Sebastian Rocket

So it launched. It wasn't very fun. Or at least recovery wasn't. The wind was about 20-25mph. Sebastian had a 36 inch parachute. About 850 g. After measuring on google earth the drift was around 2.55 miles. After retrieving another person's Level 3 nosecone along the way, the total HIKE was just under four and a half miles. Launched Saturday, late Monday and my feet still hurt. Launch was good, got my Level one certification. 198.5m/s (444 mph), 805.8m (2643 ft). H242-10 motor. Eight foot long 1 inch rail. Honeywell Commercial Launch setup in the background.

Sebastian will have his maiden flight tomorrow morning in Argonia, Kansas. Pictures and video to follow afterwards. Painted and glued everything today.

Even though two of the fin prints failed at some level (these two just aren't good enough for 500-600 mph flight), they still serve a purpose as fit tests and looking cool until I get them re-printed. Luckily the process of replacing a fin takes about 11 seconds. Unscrew the cap, slide the fin out, slide the new one in, screw the cap back on.

Image won't work, maybe later.

Printed, ready to glue in. Kevlar string runs through both holes and ties to a carabiner, which the parachute ties to as well. 

Warped just a little, fin tab bent a little, caused some fit issues, fixed.

Fits like a glove. PLA instead of ABS.

I think it looks pretty slick.

Finished designing motor mount cap, will print tomorrow.

Reasonable stability margin and a good look, Sebastian has only a few more parts before final assembly starts. Looking around Mach 0.8 on maximum velocity and around 1,000m apogee.

The original 35mm threaded coupler was extended to 37.5mm to work with threads leaving a 2.5mm gap between the coupler and the motor mount. Tolerance was adjusted after the first print for a tighter fit. *Quietly Laughs*