[ Not displaying correctly? View web version. ] | Apogee Rocketry Workshop #352: | At our last rocket launch, I had a rocket land hard on its side, and popped two fins out of their tube slots. It was discouraging, because it was the very first flight of the rocket. It's too sad to retire a model without having at least one successful flight, so I've decided to repair it and get it flightworthy again. Does this situation seem familiar to you? Having broken fins is way too common. Since there were two broken fins, I've decided to use two different methods of repair, just to provide you some options. You may find one option to be in your comfort zone of repair skills more than another. The first method is covered in this video. It was actually pretty long, so I'll be splitting it up into two sections. Part one will cover the structural fix, and later in part two we'll fix concentrate on the cosmetic blemishes that occur after the repair. Essentially, we will use a stiff epoxy clay to reconnect the fin to the engine mount tube by accessing the root edge from the rear of the rocket. Later in a different video, I'll show you the second method that you might try when repairing fins. View this week's Rocketry Workshop Videos (Duration 20 min, 9 sec) | Previous videos are found on our archive page. |
Check out the latest products to hit Apogee's shelves! Semroc Scissor Wing Transport | The Scissor Wing Transport is a novel design that looks much like an ordinary rocket on its upward ascent. But at ejection, the motor pop-pod slides out of the tube to descend on its own streamer. While that happens, the wing on the main part of the rocket pivots to a horizontal position, and allows the rocket to come down to the ground in a glide configuration. So it has an awesome boost, and a nice gentle glide as it returns from its mission. This is a reproduction of the old Estes kit from the 1970s. |
Launch Visualizer | The Launch Visualizer is a new rocket simulator that provides a full 6-degrees of freedom using your RockSim design files. That means you get to see the full range of motion of your rocket from lift-off to touchdown in a 3D environment. Best yet, it's web based, so you don't have to load any software. And you can run it on your smartphone, tablet, Chromebook, or laptop. It's what you've been waiting for. Click to see a simulation of a rocket with strap-on boosters |
Apogee Razzle Dazzle | Want a little excitement at your next launch? The Apogee Razzle Dazzle will help you achieve just that objective. It looks like a single stage rocket where in actuality, it is a two stage rocket. The decals on the fins provide dazzling camouflage to hide the separation line between the stages. So your spectators may not notice anything out of the ordinary while the rocket is sitting on the pad. But when it takes off, they will be astonished to see that the rocket is staged and it boosted higher than they expected. It catches everyone off guard, and makes for a very pleasing experience. |
Apogee Atomizer | The first thing you’ll notice on the Atomizer is the ring-tail at the base. This large annular wing provides extra stability because it increases the amount of fin area. The other thing it does is to protect the fins from a hard landing and makes them much stronger than traditional rockets. What’s not to love about a stronger rocket that flies straighter? The Skill-Level-2 Atomizer is easy to build, although it is recommended to those modelers that have previous rocketry experience in the past. |
Apogee Habu | You’ll enjoy hearing the applause from your friends when flying the Habu rocket kit, as well as the pleasant experience of building it. The Skill-Level-1 Habu is an easy to build rocket intended for the first time modeler that wants to build a model that has basla fins. It is one of the simpler rockets that will teach you the basic techniques that you’ll need to know in order to assemble more complex rockets. |
Make Carbon Fiber Tubes | Here is an extensive and detailed video course on how to make Ultra-Lightweight Carbon-Fiber Rocket Tubes. They're so light, they give you an unfair advantage in competition. These are the ones that my daughters, Allison and Ashley used in Romania last September at the 2021 World SpaceModeling Championships. Allison was part of the senior Silver Medal winning USA team, and Ashley took home the Bronze Medal in the Jr. Division. The girls were taught how to make their own tubes, so if they can do it, so can you. The training course consists of 5 hours and 42 minutes of video instruction, covering everything I know about how to make a successful tube with a glass-finish using a 2-piece mold. It even includes all the secret techniques and materials, and where to buy them, including where to get the 2-part mold. This course is on the Udemy website, not at Apogee Components. The coupon code of TEAM-USA will get you enrolled for a discounted price of $15.99. The coupon expires on February 10, so use it now! |
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| This week's 3D simulation shows an Estes Astrocam rocket being flown on a C6-5 motor from the club site of CMASS. The purpose is to analyze the flight to see if it would be safe and successful. As you're looking at it, change the view in the visualizer to "Look-Down" mode, which will show you what the video camera will see as the rocket ascends. Ask yourself these questions: Did we pick a good motor for the model? Is the launch field and the location on the field appropriate for this rocket? Is there a good chance we'll get the rocket back? How might we change the pad's location or rocket launch orientation to get better or more interesting video from the video camera? | |
“The RockSim software itself is pretty cool, but I am writing this because of the outstanding customer service that I received last week. In all my 43 years, I honestly cannot remember a more helpful, a more friendly, or a more patient customer service experience than what I received from Brendan. He was able to confidently, quickly and politely not only help me solve my problem. On top of that he went the extra mile and waited on the phone while I made absolutely sure that everything was set up and good to go...and didn't make me feel like I was making him wait, but rather like he was pleased to be helping me and happy to wait with me, even making pleasant conversation instead of just impatient silence. Until this, I never imagined that a customer service call could actually be such a pleasant experience.” -- Ryan Willey | |
We're looking for someone to write a definitive guide to selecting igniters, controllers and batteries for rockets. We'd love to have a newsletter article on that topic, because we get lots of inquiries about it. Is that you? Do you know how many e-matches can be set off in a cluster by a 3.7v 400 mAh battery? See our Newsletter Guidelines on how to submit an article on this topic and get paid up to $350 for your time. | |
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I'm now actively seeking writers for articles to appear in this newsletter. And I want unique and cutting-edge articles because that is what you want to read, right? I realize this, so to get articles from outside writers that have the same level of quality, I'm going to have to pay a lot of cash to make it worth it for them. So I've come up with a compensation package where I'll pay up to $350 for good how-to articles. Are you a writer, and does that interest you? That is a lot of cash! Far more than you'll get by writing for other magazines. And with over 23,000 worldwide subscribers, if you write for the Peak-of-Flight Newsletter, you'll gain a lot of notoriety. Writing for the Peak-of-Flight Newsletter is a great way to show off your rocketry projects and your technical expertise, at the same time as helping out other rocketeers. Imagine how great you'll feel knowing that you made a difference to the hobby. If you're interested in writing, see the guidelines on our site. | |
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