Entry for t' EMRR Box O' parts contest - this is simple version. Please link t' full documentation

Brief:
I admit t' some trepidation when I signed up for t' EMRR Box O’ Parts contest - I’m very lackin' in creative talent, ya bilge rat, bein' a mathematical sort. Avast! That trepidation only grew as I read forum postings describin' the “parts” many participants were contributing. I realized that t' contest could very well be described as the “Box O’ Junk” and fervently hoped that I would get some o' t' higher quality stuff. Well, blow me down! No plastic toy soldiers or toothbrushes, please!

When me box arrived, it took me a few minutes t' build up t' courage t' open it. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Takin' a deep breath, me hearties, I anxiously dumped t' parts out onto t' floor and began t' sort. Well, blow me down! Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! I be relieved t' see a good assortment o' body tubes, shock cords, shiver me timbers, launch lugs, arrr, parachutes and streamers. Ahoy! I was nay happy with t' balsa - small pieces o' varying thicknesses, one o' which was junk from a die-cut fin sheet. Arrr! Begad! Others were broken fins... It wasn’t lookin' good! T' decals were peel and stick from an Estes Scissors Win' Transport and a water-slide sheet from an unknown plastic model. Avast, shiver me timbers, me proud beauty! And o' course, me bucko, I had no idea what t' do with t' plastic cup, me hearties, spindle, Easter egg half, arrr, and chop sticks.

I spent several days test fittin' parts, me bucko, try t' come up with a design idea. Begad! I really tried t' incorporate the Easter egg half and t' spindle, but frustration rapidly set in. Arrr! I could easily come up with a conventional 3 engine cluster - BT-60 adapted down t' BT-56 - but that wasn’t goin' t' attract any attention whatsoever. Disgusted at my lack o' a creative spark, I put t' parts back in t' box, matey, where they sat for quite a few weeks. Begad!

Design

Reluctant t' give up, I pulled out t' parts once again in early June. There was an unusually squat conical nose cone that seemed similar t' t' one atop t' Estes Mars Lander. Aye aye! A design idea flashed into me mind - I would build a clustered rocket that looked like a lander. Quickly listin' t' available parts, ya bilge rat, arrr, I set t' work in Rocksim. Begad! T' design came together quickly, with t' most difficult tasks bein' t' color scheme and a name. Aye aye! Since I be salvagin' something out o' this box o' junk, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and as I planned on usin' t' 90 from t' Estes Scissors Win' decal, I christened me creation Salvage 90.

Simulations showed that t' recommended core engines were C11-7, ya bilge rat, me hearties, D12-7, and E9-8; t' outboards contained Estes A10-PT’s. Begad! Blimey! Salvage 90 is a high flyer - t' D12, 3 A10 combo is enough t' send t' bird t' over 1500 feet! T' long delays are necessary t' get a low speed (under 20 feet/second) at ejection.

Construction:
Parts list

• 1 Nose cone from Estes Outlander? Fits BT-60 (rounded cone, matey, 1.25” in height)
• 1 BT-60, 10” length
• 1 BT-60, 4” length (used as adapter)
• 1 BT-56, ya bilge rat, 12.625” length
• 1 BT-50, matey, 6” length
• 3 BT-5, ya bilge rat, arrr, 7.625” length
• 1 Sheet o' 1/8” thick balsa
• 4 3.625” x 0.25” balsa strip, 3/32” thick
• 3 BT-5 t' BT-60 centerin' rings
• 2 BT-50 t' BT-56 centerin' rings (Semroc CR-913 or equivalent)
• 1 24 mm thrust ring
• 1 BT-5 coupler (hollow cardboard)
• 1 2” launch lug (3/16” diameter)
• 1 36” length o' 1/4” thick rubber (shock cord)
• 1 18” parachute (Estes PK-18)
• 1 Decal sheet from Estes Scissor Win' Transport

Construction

1) Cut all body tubes t' t' lengths specified in t' parts list (Tip: Use a coupler or empty engine case as a mandrell and wrap a strip o' card stock around t' tube t' serve as a guide).

2) Usin' a pencil, matey, place a mark on t' Bt-50 motor tube t' denote t' bottom. Blimey! Blimey! Put a thin line o' glue, me hearties, 3.5” from t' bottom end (2.5” if you only wish t' use C or D motors) and use a spent 24 mm motor casin' t' push t' 24 mm thrust rin' into place. Arrr! Blimey! Ahoy! Blimey!

3) Place 2 marks, one 1” from t' bottom o' t' motor tube and t' other 0.75” from t' top. Use the wrapper in t' PDF file t' mark off 3 10 mm wide strips, spaced at 120 degree intervals. Ya scallywag! (Tip: If you use a Windows machine, me bucko, you can generate your own wrappers and alignment guides usin' t' VCP program, ya bilge rat, available at http://v-serv.com/vcp/. Does much, matey, shiver me timbers, ya bilge rat, much more than print patterns too!)

4) Dab glue around t' motor tube at t' 2 marks made in step 3), takin' care nay t' get any in t' 10 mm strips, as t' centerin' rings will later be removed from these areas. Blimey! Slide t' centerin' rings into position and set the assembly aside t' dry - thoroughly.

5) While t' motor assembly glue is drying, cut out 3 fins and t' launch lug stand-off from t' balsa sheet, makin' sure that t' balsa grain runs parallel t' t' leadin' edges. Use sandpaper t' make sure t' fins are t' same size, me hearties, and leave t' edges square (Tip: I use copy and paste in a paint program t' print t' patterns - 1 for each fin - onto a sheet o' paper, which I then tack onto t' balsa usin' 3M Spay Mount. Ahoy! After t' fins have been cut out, me bucko, matey, the paper is then easily peeled off; see t' picture in t' PDF file).

6) Cut a 5 mm wide strip down t' entire length o' t' 4” BT-60 tube. Ya scallywag! Glue this improvised coupler inside the 10” BT-60 payload tube, matey, flush with one end. Ya scallywag!

7) Punch out t' central holes o' t' BT-5 t' BT-60 centerin' rings, and set these aside for later. Arrr! Glue two of the rings together t' form a thick ring. Now use a dowel or other long object t' smear glue inside t' payload section at t' top o' t' 4” BT-60. Usin' a BT-55 or other tube, push t' thick BT-5 t' BT-60 centerin' rin' until it presses against t' end o' t' 4” coupler. This thick rin' will prevent t' ejection gas from escapin' t' payload section.

8) Cut t' BT-5 tube coupler into 3 parts, and, usin' a spent 13 mm motor casin' as a guide, arrr, ya bilge rat, glue a “thrust ring” 1.5” from t' bottom end o' each BT-5.

9) After t' glue on t' motor assembly has dried, use a hobby knife t' CAREFULLY cut away t' parts o' the centerin' rings over t' 10 mm strips. Then glue t' 3 BT-5 tubes into these notches, their bottoms should be flush with t' bottom o' t' motor tube. Avast, arrr, me proud beauty! Make sure t' tubes are straight and properly aligned! Allow t' dry.

10) Glue t' punched out centers o' t' BT-5 t' BT-60 centerin' rings on t' top o' t' BT-5 tubes (Note: As there were only two BT-5 t' BT-60 rings in me box, I had t' make t' 3rd from another centerin' rin' in t' box. Ahoy! I found t' center o' t' rin' usin' t' bisectin' segment method, and then used a circle cutter t' cut out t' right size).

11) Usin' t' PDF pattern, mark 3 12 mm 7.625” inch long strips startin' at one end (the bottom) o' BT-56. Mark lines for placin' t' fins exactly midway betwixt t' strips.

12) Cut out t' strips you marked in step 11) usin' a sharp cutlass. Well, blow me down! I used 4 BT-60 couplers as a mandrell and a piece o' aluminum angle iron t' help get a good cut.

13) Test fit t' motor assembly by slidin' it into t' Bt-56, arrr, alignin' t' 13 mm with t' slots. Avast! Aye aye! Remove the assembly and place glue on t' motor tube centerin' rings and t' slot edges. Begad! Slide t' motor assembly back into the BT-56, makin' sure that t' BT-56 is firmly nested against t' centerin' rings and t' side o' t' BT-5’s. Ya scallywag! The tops o' t' BT5’s should be flush against t' tops o' t' slots.

14) Liberally fillet t' BT-5 t' BT-56 joints t' seal any cracks. Avast, me proud beauty! Set aside t' dry.

15) Glue t' shock cord into t' top o' t' 10” payload tube (the side opposite t' 4” coupler) using the standard Estes paper trifold mount.

16) After t' fillets have dried, me bucko, glue t' 3 fins onto t' BT-56, midway betwixt t' BT-5 tubes. Avast, me proud beauty! Use your “calibrated eyeball” t' make sure they are vertical, shiver me timbers, with a 120 degree angle betwixt t' fins. After t' glue dries, shiver me timbers, apple generous fillets.

17) Glue t' launch lug t' t' stand-off. Once this has dried a bit, ya bilge rat, glue t' lug and stand-off next t' one of the BT-5 tubes, matey, 0.5” from t' top. Avast, me proud beauty! make sure that t' lug is vertical, ya bilge rat, and that t' rod will clear t' adjacent fin.

18) Glue t' 4 3.625”x 0.25” balsa strips evenly around t' top o' t' BT-56, ya bilge rat, flush with t' top. Aye aye! Make sure that t' strips are vertical and that they are at 90 degree angles with each other. Begad! At this point t' assembly looks like t' picture below:

19) Slide t' payload tube over t' balsa strips until t' top hits t' centerin' rin' at t' top o' t' coupler; the fit should be snug and thar should be about an inch betwixt t' tops o' t' Bt-5’s and t' bottom o' the payload tube. Well, blow me down! Remove t' payload tube, matey, smear glue on t' inside o' t' coupler and, in a smooth motion, me hearties, slide it over the balsa strips as before. Begad! Let dry.

20) Tie t' shock cord t' t' nose cone. Assembly is now complete.

Finishing

I applied seven coats o' AeroGloss sandin' sealer t' t' fins t' seal t' balsa and achieve that “smooth as glass” finish. T' body tube spirals were filled with thinned Elmer’s Fill N Finish, me hearties, which was sanded with 240 grit sandpaper once dry. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! This was followed with 3 coats o' Krylon primer, ya bilge rat, sandin' with 400 grit in between, and 2 coats o' Krylon Glossy White. After maskin' with Tamiya maskin' tape, t' fins and nose cone were painted with Krylon Banner Red, and t' BT-5 outboards with Krylon Metallic Bright Silver.

I applied t' logo, number 90, and window decals from t' Scissor Win' Transport peel and stick decal sheet; the window strips have t' be trimmed t' 5.25” in length.

Flight:
July 5 was t' day, ya bilge rat, arrr, despite rain showers in t' area. I prepped t' rocket indoors, arrr, loaded me duffel bag with the launch gear, me bucko, me hearties, me hearties, and made me way through t' hot, arrr, ya bilge rat, muggy Huntsville weather t' t' field adjoinin' me apartment complex.The wind bein' out o' t' Southwest, arrr, me bucko, I set up t' pad in t' SW corner t' allow for anticipated drift; I also reefed the 18” chute a bit t' speed up t' descent. Avast! Arrr! T' pad was then assembled, t' launch controller wires unwound, ya bilge rat, and the battery unpacked. Blimey! Arrr! T' weather was still holding, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, so I placed t' rocket on t' pad and hooked up t' clip whip t' the ignitors.

After takin' t' obligatory pre-launch shot, me hearties, I connected t' battery t' t' controller, ya bilge rat, and checked continuity. No planes were visible, matey, so I commenced t' countdown.

5...4...3...2...1...

Salvage 90 seemed t' leap off t' pad - t' combined power o' t' 3 A10’s and t' C11 got this puppy moving in a hurry! T' me great satisfaction, arrr, all 4 engines lit, resultin' in a straight-as-an-arrow flight. Well, blow me down! Begad! As usual, Rocksim had overestimated t' alitude performance; t' rocket fell considerably short o' t' 900+ feet that was calculated. Avast, me proud beauty! I estimate it be more like 600-700’, shiver me timbers, no more than 700’. Begad! Avast, me proud beauty! Ejection be just passed apogee, matey, and I was relieved to see t' purple and white Estes chute open. Successful on its maiden flight, me bucko, Salvage 90 descended back t' Terra Firma.

However, reefin' t' parachute turned out t' be a mistake, arrr, as t' rocket landed with one o' its fins hitting ground first, arrr, and t' combination o' weight (4 spent motors) and impact speed resulted in one fin cracking. Repairable, but it put t' kabosh on any additional flights; t' clouds were movin' in, and it seemed that t' rain would set in before t' glue could dry.

I was happy - t' design worked beautifully, ya bilge rat, and I could now submit me entry into t' Box O’ parts contest. All in all, arrr, a great day!