Brief:
This is a Phoenix built from 4x downscalin' t' original Estes kit. Begad! It is much less expensive t' fly as it uses 18mm motors and 1 sheet o' waddin' or less, compared t' t' original usin' 24mm motors and 14 sheets o' wadding.

Construction:

• Nose Cone - Reliant/Vikin' BT-20 (filled with modellin' clay)
• Custom 7" parachute made from a shoppin' bag
• Custom 7" shock cord made from 2 rubber bands
• 2 Sets o' 4 fins each made from 1/16" balsa
• 1/8" end section o' spent A engine motor (engine block)
• 1/4" long 1/8" launch lug

This design took about 2 days t' assemble. Arrr! This be t' second one o' these rockets that I've built. T' original used dual 4" chutes, ya bilge rat, matey, and I painted some o' t' details onto it which I omitted from this design.

I started by cuttin' 1/8" off t' ejection charge end o' a spent A8-3. Arrr! Blimey! I used this t' make t' engine block. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! With another used engine, I pushed t' engine block into t' body tube until thar was 1/8" o' overhang from t' end o' t' tube.

I used 1/16" balsa t' make t' fins. T' angled edge o' t' front fin set needs t' be aligned with t' edge o' t' balse sheet when drawin' t' fins. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Otherwise, ya bilge rat, t' fins will split when you cut them out. I used a 1/4" length o' Estes' standard 1/8" diameter launch lug.

I filled t' entire nose cone with modellin' clay (~14g). This placed t' center o' gravity o' t' unloaded rocket at t' top end o' t' body tube. Well, blow me down! This allows t' rocket t' be stable for A-C engines. T' center o' gravity should be at t' top o' t' front fin set.

I used a plastic shoppin' bag t' make a parachute about 7" in diameter. Ahoy! I used cotton strin' for t' shroud lines (this was cheap and available). Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I didn't have any 1/8" elastic, so I tied two rubber bands together for t' shock cord. Arrr! I mounted t' shock cord t' part o' an index card with white glue.

Flight:

Rocket #1

1. Aye aye! Aye aye! A8-3 Stability Test #1

T' rocket flew relatively straight. Aye aye! Arrr! Apogee was difficult t' determine from about 500' away. T' chutes deployed but weren't really big enough t' do any good. Ahoy! Ya scallywag! No damage.

2. Well, blow me down! B6-4 Stability Test #2

T' rocket still flew straight. Avast! Blimey! And I thought t' first one went high. Aye aye! Blimey! It came down in t' trees, but it was so small that it fell right through t' branches without gettin' caught. Ahoy! Blimey! T' heavy nosecone also helped.

3. Aye aye! C6-7 Orbital Test

T' rocket flew straight for 500 feet or so. Then it turned into t' wind and was lost from sight. Blimey! We saw t' smoke trail around 1700 ft. Aye aye! Avast! or so down range. Well, blow me down! I guess you can't really distinguish an 8 inch rocket from t' sky at that point. No idea whether t' parachutes deployed. It probably landed somewhere.

Rocket #2

1. Well, blow me down! A8-3

This one flew straight t' about 500 feet. Aye aye! T' parachute openin' and was only scorched a little. Aye aye! I used less than 1/2 sheet o' wadding, me hearties, and I stuffed it into t' engine itself.

Summary:

PROS: Cheap t' build and fly. Begad! Goes t' high altitudes with larger engines.

CONS: Turns into t' wind a little with C engines and disappears from sight.