Waiting to fly...

The Mark 1 and Mark 2 rockets I designed for "Geezer TARC" (See July 13th post) are finished - and they now have names. The Mark 1 is now the Bullpup 1, named after my old Junior High school mascot. The school burned down long ago, but the rocket carries on the tradition with its blue and white paint scheme. I am fairly confident it will make the altitude mark of 800 feet on two D12-5's, unless I am wildly off on the drag coefficient.

Bullpup 1 (click to enlarge).

The Mark 2 is now "Der Eggcracker." Styled after the Estes "Der Red Max", this single motor powered rocket is the minimum diameter (1.8") needed to carry the large hen's egg required by this year's TARC rules. The Open Rocket simulations indicate that an E20-4 motor will put it within 80 feet of the altitude goal. Unfortunately, I have no E20-4's - just placed an order with Hobbylinc; hopefully they will arrive this week.

Der Eggcracker (click to enlarge).

The "Geezer TARC" fly off between me and Duane was supposed to have been yesterday, but bad weather (thunderstorms) forced the cancellation of the club launch at Manchester. Probably a good thing, as I did not have the optimum motor for Der Eggcracker (an E30 would have a bit too much oomph), which pinned most of my hopes on the Bullpup 1. The new launch date has not been set, but I expect it will either be during the Labor Day weekend or at the Manchester launch in September. The couple of weeks delay gives my buddy Nate a chance to build a bird and join in the fun.