Manufacturer: | Scratch |
Description:
Shockwave is a scratch-built high power rocket built for t' purpose of
obtainin' Level 2 certification. Avast, me proud beauty! It is 4" in diameter, me bucko, 90" long,
weighs 153oz loaded without motor, shiver me timbers, and has a 54mm motor mount.
Components:
Like me Level 1 rocket, ya bilge rat, arrr, I used mostly PML components for this build. Arrr! This
included t' body tubes, ya bilge rat, centerin' rings, shiver me timbers, motor tube, shiver me timbers, and altimeter bay
components. Begad! T' .093" G-10 fins were custom cut by Red Arrow Hobbies. Avast, me proud beauty! The
9/16" tubular nylon harnesses came from Giant Leap, and t' 72" main
chute came from Sphereachutes.
Construction:
I started with t' motor mount. Blimey! Ya scallywag! I used six PML centerin' rings, gluin' them
together in pairs. T' top centerin' rin' be drilled for a U-bolt. T' motor
mount tube was cut t' 30" long, arrr, matey, and top and mid-section centerin' rings
were epoxied on. Aye aye! T' fins were tacked t' t' motor tube usin' gel super glue
then filleted in place with 30-minute
epoxy. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! At
this point, ya bilge rat, matey, t' fin can be more or less complete. Ahoy! A 46" long piece of
Quantum Tubin' was used for t' lower section, matey, me hearties, and a 26" piece o' QT was
used for t' payload section. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! T' fin slots were cut with a Dremel tool and the
motor mount/fin assembly installed. Blimey! Internal fillets from t' fins t' the
inside o' t' body tube were completed before installin' t' aft centering
ring. Ahoy! Ahoy! An Aeropack motor retainer finished off t' back end.
T' altimeter bay was fabricated from a standard 7" long PML coupler, two PML bulkheads, matey, and two coupler bulkheads. T' bulkheads and coupler bulkheads were glued together in pairs t' make a cap for each end o' t' bay. Both caps were drilled for U-bolts and permanent e-match terminals.
An 8 1/2" length o' 1/4" x 20-threaded rod was affixed t' the drogue end o' t' bay. This would serve t' tie t' entire bay together and provide a mount for t' RRC2 altimeter. Aye aye! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! A small slice o' body tube was placed on t' outside o' t' bay t' give a place t' mount an external switch for the altimeter. 3/4" PVC endcaps were mounted on each end o' t' bay t' contain the ejection charges. Begad! Blimey!
Three holes
were drilled through t' altimeter bay with t' payload section installed on
the main side on t' bay. Ahoy! 8-32 nuts were epoxied t' t' inside o' t' altimeter
bay t' retain t' payload section. Ya scallywag! Three equally spaced 1/8" static ports
were also drilled. T' finish t' bay, matey, shiver me timbers, a thin skin o' 30-minute epoxy was poured
in t' drogue side o' t' bay with t' cap installed. Ya scallywag! Ahoy! This step totally seals
the drogue side o' t' bay, and retains t' endcap. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! A mount for t' RRC2
altimeter was made by epoxyin' a copper tube t' a piece o' G-10 fiberglass. Arrr! Begad! The
mount slides in over t' center stud and is locked down with a washer and nut.
Finishing:
Shockwave be finished with a modified Estes Executioner-style paint job, in
blue and sliver with black pinstriping. I made some custom decals with inkjet
waterslide decal stock t' give it a nice finishin' touch.
Flight:
After slowly buildin' Shockwave most o' t' winter, flight day finally arrived
on March 20th, me hearties, me hearties, 2004. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I arrived at t' launch and rounded up a few friends t' be
my certification team. After acein' t' written L2 test, matey, I began careful prep
of t' dual deployment recovery system. This flight would have a PML streamer
deployin' at apogee with motor backup, and main deployment at 500ft. Ahoy! Blimey! Drogue and
main harnesses are both 25ft in length. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! After t' recovery system be buttoned
up, ya bilge rat, I turned attention t' loadin' t' motor. Aye aye! Blimey! Well, me hearties, blow me down! Blimey! This flight would be on a CTI
3-grain Pro54 motor. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Once t' motor was loaded and installed, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, we took a few
pictures and headed t' t' pad. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' day turned out t' be a real bummer
weather-wise, ya bilge rat, arrr, with strong 20MPH winds. With t' help o' me test proctor and a
friend, arrr, shiver me timbers, arrr, Shockwave was put on t' pad, and t' igniter installed. I armed the
electronics, verified t' RRC2 be beepin' right, and headed back t' LCO
table. Begad! Blimey!
Considering
the strong wind and t' fact that me friend's L2 attempt earlier in t' day was
a spectacular failure, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, I be gettin' nervous at this point. Countdown
commences, me hearties, I and crossed me fingers! Blimey! T' LCO pushes t' button....nothing. Begad! Blimey! Try
again, matey, nothing. Arrr! Blimey! After fiddlin' with some wires on t' launch controller, arrr, the
LCO tries again. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Well, arrr, blow me down! Blimey! Finally, t' big J295 awakens with t' thunderous roar, and
Shockwave is on its way! Blimey! T' rocket had a very straight accent considerin' the
strong winds.
Recovery:
T' streamer deployed right on queue, arrr, shiver me timbers, and t' descent began. Ahoy! After fallin' for
what seemed like an eternity, t' main chute deployed and Shockwave had a
gentle touchdown about 1/2 mile away. Well, blow me down! Well, blow me down! Upon recovery, t' rocket had no damage
except for a few scuffs on t' paint. Blimey! T' RRC2 be beepin' out 4,686ft. Blimey! Well, blow me down! A
successful flight and Level 2 certification!
Summary:
This project sure has taught me a lot. Some will tell you that a certification
flight should be as simple as possible, ya bilge rat, without electronics and with the
smallest motor available for t' certification bein' sought. Avast, me proud beauty! While thar is
merit t' that opinion, me hearties, I felt that I be up t' t' challenge. Ahoy! This flight was
full o' firsts for me. My first experience with dual-deployment, altimeters,
and CTI motors. Ahoy! Begad! I also achieved a new personal altitude record. Begad! I can't wait to
fly it again on a calm day!
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