A Plastic Model Conversion Gold Mine !

 During a recent trip to the local Hobby Lobby I stopped by the plastic model aisle where I found this:

This is a "U.S. Space Missiles" kit by Atlantis.

The kit includes small plastic 1:128 scale models of  36 historical missiles, mounted together on a display base.

In the back of my mind, I thought I had seen this one somewhere before.

Of course! An old issue of Model Rocketry Magazine!

Pulling out my collection of MRm copies, I found what I was looking for in the November 1971 issue.

There on the front cover is a photo of three models from this kit.

Back in 1971 the kit was marketed by Monogram. After over 50 years later Atlantis has re-issued it.

The MRm article, beginning on page 14, was written by George Flynn and details the flight conversion of the kit's three largest models, Titan II, Atlas, and Jupiter.

Here is a photo of the kit from the magazine article:

Back then MPC had just recently introduced their 13mm Minijet engines, which were small enough to make the conversion of these models possible.

George also states that a couple of the other models in the set could possibly be flight-converted - the Thor and Minuteman.

Today, I am pretty sure that a number of additional models in the kit can be converted to flight using the modern MicroMaxx motors.

Interesting....

A downloadable file of the November 1971 issue of Model Rocketry Magazine can be found on the Ninfinger website.

Here's the link:

Model_Rocketry_v04n02_11-71.pdf (ninfinger.org)

Cheers!

Deltie Airshow - Fin Clean-up

 The booster rocket fins/glider attachments have now been sanded to their finished profile.

I rounded both the leading and trailing edges of all fins, plus cleaned up the tip surfaces of the glider attachment pieces.

The Edmonds instructions would have the builder leave all edges squared, but I prefer to have them rounded. It just looks better.

Next step is to apply some CWF to the various gaps and do final shape and clean-up sanding.

I also test-fitted the gliders in their places between the attachment pins. As expected, they were very tight. 

I happen to have a needle file that is the exact thickness necessary to take down the inner surfaces of the pins.

The gliders now slide into position easily.

Here's a preview of how the completed model will eventually look.

Onward and upward....

Deltie Airshow - Glider Attachment Parts Re-Built

 I finally have some time to settle down at the workbench and make some progress on the Deltie Airshow model.

Today's focus was on re-building the tips of the booster rocket fins that hold the gliders in place.

If you recall, the earlier versions of these parts were built up with three laminated pieces of 1/16" balsa.

I soon found that those tiny balsa protrusions were easily broken, so those assemblies were subsequently cut off and discarded.

The new versions are built up the same way, except that the outer sections with the protrusions are made of 1/16" basswood instead.

Here are the nine pieces cut from sheet stock:

The parts of the three sub-assemblies are now laminated together.

It's interesting to note that, no matter careful one is when cutting out identical parts, there are some that still end up a little bit larger or smaller than the rest. I still had to do a little sanding on all three units to even up the laminated edges.

Next the sub-assemblies are glued in place on the tips of the main booster fins.

I can see right away that the new basswood glider supports are a huge improvement in strength over the all-balsa versions.

Next step on the fins is to do some gap filling with CWF, followed by sanding everything to an even profile.

Stay tuned....

A Sad Day In Model Rocketry Blog-dom.

 The past few weeks, I have been running ragged with having family staying at our home, coupled with preparation and rehearsal for a music gig with a newly formed band.

It has been about three weeks since I have had the time to sit down at the computer and peruse my favorite blogs and websites.

Imagine my surprise when I clicked into Chris Michielssen's excellent "Model Rocket Building" blog to find the words: 

"The Blog Is Done !"

The post is dated June 30, 2023.

Yep, after 13 years and hundreds of posted model rocket build threads, Chris is knocking it on the head.

My first encounter with Chris's blog was when I became a BAR in 2016. I had just purchased an Estes Lynx kit and was poking around on the web to find more information about it. The first link I encountered was a Lynx build tutorial on a site named "Model Rocket Building".

The series of posts was well-illustrated, comprehensive, and full of nifty tips and general rocket construction techniques.

My Lynx build turned out way better than I'm sure it would have had I not found that series.

Clicking on the home page link, I found a list of similar threads covering many, many other rocket builds spanning all eras and most of the various manufacturers' kits.

What an astounding body of work!

From that day forward, I was hooked.  The superb blog became part of my daily web-surfing regimen.

I can also say that Chris's blog is the primary source of inspiration for my starting up the BlastFromThePast blog !

Being in the blog-writing arena, I marvel at Chris's ability to produce a quality post every single day.  

And for thirteen years, to boot!

That level of dedication and commitment is world class.

Heck, I'm doing very well if I can manage to eke out a blog post once a week!

Anyway, if any of you readers have never had the pleasure of visiting "Model Rocket Building", I strongly urge that you do so. By absorbing Chris's incredible amount of model rocketry building tips, techniques, 'things-to-be-aware-of, and manufacturers' kit history, you can't help to become a better model builder and flier.

The link can be found above on the right side under the "Other Cool Places" list.

Chris states that he does not know how long Google will keep the blog site active.  Personally, I'm not sure if that's a worry. I've encountered some other rocketry blogs using Google's BlogSpot that haven't seen a new post as far back as 2018, and they are still up.

This is good, because I still intend to click into Chris's blog on a daily basis.  There remain vast amounts of older posts and build threads that I have yet to view.

Rocket on....

Another 'Found' Rocket Part.

 I'm always on the lookout for any item that can possibly be used for model rocket construction.

This past Independence Day weekend, I acquired a long cardboard tube that was part of the packaging for some glow-tube necklaces.

This tube is roughly BT- 20 diameter.

When I got it down to the Basement La-BOR-atory, I found that it is slightly smaller than BT-20.  In fact, it fits perfectly inside a dummy yellow tube that comes with some Estes kits for motor spacing.

Short sections of this tubing could possibly be used for building up stage couplers and payload section bulkheads.

It could easily be fitted with a 13mm motor mount for putting together a small-field 'garbage' rocket.

Or it could turn out to be just the right size for a future scale model project.

The possibilities are limitless. 

I just might hold onto this one...

Cheers!

A Near-Miraculous Rocket Recovery !!

During the July 10th launch session at Founders Park in Castle Rock, I flew my scratch-built Astron Alpha.

Powered by a B6-4 motor, the bird flew to a very respectable altitude, popped its ten-inch square para-sheet, and immediately began drifting away, courtesy of a brisk wind aloft.

It didn't take long for the model to clear the flying field boundaries and head directly into a residential area due east.

I lost sight of it during the descent, but Mike Perreault followed it as it passed over some high power transmission lines before disappearing from sight.

Mike and I set out on the search, leaving our significant others and my grandson to stay with the launch gear in our absence.  Since the model had landed somewhere in the middle of a residential neighborhood, I didn't entertain any thoughts of successfully finding it.  

But, it was worth a try.

Following some landmarks that Mike had noted when he last saw the bird, we crossed the street and searched there first.

Next we backtracked and circled around the corner of the first row of houses. This led us to a large greenway / power line easement that was grown over with waist-high grasses and weeds. Oh, Joy!

I had noted that the estimated drift path of the Alpha had passed over the third house in from the street, so we resumed our search in the field behind that particular house. Carefully scanning the vegetation as we passed through the field revealed no presence of a red parachute and attached white model rocket.

I was encouraged by the fact that there was no Alpha hanging from those tall power lines!

Our trek led us to an access pathway between two houses in the neighborhood beyond the field.

Emerging onto the street, we still saw no sign of the Alpha. 

It wasn't until we reached a point where the street curved that, lo and behold, there was the model lying  in the road near the curb!

Mike and I were completely astounded that the model had landed in the open like that, avoiding so many house rooftops, fenced yards, and rocket-eating trees!

Here is a satellite view of the area, courtesy of Google Maps. The red line is the model's drift path, and the blue arrows represent the path that Mike and I followed during search and recovery.

The Alpha did sustain quite a bit of 'road rash' from bouncing onto an asphalt surface, but I'll certainly take that over losing the model entirely.

A little paint touch-up, and it's all good!

Fleet #114 now proudly resides back in its spot in the rocket collection cabinet.

Cheers!!

Launch Date: July10th, 2023

 This post is very much after-the-fact. I had family staying at our home with the associated whirlwind of activity.  At the same time, I had a music gig with a newly formed band for which I only had three weeks of prep and rehearsal time.

So, very little time has been spent at the computer.  Better late than never, I guess.

A hastily planned launch at Founders Park was put together for the benefit of my five-year-old grandson who was visiting for the week.

Mike Perreault, our neighbor from across the street, also was invited to participate.

Arriving at the park at 10 a.m., we found one corner of the field occupied by youth soccer practice, but we had plenty of open space for our operation.

A sustained 5mph wind was blowing out of the west, more than what had showed up on the local weather models. Also it was blowing across the shorter dimension of the field, limiting downrange recovery area.

The first models off the pad consisted of a simultaneous launch of Mike's newly-built High Flier and my EAC Viper. 

Both birds flew very well and were recovered successfully.

This is a pic of my young grand-kiddo after running out on recovery and bringing in the Viper.  

It turns out that he pushed the launch button for one of Mike's birds and all of my own flights. He was also a very enthusiastic one-kid recovery crew.

Mike Perreault's Flights....

Mike kindly sent a written synopsis of all his flights, so rather than duplicate his efforts, I took the liberty to cut and paste them here.  Take it away, Mike...

"So … last week we got out to put some rockets into the air.   For me, it was my 3rd time flying, and a time to try a few things and learn a bit more.

I brought 3 rockets back for their third go round; Purple Haze, Patriot M-104 and the Bull Pup 12D.   I also had two new rockets making their debut, a Mini Honest John and the Hi-Flier.

Every time we fly, I take away a lot of knowledge, from what worked and what didn’t, and from the wealth of knowledge that the other flyers freely share.

This trip I was experimenting with spill holes in the recovery chutes.   I am using the standard Estes chutes, in 12” and one 15”.  I cut spill holes in a couple of the 12” and the 15”, each about the size of the center logo.   Was looking to see the impact on decent rate and the oscillation of the rocket in decent.

The wind was blowing a little more than the forecast lead us to believe, so we were going to try and fly low.

My first shot was the Bull Pup.  I tried it on an A8-3.  I know this was not a recommended engine, but we all agreed it was worth a try.  

 The Bull Pup ripped towards the sky from the launch site, gracefully arched over at, roughly 50’, and belly flopped in the grass.   After a moment, it successfully deployed its recovery chute.    A safe landing … and a motor combo that we will not repeat.   

I repacked it (same wadding ), popped in a B4-4 and sent it towards the clouds.   A perfect deploy and great landing, involving a very short walk.   This one had a chute with a spill hole, and I really did not see much difference in the return.   It was hard to gauge the effect on oscillation, as the breeze was a bit stiffer than the previous days of flying.

Next I flew Purple Haze, on a B4-4.   A perfect deploy and recovery. 

Next up in the queue was the Mini Honest John.  This would be the maiden flight.  This rocket is also the first that I finished airbrushing with the Createx Acrylic Paint.   I loaded this with an A10-3T and sent it skyward.   A perfect flight, with a perfect recovery.

Next up was the Hi-Flier, on a B4-4.   This would be my first flight with a streamer recovery.   It flew straight and deployed perfectly, landing about 50 feet from the pad.   I did notice that the streamer (fastened with packing tape) had slid on the shock cord (120 Kevlar), so a place to develop a better attachment method.   Stay tuned, as there is another streamer recovery rocket, under development, on the bench.

Last to the pad was my Patriot missile.   Have to say, my favorite.  Loaded it up with a B4-4 and sent it flying.  A great flight, with a perfect recovery.

Before we wrapped up, I promised Ed’s grand-son (our recovery team technician) a chance to launch one from my pad.   We picked the Mini Honest John.  Oliver called a perfect launch, and sent it high into the sky.   At apogee, I heard the pop of the ejection, and watched it lawn dart into the soft turf.   My first lawn dart.   And happy the turf was soft.

Not wanting to end on that note, I repacked the chute, stuffed another A10-3T into the engine bay and sent it off for a perfect flight and recovery.   A great end to the day.

So … will learn more about the spill hole impact on the next outing.  Should also have at least one new rocket, sporting some Candy Lemon paint ready to fly.  May be adapting it down from 24mm to 18mm to fit the field. 

Cheers"

Ed's Flights...

My second launch of the day went to an Astron Alpha on a B6-4.  Perfect boost, but the motor choice was a little too much for the wind conditions.  The model drifted out of the park and led to a merry chase and recovery.  More on that in a future post.

The next bird to leave my launch pad was an ESAM-58.  This time there would be no long recovery journey - the big model flew on a B6-4 - low and slow.  Perfect flight.

My final flight for the day was the Griffin-2, a custom designed bird.  This one also turned in a perfect flight on a B6-4 motor.

I had also brought along a Crossfire ISX to fly, but I only had B and C motors left in the range box.  Not wanting to go on another chase to the next county, I opted out on that one.

With this done, we packed up and left the field to the soccer folks...