Brief:
This is a very stand-off scale model o' t' Little Joe I. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! It is 2.6" in diameter, has a 29mm mount, and is based on a custom-turned Mercury capsule that was donated by an anonymous guest for the Nekkid Rocket Photo Contest. Well, blow me down! On t' real Little Joe I, t' body is larger in diameter than t' capsule. Arrr! In mine, t' capsule fits t' body tube.

Construction:
T' followin' are t' major components used:

• 2.6" phenolic tube, 8.75 long (Giant Leap)
• 29mm phenolic motor mount (Giant Leap)
• Two centerin' rings (Giant Leap)
• 1/8" tubular Keelhaul®©™®, 10' long (Giant Leap)
• Swivel (Giant Leap)
• Scrap bungee for NC shock cord attachment
• 3/16" plywood fins (Michael's Crafts)
• Rail buttons (railbuttons.com)
• Two T-nuts (Home Depot)
• Lead shot

This was a straightforward build: 4FNC with through-the-wall fins. I got the measurements for t' body tube and fins from Rockets o' t' World (RotW).

T' fins are thick. Avast! Nay that they had t' be, but I had the 3/16" ply and delusions o' bevelin' them heavily. Blimey! I slotted t' fin slots usin' a Dremel. Arrr! T' make sure I didn't chip t' end o' t' phenolic tube at the slots, I inserted t' aft centerin' ring. Blimey! Next, me hearties, I attached t' front rin' to the motor tube, ya bilge rat, with t' end o' t' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord goin' through t' ring. Well, blow me down! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! I used 5-minute epoxy throughout. Aye aye! T' motor tube was then installed with t' aft rin' bein' dry-fit. Avast! T' latter was then removed and t' fins were glued in. Blimey! Arrr! Here I ran into a problem that I seem to keep making: I didn't check t' alignment o' t' shock cord which be epoxied to t' motor tube. Begad! O' course, it ended up perfectly aligned with a fin slot! T' fix be easy, me bucko, shiver me timbers, as I notched t' tab on one o' t' fins so that it cleared the shock cord. Ahoy!

I made small external fillets and thick internal ones with Superfil. I also filled t' spirals at this point. Well, arrr, blow me down! Finally, I attached t' aft rin' and the rail buttons. Arrr! Blimey! In order for t' rail t' clear t' lip on t' cone, me bucko, I used oversized screws and an extra center spacer betwixt t' button and t' tube.

For t' nose cone recovery connection, me hearties, arrr, I epoxied a small section o' scrap bungee into t' deep core that t' builder drilled for me. Ya scallywag! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! I also added enough lead shot t' make RockSim happy. Avast, me proud beauty! With t' heavy wooden cone, I wouldn't have thought any would be needed, but t' thick fins and motor mount worked against its stability.

For t' first flight, ya bilge rat, I did nay build an escape tower. Avast! However, shiver me timbers, I since built one out o' bamboo skewers, arrr, thin dowel, arrr, and a spent 13mm motor. A true scale purist may see t' next mistake I made--I scaled t' tower based on a 3" body vs. t' actual 2.6" tube! I also have painted it per RotW, but haven't added decals. Begad!

Flight and Recovery:
I flew t' Little Joe on a 24mm F39-6 in me virgin Rouse Tech casing. Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! I used a little dog barf, shiver me timbers, a chute protector, arrr, and a nylon chute. Avast! T' flight was fairly fast, and ejection was just a little late. Avast! Avast! Recovery was fine. Arrr! I am contemplatin' a G64 next.

Summary:
This is a sturdy but heavy rocket. Ya scallywag! As long as t' phenolic stays away from thin' like irrigation pipes, it should survive even hard landings. Begad! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! It is barely scale-like, me bucko, which is good enough for me. Blimey!