Modification Deuce-4 Heavy Payloader Modification

Modification - Deuce-4 Heavy Payloader {Modification}

Contributed by Mark Schrader

Manufacturer: Modification

FlisKits Deuce-Bash Contest

T' followin' article was a submission t' t' FlisKits, Inc Deuce-Bash Contest and is archived with permission from FlisKits. Some o' these designs are nay actually kitbashes, shiver me timbers, however, all come from t' basic motor design feature o' t' FlisKits Deuce's Wild.


(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter

Brief:
Attached is me Deuce Bash entry. Avast! Well, blow me down! Please let me know if you need any other information. Ya scallywag! T' inspiration for this design came from t' Boein' Delta-4 Heavy and Lockheed-Martin Atlas-5 heavy lift rockets. It is basically a conventional Deuce with t' addition o' a 10-inch payload section and two conventional parallel boosters. Begad! T' payload section has a four-inch parachute bay aft. Well, matey, blow me down! T' parallel boosters separate after motor burn out and recover on 12-inch parachutes. At liftoff they are positively attached until motor ignition usin' a unique method. Avast! In t' event o' no ignition or late ignition, me hearties, t' boosters are held in place for safety.

Construction:
Sustainer:
T' sustainer consists o' a 7.5 inch piece o' BT-60 from a Baby Bertha and t' Deuce canted twin 18 mm motor mounts. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! On top o' this is a balsa 1.5-inch T60-70 transition from t' parts box. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! I hollowed this out with a Dremel tool and glued a motor spacer tube inside t' duct t' ejection gases. I used a ¼ inch screw eye at t' top o' t' balsa transition t' anchor t' recovery system.

I use 6 inch lengths o' styrene plastic square stock t' retain t' parallel boosters. After drillin' small holes in t' plastic and roughin' up t' body tube with sandpaper and a #11 blade, I attached t' plastic stock with 90-minute epoxy.

(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter

Payload Bay:
T' payload bay is a 10-inch piece o' BT-70 tube and t' nose cone is a balsa tube I got in an eBay auction lot. I glued an Apogee Components bulkhead and centerin' rin' four inches from t' bottom t' create a parachute bay. I glued a loop o' 300lb Keelhaul®©™ line t' t' bulkhead with 90-minute epoxy t' which I would attach t' recovery system.

(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter

Parallel Boosters:
T' parallel boosters consist o' 6 3/4 inch lengths o' BT-60 from a Patriot kit, two Deuce nose cones (one from t' kit and one from me Secret Santa parts package), and two motor mounts (again from Secret Santa package). Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' motor mount is installed so that t' motor will be flush with t' bottom o' t' booster when launched. More about this when I describe t' booster retention system.

T' key feature o' t' boosters be t' mountin' system. Begad! Arrr! Blimey! T' mounts consist o' two-inch pieces o' plastic stock which nest inside t' plastic stock on t' sustainer. Ya scallywag! Blimey! T' two-inch stock is mounted on a one inch piece o' sheet styrene stand off that be t' same width and thickness as t' square stock.

(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter
(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter

Launch Lug Alignment:
I used 3/16 inch launch lugs. Avast! Well, blow me down! T' upper lug is glued t' t' BT-70 tube and t' lower lug is glued t' t' fin as shown below.

Body Tube Wrap:
T' payload tube is finished with a wrap o' white label paper. I used MS PowerPoint t' create a 10" X 7" box in which I placed t' graphics. NASA for obvious reasons, FlisKits t' prime contractor, arrr, Boein' and Lockheed Martin t' subs, me hearties, Apogee for component and simulation support, and Estes for propulsion. Blimey! T' BT-70 tube has a circumference o' seven inches so this went relatively easy.

(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter

Booster Retention System:
T' most unique feature o' this model be t' positive retention system designed t' keep booster attached in t' event that they light late or nay at all. Well, blow me down! T' system consists o' two wire nails inserted into each booster, matey, CA'd and epoxy puttied into place. Well, blow me down! Avast, me proud beauty! I then tie a small loop o' beadin' elastic t' an 18" loop o' sewin' thread. Ahoy! T' thread is attached t' t' top o' t' styrene stock on t' sustainer, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, led under t' booster, me hearties, and t' beadin' thread loop is attached t' t' two nails. Begad! T' elastic takes t' slack out o' t' thread loop and holds it in place until t' motor exhaust burns through t' thread. Begad! I attach t' thread-elastic loops with t' motor in place and run t' thread beneath t' nozzle and hold it in place with t' plastic ignitor cap. Ahoy! Begad! Motor thrust holds t' boosters in place and at burn out they fall away and deploy 12 inch mylar parachutes.

(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter

Flight and Recovery:
First flight was on a pair o' central C6-7s and C5-3 motors in t' boosters. Well, blow me down! Boost be moderately slow and t' rocket turned slightly into t' 5-8mph breeze. Avast, me proud beauty! T' long burn o' C5-3s kept t' boosters attached until near apogee and they separated and deployed their chutes. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! T' C6-7 delay be a little too long as t' sustainer arched over and headed down. Avast! Ejection be a couple seconds after apogee and t' 24-inch mylar cute brought t' sustainer t' a good landing. T' only damage was a chip from one fin due t' landin' on hard turned earth. For t' next flight I'll use C6-5s and B6-2s.

(Deuce's Wild) Deuce-4 Heavy Lifter

Summary:
Although I didn't use all t' parts that came in t' Deuce's Wild kit, I did launch t' parts I didn't use in t' payload compartment.

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