2017 Launch Reports
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
January, 2017
The weather report had rain early in the morning with a front coming in after noon, so the start of the launch was delayed until 1100hrs so that the skies would be the clearest during the launch. The timing turned out to be just about perfect as the mist, light fog, and clouds started lifting right at start of flying. The road down to the field was another story. It was muddy and slick, even before getting to the last drop down to where we normally set up the pads.
Given the low clouds and inability to get to where high power launching could
occur, I decided to make the launch mid and low power only, with the pads being
set up about halfway down to the pipe we cross to get to the high power launch
area. Member Jim did the majority of the pad setup and we were ready to fly
by 1110hrs with 4 cars parked on the road. Eventually, there would be 5 cars
and a total of 9 people on the field. This included 4 senior CRMRC members,
1 junior member, 1 new junior member, 1 adult guest, and 2 more junior guests.
Seven people managed
to get 10 flights off the ground, burning 11 motors. The total impulse was almost
an I, with the average per flight and per motor being an E. The motors burned
were: 1- 1/4A, 3 - C, 2 - D, 1 - E, 2 - F, and 2-G, including one complex flight
of a D to E.
Guest Christopher had
the smallest rocket of the day with a 0.5 inch diameter by 2.5 inch tall yellow
Estes Mini Mosquito flying on an Estes 1/4A3-3T mini motor. The small rocket
went up fast and after the motor ejection went off, everyone lost sight of it.
A search crew was able to find both the ejected motor and the rocket in the
field with the road.
Guest Zacharie flew
a 1.6 inch diameter by 21 inch tall yellow and black rocket called "Number
5" on an Estes C6-5. The flight up was great and the parachute came out.
The rocket landed not far away in the ditch for the field just north of the
road, about 75 feet from the pad for closest to pad on the day. It was recovered,
ready to fly again.
Guest Zachary flew a
nicely painted red Estes Big Daddy on the mighty Estes D12-5. This was a classic
Big Daddy flight with it going about 500 feet up and landing nicely under parachute.
Member Kevin flew a
pre-painted black with yellow LOC Weasel on an AT F42-8T. This tall, thin rocket
is 1.63 inch diameter by 48 inches tall. The high thrust blue motor had a great
kick to get the rocket going. It was flying with a JL Altimeter 3 which reports
altitude and speed back to a cell phone, but the cell phone had some issues
and was not able to get any data. The parachute did open and the rocket came
down, ready to be flown again.
Member Jim flew a new
red fiberglass and black finned Wildman Punisher Sport on an AT G64-7W. The
G motor was loud as the rocket jumped off the pad to 1728 feet and a max speed
of 234mph, as reported by the JL Altimeter 3. The JL Chute Release opened the
main at 300 feet and the rocket was successfully recovered. This flight did
land the furthest away of the day, towards the northern end of the field we
normally fly from.
New member Ben managed
two flights, both of which were custom builds. The first was a white and black
0.75 inch diameter by 14 inch tall untitled rocket on an Estes C6-7. Ben reported
the simulation showed the rocket to go 1800 feet but the minimal fins were not
big enough to make the rocket stable. It sky wrote and spiraled to about 100
feet off the ground and landed on the ground, where the ejection charge went
off. The most exciting flight of the day was Ben's red, two stage Boosted Arcas
with gap staging of an Estes D12-0 to Estes E9-6. After two unsuccessful igniter
tries, the rocket got off the ground. The D12 got everything moving before igniting
the E9 which caused the small rocket to go out of sight. The lower stage was
large enough to come in ballistically so it hit the ground hard. Everyone on
the field lost sight of the upper stage after the smoke stopped. A large search
party was sent out and eventually found the upper stage in the ditch between
the field to the north and downhill, out of sight of where we were launching
from.
Member Paul managed
the most flights of the day, 3, including the first and last of the day. Paul's
first flight was a silver Thrustline Sea Dart on an Estes C6-5, for the first
CRMRC flight for 2017. This flight was classic and came down on a parachute.
The second flight was a PML 2.25 inch diameter by 42 inch tall AMRAAM on an
AT F52-6T. The flight was run without the piston and the classic red & white
PML parachute came out, bringing the rocket down fine after going up 926 feet
and a maximum speed of 143mph according to the JL altimeter. The biggest motor
of the day was Paul's Mad Cow Skipper. The 2.6 inch diameter by 42 inch tall
rocket was flown on an AT G77-7R for the last flight of the day. It was successful.
As Paul was returning
from retrieving his last rocket, everyone else was packing up the launch gear.
The timing was good as the weather front was starting to come through with the
clouds getting thicker, temperature dropping noticeably, and winds picking up.
We were ready to get rolling around 1430 . One vehicle took a while to get moving
as it was spinning in the mud. It did manage to extricate itself and get rolling.
Overall, it was a great way to start the 2017 CRMRC flight season.
February,
2017
There was no February launch due to poor field conditions.
There was no March launch due to poor field conditions.
The weather turned out
to be a great for a launch. It started cloudless with winds starting under 10mph
but slowly rising and clouds creeping in later in the day. The road down to
the field and the field itself were dry. The drainage ditches were almost completely
dry so walking between fields was relatively easy. The best part of the launch
was the fact that the insects were not out yet.
Four CRMRC members and
two guests showed up for the launch. A total of 12 rockets were flown, burning
13 motors. The total thrust was a K motor, with the average motor and per flight
motor impulse was a H. The flights were as follows:
Member Ben had three
flights, including the only multi-motor flight. Ben flew a one inch diameter
WAC Corporal which was painted yellow, black and silver. The booster was an
Estes C6-0 and the sustainer was an Estes C6-7. This flight was not successful
as the booster was damaged by the lower stage motor ejection charge. Ben's next
flight was a first flight of a 2.6 inch diameter, red, white and black Estes
Ventris on an Estes F26-6FJ. The Fast [Black] Jack motor had nice black smoke
as it moved this four foot tall rocket skyward. There was a PerfectFlite Fire
Fly along for the ride (it only reports peak altitude and speed). The motor
ejection enabled the parachute to come out and allow the rocket to come down
successfully. Ben's big flight was a taller 2.6 inch diameter blue and white
custom Ceres. The apogee deploy was motor driven but the an onboard Arduino
Reclose opened the second chute. The PerfectFlite altimeter was again on board
along with a Gumstick camera.
Member Paul also had
three flights. Paul flew a scratch built rocket called Black Shadow. This 2.6
inch diameter flew on an AT F42-8T with a Jolly Logic AltimeterTwo along for
the ride for a good flight. Another 2.6 inch design was a Binder Design Excel
Jr. painted dark and sky blue. The AT G77R did a nice job flying this to over
1000 feet before the pink parachute was ejected and brought the rocket down.
Again, the AltimeterTwo tagged along. Paul's big flight was a high powered flight
of a 4 inch diameter Mad Cow Sea Wolf. This rocket has 8 fins, including 4 very
large ones. An AT H242-T powered the first flight of this rocket and a larger
pink parachute brought it down without damage.
Member Jim had the most
flights with four which included an alphabet run from E to H. Jim's reliable
38mm diameter Rocketry Warehouse Mouse 38 painted gray and black flew on an
AT E23T-5. The blue thunder motor also handled the ejection of the yellow parachute
for a very nice flight. The "F" flight was a black and red Estes Ventris
powered by an AT F22FJ-6 to around 1000 feet. The motor ejected the parachute
and it fully inflated at around 300 feet when the Jolly Logic Chute Release
opened up. A Jolly Logic AltimeterThree tagged along but did not work. The AltimeterThree
is supposed to connect to a cell phone, but Jim has issues to work out. Stepping
up one motor size was an orange and black Rocketry Warehouse Formula 54 on an
AT G76G-7. The same electronics flew inside the Formula 54 as it went well above
1000 feet and came back down with the chute release opening the chute at 300
feet. Jim's big flight was a 4 inch diameter gray Binder Design Thug powered
by a high power AT H128W-8. The same electronics flew on board again to over
1000 feet with the chute release set to 400 feet this time for yet another nice
flight.
I had two flights, both
high power. First was my custom 4 inch diameter red, white, yellow and black
1/4 scale Patriot on a CTI I350 SS. Deployment was handled by an RRC3 mini,
for both primary and secondary. This was a nice flight with everything working
as was planned, and the 8 pound rocket was recovered intact. My second flight
was not so successful. A recently painted white with orange and yellow fins
custom 1/3 scale Nike smoke with a red nosecone was flown on a CTI K600 white.
This 5.5 inch diameter, 92 inch tall rocket took off and was expected to fly
over 3000 feet. The actual flight was much different. The onboard electronics,
a PerfectFlite and an RRC2 caused the separation of both the apogee and main
parachutes while the rocket was still under full thrust. This caused many things:
significant zippering of the fiberglass tube, opening a seam on the Kevlar recovery
harness, snapping of the zip ties holding both batteries, loss of the 60 inch
main parachute, which caused the rocket to hit the ground very hard, destroying
the fincan. In retrospect, I should have used two different altimeters. The
two I used are both barometrically based and the Nike Smoke nosecone is a larger
diameter than the airframe. This causes turbulence around the av-bay ports and
likely cause the inappropriate ejection charges. If/when I rebuild the fincan,
I will fly it with two MARSA altimeters which can have the apogee charges based
on accelerometers and only after apogee will the barometric sensors be used
for main deploy. It was a nice takeoff with the K and it was also an expensive
learning experience.
We were off the field around 3:00pm and had a snack at Tim's Place.
May, 2017
There was no May launch due to timing conflicts.
June, 2017
The weather turned out to be a great
for a launch but with the day less than a week from the summer solstice the
sun was extremely strong. There were light clouds throughout the day with winds
starting under 8 mph and slowly rising all day to the low teens. The road down
to the field and the field itself were dry. Also, all the unevenness from last
summer's trenching had been leveled and corn was planted. It was about 2-4 inches
tall and we will have to watch this as the summer progresses. Everyone did their
best not to step on the corn plants and parking was on the road down.
Four CRMRC members and four guests
showed up for the launch. A total of 11 rockets were flown, burning 11 motors.
The total thrust was a J motor, with the average motor was a G. The flights
were as follows:
Guest Ebbe flew a nice yellow and
black Estes Mega Mosquito. It was the rocket's first flight on an Estes E9-6.
This 2.5 inch diameter, 18 inch tall rocket with very large fins flew fine on
and returned safely to the ground under a purple parachute.
Guest Matt managed two flights, both
with E motors, although with very different burn profiles. A classically painted
grey and red Estes Big Daddy. This long burning Estes E9-6 made this 3 inch
diameter, 20 inch tall rocket go up nicely and a red parachute brought it down
successfully for its first flight. Matt's big rocket of the day was a red and
blue Aerotech Initiator on an AT E30-4T. The first flight of this slightly over
1 pound rocket was brought down on the field to the north and east on a yellow
parachute. Matt said he is looking at an L1 with this rocket in the future.
Member Paul was able to get two birds
off the ground. A scratch built Black Shadow upscale, painted black was 32 inches
tall and 2.6 inches in diameter. It flew on an AT F40-7W with a Jolly Logic
(JL) altimeter II and a JL chute release on board. Everything worked as planned
as the altimeter reported 1113' and the rocket came down under parachute, with
the JL chute release opening the chute well after the nose cone opened at apogee.
A red and yellow Binder Design Aurora flew on an AT G64-7W to 1192 feet and
a maximum speed of 207mph according to the JL altimeter II. Again, the JL chute
release worked fine, opening up the chute at 300 feet to bring this 1lb 12oz,
47 inch tall, 2.6 inch diameter rocket back safely to the ground.
Member Jim also had two flights.
A Madcow Mini Black Brandt was powered by a CTI F32-7 white. This 30 inch tall,
1.6 inch diameter rocket had a JL altimeter III and the JL chute release. The
flight up was a bit of a corkscrew, only going half as high as expected to 502
feet according to the altimeter. A yellow chute brought the rocket down being
expanded at 300 feet with the chute release, but one fin was loose. A fin had
been loosened on this rocket before so it is possible that it came loose on
the way up causing the corkscrew. Another Binder Design, this time a 36 inch
tall, 4 inch diameter Thug flew on a CTI H90 classic. Again, the pair of JL
altimeter III and chute release were on board, doing what they were supposed
to do. The 3 pound 8 ounce rocket went up to 914 feet before the nosecone came
off and the compressed parachute came out. At 300 feet, the parachute opened
and the gold and black rocket fell safely to the ground.
Member Kevin was back from his hiatus
and flew two rockets. For its first flight, Kevin flew a Scale Kits Bullpup
painted classically, in white. This 2.6 inch diameter, 27 inch tall replica
weighed in at 1 pound 4 ounces at takeoff when filled with an AT G54W-10 and
what is now common, a JL Altimeter III and a JL chute release. The latter was
set to 300 feet. After a chuff, the rocket took off for an excellent flight
to 1300 feet, with the motor ejecting the parachute and the chute release doing
its thing to allow the red parachute to bring it safely to the ground. The big
flight of the day was Kevin's 4 inch diameter, 56 inch tall, 8 pound, 8 ounce
Madcow Pike on an AT I366 red with the obligatory JL chute release and an unmentioned
dual deploy altimeter which was not used functionally. This rocket had a beautiful
takeoff with the motor taking care of the parachute ejection at apogee, 1764
feet. The rocket drifted down to 300 feet where the chute release opened the
main and it safely hit the ground. A video of this flight can be found HERE
I also had two flights. The first
was my custom Fat Boy III which looks like an Estes Fat Boy but with a PML plastic
body tube, carbon fiber over wood fins, and a 29mm motor mount. This 1 pound,
green and brown rocket flew on a 1 grain 24mm CTI E22 smokey sam to around 400
feet. Almost exactly at apogee, the purple parachute came out and it landed
safely. My other flight was a PML Black Brandt painted red and black on a CTI
H120 red with the obligatory JL chute release set for 300 feet. The flight up
was perfect, as was the way down until it hit the ground. It landed on the road
in and bent a fin (which, as of writing this, is in the process of being straightened
and reinforced).
A video of the days flights can be found on the CRMRC Facebook page, complements
of Jim. We were off the field around 2:00pm and had a snack at the new Lake
Street Diner.
July, 2017
The weather started a little iffy
but turned for the better. There was a very light sprinkle as we were setting
up, just a dozen small drops on the windshield. After packing up, there were
a couple of drops on the windshield also, but that was the extent of the precipitation.
Clouds and sun all day with a light wind which made for good flying weather.
The corn was anywhere from a few inches to about waist high. The low power pads
were set at the bottom of the road in the field on the right, and the high power
pad was set up just over the bridge to the field we normally use (which is full
of corn).
There were a total of 12 people at
the launch, 11 of which flew rockets. It was an international launch with 5
from Canada and 7 from the USA. Three of the visitors from the north came all
the way from Ottawa, about a 3.5 hour drive. One contingent came up from Rutland,
about a 2 hour drive.
The launch summary is 23 flights, 25 motors burned. The average motor and average
per flight was an F, with the total being a K. We managed to fly the alphabet
from A-I inclusive, without gaps: 1-A, 3-B, 5-C, 5-D, 2-E, 1-F, 5-G, 1-H, and
2-I. The flights were as follows:
Guest Bailey flew a 1.5 inch x 18 inch white Estes rocket called Bailey's Rocket on an Estes C6-5.
Guest Keira flew a 1 inch pink and purple Estes Purple Flyer on an Estes C6-5.Flyer
Guest Teresa managed two flights, both with G motors, although with different propellants. A 3 inch x 65 inch white BSD named Canadian Sprint flew on a CTI G69 Skidmark. A multicolor Sky Angle brought it down nicely. A CTI G79 Smokey Sam powered a 4 inch x 48 inch LOC Fantom. A purple and yellow parachute brought this down.
Guest Bill proved that even an L3 can get enjoyment from smaller birds. Bill flew a 1 inch x 14 inch red and yellow Team America! on an Estes A8-3. A FlisKits Triskelion, which is 1.6 inch x 18 inches and was painted salmon or terra cotta or nude (hard to tell) flew on an Estes B6-4. A scratch built yellow and white 1.6 inch x 22 inch rocket called Big Bertha also flew on an Estes B6-4. Bill's "big" flight of the day was a multi-colored 1.6 inch x 30 inch rocket named Super Bird on another Estes B6-4.
Guest Eric managed 3 flights. A camouflage colored Estes V2, which is 2 inches x 14 inches, flew on an Estes D12-3. A really cool looking Estes Black Star Voyager with an odd fin configuration was painted in classical colors, mostly black. This 1.6 inch x 40 inch rocket flew on an E9-4. Eric's big flight of the day was another Estes product, a purple Majestic which is 1.5 inch x 24 inches, flew on an F15-6.
Member Ben managed 2 flights, both
of which were staged with 2 motors each. The first was a custom Bason-II which
is black and white, and flew on an Estes C6-0 to a C6-7 with a Perfect Flite
Firefly onboard, but no altitude was reported on the flight card. Ben's other
2 stage flight was his custom Boosted Arcas which is painted in red and white.
This 1.6 inch x 46 inch rocket flew on an Estes C11-0 to a D12-7, again with
a Perfect Flite Firefly onboard. The altimeter read 886 feet.
Member Scott flew two rockets, both on Estes D12-3s. The almost rocket shaped
FlisKits A.C.M.E Spitfire is painted to look like a Redstone and is called ACME
Redstone. This rocket is based off a Gary Larson Far Side cartoon of a rocket
with many non-straight body tube angles, but it does fly very well and straight.
Scott's other rocket is a custom silver ball entitled Sputnik. There are no
fins, just 4 sticks sticking out the bottom. This too flies very well and with
just a 4 inch ball, the rocket really pops apart with the ejection charge.
Member Jim almost always flies with a Jolly Logic (JL) Chute release and usually with a JL Altimeter III. The chute release enables a single deploy rocket to fully inflate the parachute at a lower altitude, much like what dual deploy does, only simpler. A CTI G80-7 Skidmark powered Jim's 3 inch x 42 inch Estes Nike Smoke which is painted in classic Estes colors, white/red/yellow to an altitude of 1173 feet. The parachute ejected near apogee and the chute release opened it up fully at 300 feet for a soft landing. Jim's high flier was an unpainted orange and black Rocketry Warehouse Formula 54. This 2 inch x 33 inch, 1.5 pound rocket flew on an AT G64-10 to 1582 feet, parachute ejected, and then fully opened at 300 feet.
Member Kevin flew a red Giant Leap Rocketry Talon 2 with it's interesting 6 fin configuration. This 2.2 inch x 48 inch, 2 pb, 9.5oz rocket flew on a CTI G125 red with an 8 second delay. Moving up to high power, the same rocket weighed in at 2 lbs, 12.5 oz when loaded with an AT H180 white. Again, another successful flight
Member Paul had 3 flights with the smallest being a scratch (?? -- handwriting was hard to read) purple Patriot which flew on an Estes D12-5 with a JL Altimeter II onboard. This came back undamaged, which we cannot say about his biggest flight. A 40 inch tall, blue and silver rocket called Blue Bird Zero flew fine on an Estes E9-6 with the JL altimeter onboard. Paul did attempt a 4 inch x 48 inch, 6.5 pound white Madcow Sea Wolf with large fins and a lot of nose weight on a CTI I366-9. The nosecone crushed the body tube at takeoff so it did not go very high and the JL altimeter II and chute release really did not get used. It is unknown if the rocket can be rebuilt. The suspected cause of the damage is the rocket airframe exceeding the force it can withstand, with the nose too heavy for the cardboard.
I flew my 4 inch x 60 inch, 10 lb
7 oz fiberglass 1/4 Patriot on a CTI 350 Smokey Sam. There were 2 RRC2 altimeters
onboard which handled the recovery sequencing. Unfortunately, the main opened
up at apogee but there was almost no wind and the rocket landed about 100 feet
away. Not bad for going up 1812 or 1840 feet, depending on which altimeter you
listened to.
We were off the field around 3:00pm and had beverages and food at the Wooden Nickel, a pub and BBQ place on Lake Street which had just opened the day before.
August,
2017
At 0900hrs, the weather was far from
optimal for a rocket launch with a dark grey ceiling of about 1000 and sprinkles.
In spite of that, I drove down to the field, making a left turn onto the field
just north of the road down to the field we normally fly on. I started setting
up about 40 feet from the corn which was now 6 to 8 feet tall. Member Jim and
Paul arrived to help. The red pads were set up about 100 feet from the corn
and set so the launch rods could aim both upwind and away from the corn. The
blue H-I power pad was sent up about 20 feet from the corn along with the yellow
pad with a 1515 rail, 100 feet from the launch table. A second 100 foot cord
was laid for J-K motors pad, if needed. By this time the precipitation had stopped
although the skies were still ominous. With preparations to fly rockets complete
by 1000hrs and with the help of several others, my tarp was set up as protection
from any drizzle and, hopefully, eventual sunshine that was predicted.
Things were so busy that I was not able to get a good count of how many people
were at the launch. I would guess there were at least 10 cars and about 25 people
throughout the course of the launch. Additionally, the launch was halted 4 times
which slowed things down for the visitors but was very helpful for the rocketeers.
Three rockets landed in the high corn and all were recovered through a combination
of several people at different angles with a vector to the rocket, cell phone
connection between a coordinator and the person looking for the rocket holding
the 8 foot tall CRMRC flag pole over their head so they could be followed from
outside the corn. Visibility in the corn was only 2-3 feet in any direction
so getting close to the rocket was the only way to find it. We managed to make
that happen each time. The fourth delay was a rocket stuck in a dead tree. People
tried to climb it but that looked somewhat dangerous. I gave them a 100 foot
rope and several very large quick links totaling about a pound. They were able
to loop the rope over the branch, about 30 feet off the ground and pull it down,
rocket and all. No rockets were lost.
The launch summary is 29 flights,
motors were A to I without gaps, average motor F, and total impulse was an L.
The motors flown were 1-A, 3-B, 10-C, 1-D, 2-E, 6-F, 3-G, 1-H, and 2-I. Guests
had more flights than members, with 15. While members were close with 14. The
skies were kept busy except for rockets in corn or trees.
The flights were as follows:
Guest Bailey flew a 1.5 inch x 18
inch, white and black Estes rocket called "The Bailey" on an Estes
C6-5.
Guest Keira flew both a 1 inch x
12 inch, pink and purple Estes Payloader and a 1 inch x 18 inch purple Estes
Mongoose on Estes C6-5s.
Guest Andrea (exchange student from
Italy) flew a 25mm x 52cm, black and white Estes Power Patrol on an Estes B6-4
(for those of you who are non-metric, that is 1 inch x 20.5 inch)
Guest Jonas flew a 1 inch x 18.5
inch, orange and white Estes Solaris on an Estes B6-4 and the same rocket again
on an Estes C6-5.
Guest Terry flew a 1 inch x 20.5
inch, white and black Estes Power Patrol on an Estes B6-4 and then that same
rocket again on a C6-5.
Guest Ebbe flew a 2.5 inch x 40 inch,
red and blue Aerotech (AT) Initiator on an Estes F50-4 with a Jolly Logic (JL)
chute release. Ebbe also flew a 2.25 inch x 50 inch, white, black and red Loc
IQSY Tomahawk on another Estes F50-4 with the JL chute release and a JL altimeter
III.
Guest Eric flew a 2.5 inch x 57 inch,
blue and silver Estes Partizon on an Aerotech (AT) F22-7. This rocket core sampled.
Guest Monty flew a 1 inch x 12 inch,
naked (unpainted) scratch build titled "Random Kitbash #1" on an Estes
C6-3 and broke the shock cord. Monty's second rocket was a 1 inch x 18 inch,
green, yellow and orange Estes Mutilated Flip Flier on an Estes C6-3 with both
parachute and heli-recovery with 3 blades. Monty's L1 attempt was with a custom
38mm x 23 inch, lime green and black custom rocket with both fins and pieces
of wood to slow the rocket down between the fins, on an AT I200 White. The I
pushed the rocket up about 200 feet before the parachute popped, but the fins
were damaged upon landing so the L1 was not successful.
Guest Clare had the highest flight
which landed several fields to the north for her L1 attempt. It was a 2.63 inch
x 49.75 inch, sky blue with yellow fins Loc Precision Hi-Tech called "Pip
Boy" on a Cessaroni Technology, Inc (CTI) I303 Blue Streak which expected
to go over 5000 feet. Clare set up her rocket on the yellow pad with the 1515
rail before 10:30 but had to wait for the skies to open for several hours before
the button could be pushed. It had a slight zipper which could be repaired,
so according to NAR rules, she was successful. Congratulations.
Member Ben flew a 0.75 inch x 14
inch, black and white custom rocket called "Still Nameless" on an
Estes A8-3. Ben also flew a custom 3 inch x 29 inch, nicely painted black and
white Saturn 1B on an AT E15-4W (white) which landed in the corn.
Member James flew a 2 inch x 59 inch,
gold and black Estes Mammoth on an Estes F15-4 twice. The F15-4 is the biggest
black powder motor you can buy.
Member Jim flew a 4.5 inch x 2.75
inch, multicolored Squirrel Works Pizza rocket on an Estes C6-3. Jim also flew
a 4 inch x 36 inch, gold and black Binder Design Thug on a CTI H143 Smokey Sam
with a JL chute release and a JL altimeter III. The chute release did not hold
the parachute closed so it opened at apogee and the rocket drifted into the
corn.
Member Paul had the most flights
on the day, 7. Both a scratch built, blue and cream rocket called Gooney Bird
Zero and a scratch built, yellow and black rocket called Der Gooney Max flew
on Estes C6-7. A purple and pink Estes Mega Mosquito flew on an Estes D12-5
and an E9-6. A scratch built 2.6 inch x 32 inch, black rocket called "Black
Shadow" (upscale) flew on an AT F52-5T (blue thunder) with a JL chute release
set to 300 feet. Paul flew a 3 inch x 41.5 inch Estes Leviathan on an AT G77R-7
(red) with a JL chute release set to 300 feet. A Giant Leap Rocketry 2.1 inch
Talon which is 2.1 inch x 48 inch, purple with lavender flame flew on an AT
G80-7T (blue thunder) and landed in the tree.
I flew my sky blue Styrofoam pyramid
on a CTI G53 white.
There was one other delay when an
airplane flew directly over the field and the Burlington airport tower called
to alert us. We had already stopped the launch. The tower then called again
to let us know that the plane had turned around and was headed over us again
while the tower was unable to contact the plane.
We were off the field around 1600.
September, 2017
The weather was warm, upper 70s, humid, light breezes and sunny. While it was a good day for flying rockets, it was a bit warm. This slowed the setup, which finished at about 1015 but no one was waiting. It was a slow start to the launch but things eventually got going. Three members, 3 other fliers, and another 8 other guests showed up. There were two successful L1 flights, two flights into the 8-10 foot tall corn, and a total of 12 flights: 1-A, 1-B, 6-C, 1-G, 2-H, and 1-I. This was a total of a J with an average of an F.
The flights were as follows:
Guest Luke flew a CRMRC Saucer on an Estes C6-5. These are always cool flights because you get to see the whole flight, up close and personal.
Guest Andre also flew a CRMRC Saucer on an Estes C6-5 with the same results.
Guest Monty flew a lime and black colored scratch built rocket called "Flying Umbrella" on an AT G64W. The recovery was similar to what the name implies. The biggest motor of the day was with Monty's black and brown "Cooler Spool" which is listed as a LOC kit (but I cannot find it in their catalog) on a AT I200W for his second L1 attempt. As with any spool rocket, it is not very aerodynamic and did not fly very high for an I motor. The parachute did eject, albeit it a bit mangled, and the rocket came down unharmed for the first successful L1 flight of the day.
Member Ken had the biggest range of any flier, covering A to H in his 3 flights. The "baby" flight of the day was a 13 inch tall, red and white BT-50 (1 inch diameter) Estes rocket on an Estes A8-3. This 2 ounce rocket came down safely. A 24 inch tall, camo colored BT-60 (1.6 inch diameter) rocket called "Hard to Find" flew on an Estes C6-5 and also came down successfully. Ken's big flight of the day was his L1 attempt of a Madcow OFR-72 (now OOP). This blue and white, 4 inch diameter by 66 inch tall rocket flew on a CTI H120 Red. The up and down parts of the flight were successful but the rocket landed well into the corn. It took a well coordinated effort of Ken using the CRMRC flagpole, guest John standing on a chair on a table on the back of a pickup, guest Monty (not the Monty who flew) sitting on a chair on a table on a hill and Ken's wife who was the communication coordinator to get Ken close enough to the rocket that he could hear a beeper he had borrowed from Monty (the Monty who got his L1 earlier). Ken went out on John's vector but missed the rocket and went too far. On the way back, following John's vector, when he got close to Monty's vector, we told Ken to start looking for the rocket and he heard it; proving that geometry does indeed work. Ken was in the corn for almost 90 minutes and when Ken, the CRMRC flagpole, and the rocket came out undamaged, he had a successful L1 flight.
Member Jim managed 4 flights but did not burn a lot of rocket fuel as he kept things small to make his intention of staying out of the corn. Jim successfully flew a black and yellow Estes Baby Bertha on an Estes B6-4 and it came down just fine. A classic black Estes SR-71, which always looks cool when flying, was propelled by an Estes C6-3. It was a successful flight. A Squirrel Works spool called "Pizza" and colored like a pizza also flew on an Estes C6-3. It did not fly very high but landed safely. A full sized Estes Big Bertha, also painted in black and yellow, flew on an Estes C6-5 and landed without damage.
I flew my black and red Performance
Rocketry Gizmo on a CTI H400 Vmax with a JL chute release set to 300 feet. The
Vmax burns in 0.6 sec so it is a big kick and a bang for the 5 inch diameter
by 20 inch tall rocket. The parachute ejected near apogee and the chute release
opened at 300 feet but the rocket landed about a dozen rows into the corn. I
too had borrowed Monty's beeper and found the rocket after about 5 minutes of
looking in the corn.
We were off the field around 1430
hours and some us went to have beer and BBQ at the Mill River Brewery using
the gift certificate that last month's successful L1 flier had sent us.
Hopefully, the corn will be down soon.
October,
2017
The weather was nice, upper 60s,
light breezes and sunny. The best part of the day was that the corn had been
harvested so the fields were open. This allowed the launch to where the corn
used to be. There were a total of 26 flights: 3-A, 3-B, 3-C, 3-D, 2-E, 7-G,
2-H, 2-I and 1-J. This was a total of a large K with an average of a G.
The flights were as follows:
Guest Jacob flew a multi-colored Estes Flip Flyer on an Estes B6-4. The rocket turned over and the 3 helicopter blades came out and it spun down slowly.
Guest Noah flew a blue and green Estes Coriolis on an Estes B6-4.
Guest Monty (Monty #1) flew a 2.5 inch x 27.5 inch orange rocket called TG on an Estes D12-3.
Guest Daniel flew a 3 inch x 60 inch black and white Madcow Black Brandt on a G61-4. Daniel also flew a brown rocket called "My Glider" on a G77-4R.
Guest Monty (Monty #2) flew his scratch built lime and black "Flying Umbrella" on a G64W-4. Having gotten his L1 previously, Monty flew a scratch built blue and plywood rocket called "The Spanish Inquisition" on a AT H268R-4. His big flight of the day was "The Spanish Inquisition" again on an AT I200W-4.
Member Ben flew his custom red and white Vesta on an AT E15-4W with a JL chute release set to 300 feet and a Perfectflite Firefly altimeter which read 676 feet. Ben then flew that same rocket with the same electronics on an AT G80-10T to 2836 feet.
New member Michael tied for the most number of flights, 6. An orange and black Estes Free Fall flew on an Estes A8-3 the nosecone did not come off and it lawn darted. A purple, white and black Estes Humdinger flew successfully twice on an Estes A10-3T mini engine. Before the Free Fall was destroyed, it flew successfully on an Estes B4-2, C6-3 and C6-7.
Member Paul also had 6 flights. An odd colored green and white Estes Patriot flew on an Estes C6-5 with a JL altimeter II. Paul had two D12-3 flights: a 1.6 inch scratch-built, blue and silver upscale Blue Bird Zero and a pink and purple Estes Mega Mosquito with the JL altimeter II. A pink and black flame Estes Leviathan flew on an AT G64-7W with a JL II and a JL chute release set to 300 feet. A second G flight was a blue Madcow Skipper on an AT G79-7W with (what else) a JL II and a JL chute release set to 300 feet. Paul's big flight was a white and purple, 4 inch x 68 inch Madcow DX-3 on an AT I245-8 Green. This 5.5 pound rocket flew with a JL II and JL CR.
I managed 4 flights. A custom brown and green Fat Boy III flew on a CTI E22-6 Smokey Sam. A gold colored Wildman Dark Star Lite flew on a CTI G126-8 White Thunder and a JL CR set to 300 feet. A fully custom rocket in a bottle or bottle rocket which is 5 inch x 20 inch which looks like a oversized Coors beer bottle on a CTI H123 Skidmark with a 5 second delay. The biggest rocket of the day was my 4 inch x 60 inch, 10 pound 1/4 Patriot with classic colors (red, white, yellow) with 2 RRC2 altimeters (primary and secondary) to 2505 feet on a CTI J350 Smokey Sam.
It was a long day and we left the field around 3:30.
November, 2017
There was no November Launch due to poor weather.
December, 2017
As I turned off Macquam Shore Rd
at 0900, I could not even see the bottom of the road due to the snow coming
down. The snow slowly abated and I was eventually able to see the hills a few
miles away at about 0930. This was good enough to start setting up the launch
equipment. The clouds were very low and dark but off in the distance was clear
and sunny skies. The weather during the launch varied back and forth from no
wind to almost 20mph (the maximum on the anemometer was 19.5mph), from dark
clouds to blue skies with sun, with the temperature at the start of the launch
being 23F and not changing much during the launch. There was about 1 inch of
snow and the ground was frozen, but no problem with the snow bank or driving.
There were a total of 20 flights
with 22 motors: 6-B, 4-C, 1-D, 2-E, 8-G, and 1-H. This was a total of a J with
an average motor and average per flight of an F.
The flights were as follows:
Guest Luke brought back the CRMRC
saucer he had made and flew it on an Estes B6-6 to a height of about 50 feet.
As always, these low and slow flights are fun to watch but the saucer flies
much better on a C.
Guest Andre also brought back the
CRMRC saucer he made and also flew it on an Estes B6-6 to about 50 feet. His
next flight was a Star Cruiser called the "The Darwin" which was white
and black. This rocket was about 1.5 inches in diameter and 24 inches tall and
also flew on an Estes B6-6. This was not enough motor for this rocket and it
lawn darted hard without the parachute opening. The rocket needs to be shortened
before it can be flown again.
Guest Ebbe had the first flight of
a nicely painted black and white 4 inch x 36 inch LOC V2 which weighed 3 pounds,
1 ounce. It flew on an AT G78-4G and had both a Jolly Logic Chute Release (JLCR)
set to 300 feet and Jolly Logic Altimeter III (JLA III) onboard. The green flamed
motor did a nice job on the up portion of the flight. The parachute was stuck
in the tube and never came out so the rocket hit hard. One fin was severely
damaged and needs to be re-glued, and the tube will need to be cut and a coupler
& more tube reinstalled before the rocket can fly again. The JLA III was
damaged and did not read anything.
Guest Matt tried a nicely painted
2.3 inch by 50 inch LOC IQSY Tomahawk on an AT G77-7R. This red, white, and
black rocket went up nicely on the red flamed motor but suffered the same fate
as the LOC V2 with it hitting the ground hard. Only tube damage was suffered
so shortening the rocket will make it flyable. Matt had success with a red and
blue AT Initiator. This 2.6 inch x 29 inch rocket flew on an Estes (aka AT)
G40-7W with a JLCR set to 300 feet. Everything worked, nosecone and chute out
at apogee, and then the chute fully fluffed at 300 feet before the rocket hit
the ground, undamaged.
Member Ben flew a blue and gold
custom upscale Dark Zero which is 1.6 inch x 30 inch on an Estes C11-5 with
a PerfectFlite Fire Fly altimeter onboard. This flew to 316 feet and landed
very close to the vehicles and people. Ben also flew a complex flight consisting
of a 3 part rocket. The central tube was powered by an Estes E9-6 and the two
outboard tubes each powered by Estes B6-4. All 3 motors were lit on the ground
with the two outboard tubes separating and landing separately. This white rocket
was tough to see on the white snow ground. The two outboard tubes were quickly
found near the launch pad but it took quite a while to find the central tube.
Member Michael managed 4 model rocket
flights. The flights included an Estes Riptide on an Estes B4-4. A black and
green Estes Skytwister flew on an Estes C6-3 but was damaged when the chute
did not come out. A blue, black and white Estes Farside flew on an Estes C6-5
which landed well to the north but in the same field it was launched from. It
took quite a while but this rocket was eventually found. Michael also flew a
pink, white and black Estes Savage on an Estes C6-7. The rocket separated but
both pieces were found, undamaged.
Member Jim flew two very similar
flights, both on AT G53FJ motors with JLCR set to 300 feet and with JLA III.
The first was a 1 pound, 13 ounce Rocketry Warehouse orange and black Formula
54 was a very nice flight to 1307 feet before ejection and then the JLCR opening
the chute. Another nice flight was the same motor and electronics in a white,
red, and yellow Estes Pro Nike Smoke. This 3 inch x 42 inch rocket weighed 1
pound, 8 ounces and flew to 1155 feet before similar parachute performance.
Member Paul also had 4 rockets fly,
one twice. A yellow and teal Estes Big Daddy flew on an Estes D12-3 with a JLA
II onboard to a very successful flight but no altitude was reported. A pink
and purple Estes Mega Mosquito with a JLA II flew on an AT E15-4W to 860 feet,
and then landed successfully. His purple Giant Leap Talon 2 flew on an AT G79-7W
with a JLCR set to 300 feet and a JLA II on board. This 2 pound, 8 ounce rocket
went up 862 feet before the nosecone ejected, then drifted down and the JLCR
opened the chute to a safe landing. The highest flights of the day were the
same rocket, a Binder Design Aspire which flew arrow straight twice. Both flights
included a JLCR set for 300 feet and a JLA II. The lower of the two flights
was to 1547 feet on a white flamed AT G64-7W. The higher of the two flights
was to 23 feet higher, 1570 feet, on a green AT G76-7G .
Howie (aka me) managed the only high
power flight of the day. I flew my light blue Styrofoam Pyramid on a CTI H123
skidmark. The entire flight went up about 150 feet enabling everyone to hear
the roar and watch the smoke, flame and sparks up close. As always, when the
thrust ended, it flipped over and floated down to the ground.
We packed up and were off the field at 1:15.