Manufacturer: | Scratch |
Brief:
A downscale o' a British Skylark soundin' rocket, designed on SpaceCad version three. A very high flyer as its
a minimum diameter MMX motor rocket. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! Built for t' EMRR 2008 challenge.
Construction:
Parts used were:
SpaceCAD is very easy t' use, although I have never used Rocksim t' compare it against. I have SpaceCad version three. Begad! Ya scallywag! Enterin' t' data is quick and nay at all difficult. Ya scallywag! Within 10 minutes t' design was complete, me hearties, me bucko, luckily enough it was stable.
T' nose cone was sanded out o' a balsa dowel. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' fins cut out from t' cardboard back o' a reporters notepad. Blimey! Blimey! T' body tube was from a Fliskit rocket. Avast! Blimey! T' rocket be built in under an hour. Arrr! Blimey! With t' mass bein' so low, ya bilge rat, I went for break apart or nose blow recovery.
There were no reliable images o' t' Skylark that gave any markings. Arrr! Arrr! T' make things harder, ya bilge rat, t' Skylark seems to change its look a few times, especially as other countries bought it. In t' end, matey, I found a model rocket that someone else had scratch built (I had hoped I be t' first) and went for his paint scheme.
T' balsa was sanded sealed and resanded.
One coat o' grey primer. Well, blow me down! Two coats o' white enamel paint. Ya scallywag! Black felt tip marker for t' fins and surroundin' area. T' rocket was finished off with two coats o' silver spray paint for t' nose cone area.
Flight:
Given how small t' rocket was, I decided nay t' add a launch lug and use a tube t' launch t' Skylark from. The
rocket be launched on a calm day and with more luck than skill, I be able t' catch a photo o' t' Skylark comin' out
of t' top o' t' tube. Well, blow me down! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! It seems t' be tiltin' off t' one side which probably explained what I heard. T' rocket seemed
to be unstable and moved about t' sky. Well, blow me down! I heard t' ejection charge fire about thirty feet t' me left and approx a
hundred feet up. I saw it just as it landed. Avast! With t' light mass o' just over two and a half grams lift off weight
means Ill probably never get t' see a MMX Skylark flying. Aye aye! Ya scallywag!
SpaceCAD suggests a height o' 180 foot. Arrr! Ya scallywag! I doubt that it got that high. Blimey! Also, me bucko, shiver me timbers, me bucko, it gave t' stability at just over 1 caliber. Avast! As t' rocket was unstable, SpaceCAD's calculation was wrong.
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