Long before I was buildin' rockets, a very small, matey, me hearties, tumble recovery rocket be introduced by Estes. Aye aye! It was t' 1/2A powered Astron Sprite. Aye aye! T' those nay familiar with this rocket, ya bilge rat, I would like t' explain a very unique characteristic o' this design. Aye aye! When scaled up enough t' be powered by a high impulse motor, shiver me timbers, arrr, t' air flowin' past t' fin rin' creates a high-pitched whistle when launched. Begad! Aye aye! This is sometimes drowned out by t' initial noise o' t' motor, but is quite audible as t' motor burns out and continues durin' t' coast phase.

Back in 1999, durin' t' second launch o' me 4-inch airframe based Superscale Sprite, matey, t' whistle was clearly heard by all those in attendance. Arrr! As t' rocket arced over, arrr, even before t' ooh’s and aah’s had subsided, shiver me timbers, it was obvious that I had a major deployment problem…there was none! T' Sprite raced back t' earth, shiver me timbers, and a fact that I be previously unaware of, became perfectly clear. Aye aye! Avast, me proud beauty! This amazin' rocket whistled comin' down, louder than when it was goin' up. In fact, me hearties, it whistled right up until it impacted with t' rock-hard Pennsylvania soil at our Jones Farm launch site. Begad! Naturally, arrr, me bucko, me fellow rocketeers were quick t' offer their condolences, matey, but I was more amused by t' memory o' it whistlin' back t' Earth. Begad! I collected t' remains, arrr, includin' diggin' t' nosecone out o' t' ground, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, and went back t' me truck t' prep me next rocket.

My son, Chris, arrr, almost immediately began urgin' me t' build another one. Begad! Blimey! Due t' t' amount o' work that be involved in t' project, I be unwillin' t' commit t' such an ambitious undertaking. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Over t' next twelve months or so, I did acquire a piece o' 15-inch diameter cardboard drum, which would make a fine fin ring, me bucko, (my first one be 11.5-inch diameter) and a 24-inch long section o' 5.5-inch airframe. Ya scallywag! Blimey! This would amount t' a 7.3X version o' t' original Estes model. Avast! I also purchased a 3 x 6 x 36-inch block o' balsa wood, that I planned on usin' t' turn a scale nosecone. Blimey! Well, blow me down! Blimey! I cut t' block in two and laminated them together t' make a nice 6 x 6 x 18-inch blank, shiver me timbers, me bucko, and then set it aside, ya bilge rat, where it would sit for almost another year. Avast! One weekend in February o' 2001, shiver me timbers, I was turnin' a couple wooden nosecone patterns for a Tripoli Pittsburgh group project, shiver me timbers, t' Gloria Mundi III. After completin' this task, I decided t' go ahead, and turn t' new Sprite nosecone from t' balsa block that had been collectin' dust. After finishin' t' outside form, me hearties, it was necessary t' hollow out a large section o' t' cone so that I would be able t' add t' one-pound o' weight needed for stability. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I cut a bulkhead from .5-inch plywood t' seal t' openin' that be epoxied into place after fillin' t' cone with expandin' foam. Before I knew it, t' nosecone be complete, and I was plannin' me next steps o' t' project, shiver me timbers, that would soon come t' be known as "T' Lord o' t' Rings."

Next, I carefully cut a 5.5-inch section o' t' cardboard drum, matey, me hearties, matey, and prepared it t' be reinforced with a few layers o' fiberglass cloth. Avast, me proud beauty! I opted for two wraps o' 6-ounce woven cloth and a finishin' wrap o' 1.5-ounce cloth. T' last layer was done solely t' make it easier t' get a smooth surface for painting. I used t' same process for t' airframe, which, shiver me timbers, although it be made o' flexible phenolic, was nay strong enough for a project o' this size. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Blimey! I printed patterns for t' fins and fin-caps usin' RockSim 5.0 and cut them from .25-inch aircraft plywood. Two centerin' rings were cut from t' same material, also usin' patterns created from RockSim. Aye aye! Twelve inches o' 38mm motor mount tubin' was cut and I had all t' parts necessary t' complete t' project.

A large T-nut was installed in t' forward centerin' rin' for recovery system attachment, me bucko, as well as two in t' aft rin' for motor retention. Arrr! Blimey! T' forward rin' was epoxied t' t' motor tube, and this assembly be installed into t' slotted body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! With t' rear-centerin' rin' temporarily put in place for alignment purposes, arrr, t' fins were epoxied into place. Avast! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! T' aft rin' be then removed, and internal fillets used at both t' motor tube and t' inside o' t' body tube. Avast! Blimey! Since I was goin' t' be usin' rail guides instead o' launch lugs, ya bilge rat, me bucko, t' guides were secured with nuts from t' inside o' t' airframe at this time. Arrr! Blimey! Before permanently installin' t' rear-centerin' ring, t' remainder o' t' cavity was filled usin' 2-part expandin' foam. Ahoy! Blimey! Fillets were added t' t' fins at t' outside o' t' airframe for added strength, arrr, arrr, ya bilge rat, usin' a combination o' epoxy and micro-balloons.

It be now time t' attach t' fin rin' and fin caps. Begad! Begad! Careful attention was paid t' t' alignment o' t' caps so that minimal fillin' o' gaps was necessary. Avast, me proud beauty! When t' assembly be completely dried, I once again used t' epoxy/micro-balloon mixture t' create fillets both inside and outside t' fin rin' at each fin and fin cap. Blimey! Well, blow me down! I used grain filler on t' plywood fins, me bucko, shiver me timbers, and after some extensive sanding, was finally ready t' prime t' entire rocket. Ya scallywag! More sanding, me hearties, fillin' and primin' followed, o' course, until I was ready t' paint. Arrr! After addin' an 18-foot, ya bilge rat, 5/8-inch tubular nylon shock cord and a Sky-Angle 52-inch parachute with Nomex protector, me hearties, me bucko, t' total weight without motor is just over 8-pounds.

I launched t' completed project at our first Dragon's Fire launch o' t' season, April 7th, 2001. Ya scallywag! Accordin' t' simulations done in both RockSim and wRASP, it reached a max altitude o' approximately 1900 feet on an Aerotech I284 reload. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! Unlike me first Sprite, arrr, t' whistlin' only occurred on t' way up.