Despite being eliminated from the iiNet TopGeek competition during round 2, I did get a story in the Dandenong Leader newspaper!
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The email I received from iiNet said that I only missed out winning my category (Tech) by a few points, coming runner up. Oh well! I'll try again next year!!
iiNet, an Australian Internet provider, has been running the TopGeek competition for a few weeks now. I figured I would enter and see how far I could get. Round 1 is now over and thanks to quite a few friends I got enough votes. I have made it into Round 2 - I'm now in the top 50!
Round 1 was all about votes. Round 2, however, is about creativity. The task for me, being in the Tech category, was to invent something. Naturally enough, I invented a rocket!
You can download the RockSim file from Here. I also had to provide supporting documentation for my invention. I have packaged that up as a PDF file and you can read it Here. (I'm using box.com to host the files, any problems drop me an email)
Recently, while looking at all the rocketry stuff on eBay, I came across this little bit of rocketry history.
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These old Cox B6-6 motors are dated 28th April, 1971! They are in perfect condition and I'm pretty sure that if I was to load one up into a rocket (something that I'm not going to do!) I would get a perfect flight.
During Christmas time here in Australia, giant Kinder Surprise eggs hit the shelves. Much like their smaller counterparts, you get a chocolate egg with this plastic bubble inside with a toy. The chocolate isn't too bad and the toy is usually (always?) rubbish, but the egg itself just screamed rocket!
These eggs with toys seem not to exist in the USA - some law about you can't have toys inside food. Bah! You guys are missing out!
I started by cutting two centring rings and added an 18mm motor mount.
I shaved off the locking ring on the lower half of the egg, so the top comes off the bottom easily.
Because of the type of plastic, not much in the way of glue will stick to it. I have used 5min epoxy throughout and through-the-wall fins - hopefully there's enough to hold it all together.
The nosecone has a wooden bulkhead on both sides of the plastic shell with a screw-eye going through both. I've added some lead shot for ballast in the nose.
Two launch lugs are mounted on the edge of one fin.
With the Centuri Draconian Marauder now built, I took a trip down to the local park to see how it flys!
The weekend was warm, the sun was out and there was only the slightest hint of wind. Perfect!
Due to weight and a somewhat draggy design, I figured that a C6-3 would be the perfect choice.
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The boost was slow but straight and seemed to keep going forever! Great flight and perfect recovery. I think next flight I'll put it up on an D13 18mm reload.
Browsing ebay, I came across an old Centuri kit from 1979 - the Draconian Marauder.
Released to coincide with the Buck Rogers craze. This kit is mint in an unopened package. I know that rockets should be built and flown, but this is really a collectable and I can't bring myself to open it.
I searched the web and managed to locate the plans and good quality scans of the parts. The unusual thing with this kit is that the fins etc. are all cardboard!
I re-drafted the parts in CorelDRAW and laser cut them out of medium weight cardboard. For the main body tube I used a length of BT50. The original body tube was about 1mm smaller - I don't think the difference will matter.
From what I've read, the included nose weight isn't enough (and being so dry, it's hard to get a correct weight. Due to the weight of all the paper & cardboard at the back end of the rocket, I fear that this may not be terribly stable, so I have added quite a bit of weight to the nose - well in excess of what was originally included.
October 16th saw the final Tripoli launch of 2011. we were greeted with a bright clear day along with quite a stiff breeze. Being the last launch of the year, quite a few certifications were attempted - some successful, others not.
(Right: Mark's Successful L2 flight)
The highlight of the day was Les's Level 3 certification flight. The launch rail was moved back to a safe distance and rocket loaded up. The NOTAM had been entered during the week prior as the estimated altitude was going to exceed our standard waver of 10,000'. The launch window had been approved and preparations were completed in time. Les's rocket got away well for a great flight however, recovery wasn't completely successful. Les had designed the nosecone to be recovered on a separate parachute. Due to the wind it was blown some distance from the rest of the airframe and not recovered on the day.
The good news is, however, a local farmer located the nosecone and returned it - Les's certification has subsequently been approved! Congratulations Les!
To see all the photos of the launch, take a look at my Flickr album.
