Long before I be buildin' rockets, arrr, matey, a very small, ya bilge rat, tumble recovery rocket was introduced by Estes. Aye aye! It was t' 1/2A powered Astron Sprite. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! T' those nay familiar with this rocket, matey, I would like t' explain a very unique characteristic o' this design. Well, blow me down! When scaled up enough t' be powered by a high impulse motor, t' air flowin' past t' fin rin' creates a high-pitched whistle when launched. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! This is sometimes drowned out by t' initial noise o' t' motor, me hearties, but is quite audible as t' motor burns out and continues durin' t' coast phase.

Back in 1999, durin' t' second launch o' me 4-inch airframe based Superscale Sprite, t' whistle was clearly heard by all those in attendance. As t' rocket arced over, even before t' ooh’s and aah’s had subsided, it was obvious that I had a major deployment problem…there was none! T' Sprite raced back t' earth, and a fact that I be previously unaware of, became perfectly clear. Aye aye! This amazin' rocket whistled comin' down, louder than when it was goin' up. Ya scallywag! In fact, shiver me timbers, it whistled right up until it impacted with t' rock-hard Pennsylvania soil at our Jones Farm launch site. Naturally, me hearties, me fellow rocketeers were quick t' offer their condolences, ya bilge rat, matey, but I was more amused by t' memory o' it whistlin' back t' Earth. Begad! Aye aye! I collected t' remains, me hearties, includin' diggin' t' nosecone out o' t' ground, matey, and went back t' me truck t' prep me next rocket.

My son, arrr, Chris, almost immediately began urgin' me t' build another one. Well, blow me down! Due t' t' amount o' work that be involved in t' project, arrr, I was unwillin' t' commit t' such an ambitious undertaking. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Over t' next twelve months or so, matey, I did acquire a piece o' 15-inch diameter cardboard drum, me hearties, which would make a fine fin ring, me bucko, (my first one was 11.5-inch diameter) and a 24-inch long section o' 5.5-inch airframe. Ya scallywag! Begad! This would amount t' a 7.3X version o' t' original Estes model. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I also purchased a 3 x 6 x 36-inch block o' balsa wood, matey, that I planned on usin' t' turn a scale nosecone. Well, blow me down! Arrr! I cut t' block in two and laminated them together t' make a nice 6 x 6 x 18-inch blank, ya bilge rat, and then set it aside, where it would sit for almost another year. Ya scallywag! Avast! One weekend in February o' 2001, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, I was turnin' a couple wooden nosecone patterns for a Tripoli Pittsburgh group project, t' Gloria Mundi III. After completin' this task, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, I decided t' go ahead, ya bilge rat, arrr, and turn t' new Sprite nosecone from t' balsa block that had been collectin' dust. Well, blow me down! Arrr! After finishin' t' outside form, it was necessary t' hollow out a large section o' t' cone so that I would be able t' add t' one-pound o' weight needed for stability. Ahoy! I cut a bulkhead from .5-inch plywood t' seal t' openin' that was epoxied into place after fillin' t' cone with expandin' foam. Avast, me proud beauty! Before I knew it, t' nosecone be complete, and I was plannin' me next steps o' t' project, that would soon come t' be known as "T' Lord o' t' Rings."

Next, me bucko, I carefully cut a 5.5-inch section o' t' cardboard drum, me hearties, matey, and prepared it t' be reinforced with a few layers o' fiberglass cloth. Well, blow me down! I opted for two wraps o' 6-ounce woven cloth and a finishin' wrap o' 1.5-ounce cloth. T' last layer be done solely t' make it easier t' get a smooth surface for painting. I used t' same process for t' airframe, ya bilge rat, matey, which, me bucko, shiver me timbers, although it was made o' flexible phenolic, me hearties, was nay strong enough for a project o' this size. Begad! I printed patterns for t' fins and fin-caps usin' RockSim 5.0 and cut them from .25-inch aircraft plywood. Two centerin' rings were cut from t' same material, ya bilge rat, me hearties, also usin' patterns created from RockSim. Twelve inches o' 38mm motor mount tubin' be cut and I had all t' parts necessary t' complete t' project.

A large T-nut be installed in t' forward centerin' rin' for recovery system attachment, me hearties, as well as two in t' aft rin' for motor retention. T' forward rin' was epoxied t' t' motor tube, me bucko, me bucko, and this assembly be installed into t' slotted body tube. Begad! Begad! With t' rear-centerin' rin' temporarily put in place for alignment purposes, ya bilge rat, me bucko, t' fins were epoxied into place. Arrr! Ahoy! T' aft rin' be then removed, shiver me timbers, and internal fillets used at both t' motor tube and t' inside o' t' body tube. Well, blow me down! Since I be goin' t' be usin' rail guides instead o' launch lugs, arrr, t' guides were secured with nuts from t' inside o' t' airframe at this time. Before permanently installin' t' rear-centerin' ring, t' remainder o' t' cavity was filled usin' 2-part expandin' foam. Begad! Blimey! Fillets were added t' t' fins at t' outside o' t' airframe for added strength, usin' a combination o' epoxy and micro-balloons.

It was now time t' attach t' fin rin' and fin caps. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! Careful attention was paid t' t' alignment o' t' caps so that minimal fillin' o' gaps be necessary. Aye aye! Blimey! When t' assembly be completely dried, I once again used t' epoxy/micro-balloon mixture t' create fillets both inside and outside t' fin rin' at each fin and fin cap. Arrr! Blimey! I used grain filler on t' plywood fins, matey, and after some extensive sanding, shiver me timbers, was finally ready t' prime t' entire rocket. Avast! Blimey! More sanding, fillin' and primin' followed, shiver me timbers, o' course, until I be ready t' paint. Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! After addin' an 18-foot, 5/8-inch tubular nylon shock cord and a Sky-Angle 52-inch parachute with Nomex protector, t' total weight without motor is just over 8-pounds.

I launched t' completed project at our first Dragon's Fire launch o' t' season, April 7th, 2001. Accordin' t' simulations done in both RockSim and wRASP, shiver me timbers, me hearties, matey, it reached a max altitude o' approximately 1900 feet on an Aerotech I284 reload. Avast, me proud beauty! Unlike me first Sprite, matey, t' whistlin' only occurred on t' way up.