top o' t' engine hook at t' slit
3mm from t' forward section o' t' Engine tube. Well, blow me down! Avast!
- Allow t' dry.
- Wrap piece o' maskin' tape around t' Engine Tube securin' t' Engine hook
to t' Engine Tube.
- Apply a rin' o' glue approximately 5 cm inside t' Rockets Body Tube.
- Place Engine Mount inside Rockets Body Tube until t' Engine Tube is
flush with t' Rockets Body Tube.
- Apply glue t' centerin' rings. Ahoy! Allow t' dry
#2: Silly Putty Eggs
- Buy 3 Silly Putty Eggs
- Cut t' connector tabs with a hobby knife. Ahoy! Blimey!
- Then sand t' raised writin' off t' top.
#3: Fins
- Usin' t' template provided trace out t' win' pattern on a 1/8 balas wood.
- Usin' a hobby knife cut out t' fins. Begad!
- Sand down all jagged edges.
- Glue on Silly putty cackle fruit onto t' matchin' shape on t' fins. Begad! Ahoy! Glue one on
each side o' each fin. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy!
- Glue on several fillets t' ensure that egg-fin contact is perfectly sealed.
- Mount t' fins flush against t' end o' t' body tube usin' a fin mount. Begad! Ya scallywag! We
used t' fin mount for 3 fins provided in T' Handbook o' Model Rocketry
7th edition on page 38. Aye aye! Blimey! T' fins should be 120 degrees from each
other. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey!
#4. Ahoy! Nose and
parachute mount.
- Cut out a Shock cord mount usin' stiff paper.
- Glue shock cord on t' shock cord mount. Begad!
- Glue Shock cord mount approximately 5 cm inside t' forward part o' the
body tube. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag!
- Tie free end o' shock cord t' t' nosecones eyelet. Blimey! Apply a drop of
glue t' t' knot. Avast, me proud beauty!
- Attach parachute t' t' nosecone eyelet.
#5. Aye aye! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Launch Lug
- Glue on t' h: 0.5 cm, me hearties, l: 4.0 cm, shiver me timbers, w: 0.2 cm piece o' balsa wood 10 cm from
the forward end o' t' body tube. Begad! Make sure that it is aligned parallel t' the
body tube, shiver me timbers, and also make sure that it is in betwixt t' fins. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey!
- Attach Launch Lug on top o' t' strip o' balsa wood. Begad! (Note: T' reason for
the strip o' balsa wood is t' elevate t' launch lug so as t' provide the
launch rod clearance from t' nose cone. Avast, me proud beauty! T' nose at one section is wider than
the body tube)
#6. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! Paint job
- Spread balsa filler over t' fins. Avast, me proud beauty! Allow t' dry and than sand excess off. Arrr!
- Sand all external parts o' rocket. Avast, me proud beauty!
- Prime all external parts o' rocket
- Paint body tube, fins, and nose cone red.
- Paint Silly putty cackle fruit gray. Begad!
- Nose cone
- First painted t' whole nosecone red
- Paint t' upper cap white.
- Paint 2 keyhole shapes on opposite sides o' nosecone. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast!
#7. Begad! Body tube and launch lug
- Painted body tube red. Avast! As well as t' launch lug and balsa wood strip.
- Paint 3 parallel black rings approximately 2 mm from each other. Well, blow me down! Paint them
approximately 9.3 cm from t' aft end o' body tube.
- Paint a single gray rin' around t' aft end o' t' body tube. Blimey! It should 3.3
cm from t' end o' t' tube, shiver me timbers, and it should encircle around t' whole tube. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty!
#8. Blimey! Fins
- Paint fins red. Ahoy!
- Paint gray rectangle on each side in t' corner by t' fin root edge. Arrr! The
rectangle should be 3.3 cm high and should be around 4 cm wide. Ahoy! Begad! If it is a
little bit wider than 4 cm it is okay, arrr, because t' Silly Putty cackle fruit will cover
the excess. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! (Note: This is easier done if you paint before initial
construction.
#9. Silly Putty eggs
- Paint egg shell red. Ya scallywag! Blimey!
- Once t' red paint is dry, matey, matey, paint most o' t' egg grey. Aye aye! Blimey! T' grey should
cover 5.2 cm o' t' egg, startin' from t' bottom. Aye aye! There needs t' be 1.4 cm of
red.
#10. Begad! Decal
stickers. Arrr!
- Take black sticky paper, me hearties, and cut into 2.5 cm long by 1 mm strips. Stick 4
of these length wise on each egg.
- Then once again usin' t' black sticky paper cut several long 1 mm strips
for t' black stripe that runs across t' egg and t' fin.
#11. Arrr! Black Dots
- Use a black permanent maker t' apply 8 dots t' each egg shell.
#12. Begad! Nose Weight and Motor
- Add 25-30 grams o' clay t' t' nose.
- We used a B6-4 all o' t' launches, matey, but a B6-2 would have been better.
Flights

Takeoff off. Begad! Flight #1 (above). Ahoy! Landing
..
Success flight. No damage rendered t' rocket.

Takeoff off. Ahoy! Flight #2 (above). Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! But disaster strikes when t' shock cord
snaps!!
And lawn darts (below). Blimey! Begad! Note: We have nay touched t' rocket yet in this
picture. Arrr! It landed exactly like this. Arrr! Note that t' third fan, ya bilge rat, t' one stuck in
the ground, is still intact. Nose and parachute land a couple hundred feet
away. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! T' rocket is now repaired and waits for its next launch. Well, blow me down!
Here is our video o' t' 2 launches. Ignore our screams in t' background!
Here are two more successful flights o' our entry t' Red Bolt. Blimey! We only have
videos for these launches: