April 20th, 2024 Launch Report

Saturday, 20 April, 2024,  Post- Launch Report.

Anybody who gets the “NAR Sport Rocketry Magazine”. You also get the periodic issue of the “NAR MEMBER GUIDEBOOK”.

Pull them out of your Rocket Closet and bring them, old or new, to the launch. They are great to pass out to a new flier.

Ken Allen of Performance Hobbies,

Ken was here helping to provide all the essentials a lot of us take for granted until you can’t find it in your rocket field box.   “Specially Motors.”

YES, take a couple of blank Launch Slips home to make your own copies so you can pre-fill out your slips in advance. Some use colored copy paper for custom slips.

LOST AND FOUND         and some Donated Items.

We still have DAVID STRUNK’s.  “Rapter” flown on Dec, Sat the 16^th  on a “H194-11”,   (you had a decal with your name on one fin). The fiberglass body preserved it in like new condition, chute and cords all intact. Its ready to fly again.

HEY, the box also has various stuff and donations that need a forever home.

As a note, when you are walking across the fields, keep your eyes open on the ground for anything. Not all motor casings look alike. Also there are mini altimeters, nosecones, motor retainers, ect.

Pictures.  We see everyone is taking photo’s.   Lets Get them onto the ROCC Club WEB Site Gallery at   Rocketrycarolina.org,  or the,   Rocketry of Central  Carolina ROCC, Facebook site.

ROCC Club Membership 

Membership covers the costs of maintaining the launch equipment, supplies and the expensive Porta-Pot. Membership also pays our association fees with the “National Association of Rocketry” and the “Tripoli Rocketry Association” which provides our insurance.

Memberships run January to January. Membership drive starts in October.

Adult - $20.      Family - $25.

ROCC Club “T” Shirt’s, are limited right now but can be purchased as the supplies last until a new source is obtained. Check on styles and colors available at the launch.

Flight Fee Donation Box.

Remember, the Flight Fee, Donation Box goes to the Land Owner.   Please Donate.

We have been running short on the “Rent” to the landowner occasionally.

Club Members = $10 per day  

Non Members = $15 per day

Parent with young child under 12yo = $5 per day.

Saturday, 20 April  turned out quite good.

It was forecasted (depending on your source) to be heavily overcast, random light rain and chilly with winds working up to 7-10mph as the day progressed. The clouds instead were high with a lot of sun, got some tan to my arms, making it mostly what I call “T”-shirt weather. Winds were pretty much nil most of the day, lots of near calm conditions with periodic breezes or light wind mostly to the South, South East until about 2:30 when the winds started picking up gradually and changed directions randomly and more brisk. Then  about 3:30 Doc pointed out that the afternoon forecasted rain wall could be seen coming in from the north. So it turned into a “Bug Out” scramble to pack it in and into the Silo. We just got it all into the silo when the earlier scattered sprinkles came down in earnest. Good timing.

But overall the time we had for the day was almost perfect and we had a lot of spectators along with the fliers.

A good day overall. ( I did notice that most the flights must have had “Sun Seeker Guidance Systems” on board. They kept flying into the sun most the day. Made it difficult to track them at lift-off.)

We had   27   fliers,  and flew   66  flights   and burnt    81  motors.

That includes all   clusters and   multi-stage  flights

A-4,   B- 5,   C- 25,   D- 16,   E- 8,   F- 12,   G- 5,   H- 6.

 what I write is influenced by your penmanship and spelling.

(I did not witness all the flights, so if no notes were made on the flight slip by the launchers, or a Flight Slip is missing, some information may be in error.)

Chris Bacha flew his Deep Purple straight up and high on a “F15-6” with a good chute return and a Estes Pencil that flew on a “C6-7”.

Mark Bartkowiak flew his King Richard Da Turd (looks like a long stem green artichoke with all those fins on it, 12 I think he said) on a “C6-7” for a good flight.

Julius Burris flew a LOC Li’l Nuke on a “E24-4” straight up and a chute back down. Nice.

Sean Caldwell (Aviation Explorers Post 1903) started the Post 1903 learning experience with small simple rockets. Do that before moving on to any larger complicated models. They started with a Estes EX-2 with two flights on “C6-5’s”. Start small and simple to gain experience as you work up. Way to go.

Nathan Carson flew a ASU group rocket on a “C6-5” also to gain experience.

Ron Crosier (photographer extraordinary, Thanks for the launch photos) flew a small Goblin-G, 29mm body tube (designed for B’s and C’s with a 18mm motor mount adapter) on a 29mm “F52-8”. A bit overpowered and off center of balance caused it to Loop-D-Loop. No damage I believe . His stock sized Estes? Der Red Max flew on a “F23-4”  a “F52-8” and a “F67-6”, all good flights, not necessarily in that order. His Estes Constellation-G flew twice on “C5-3’s”.

Theresa Eaman flew a Estes Big Bertha on a “C6-5” a Pink (Der Red Max) Der Evil Kitty on a “B6-4” and a “C6-5”, (must have used a Estes 24 to 18mm motor adaptor) for all good flights. The same pink kitty flew as Der Sweet Kitty on the 24mm “C11-3”, also a good flight, just much higher.

August Gregory flew his Orange and Black (same colors) on a “A8-3”. Getting his feet wet.

Jude Guidry flew the Estes? Neon on a “C6-7” then his Tigres on a “C6-7” but it turned immediately after clearing the rod, straight and level to the South tree line with an audible WHACK. Ejection charge or impact with a tree trunk? I’m not sure if anybody went to look. Never know why that sometimes happens, but it does. (Rocket Gremlins, short furry little guys.)

Sarah Guidry flew her nice Purple People Eater on a “E12-6” with no problems at all.

Daniel Hanna flew her cute Scooter, on a “F16-6”, and her stock Der Red Max, on a “F15-4”, both for good straight flights and chute deployments, up and down. Nicely done.

Zack Hanna took a bit of time to prep and fly his Cluster Duck with a motor cluster of  “six C6-0’s and a Center D12-5”. It took a couple of attempts, but I think it was the third attempt that was successful and I love it when a cluster flight works, cause this was great. Each motor was easily distinguished throughout the flight to a very respectful altitude. A Great flight.

Michael Hill flew his two stage, Li’L Rocky on a “C11 to a C6-7” for a great flight. It made a great altitude and I believe both the booster and sustainer stages were recovered.

Shay Hill flew a Estes Baby Bertha on a “C6-7” very nicely. Her Long Ranger also flew on a “C6-7” but was lost, but then found and returned, but only after they had left. So It’s in the Lost and Found box with your name on it.

Robbie Kirk, and old alumnus, now a helicopter mechanic out east, flew his two stage Whiplash-II on a “A8 to a 1/2A3-4t” for a successful staging flight, his Green and Red flew on a “F23-4”, the Yellow Jacket on a “E30-4”, the Red and Black on a “D12-3”, the Vaper on a “D12-3” and a tiny Estes Hi-Flier on a Q-Jet “B6-6” that I think wasn’t found. Hide and seek.

Rufus McLean flew a popular Apogee Zephyr on a “H128-7w” for a great takeoff but the ejection didn’t push the chute bundle all the way out so it came down luckily flat and didn’t apparently any sustain serious damage because it flew again on a “H97-5bj” for a nice long burn, getting a great altitude with a successful deployment and fairly close landing.

Scott Pennington always comes out with a fleet of rockets to fly. His LOC Li’L Stella flew on a “F15-6”, the Athena on a “H195-7t” with a good Jolly Logic chute deployment at 400ft. His Raptor flew on a “H550-7t” also with a good J/L deployment at 400ft. The Cosmo (nice looking, complicated kit to build) flew on a “E12-4”. But his Nike Ajax-XL on a “F67-6w” had to break his streak with a chute/nose separation (it was recovered) but the long body’s rear fins luckily caught the air and let it almost glide backwards to the ground with minimal damage I think.

Roy Potter, I flew my rear ejection rockets as usual. Un-named 3inch White test flew on a Q-Jet “D22-4” with a good rear deployment. The Orange.5 flew on a OLD Q-Jet “C12-6” that didn’t burn right, the burn only looking like a Estes B4, so it lay over into the oat field before ejection and Pop’ed the rear chute up onto the barley stalks. No damage. Yellow-2 flew normally on a “E15-4”, Blue-3 also had a good rear ejection on a “F32-4”. My Orange-4 took off normally, good height and rear ejection at apogee, but due to ‘Operators Error’ (that’s me), I failed to see that I had not removed the rubber-band used to secure the chute between flights. It tried to jerk free during its ballistic return but no go. Only damage was to the one fin that the ejected motor mount/chute bundle hit on impact. The field was soft and the rear eject rockets have additional supports the length of the body to absorb the repeated nose bouncing.

Ralph Roberts, old rocket sage that he is, took his time, passing on advice and wisdom to any who needed, while prepping his old friend, the Cosmic Staff of Azul. (If you recognize the name, I know what generation your from) The Staff flew on a Aero-Tech “G64-5” with a good J/L chute deployment at 300ft.

Dan Rushing flew a small Alien Lander on a mini “A10-4t” that made it’s designed ‘tumble’ recovery into the grass. (Darn Aliens can’t drive worth heck). The two motor cluster Duelly-Fuelly flew with a pair of “B6-4’s” just fine. Love it when a cluster works.

Matt Rushing flew a Estes reissued Classic Mars Snooper on a “D12-5”. The original kit back in the 60’s (yep, that’s when I started) were “C” motored. Matt’s Air Mail flew on a Q-Jet “B12-4” quite well. I’m starting to like the A.T. Q-Jet motors.

Doc Russell, Rocket Guru and educator to us all got hold of a 12 inch 3-D printed flying/spinning Heli-Ring and flew it on a Q-Jet “D22-0” that got the highest altitude I’ve seen in spinning Helicopter return rockets.

Malcom Smith flew a SemRoc Goblin on a “C11-7” with a streamer recovery. Many of the smaller rockets can ditch the chute and go with a streamer safely, also cutting down on any wind drift if you get a really high apogee flight.

Justin Turner also had the popular Apogee Zephyr which he chose to fly for his Level-1 certification flight using a “H182-8r”.  It was good, the 8 second free fall was nerve wracking but was good. There was another flight card so maybe he felt good enough to make a second great flight also using a “H182-8”. Congrats Justin.

Burke Wallace flew his small-ish (29mm body tube)  Aspire on a “G80-10” (hoping he had a ‘Mach Buster’.  A rocket that breaks the Speed of Sound on Take Off) and returned by streamer. It was well designed for ‘Butt’ landings. I believe he got it back. (A Basic Mach Buster is a powerful motor with fins, a nose cone and a streamer for its return). His Renegade flew on a “E12-6” much more sedately. His very nice scale Bomark surface to air missile flew on a “C6-5” with a good chute return. He also has a nicely done Soviet Fighter, the Wolverine, that flew on a “G74-6” and much more stable than I thought it would be with those wide broad wings. And he had a White Goblin in a Drag Race both on a “D12-5” with Sherry Wallace.

Sherry Wallace had a Estes Cherokee-E that flew on a “E12-4” that got a really, really high altitude that drifted to the south tree line. Sherry !!, that’s how you lost it two months ago. She also flew her Yellow Gremlin on a “D12-5” against Burke’s White Goblin. It was pretty close with take-off and altitude but I think Sherry’s Gremlin grounded first.   Bragging Rights. Right?

Bob Yanacsek flew his One Half, Nike Apache with a cluster of four “D12-5’s” successfully twice according to the flight cards. His SenRoc  ARCUS flew on a “F20-4w” and again on a “F20-7w” both with good J/L chute deployments at a close 200ft. ( it states that it can take 25 to 50 feet for the chute to fully deploy)  Don’t know which flew first, the 7 or the 4 second delay, but they were good flights. Bob’s North Coast Rocketry ASAT (a scale Anti-Satellite missile?) flew on a “G87-7t” with a good J/L chute deployment at 300ft.  And BOB’S Special, flew on a “E9-6”. As I understand it, Estes “E9’s” are rare now. Out of production.

Remember to keep the pointy end up. Keep a check on the Webb site and FaceBook for launch notices.