lakeroadster
When in doubt... build hell-for-stout!
Chevrolet Nova's and Model Rocket Fin Flutter... a couple things that bring back good memories from my youth.
Fin Flutter
David Warren posted an Estes Red Nova he was building over on the Estes Facebook page and I inquired as to if it was a 2 stage? It wasn't. I know it's been done before, but I'm thinking this would be a nice addition to the build pile.
The screen shots below are from a model / simulation I did in Open Rocket. I started with an ORK file that @EXPjawa posted here on TRF. Thanks!
It was pretty simple making it into a 2 stage, and with a custom turned pine nose cone the rocket will not even require any ballast for stability. The rear extensions on the booster fins are thin cardboard... which with any luck should replicate the fin flutter anomaly. Should be interesting to see the rocket slow down a couple times, speed back up and then fire the second stage.
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I also ran a 2 stage simulation inspired by @Dotini and his ring fin rockets. The ring fin doubles as a display stand.
Ring fin is made by wrapping glued paper around a mold and then cutting it to size on my wood lathe. It is attached to the rocket with 3/16" round dowels, with the dowels penetrating through the body wall and onto the motor tube for extra rigidity.
Fin Flutter
In high school (late 1970's) I did a scratch build using a BT-50, except I used cardboard for fins. The rocket did fine on the required string-swing test and showed it to be a stable bird.
It was launched on the baseball field at school. Powered by a C6-5 it was my first rocket that experienced severe fin flutter. The rocket launched and made a bbbuuuurrrrr sound, then nearly stopped maybe 20 feet into the flight, when it slowed down the flutter stopped and the rocket sped skyward, only to again be slowed by the fin flutter.
As I recall it did that 3 times that flight. Once the motors thrust portion expired the rocket crashed before the chute popped, due to the low apogee.
It sure was a crowd pleaser though.
Chevrolet Nova'sMy 1st car was a Forest Green 1970... next was a Firethorn Red 1977
David Warren posted an Estes Red Nova he was building over on the Estes Facebook page and I inquired as to if it was a 2 stage? It wasn't. I know it's been done before, but I'm thinking this would be a nice addition to the build pile.
The screen shots below are from a model / simulation I did in Open Rocket. I started with an ORK file that @EXPjawa posted here on TRF. Thanks!
It was pretty simple making it into a 2 stage, and with a custom turned pine nose cone the rocket will not even require any ballast for stability. The rear extensions on the booster fins are thin cardboard... which with any luck should replicate the fin flutter anomaly. Should be interesting to see the rocket slow down a couple times, speed back up and then fire the second stage.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I also ran a 2 stage simulation inspired by @Dotini and his ring fin rockets. The ring fin doubles as a display stand.
Ring fin is made by wrapping glued paper around a mold and then cutting it to size on my wood lathe. It is attached to the rocket with 3/16" round dowels, with the dowels penetrating through the body wall and onto the motor tube for extra rigidity.
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