Description

This is a 2 pack of parts needed to build 2 three inches by 64 inches long rockets. These are specifically designed for hybrid 38mm motors, the cheapest motors for certifying either L1 or L2. The cheapest Contrail H motors that this kit can fly with are ½ the cost of the competition per flight and a ⅕ the cost for the J motor for a L2 certification.  Designed to handle anything from a 16-inch to 48-inch Hybrid motor or a 29mm 160Ns H to 38mm 720Ns J solid motor.  Heavy walled cardboard body tubes make this robust in the event not everything goes as planned.  With Laser cut plywood parts and 3D printed parts it makes assembly easy.  Without interruptions and not accounting for the time for glue to dry this rocket can be built in under an hour.

Who is this rocket meant for?

It is meant for local rocketry clubs and university rocketry teams that need a low-cost pathway to train their members to build reliable rockets, quickly, and get certified for their next large project.  This kit has been assembled by 12-year-olds to 70-year-olds and successfully flown for everything from a Tripoli Mentorship Program Certification to a Level 2 certification. Even I with my shaky hands can build this one.

How is this kit designed to teach while keeping costs low?

• Through the Wall Fin Fabrication
  ○ Solid reliable construction making them nearly indestructible while allowing for thrust conveyance of high thrust motors.
  ○ Laser cut fins and centering rings are designed to be tight and minimize weight while providing adequate stability and strength where needed.
  ○ Locking centering rings, fins and gussets immobilize the fins in the proper orientation.
  ● Thick-walled standard tubing
  ○ Bulk ordered standardized tubing decreasing our costs and therefore yours.
  ○ Rigid construction allows for higher thrust motors.
  ○ Can withstand falls from altitude with minimal fixable if any damage.
  ○ Tends to perform a belly flop maneuver if the ejection charge fails, reducing ground hit velocity.
  ○ Significantly stronger than standard commercial body tubes and motor mount tubes.
  ● Easy to use fin guide template: Simply wrap and tape to guide your cutting and properly stand off the fins from the tube end.
  ● Longer Airframe allowing for modification or zipper removal
  ○ Can accommodate 24mm, 29mm and 38 mm motors to lengths up to 48” which includes all currently certified motors in those sizes.
  ● STW Optimized Printed Nosecones: High strength with low weight and therefore low cost.
  ● Low Cost Motor Retention System and Rail Guides printed with printer spool tailings to prevent filament waste.
  ○ From top to bottom this kit is designed to give the flier what they need to succeed at the lowest cost possible.
• Low-Cost high strength 550 lb. test shock chord

What else do I need???

Be sure to calculate the necessary Black Powder charge to properly separate the air frame. 

We suggest that you use this website to calculate the proper BP charge. 

https://www.insanerocketry.com/blackpowder.html 

Membership in TRA, NAR, UKRA, or CAR for insurance and to certify
A ride to your local rocketry field with a waiver in excess of 1000’ for L1 and 3000’ for L2.
Painters tape or masking tape
Superglue (perhaps some baking soda to accelerate cure)
Waterproof Wood glue (like titebond III) or an epoxy (5 minute works if you want
to make this faster, but the wood glue in this application will be stronger)
Hobby knife or X-Acto knife
Sand paper
Round File for when you get glue in the wrong spot

Angle iron to draw a straight line on the tube for the rail guides

Things to share:
A 36” hexagonal parachute to share with your colleagues
A 600 lb. quick link
A 600 lb. Swivel
A deployment altimeter
I recommend Stratologger, RRC3 or Raven
Batteries for that altimeter
I recommend a rechargeable 9v as single use gets expensive\
“Dog Barf” or as confused people call it Fire Retardant Cellulose insulation. It
costs like $7 for a cubic yard of this stuff
Maybe a Jolly Logic if your site is windy

But they aren’t pretty.

You can buy primer, paint and sandpaper.  Use your savings on your cert to buy a big pretty rocket that you care about for your next flight.  No one actually cares and that isn’t what this is for. Besides most of the people who complain
only fly G motors.  This is to get you your L1 and L2 license and get you two electronics-based recovery flights to prepare you for the next steps in rocketry.  For an upcharge you can select nosecone, rail guides and motor retainer color. Extended production times may apply.

Shipping is Calculated on an order-by-order basis.  Kits can also be picked up FOB.  

Contact us via email at [email protected] to get a shipping quote.

Can I save on shipping?

Yeah, but you are going to have to visit me at a launch and arrange in advance.  I often travel between Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama. Occasionally I make trips down the coast or along I 40. So, if there is room on one of these trips, I can bring them or you can arrange to meet me at a launch or in Knoxville.  The point of a bulk pack is decreasing the cost of shipping and to make it easier to handle the kits, otherwise parts can get lost.  The bulk packs are sized around a few things University Team Sizes and Club Sizes Tube Quantities shipped from the manufacturer, Minimizing costs of reboxing, Minimizing the cost of shared hardware, when levelized over the number of certifications that a bulk kit would allow.

How long is this going to take me to build?

30-60 minutes of actually building
You will need to allow time for adhesives to cure.
Wood glue will take 16 hours (2 days) to slowly
build the rocket with 30-minute gaps between
steps, 8 hours a day. Then 24hrs for a full cure
Superglue, or instant cure epoxies can make
this assemble in under and hour if you
understand the procedures but if you read the
fine print on the adhesives they all require 24hrs
for full strength or longer
So really how long does this take.
Record with a successful cert is just under 2 hours with
instant cure epoxy. She did talk for at least an
hour delaying this time and it was her first time building a rocket.
The instructional video was made over the course of a day, but an experienced builder could do the whole thing in under an hour.

Troubleshooting

These are all the things I’ve dealt with in our cert course and will probably happen to your group as well. I mean you are ordering 24 rockets it’s simply a matter of large numbers.
I superglued my hand to the tube – Acetone and pull maybe seek medical attention … I’m not a doctor.
So I might have twisted the centering rings and the fins are canted. – Your rocket is now more stable. Sand with the file. Cut the fin slots wider and bridge the gap with glue-soaked paper.
The fins are pointing the wrong way – believe it or not we anticipated this … you are actually ok. Bass Ackwards is a good rocket name.
I added too much glue to the motor mount tube and the motor won’t go in.  This is what the file is for. Just make sure your sims are updated for this cg shift and extra mass.
I forgot to install the shock cord – punch a hole on either end of the tube 1/8th inch in diameter 8” from the top of the tube. Pull the shock cord from the inside of the tube to the outside then halfway around the tube and back in. Tie the shock cord tight around itself inside the tube. Make sure you can hang on to it. Fixed.
Tube got damaged because we were practicing fencing. – With the 3” tubes? Really? Cut the damaged end, you should be fine run in OpenRocket to test with your motor.
I can use a Pringles can as a coupler? – Yeah, and some people made e-bays out of them. You can even eat the Pringles…supposedly.
I broke a part – just let us know which one and how many we have individual part costs and can easily send spares at cost. We now ship each bulk pack with a spare set of parts. 

Upgrades and extra practice opportunities.

You can airfoil the fins with a belt sander or sandpaper if you are really patient
In-line ebay for redundancy or electronics testing
Alternative GPS sled in the nose – some now available
Tip to Tip composite layup over fins
Fiberglass wrap the tube
Outboard Boosters or multistage with friends cert rockets
Game of Thrones style throne for Organization President or a simple rocket garden to impress visiting department heads
Expendable motor test bed for high pressure burns
Lightweight rockets allows for a great test bed for long burn motors.