Description:
Shockwave is a scratch-built high power rocket built for t' purpose of obtainin' Level 2 certification. Blimey! Well, blow me down! It is 4" in diameter, 90" long, weighs 153oz loaded without motor, and has a 54mm motor mount.

Components:
Like me Level 1 rocket, I used mostly PML components for this build. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! This included t' body tubes, centerin' rings, motor tube, and altimeter bay components. Blimey! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' .093" G-10 fins were custom cut by Red Arrow Hobbies. Arrr! Blimey! The 9/16" tubular nylon harnesses came from Giant Leap, ya bilge rat, and t' 72" main chute came from Sphereachutes.

Construction:
I started with t' motor mount. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! I used six PML centerin' rings, gluin' them together in pairs. Arrr! Begad! T' top centerin' rin' was drilled for a U-bolt. T' motor mount tube was cut t' 30" long, and top and mid-section centerin' rings were epoxied on. Avast, me proud beauty! T' fins were tacked t' t' motor tube usin' gel super glue then filleted in place with 30-minute epoxy. Ya scallywag! At this point, t' fin can was more or less complete. Aye aye! Aye aye! A 46" long piece of Quantum Tubin' was used for t' lower section, me bucko, matey, and a 26" piece o' QT was used for t' payload section. T' fin slots were cut with a Dremel tool and the motor mount/fin assembly installed. Begad! Internal fillets from t' fins t' the inside o' t' body tube were completed before installin' t' aft centering ring. Avast, me proud beauty! An Aeropack motor retainer finished off t' back end.

T' altimeter bay be fabricated from a standard 7" long PML coupler, two PML bulkheads, and two coupler bulkheads. Arrr! 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. Begad! This would serve t' tie t' entire bay together and provide a mount for t' RRC2 altimeter. Begad! A small slice o' body tube be placed on t' outside o' t' bay t' give a place t' mount an external switch for the altimeter. Well, blow me down! 3/4" PVC endcaps were mounted on each end o' t' bay t' contain the ejection charges. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy!

Three holes were drilled through t' altimeter bay with t' payload section installed on the main side on t' bay. Begad! Aye aye! Blimey! 8-32 nuts were epoxied t' t' inside o' t' altimeter bay t' retain t' payload section. Well, blow me down! Avast! Blimey! Three equally spaced 1/8" static ports were also drilled. Blimey! Blimey! T' finish t' bay, a thin skin o' 30-minute epoxy be poured in t' drogue side o' t' bay with t' cap installed. Aye aye! This step totally seals the drogue side o' t' bay, shiver me timbers, and retains t' endcap. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! A mount for t' RRC2 altimeter was made by epoxyin' a copper tube t' a piece o' G-10 fiberglass. The mount slides in over t' center stud and is locked down with a washer and nut.

Finishing:
Shockwave was finished with a modified Estes Executioner-style paint job, me hearties, 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, shiver me timbers, flight day finally arrived on March 20th, 2004. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I arrived at t' launch and rounded up a few friends t' be my certification team. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! After acein' t' written L2 test, me bucko, I began careful prep of t' dual deployment recovery system. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! This flight would have a PML streamer deployin' at apogee with motor backup, and main deployment at 500ft. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Avast! Blimey! Drogue and main harnesses are both 25ft in length. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! After t' recovery system was buttoned up, ya bilge rat, I turned attention t' loadin' t' motor. Begad! Blimey! This flight would be on a CTI 3-grain Pro54 motor. Begad! Blimey! Once t' motor was loaded and installed, we took a few pictures and headed t' t' pad. Blimey! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! T' day turned out t' be a real bummer weather-wise, me hearties, with strong 20MPH winds. Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! With t' help o' me test proctor and a friend, me bucko, shiver me timbers, arrr, Shockwave was put on t' pad, matey, and t' igniter installed. Avast! Blimey! I armed the electronics, verified t' RRC2 was beepin' right, arrr, and headed back t' LCO table. Aye aye! Blimey!

Considering the strong wind and t' fact that me friend's L2 attempt earlier in t' day was a spectacular failure, arrr, shiver me timbers, I was gettin' nervous at this point. Well, me hearties, blow me down! Blimey! Countdown commences, I and crossed me fingers! Blimey! T' LCO pushes t' button....nothing. Ahoy! Blimey! Try again, shiver me timbers, nothing. Begad! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! After fiddlin' with some wires on t' launch controller, the LCO tries again. Blimey! Blimey! Finally, t' big J295 awakens with t' thunderous roar, ya bilge rat, and Shockwave is on its way! Blimey! T' rocket had a very straight accent considerin' the strong winds. Aye aye! Blimey!

Recovery:
T' streamer deployed right on queue, ya bilge rat, and t' descent began. Well, blow me down! Arrr! After fallin' for what seemed like an eternity, t' main chute deployed and Shockwave had a gentle touchdown about 1/2 mile away. Begad! Upon recovery, t' rocket had no damage except for a few scuffs on t' paint. Avast, me proud beauty! T' RRC2 was beepin' out 4,686ft. Well, blow me down! A successful flight and Level 2 certification!

Summary:
This project sure has taught me a lot. Begad! Some will tell you that a certification flight should be as simple as possible, matey, without electronics and with the smallest motor available for t' certification bein' sought. Arrr! While thar is merit t' that opinion, ya bilge rat, me bucko, I felt that I was up t' t' challenge. Ya scallywag! This flight was full o' firsts for me. Aye aye! Ahoy! My first experience with dual-deployment, matey, altimeters, and CTI motors. I also achieved a new personal altitude record. Blimey! I can't wait to fly it again on a calm day!

PROs:

• Cool lookin' rocket
• Can be flown single-stage deployment without t' payload section and altimeter
• Built tough
• Flies very stable

CONs:

• I can't think o' any except cost