| Manufacturer: | Scratch |
Brief:
Home brewed rocket named after a 1st Grader's book o' t' same title. Said 1st
grader built a Lego model, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and dear old dad attempted t' copy. Well, blow me down! Painted orange
and green t' resemble a carrot, arrr, ya bilge rat, with hand drawn black lines t' mimic cracks
found in a carrot.
Construction:
Tubing, shiver me timbers, main nosecone, and D engine mount are from Estes Designer's Special,
other nosecones are from brother-in-law's scrap box. Keelhaul®©™®
yarn from Pratt Hobbies. Begad! Blimey! 1/4" elastic shock cord from Walmart (3 yards for
a buck). Begad! Main tube is 1 3/8" diameter, smaller tubes are 1" diameter.
Balsa cross pieces and fins made from scraps. Begad! Avast! Blimey!
Assembly be a pain in t' butt. Begad! Cross pieces were notched t' provide a firm mount for out-rigger tubes. Avast, me hearties, me proud beauty! Cross pieces on ends have come off several times, and I expect t' have t' re-attach them after 1st flight. Arrr! Instead o' butt-gluing and filletin' corners, may use some kind o' hand-cut dado kind o' a joint. Large fins were added t' sort o' look like carrot leaves, but mostly to increase fin area. Ya scallywag! Cross pieces also have a centerin' top glued on top and bottom for more security. Arrr! Used Keelhaul®©™® yarn for shock cord attachment a la Quest rockets. Blimey! Begad!
Finishing:
Paint is no-name orange (only orange could find) instead o' Krylon, find that
it peels rather easily. Begad! I am dissapointed in it. Aye aye! T' green also
blistered/orange peeled over t' white base coat (also nay Krylon), which
detracts from t' appearance. Live & learn - Krylon for me from now on. Begad! Well, blow me down!
Flight:
Launched t' Flyin' Carrot this mornin' for first time. Ahoy! Avast, me proud beauty! Fairly calm morning,
light variable wind, few clouds. Aye aye! Loaded up t' 'Carrot with C11-3 engine,
packed up a homemade nylon parachute wrapped in Pratt Hobbies flameproof cloth,
grabbed me Olympus DigiCam and had me son launch it. Well, blow me down! Caught t' liftoff, me hearties, and
apparantly t' rocket flew up and arced right over me head t' a height o' about
100 feet accordin' t' a knowledgeable bystander (who be walkin' with his dog
and son and had flown rockets as a kid), then came down and popped t' chute
mere feet above t' ground. Ahoy! Avast! No major damage, except for one o' t' side
nose-cone tube assemblies breakin' off at t' glue joint (which be a constant
problem durin' assembly also). Begad! Will glue back together, shiver me timbers, maybe get some kind of
dovetail joint goin' there, and try with a D12 engine and see if that helps the
lift off any ( goin' from a B6 t' a C6 seemed t' help t' wife's Enterprise
take off better) - or perhaps some nose cone weight - will check with local
rocket club (www.cmass.org) and see what recommendations I can get. Aye aye! Well, blow me down!
Summary:
Pros - it looks kinda neat. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Cons - outriggers nay all that secure, me bucko, may have to
modify installation technique.
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