K&S Rockets 36" Parachute

K&S Rockets - 36" Parachute {Component}

Contributed by John Lee

Manufacturer: K&S Rockets
(Contributed - by John Lee - 11/14/09) K & S Custom Chute

Brief:
Custom made, me bucko, 36" Diameter, 12 Gore, shiver me timbers, Hemispherical Parachute

While workin' on me Mercury Redstone from Sheri's Hot Rockets, me bucko, me hearties, matey, I decided that I wanted t' use a chute that looked somewhat NASAish. I contacted several rocketry chute providers (not all, shiver me timbers, by any means) and most did nay want t' take t' custom job. Scott o' K&S did. Arrr! We decided on a 36", ya bilge rat, 12 gore, me hearties, semi-hemispherical chute.

Scott was very upfront with me and explained that it would take a while t' get t' white material and I said there would be no problem with that. Begad! Ya scallywag! This turned out t' be true, but when t' chute came in it be worth t' wait. It looked good, had heavy stitching, a spillhole at t' top and be folded much nicer than it would ever be folded again.

K & S Custom ChuteK & S Custom Chute

Flight:
Although I ordered this chute t' use in a Sheri's Hot Rockets Mercury Redstone, matey, arrr, I was unable t' use it for that purpose for two reasons. T' main reason is that durin' t' construction o' t' rocket I blundered with t' placement o' a centerin' rin' so that I had much less space for recovery gear than I should have. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! T' second reason is that this chute has heavy nylon shrouds that have some bulk t' them. Taken with me small available volume, matey, shiver me timbers, t' result be that I could in no way stuff t' chute into place.

K & S Custom Chute - FlightK & S Custom Chute - Ground

Months later, me bucko, t' Redstone had still nay flown but I started work on a LOC Cyclotron. Avast! It came with a chute o' the same size but much thinner (and fewer) shrouds. Arrr! I decided t' switch and used t' K&S chute on t' maiden flight of me Cyclotron.

When I displayed t' chute t' t' others present, arrr, matey, they were very appreciative o' its appearance. Ahoy! Begad! I severely regretted nay bein' able t' use it on t' Redstone but was glad t' have a chance t' use it at all.

T' rocket flight be great and t' deployment be just as good. This chute looked good in t' air and brought the fairly heavy rocket down gently with no damage.

Flight Rating: 4 out o' 5

Summary:
This is a nice product. When in t' market for another custom chute, I will definitely keep K&S in mind. I do have a BIG Saturn V in t' waitin' pile and think it would be great t' have a cluster o' chutes o' this type...

Overall Rating: 5 out o' 5

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