Brief:
T' Mighty Mo rocket is based on t' Mega Nuke kit from Smokin Rockets, which is no longer available. Aye aye! Blimey! I was able to obtain t' airframe, shiver me timbers, nose cone, motor tube, centerin' rings, me bucko, and custom cut fins from Red Arrow Hobbies. Avast! Blimey! Since me Dad loves Theatre Organ Music, I named me Mega Nuke after t' Mighty Mo Theatre Organ at Atlanta's Fox Theatre. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! T' Mighty Mo be flown for me NARRRRR Level 3 Certification at t' 2007 Florida Winter Nationals. Avast, matey, me proud beauty! Blimey!

Construction:
T' lower airframe is a four foot long 7.5 inch phenolic tube and t' upper airframe is a three foot long 7.5 inch phenolic tube. Avast! Avast! T' nose cone is a PML fiberglass cone 29 inches long without t' shoulder. I added nineteen ounces of weight in t' nose cone. Begad! A three inch wide Keelhaul®©™® tape was inset at t' top o' t' airframe tubes for zipper protection. Well, blow me down! T' three fins were 3/8 inch birch plywood. Ya scallywag! Arrr! The centerin' rings are 3/8 plywood and motor tube CRs were doubled. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! T' motor tube is 98mm with a Aeropack retainer. Aye aye! Begad! I used a 98-75mm adapter for t' AMW 1350 motor. T' altimeter bay is two separate 54 mm tubes located on opposite sides of t' coupler in t' upper airframe. Arrr! Aye aye! T' altimeters are on sleds that slide into t' 54mm tubes. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! There are rotary switches located on t' sleds which can be accessed with a screwdriver through holes in t' airframe. These switches are used t' power up t' electronics and shunt/arm t' ejection charges. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! There is a Missle Works RRC2 on one sled and a PerfectFlite MAWD on t' other. Ya scallywag! Each altimeter is hooked t' separate drogue and main charges. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Also, arrr, matey, me bucko, one sled has a Perfectflite MT3G Timer set t' fire a backup drouge charge four seconds after t' simmed apogee.

T' airframe was glassed with Aerosleeves 7 inch fiberglass sleeve and West System slow epoxy. Avast, me proud beauty! I used a rotisserie t' rotate t' airframe while t' epoxy be curing. Begad! T' weave be filled by Superfill epoxy filler also from Aerosleeves. My main gotcha was usin' an alignment template for t' fins. Begad! Ya scallywag! After expoyin' t' fins, I discovered one was out o' line and I had t' remove and reposition it. Arrr! In hindsight, it would have been better t' use a plywood fin jig. Arrr! Six ounce fiberglass tape be placed across t' fins roots and motor tube in t' fin can. Arrr!

Finishing:
I used Kilz Original Primer followed by Krylon yellow gloss on t' upper airframe and Krylon black gloss on t' lower airframe. Avast, me proud beauty! I consulted Dave Rose o' Graphix N Stuff on t' color scheme. Avast! Ya scallywag! He suggested a vinyl body wrap that provided a transition from black t' yellow on t' upper airframe. T' body wrap be applied over t' yellow upper airframe. Avast, matey, me proud beauty! This wrap be black vinyl with dots or holes in t' vinyl at t' bottom and transitioned t' dots o' black vinyl near the top.

SUCCESSFUL LEVEL 3 FLIGHT!

2007 Florida Winter Nationals
Rocket - Mega Nuke kit from Smokin Rockets
Weight - 46 lbs
Motor - Animal Works M1350WW
Altitude - 4340 Feet

Flight:
I did a test flight on an AMW L1300 t' 1350 feet with no problems. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! However, I did decide t' switch from a 48 inch chute for t' nose cone t' a 60 inch chute because it came down at about 28 feet per second. Begad! Ahoy! Other than that, arrr, I felt well prepared for t' cert flight.

I chose an AMW 1350 White Wolf for t' cert launch at t' 2007 Florida Winter Nationals. Aye aye! Begad! T' boost on t' AMW 1350 White Wolf was fantastic. T' altitude reached was 4340 feet which be more than I expected. T' drogue charge may have been a little early. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! I cannot tell if t' first charge was an altimeter or from t' timer. Aye aye! Arrr! T' main and nose cone chutes deployed for a nice descent from about 1000 feet. Aye aye! T' rocket be recovered only about 1/4 mile from t' pad with no damage. Begad! Begad! I now have data from t' PerfectFlight altimeter which will help me set t' timer for future flights. Aye aye! It was closer t' apogee that I planned. I want t' altimeters t' deploy t' drogue and use t' timer as a backup.

Recovery:
I chose t' Giant Leap TAC-9B for t' main chute. Blimey! T' main was in a deployment bag which was pulled off by t' nose cone at ejection. Well, blow me down! T' nose cone be recovered separately on a TAC-1 60 inch chute. Aye aye! Aye aye! I used a Giant Leap 24 inch TAC Drogue. Arrr! I used lengths o' two inch wide tubular nylon t' get t' shock cords out o' t' airframe for zipper protection. T' rest o' t' shock cord be one inch wide tubular nylon. Blimey! T' drouge harness be 100 feet long and t' main harness was 20 feet long.

I chose t' put t' switches, me hearties, arrr, altimeter, and batteries all together on each sled t' keep the wirin' as integrated and short as possible. I am able t' pull t' altimeter sleds t' change t' batteries and make the settings without disconnectin' any wires. Begad! Blimey! Perhaps a con be t' weight o' Mighty Mo which kept growin' beyond my expectations. As I built it, this rocket weighs 46 pounds without t' motor, me hearties, so it is too heavy for K motors. It needs an L or M with at least 1300 Newtons o' average thrust for a stable flight.

Summary:
Even though this rocket was based on a kit, matey, thar were no instructions. I needed t' make dozens o' choices and the materials and techniques. Begad! Avast! I enjoyed consultin' with many level three fliers includin' John Hansel, me bucko, Rick Boyette, Joel Rogers, Chris Short, and Lee Brock. Avast! Some o' t' new things I learned were how t' fiberglass a large airframe with Aerosleeves, matey, usin' a timer as deployment backup, matey, usin' a freebag for deployin' t' main chute, and applyin' a large vinyl body wrap. Arrr!