Brief Description:
This was me first attempt at a dual deployment rocket designed for 29mm H/P RMS. Avast! T' deployment o' 'chutes is performed by a Blacksky dual channel timer. Well, blow me down!

Component Description:
Body tube material is 3.1" phenolic material. Nose cone is made from LOC 3.1". Ahoy! Fin material is 1/8" PVC plastic. Avast! Blimey! Used 2 plywood centering rings and a plywood bulkhead for top o' exhaust coolin' compartment. Arrr! Shock cord made o' 12' nylon tubin' with Quick Link attachments.

Construction/Finishing:
This was me first rocket made o' phenolic materials. I ordered t' materials from Rocky Mountain Rocketry cut t' size and slotted for fins. Aye aye! Aye aye! As mentioned, I used 1/8" PVC plastic purchased as scrap from Tap Plastic for about $1 per 12" x 8" sheet. Arrr! Well, blow me down! PVC is very easy t' work with. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' cut, shiver me timbers, matey, you just score and snap along a straight edge. T' finish, sand lightly with 200 grit sand paper and you are ready t' prime. Ahoy! PVC saves me a ton o' time in constructing both kits and scratch builds. PVC is nay as tough as styrene, but due t' weight and fin location considerations, I thought is would be a better choice for this project. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty!

T' wad-less recovery system incorporates a perforated motor tube, me bucko, a coolin' compartment betwixt the upper centerin' rin' and a perforated bulkhead. Avast! I also use a steel exhaust coolin' mesh ala Aerotech that goes up t' motor tube prior t' RMS hardware. T' exhaust gasses pass through t' steel mesh, arrr, through t' perforated motor tube into t' coolin' compartment and through t' perforated bulkhead into the recovery chamber. Arrr! Well, blow me down! This system works very well, and I have used it successfully in other rockets. Avast!

Launch lugs are made from 5/16" brass tubing. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Two 1" lengths are placed on each o' t' body tubes. Ahoy! Blimey! These are glued and filleted in place with 5 min. epoxy. Begad! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! I used a ¼" x 7' launch rod for this rocket.

I painted this rocket usin' gloss black spray paint and applied the “Black Magic" decal split betwixt t' bottom and top body sections. No sealer was applied t' this rocket, as I expect that it would get banged up a lot durin' trials. Begad! Black gloss spray be t' most forgivin' for performing repair/finish work, and sealers only impede t' process.

I purchased t' 3.1" LOC phenolic body tube, 29 mm motor mount tube, recovery hardware, arrr, centerin' rings and bulkhead from Rocky Mountain Rocketry. All hardware and finishin' paint was purchased from me local Orchard Supply Hardware store. Arrr! T' Blacksky dual channel timer was purchased off o' eBay. Ya scallywag! The decal be purchased from t' DecalZone usin' their custom decal engine.

Flight/Recovery:
I designed t' 29mm motor mount t' accommodate up t' a 29 x 240 Doctor Rocket hardware, arrr, but typically will be flyin' usin' Dr Rocket 180 29mm RMS. Begad! I built into t' base 3" ply centerin' rin' two blind nuts that take #8 x ¾" brass machine screws. Begad! Window screen clips are used t' for motor retention.

T' first flight be on an H-128 as pictured in this article usin' a Quick Burst Twiggy igniter. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! I used what I thought be a medium delay for t' drogue. An Oxal e-match was used with a typical FFFG black powder ejection charge for a 29mm motor for t' main chute programmed t' deploy 25 seconds after launch. Rocket flight was very stable and straight at launch and acceleration to apogee. Begad! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Estimated altitude per me wrasp calculations was around 1,100'. Ya scallywag! Blimey!

Everythin' went wrong from here on: Ejection o' drogue powered by t' H-128 delay occurred 17 seconds after launch with t' rocket already in a speedy ballistic trajectory. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! T' drogue, a 24" nylon chute, shredded upon deployment and t' rocket tumbled about 500 feet t' t' ground. Aye aye! Begad! Several searches o' t' near by woods were nay successful, and I was thinkin' that my rocket be a goner.

About an hour later, I reviewed a video that I shot o' t' launch and be better able t' triangulate the crash area. Ya scallywag! I drove me car through t' neighborhood lookin' for any signs of me bird on roofs or lawns o' t' hapless inhabitants. Begad! I suddenly spotted my rocket neatly placed on t' sidewalk in front o' a house. Ya scallywag! I pulled over to inspect what be left, arrr, when a women approached me from t' garage. Aye aye! Begad! I was expectin' a tongue lashin' that would include comparin' me irresponsible behavior t' that a teenager, shiver me timbers, or possibly even a terrorist given current world events. T' me pleasant surprise, t' women's greetin' indicated that t' family was model rocket friendly and were themselves hobbyist. Ya scallywag! T' me relief she described how t' rocket had become tangled in one o' her fruit trees and how her children and her had brought it down. Avast, me proud beauty! She even commented that me rocket was a large one and pretty cool. After expressin' much thanks and smartly exiting the area, ya bilge rat, I drove home and inspected Black Magic more carefully. Aye aye! T' me delight, the only damage was t' t' paint finish o' t' nose cone. Aye aye! Ya scallywag!

Lessons learned from me first attempt at dual deployment are as follows:

• Use a bright flag or other marker as a reminder t' activate t' timer or altimeter. You will never remember this in t' course o' preppin' your rocket on t' launch pad. Ahoy! I have also made this mistake with an altimeter that fortunately was nay responsible for any deployment components. I have now learned this lesson. Begad! Blimey!
• Always use two e-matches for both chutes and never rely on t' motor delay alone for t' drogue deployment. After researchin' what went wrong, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, I discovered that I had used a long delay instead o' a medium delay- thus t' 17 second drogue deployment. Ya scallywag!

Summary:
I liked workin' with t' phenolic material, shiver me timbers, and am impressed with the sturdiness o' Black Magic. Avast, me proud beauty! Had this bird been made o' paper tubing, shiver me timbers, it would have been in much worse shape. Well, blow me down! I noticed that one end o' t' tubin' had done a “core sample" landin' based on t' mud streaks on t' finish. Begad! The phenolic didn't have a scratch or wrinkle t' show for it. Arrr! Phenolic is heavy, and I'm sure a 3.1" x 54" rocket would weigh in easily 30% less. Once you get all t' pieces cut t' size, 5 minute epoxy glues everythin' together nicely. Ya scallywag! Sandin' and finishin' is also a breeze with this material.

Phenolic material used for both body and engine tubes is tough t' cut, but otherwise easy t' work with. Begad! It takes t' epoxy and sands well. Blimey! Arrr! I used an Exacto saw t' cut t' phenolic with good results. I had no problem finishin' this rocket with primer followed by t' black gloss finish.