Brief:
Weighin' in at 6lb 10oz, arrr, shiver me timbers, 5ft 4in height, shiver me timbers, 3in diameter, t' CraterMaker is by far t' most ambitious scratch project I have ever attempted. Ya scallywag! It is also me first rocket designed for I and J motors. Begad! I planned super-sleek fins, shiver me timbers, which didn't make t' project any easier because it pushed t' CP forward.

I also wanted t' try a zipperless baffle design. With no electronics, motor ejection be planned, which heavy buildin' techniques since I wanted t' limit t' maximum altitude.

Construction:
T' impetus for this project occurred nearly a year earlier when some guy on T' Rocketry Forum mentioned that his workplace was throwin' large phenolic tubes in t' garbage. Avast! Arrr! He offered t' mail one t' anyone around t' country, and on a lark, me bucko, I accepted. Ya scallywag! About t' same time, I bought a 3in redwood nosecone offered on TRF for a few bucks.

These items sat in me basement for 9 months until summer came and I figured it be time t' begin a design. Ya scallywag! I chose a 4FNC design with very sleek swept trapezoidal fins. Avast! Aye aye! T' RockSim file is included here.

I began with t' nose cone, usin' t' redwood cone t' lay up fiberglass. Avast, me proud beauty! Unlike many people, matey, shiver me timbers, I laid t' fiberglass over t' cone and used this shell directly for t' cone rather than as an inverse mold for another layup. Avast! Both t' inner and outer diameter o' t' nose cone were slightly too small compared t' t' body tube, which caused problems later.

T' redwood was placed in a flat cutout and coated with many layers o' Partall wax #2 and PVA #10 mold release. Avast, me proud beauty! Over this, shiver me timbers, me hearties, shiver me timbers, I laid strips o' 6oz S-weave fiberglass with one layer o' 1.5oz fiberglass mattin' in t' middle. Avast! After releasin' t' half-cone and repeatin' t' process, I clamped t' two halves together and filled t' interior seam with a fillin' o' chopped fiberglass and epoxy. Begad! Then I laid more fiberglass mattin' in t' interior. Cuttin' away t' flashin' and sandin' it round, me bucko, I had me rough cone.

Unfortunately, I still had t' problem that t' cone be slightly too small compared t' t' airframe. Well, matey, blow me down! I cut from t' airframe a rin' about 1/2in long and glued it t' t' shoulder o' t' nose t' form a round, precise edge. Begad! Then I added Bondo t' fill t' empty space on t' bottom half o' t' nose, scrapin' it smooth against t' ring. Blimey! With a lot more sandin' and filling, t' nose be done. Well, blow me down! Arrr! Now (and especially with t' additional nose weight later), me hearties, arrr, this nose could cleave a pickup truck on impact.

T' tube seemed softer than typical phenolic. Avast, me proud beauty! I used 3 wraps o' 6oz S-weave fiberglass t' make a bombproof airframe. Blimey! Then I cut off t' bottom 15in t' make t' fin can.

T' fins were cut from 7/32" plywood. Aye aye! Blimey! T' were tabbed for TTW mounting. Begad! T' best ply sheet at Home Depot be slightly little warped, so I laid one layer o' 6oz fiberglass and pressed each fin under very heavy weights, matey, yieldin' perfectly flat fins. I sanded t' leadin' edge elliptical, me bucko, ya bilge rat, but left t' other edges square.

Three T-nuts were inserted in t' aft centerin' rin' for motor retention. T' rest o' t' fin can was assembled in t' usual way. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! One unusual feature was that thar be only about 1 inch o' tube remainin' unslotted for t' fin can, me hearties, ya bilge rat, so I had t' be very careful nay t' bend or torque anything. Ya scallywag! Interior fillets were created by runnin' down an epoxy/milled fiberglass mixture.

T' baffle was in t' FlisKits style o' partial disks. Aye aye! Three plates were put in a 5.5in length o' Giant Leap coupler. Ya scallywag! Avast! T' coupler had been heavily fiberglassed because o' t' need t' keep t' joint strong here with a very firm fit at t' separation point. I used lots o' fiberglass: 1 exterior layer o' S-weave plus 2 interior layers o' 1.5oz matting. Ahoy! Avast! I literally could have stood on this without damage. Well, blow me down! T' exterior be sanded Bondo t' give a smooth fit. T' bottom two baffle plates were covered on their aft side and edge with aluminum pie plate attached with JB Weld, me hearties, me hearties, t' reduce heat damage.

At this point, arrr, I took t' rocket t' t' NCR club for advice. Arrr! Well, blow me down! First, arrr, arrr, me hearties, they were worried about t' length o' t' baffle/coupler. Begad! Well, blow me down! So I glued it asymmetrically: 1.75in into t' fin can and 3.75in for couplin' into t' airframe. Arrr! Second, me bucko, they were worried about successful ejection. Ahoy! T' design, from aft t' forward, was: motor, baffle/coupler, airframe split, me bucko, chute in airframe, then bulkhead. Avast, me proud beauty! They told me t' ground test ejection, me hearties, and I did.

I had placed t' a partway down t' airframe after careful calculations usin' online calculators t' figure t' required pressure for separation and so forth. Begad! These calculations proved worthless. Blimey! T' first ground test used 1.5g powder, equal t' what is given with an I or J motor. Avast! T' rocket separated but t' chute be nay pulled out. Aye aye! With 2.5g, I had t' same result. Blimey! Ya scallywag! With 3.5g (don't try this at home!) I blew t' motor case out t' back, arrr, split a crack and hole in t' fin can, me hearties, arrr, separated t' airframe, but still did nay pull t' chute out. Ahoy! Blimey! I learned by experience that 3.5g o' powder is way too much, and I realized I that had t' maroon t' zipperless design.

After repairin' t' fin can, me hearties, arrr, I cut t' nose off t' airframe and ground it back down t' t' shoulder. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! Next I had t' remove t' bulkhead, me hearties, which be 11in from t' nearest tube end. Ya scallywag! Aye aye! What a dusty, bloody knuckle, me bucko, matey, frustratin' nightmare! Then I glued t' airframe t' t' coupler so that separation would now be at t' nose. Begad! T' ground test with 2g worked fine.

I sewed t' chute myself. It be 72in diameter, arrr, shiver me timbers, 12-gore semi-elliptical in t' Nakka design. Blimey! It was finished with 85 feet o' 3mm climber's cord for shroud lines and attached with 20ft o' half-inch tubular nylon.

T' nose cone now needed a shock cord attachment point, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, despite lackin' a bulkhead. I made a block o' oak rounded on one side, arrr, matey, with an eye bolt through t' middle and attached with epoxy and a screw through t' shoulder wall. Final calculations showed that 12oz o' nose weight was needed a stability margin o' 2.2 with t' largest possible motor (J350). Ya scallywag! T' 1010 rail buttons went on at some point.

 

Finishing:
Finishin' began with epoxy/microballoon exterior fillets and endless amounts o' Kilz, matey, me hearties, Bondo, and wood filler, arrr, arrr, interrupted with interminable periods o' sanding. Aye aye! You can see t' final red, shiver me timbers, white, me hearties, me bucko, and black paint scheme. All t' paint was Krylon gloss, many coats, with clear over t' top. T' CraterMaker sticker was provided by Mike Fisher at Binder Designs. He does first rate work, as I'm sure you can see. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Another custom touch was that I put a CP marker and three 1-caliper marks for in-the-field assessment o' t' stability margin.

Flight and Recovery:
Launch day was t' Northern Colorado Rocketry Oktoberfest. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! Havin' simmed a variety o' motors, me hearties, it looked like t' best choices t' keep t' rocket low and visible would be I285R, me bucko, matey, I300T, me bucko, or I366R, arrr, me bucko, me bucko, simmed t' 1616, ya bilge rat, me bucko, 1795, and 2446ft, shiver me timbers, arrr, respectively. Begad! I opted for t' I300T.

I was very nervous as they called out t' launch sequence in a light breeze. Boost was very straight and fairly fast. T' rocket was visible all t' way up. Begad! Avast, ya bilge rat, me proud beauty! I was tryin' unsuccessfully t' find it in t' binoculars durin' t' coast phase, so others told me what happened. Avast! Ejection was right at apogee, but it took a moment for t' shock cord t' fully extend and for t' chute t' unfurl. Descent was beautiful on that billowin' colorful parachute. As it landed on t' soft prairie, me hearties, I judged that t' chute size be about right. Begad! T' landin' was assertive but nay too hard.

My son found t' rocket about half a mile away. Well, blow me down! Blimey! Blimey! Unfamiliar with t' scale o' t' rocket, I had been searchin' too close and a bit t' t' left. He ran ahead, as boys do, ya bilge rat, matey, and started wavin' and jumpin' up and down in t' distance when he spotted it. Blimey! Begad! Blimey! I chased him down. Well, blow me down! Blimey! CraterMaker failed t' live up t' his name; he be totally unblemished on landing.

Summary:
T' next flight will probably be on a I600R (3106ft) or, shiver me timbers, me hearties, for me L2 certification, a J350W (3584ft) for NCR's Mile High Mayhem. Aye aye! Blimey! This project has been a ton o' work, arrr, but well worth it in t' end.