This flight was done after the test of the SBS7250 "O" motor, so Ryland and his family, Kathy and Amy and John and I were all on hand for the launch. It was a quick set up, the rocket had been prepped at home the night before so all that was needed was to turn on the altimeter power and let her fly.
Amy had the honor of pushing the launch button this time.
5,4,3,2,1 and ignition!
Click Here for the boost portion of the flight.
Amy lights the motor and away the rocket goes!
The little rocket flew a great, fast, straight ascent and was quickly out of sight. We all scanned the sky for signs of deployment, but nothing was to be seen. Using the RDF receiver, we had a good fix on the landing direction but never sighted the rocket on the way down. After the rocket had landed we walked a couple hundred yards in the direction of the rocket, but never picked up the signal again. So we decided to drive around the section to see if we could pick up the signal closer to a road. After driving to the other side of the section, we picked up a weak signal and set out on foot.
Ryland was given the task of locating the rocket with the receiver. I have a feeling he saw as much Iowa corn and beans as he cared to. As we got closer to the rocket Ryland went from the long range setting to the medium setting, we knew we were getting close. Then he was on the short range setting... Sort of humorous, Ryland stops, and says we've got to be about on top of it. So I stopped, looked down, and the rocket was literally at my feet!
Could you imagine trying to find this rocket without the tracking system?
John looks on as Ryland inspects his find.
This rocket was flying with the ARB3D recording altimeter, so once we returned home I downloaded the data from the recorder.
Max Altitude: 5,040.9'
Max Velocity: 484.7 mph
Max Acceleration: 27.87 G's
Motor Performance:
Total Impulse: 117 pound seconds
Isp: 121
Average Thrust: 65 pounds
Burn Time: 2.4/1.8
This really was a nice flight, the added iron oxide and an improved nozzle really helped the performance of this rocket. It really was a good end to a great day. The test of the new Defiance "O" motor and nice flight to over 5,000', Ryland got a good taste of what my EX rocketry is all about!