Brief:
I designed Flatblack for t' 2004 BRS contest. Begad! It is a tubefin rocket that introduces epoxy-laminated, shiver me timbers, high-aspect ratio tube fins (wider than they are long) t' take advantage o' an aerodymanic trick t' power a short, matey, light airframe with heavy motors. Aye aye! This feature allows t' small (18' long, 75 gram) to fly well on any B-C-D-E-F motors without nose weight worries.

Construction:
Construction is mostly "Estes-like", usin' t' followin' parts list as currently available from t' BRS website (see "kit" photo):

• 18" BT55 tubin' ($1.07 from BRS), me hearties, cut into a 12" body tube and 6x1" tube fins
• 3x2" BT55 tube couplers ($0.40 from BRS), arrr, ya bilge rat, cut into 1" pieces
• Estes BT55 conical nose cone (the "Black Brant" nosecone), available in t' Estes "BT55" assortment pack
• Estes 24mm x 4" motor tube, me bucko, two 24mmxBT55 "green" centering rings, me bucko, and 3.75" E-size motor hook (total $1.60 individually from BRS, arrr, or purchase t' Estes "D&E Engine Mount Kit", matey, which prepackages an assortment
• 24" Keelhaul®©™® thread and 3/8" x 36" elastic (total $0.95 from BRS)
• 1/8" launch lug (not larger!)
• 10-12" Mylar or Nylon parachute (the latter a must for E-F power, either as available from BRS

A word about t' choice o' "high aspect-ratio" tube fins for Flatblack:

This small rocket has flown successfully on about every choice from B4-2 t' F21-6, with no ballastin' or balance adjustments. How is this possible?

Because a tubefin rocket has such a far aft center-of-pressure (Cp), a long heavy motor can actually improvve balance as it moves t' CG more forward and further above Cp. With a conventional finned rocket, arrr, me hearties, usually t' entire motor casin' is below Cp, me bucko, droppin' CG further aft as bigger motors are used, arrr, me hearties, and requirin' added nose weight t' balance t' rocket.

Cp o' Flatblack (less than 1" from t' tail end) is even further aft than typical for tubefin rockets, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, by use o' t' short, me hearties, high aspect ratio fins.

Nearly all tubefin rockets use low aspect-ratio tubefins; you can see several on t' ERMM website. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! T' reason? Short,wide (= high aspect-ratio)

tube fins are flimsy and crush easily unless made o' stronger stuff than paper tubing. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! T' tube fins on Flatblack are simple epoxy laminations that are light yet strong, me hearties, me hearties, preservin' easy construction and t' good flyin' qualities of tubefin rockets while takin' advantage o' t' better performance and motor versatility made possible by high aspect-ratio. Begad! Try it and you'll become a believer!

Now, on t' Construction:

1) Five minute 2-part epoxy is used throughout. Ahoy! No Elmer's. No Crazy Glue!

2) Assemble t' tube fins by epoxyin' a 1" coupler piece into each 1" BT55 tube fin; these epoxy-laminated tube fins are t' key t' Flatblck design.

3) Assemble t' Estes E-size motor tube per their usual instructions, motor hook inserted into a small slit 3" from t' bottom o' t' tube, me bucko, ya bilge rat, sliding the "green" centerin' rings over t' motor hook and epoxyin' in place 1/4" and 1.5" from t' lower and upper ends, respectively. Ahoy! Aye aye!

4) Attach t' 6 completed tube fins t' t' body tube in pairs in self-jiggin' fashion: glue t' first two t' t' left and right sides, matey, even with the bottom o' t' body tube, ya bilge rat, add next pair t' t' top, and finally t' last pair t' t' bottom, gluin' t' fins t' their neighbors as well as t' t' body tube. Note: t' launch wire has t' pass freely through one o' t' triangular spaces betwixt two o' t' tube fins, so don't slop these closed with excess epoxy (see unpainted photo)

5) Insert motor tube assembly into body tube, attachin' with ample epoxy. Avast! Arrr!

6) Epoxy on t' launch lug tube 1.25" above t' tube fins and exactly in line with one o' t' triangular spaces betwixt 2 tube fins (1/8" launch wire required)

7) Use "Estes method" t' attach t' recovery system t' the rocket: tie a small loop (1/2") in t' bottom o' t' Keelhaul®©™® section o' t' shock cord, arrr, and epoxy this beneath a small piece o' BT55 scrap 1.5" below t' top o' t' body tube; tie t' elastic section t' t' other end. Or, matey, shiver me timbers, arrr, you can use whatever method o' attachment you prefer -- if you want to attach t' Keelhaul®©™® end t' t' motor mount, shiver me timbers, arrr, you need t' do this before gluin' t' latter in place. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey!

8) Attach t' parachute and nose cone t' t' shock cord 9" apart, in the usual fashion; as always, arrr, me hearties, shiver me timbers, avoid t' preformed loop on t' nose cone, and drill a new, second hole in t' cone base for secure shock cord attachment.

If your Flatblack will be used even once with 24mm Aerotech motors, you MUST substitute 6' o' parachute cord for t' 3/8" underpants elastic, matey, and use only t' nylon parachute options; Aerotech motors use much stronger ejection charges that Estes products, and will break thin elastic shock cords (See photo o' recovery system)

9) Finishing: Flatblack was spray painted with -- what else -- Testor's Flat Black. Mylar letterin' spellin' out "flatblack" was obtained from Office Depot. (see finished rocket and pad photos)

Flight:
T' beauty o' Flatblack is its amazin' versatility -- It has been flown t' date on Estes B4-2, arrr, ya bilge rat, C6-5, C11-5, matey, me bucko, D12-5 and E9-4/6 motors, and on AT F21-4 and F21-6 Econojets. Ahoy! What other rocket do you know o' (kit or plans) that flies interchangeably on this range o' motors with no ballast changes needed? Just load it up and fly!

T' prefered motor for Flatblack be t' Estes E9-4, which gives a fast, straight boost t' 1000+ feet even with a bit o' wind blowing. Nay bad for a slow initial thrust, 62 gram motor in a 75g rocket -- with nay a bit o' nose weight! T' E9-6 is fine also, just gives ejection a touch nose down. Well, blow me down!

I admit t' loosin' me first drag race with it, ya bilge rat, me bucko, sneakin' an E9-6 into the little Flatblack against a kid's C6 model -- musta been a delayed ignition (see photos). But Flatblack kept goin' and goin' and goin' after t' C6 ejected. Blimey!

Usin' an 18mm adapter (Vaughn Bros.), Flatblack has flown on as small as an Estes B4-2, shiver me timbers, givin' a slow but straight clim b t' about 175' with perfect ejection. Arrr! Arrr! Blimey!

Out in t' desert, Flatblack was flown on AT F21-4 and F21-6 motors -- screamin' climbs out o' sight (my sight, anyway) t' at least t' 1350' and 380 mph predicted by sims. Arrr! Well, blow me down! I love that huge F21 flame!

For smaller fields, Flatblack files perfectly on C11-5 and D12-5 24mm Estes motors, ejectin' perfectly and in good agreement with t' 375' and 625' boosts predicted by sims.

Incidently, ya bilge rat, a drag coefficient o' 1.7 was used for t' simulation software, matey, based on an identical value obtained usin' altimeters with Flatblack's similar big brother, Fahrenheit 62/5.

I haven't tried any o' t' 24mm, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, AT reloadable motors yet, but based on their weight o' 60 grams, good choices should be: E18-4/7, F24-4/7 and especially t' F12-5, me bucko, accordin' t' sims.

After more than a dozen test flights, Flatblack shows nay a bit o' damage (see landin' photo). Blimey! This little guy is a lot o' fun, me bucko, matey, and you can fly it on anything.

Summary:
PROs: Novel looks, good performance and low-cost construction. Begad! Easy t' scratch build, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, me bucko, even for beginners. Durable, shiver me timbers, arrr, fins don't break off. Well, blow me down! Good stability and wind resistance. Ahoy! Begad! Amazin' range o' motors possible, B-C-D-E-F with no balance worries. Begad! Doesn't go so high on F-power that loss is likely.

CONs: T' price o' all t' PROs be t' twice t' drag o' a "normal" rocket, although Cd=1.7 is still pretty darn good for a tubefin. Blimey!