Updated Fleet Page

I have not written much on this blog lately, as longtime readers will have noticed, due partly to a number of other things I've been working on. Daily page views have decreased, understandably, since the blog hasn't been updated as regularly as it was in the past.

But rest assured, I haven't abandoned the Rocket N00b blog, and I'm kicking off a new phase of posts with a much-needed update.

While checking the blog stats recently, I noticed I regularly get a lot of views on my Fleet page. That's the page you land on if you click the link in the sidebar called My Fleet of Rockets. It's a tally of all the rockets I have built and flown since I got started in the summer of 2014.

This made me realize that I hadn't updated the fleet page in quite a long time. In fact, there are a number of rockets I've built and flown - and one or two I've even since lost - which until now had no mention on the fleet page.

And that was a real shame, because it's the perfect place for gratuitous, pretty photographs of the rockets I'm most proud of, as well as information about specific kits.

Well, the page is now up to date, and I'll keep posting information on newly built rockets, current projects, and any other pertinent information as it comes along.

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Three New From Scratch

Just a quick post while I take a break from launch prep. Tomorrow, April 23, will be my first launch of the season, and today I finished three new scratch built rockets, just in time.

Ceres B with Camera Payload Bay

This is a design from Mike Westerfield's book, Make: Rockets: Down-to-Earth Rocket Science. The camera payload bay, which Mike calls "ICU2," I've built before, and lost, on a rocket of my own design.

I made a few enhancements to the design. The fins are mounted through the wall of the airframe and attached to the motor mount. The fins are also beveled on the edges, and tapered radially, meaning they get thinner near the tips. I was able to do this pretty easily by building the fins up from three pieces, and will do a more detailed post about how to do it. It also makes the fins really strong.

The camera will be hidden inside the payload bay:

The payload tube is held on to the conical transition piece with removable plastic rivets. Static port holes in the payload tube allow an altimeter to take accurate readings (actually, the camera hole is probably more than sufficient for this purpose, but I added static ports anyway).

The original design is a standard E-motor length model rocket motor mount with a hook. I kept the hook and thrust ring out, and added a screw-on motor retainer, so I can fly the rocket with any 24mm motor, regardless of how long it is.

I can't wait to fly this one a few times tomorrow.

Imperius D

This simple design was one I did for a fundraiser at the Bloomington Playwrights Project, and I decided I wanted my own. It's a BT-56-based design, which will fly on D motors.

There's no launch lug - the rocket has tiny micro rail buttons for use with a MakerBeam launch rail pad.

I was going to go with black and red, but I already have a Der Red Max, and a lot of red, black and white in my fleet. So I went with blue and gold for this one.

Copperhead with Booster Stage

Another fundraiser rocket, this was originally called "Keith's Rocket" here on the blog. Even though it's pretty small - BT-50 body and BT-60 payload - I really liked the design, so I built one for myself.

I also decided to add a booster, because why not? A booster stage looks really cool on this rocket, and it will make the rocket fly higher.

The fins on this are 1/16 inch basswood, and sanded into airfoil shapes. Again, the payload has static ports for use with an altimeter.

I'll stage it with either B or C motors, depending on the wind and how confident I feel. But I really like the way this one turned out.

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