Manufacturer: | Scratch |
Brief:
Home brewed rocket named after a 1st Grader's book o' t' same title. Well, blow me down! Avast! Said 1st
grader built a Lego model, and dear old dad attempted t' copy. Avast! Well, blow me down! Painted orange
and green t' resemble a carrot, with hand drawn black lines t' mimic cracks
found in a carrot.
Construction:
Tubing, main nosecone, and D engine mount are from Estes Designer's Special,
other nosecones are from brother-in-law's scrap box. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Keelhaul®©™®
yarn from Pratt Hobbies. Ahoy! 1/4" elastic shock cord from Walmart (3 yards for
a buck). Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Main tube is 1 3/8" diameter, me bucko, smaller tubes are 1" diameter.
Balsa cross pieces and fins made from scraps. Begad!
Assembly be a pain in t' butt. Well, blow me down! Well, me bucko, blow me down! Cross pieces were notched t' provide a firm mount for out-rigger tubes. Well, blow me down! Cross pieces on ends have come off several times, and I expect t' have t' re-attach them after 1st flight. Blimey! Instead o' butt-gluing and filletin' corners, ya bilge rat, 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. Ahoy! Cross pieces also have a centerin' top glued on top and bottom for more security. Begad! Avast! Used Keelhaul®©™® yarn for shock cord attachment a la Quest rockets. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty!
Finishing:
Paint is no-name orange (only orange could find) instead o' Krylon, find that
it peels rather easily. Aye aye! Begad! I am dissapointed in it. Aye aye! Ya scallywag! T' green also
blistered/orange peeled over t' white base coat (also nay Krylon), which
detracts from t' appearance. Begad! Live & learn - Krylon for me from now on. Ahoy!
Flight:
Launched t' Flyin' Carrot this mornin' for first time. Fairly calm morning,
light variable wind, few clouds. Ya scallywag! Blimey! 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. Arrr! Caught t' liftoff, arrr, 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. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! 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, maybe get some kind of
dovetail joint goin' there, me bucko, 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.
Summary:
Pros - it looks kinda neat. Ya scallywag! Cons - outriggers nay all that secure, arrr, may have to
modify installation technique.
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