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

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

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

Next, I carefully cut a 5.5-inch section o' t' cardboard drum, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and prepared it t' be reinforced with a few layers o' fiberglass cloth. Ya scallywag! Avast! I opted for two wraps o' 6-ounce woven cloth and a finishin' wrap o' 1.5-ounce cloth. T' last layer was done solely t' make it easier t' get a smooth surface for painting. I used t' same process for t' airframe, shiver me timbers, which, matey, although it be made o' flexible phenolic, was nay strong enough for a project o' this size. 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, also usin' patterns created from RockSim. Begad! Blimey! Twelve inches o' 38mm motor mount tubin' was 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, as well as two in t' aft rin' for motor retention. Avast! Blimey! T' forward rin' was epoxied t' t' motor tube, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, and this assembly was installed into t' slotted body tube. With t' rear-centerin' rin' temporarily put in place for alignment purposes, t' fins were epoxied into place. Begad! Blimey! T' aft rin' was then removed, arrr, and internal fillets used at both t' motor tube and t' inside o' t' body tube. Begad! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Since I was goin' t' be usin' rail guides instead o' launch lugs, ya bilge rat, t' guides were secured with nuts from t' inside o' t' airframe at this time. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Before permanently installin' t' rear-centerin' ring, t' remainder o' t' cavity was filled usin' 2-part expandin' foam. Ahoy! 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! Careful attention be paid t' t' alignment o' t' caps so that minimal fillin' o' gaps was necessary. Arrr! Arrr! When t' assembly was 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. Begad! I used grain filler on t' plywood fins, and after some extensive sanding, was finally ready t' prime t' entire rocket. Aye aye! Begad! More sanding, fillin' and primin' followed, me bucko, o' course, matey, matey, until I was ready t' paint. 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, me bucko, 2001. Aye aye! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey! Accordin' t' simulations done in both RockSim and wRASP, it reached a max altitude o' approximately 1900 feet on an Aerotech I284 reload. Unlike me first Sprite, t' whistlin' only occurred on t' way up.