HIGH POWER

ROCKETRY
MAGAZINE OF THE TRIPOLI ROCKETRY ASSOCIATION

2020-21 COMPILATION ISSUE

 HIGH POWER
High Power Rocketry is the official magazine
of the Tripoli Rocketry Association Inc.
ROCKETRY
MAGAZINE OF THE TRIPOLI ROCKETRY ASSOCIATION
Submissions to this publication, in the form 2020-21 COMPILATION ISSUE
of articles, opinions, and photos, are accept-
ed. The editor reserves the right to reject or
From the Editor 3
edit any material submitted.
Launch Report - UR Nuts 4
Address submissions to:
Ken Good LDRS-39 & BALLS-29 Information 9
Tripoli Report Editor Launch Report - AirFest 26 10
2927 Cross Creek Court
Gibsonia, PA 15044 2021 Argonia Cup 15
[email protected]
Tripoli North Texas; Rebirth of a Prefecture 27
Tripoli Rocketry Association Officers
Tripoli Southwest Colorado/Durango 35
President Gerald Meux, Jr.
Vice President Gary Dickinson Finding Your Rocket: the Last Challenge 40
Secretary Steve Shannon
Treasurer Dave Rose Shoot the Shot - Cameras & Rockets Pt. 2 45

Directors: Rocket Finishing Materials 63

Neal Baker
Bob Brown Cover photo: Scratch built 60” 4” diameter rocket owned
Debra Koloms by Ryan Woody (TRA 9647 L2, Denton, TX) takes off on an
Aerotech 54/1280 J1799N Warp9 motor. Tripoli North Texas
Gary Rosenfield Seymour launch, January 2021. Photo by Harry Spears.
Christopher Short
Inside photo: Rapid rocket disassembly. Photo by David
Wilkins.
Business Office
Tripoli Rocketry Association, Inc. Visit Tripoli’s website for all the information on
P.O. Box 87 high power rocketry, and how to join:
Bellevue NE 68005
Telephone, voice: (402) 884-9530 WWW.TRIPOLI.ORG
Telephone, fax: (402) 884-9531
E-mail: [email protected]

TRA Website
http://www.tripoli.org

This document is intended for use by the mem-

bers of the Tripoli Rocketry Association, Inc. The
content herein may not be reproduced without the
written permission of the Tripoli Rocketry Associa- See us on our YouTube channel:
tion and the Tripoli Report Editor.
© 2021 Tripoli Rocketry Association, Inc.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 2

FROM THE EDITOR by Ken Good

Many Tripoli Rocketry Association members will filiated magazine would

recall High Power Rocketry magazine from the past, be best created as an
when it was a printed publication provided by former e-zine, and distributed
TRA President Bruce Kelly. It was an excellent mag- through the Internet in
azine, and quite a few current members have reported some manner.
how they saw HPR in a hobby shop or newsstand,
and were amazed at how far hobby rocketry had pro- The lack of an actual
gressed. Plenty of these people used to fly small mod- magazine was some-
el rockets when they were much younger, and decided what offset by content
to join TRA to get engaged with high power rocketry. enhancement of the
Thus, many who saw HPR magazine became “born Tripoli Report – TRA’s
again rocketeers” and are among our most avid flyers. official business com-
munication publication. In recent years, the Tripoli
The original HPR magazine ended its run well over a Report began to include articles of interest, many of
decade ago, and TRA then formed a relationship with which were what one would expect to see in a rocketry
Rockets magazine, a new publication created by TRA magazine. Accordingly, a decision was made by the
members Neil McGilvray and Bob Utley. Neil and TRA Board that a new rocketry magazine would grow
Bob worked very hard to capture as much rocketry from the current version of the Tripoli Report. Given
action as they could, traveling to many launches every the grim cost and resource lessons of past experiences,
year, extensively photographing, video recording, in- and with the understanding that within the current en-
terviewing and article-writing. They turned this into vironment a print magazine was unlikely to be able
a fine print magazine, and kept it going for several to replicate the HPR-facilitated member recruitment
years. Cost considerations eventually forced them to model of the past, the TRA Board favored an e-zine
convert the publication into an e-zine format and end direction. This was supported by member survey re-
printing/mailing of a paper magazine. The magazine sults that indicated popular support for this format.
maintained a high standard, but ultimately, the pres- Thus, the e-zine direction was agreed upon, although
sures of all the work and realities of trying to keep the name of the magazine was not resolved.
things running made it untenable for Neil and Bob to
continue, with Rockets wrapping up in 2018. That was addressed in 2019, when the TRA Board ob-
tained the content and naming rights of the original
Until 2020, TRA lacked an “official magazine” either HPR magazine, thereby enabling the new magazine
as an owned publication or through an affiliation with to revive the HPR name. Accordingly, beginning with
a third party. The reality of the publication world the final issue of the Tripoli Report of 2020, a separate
today is that printed media is extremely costly to pro- HPR section was included. This combined publication
duce and distribute; for those publications with lim- is made available only to TRA members. For non-
ited distributions, the business model is seldom finan- members, and for external distribution, it was agreed
cially viable. And on the distribution side, much has that an HPR compilation issue would be generated at
changed since the original HPR days, with brick and least annually, containing selected articles from HPR
mortar hobby shops being fewer in number, and third without the TRA business content. This issue is the
party magazine distribution company requirements first example of that compilation.
being difficult to meet on a cost-effective basis. Most
significantly, the Internet has changed how many for- It is hoped the reader will enjoy what is provided here.
merly paper-based publications are created and dis- For those not already members of TRA, please con-
tributed; many people today rely entirely on online sider becoming a member, and join the high power
publications/sites. All this argued that any publica- rocketry community in all the fun and excitement seen
tion that could be created to fill the lack of a TRA-af- on these pages.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 3

 HIGH POWER ROCKETRY
UR Nuts - UROC at Black Rock
by Kip Daugirdas

UTAH ROCKET CLUB TRIPOLI UTAH

PREFECTURE #6

In 2020 (so far) Utah Rocketry Club (UROC) has not a launch, gotten a waiver, etc. so I was interested to
been able to fly at its usual launch areas due to either learn what was involved. And it was about time I
COVID-19, high fire danger or new military opera- gave back to the rocketry community in the form of
tions. Many of you may think that Utah should be organizing a launch – particularly I wanted to share
home to several launch locations with high waivers. the unique Black Rock experience with folks who had
But despite having many vast and unpopulated ar- never been there. On that note, I’d like to point out
eas, up to 50% of Utah’s airspace is controlled by the that Black Rock is the ONLY place in the world where
military. In fact, the Utah Test and Training Range you as an amateur can go and fly rockets to the edge
(UTTR) is the largest over-land supersonic-authorized of space. This makes Black Rock and the airspace
restricted airspace in the lower 48 states. Therefore, that surrounds it incredibly special and valuable to the
it can be difficult to get waivers higher than what you rocket community. It’s why at Black Rock you abso-
may see back East as we are pushed to fly in the al- lutely must follow ALL the rules (Tripoli, FAA, BLM)
ready limited areas of commercial airspace. By July, because losing the opportunity to fly there would be
with options to fly in Utah dwindling, UROC tossed devastating to the hobby. If you ever travel out to
around the idea of having a small launch at Black Black Rock, please give it the respect it deserves.
Rock, NV. The response from the club’s membership
was surprisingly supportive. Things fell into place By the time registration had closed, we had approxi-
with the FAA and the BLM and before you knew it, mately 40 flyers. At a club meeting prior to the launch
we were planning for UR Nuts (our play on BALLS) we solicited members on the types of projects they
for September 11-13, 2020. Due to COVID-19 the were bringing. Given this information Neal Baker and
launch would be limited to 50 attendees. Some of you I decided on the equipment to bring – two 1010 rails
may see this group limit as an annoyance but honestly and two 1515 rails. Not exactly an Airfest or LDRS
it turned out to be a blessing as I’ll get to later. type launch. The biggest hurdle we saw was getting
our members to the site safely. We choose to use the
While I and other UROC members had been to Black BALLS launch site and relayed information from on
Rock many times, we had never put on a launch out how to get there from the BALLS website. Aeropac
there. And I’ll be up front to say I had never put on had successfully held Mudrock and Aeronaut at Black

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 4

Rock in 2020 and we adopted their COVID-19 protocols. Left: Neal Baker addresses the flyers/attendees.
Finally, UROC members are used to hot desert launch con- Center: Maureen Mills with her Level 1 cert rocket.
ditions and not much needed to be covered there. Nothing
Right: Tim Boschert with his rocket, ready for flight.
of note was really that different from a typical launch other
Below: Lorenzo Miller in a pre-flight pose with his
than the attendance cap, and I promised earlier I’d circle
Level 3 rocket.
back on that point.

Fifty, I think, is a magic number and I personally thank the

state of Nevada for the group size restriction. There were
just enough flights that things didn’t get boring while at the
same time it never became difficult for a crew of three peo-
ple to manage the launch (RSO, LCO and pad manager).

Kip Daugirdas at LCO

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 5

 Upper left: Black Rock is the perfect place for sparky
motors. Here, Derek David’s rocket takes to the air
with a fiery boost on an Aerotech K-850DM.
Upper right: Tim Boschert’s rocket with a nice, sparky
take-off on an Aerotech I-280DM motor.
Lower left: Kip Daugirdas moves Perry Hacking’s
PML Bullpup into take-off position.
Lower right: Perry’s Bullpup climbs on an Aerotech
K-550W into the clear skies over Black Rock.
All photos on this page were taken by, and are provid-
ed courtesy of, Jim Wilkerson/Tahoma Photography.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 6

 More scenes from
UR Nuts.
These photos are
among those that
have been posted
to the UROC group
collection found on
Facebook by sever-
al attendees of the
event.
More photos and
videos can be
found here:
https://www.face-
book.com/groups/
urocfb

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 7

 Black Rock is a dramatic, “camera
ready” place, both by day and night,
even when rockets aren’t flying.
Left: Wildfire smoke puts haze into
the air, but makes for a colorful sun-
rise effect over the playa.
Below: At night the total absence of
any light sources nearby - except
for what you bring - provide sur-
real shadow effects, and unfettered
views of the stars over the lake bed.

What does this mean? It was a relaxed

and fun launch for everyone involved
which is a great feeling when you are
putting on a launch far from home. It
almost reminded me of getting together
with a group of friends to launch model
rockets at the school athletic field as a
kid.

The limited attendance had additional

benefits besides reducing the stress on
the launch organizers.

1) Safety. It is easy to control who/

what is going out on the range.
Rockets get a more thorough re-
view by the RSO. Special projects get more attention prior to and during the launch. I think this helps
organizers run a safer launch and helps flyers get in the air with fewer delays.

2) Flyers get special attention. If your igniter fails, you don’t have to wait to recycle. Given your rocket is
likely the only one on the range you can head back out to replace it – immediately.

3) No jockeying for pads or prime launch windows.

4) Less launch gear to transport. We divided the equipment across several attendees which eliminated the
need for the equipment trailer.

5) Quick range setup and tear-down.

6) Easier cleanup and a reduced environmental burden on the playa.

If UROC turns this into an annual launch, we will seriously consider capping the number of attendees.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 8

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 9
 HIGH POWER ROCKETRY
AIRFEST 26
by Harry Spears

What a year it has been. The cancelation of LDRS, each lane, one for the model rockets, one for the 40’s,
BALLS, and just about everything else due to the and one for the 50’s pads. Spots were painted on the
COVID-19 concerns has made 2020 a year we won’t ground six feet apart in case a line started to form. The
soon forget. Kloudbusters did not want to see another pads were assigned at the RSO check-in, and the flyer
big rocket launch cancelled and put a lot of effort into was sent to a holding area once approved. The hold-
putting on AIRFest 26. The first and ongoing ques- ing area had a marker for each pad, and the flyer stood
tion was if they would be allowed to hold the launch. at the assigned marker until cleared to go to the pads.
There was always a possibility the state or county That worked out so well the Kloudbusters are thinking
would change their rules, forcing a cancellation. The about using that general setup for future launches.
next question was how many people would attend?
This year’s registration packets were also a little dif-
Would there be less due to job loss and health con-
ferent. Each flyers packet contained the normal mate-
cerns? The normal amount? Or with this being the
rials, plus a baggie with two face masks, some flight
biggest Tripoli launch for 2020, there was talk AIR-
cards, and a pen. The masks were provided by Chris’
Fest could become a mini LDRS with more people
Rocket Supply, and Altus Metrum. This year the flight
than usual. The answer to the questions ended up be-
cards could not be filled out at the RSO table, and no
ing a few more people than a normal AIRFest .
pens were available at the table. A pen for filling out
The next question was how to keep the flyers safe on flight cards was supplied by Rail-Buttons.com in each
the rocket pasture. Looking back at past AIRFests packet. A separate table was set up outside the RSO
and LDRSs the Kloudbusters had hosted, they noticed area with a scale and flight cards for flyers to use if
that flyers tend to bottleneck at the RSO process and needed. Missing from this year’s registration packet
queue line for the 40 and 50 pads. The away cells were was a ticket to the burger blast. The circus tent was be-
not that much of a concern, since everyone is usually ing used for the RSO check-in and the burger blast is
in a vehicle out there anyway. The solution for the another activity where people normally would not be
bottleneck is what they call the “cattle chute”. Three social distancing. This raised another concern for the
lanes were set up in the circus tent with an RSO for Kloudbusters: the after hour social gatherings.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 10

 Left: Attendees signing in, showing distancing/mask measures. Right: A special Texas notice about mask-wearing rules.

Over the last few years the Texas clubs have joined to go containers. That included the shrimp boil which
forces to create what is known as the Texas Com- last year was served on a very long community table.
pound at AIRFest. Each year it gets bigger, and it While there were no six foot markers painted on the
looked like almost a quarter of all the registered flyers ground, everyone in the food line, when there was a
this year would be from Texas. With the success of line, did a good job of maintaining social distance. To
last years LDRS food plan, Tripoli Houston and Trip- enter the compound you had to have a mask and were
oli North Texas had been talking about a repeat of the encouraged to wear it except when eating. Those that
meals since the end of LDRS last year. Kloudbusters signed up for the food plan were also given a spe-
had discussions with the Texas group about their con- cial Tripoli Texas face mask. The open area was large
cerns and the need for social distancing. The leaders enough that people could set up chairs in large circles.
of the Texas group worked on a plan that would ac- That accomplished the social distancing requirements
complish the needed social distancing while still be- that the Kloudbusters were concerned about. This de-
ing able to feed over fifty people. The canopies were sign, like the RSO area, worked out so well the open
stretched out, and a large open area was set up in the center area may become a standard feature for the
center. This year all the meals would also be served in compound in future years.

Left: View of the “Texas Compound” set-up.

Above: AirFest 26 RSO in action.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 11

 Left: AirFest activity, as fly-
ers make their way out to the
pads.

Center: (L) LCO crew conduct-

ing flight activities, masks
present.

Center: (R) Late day gather-

ing for food, drinks and relax-
ation, social distancing rules
observed.

Bottom: Jimmy Higham in a

pre-flight pose with his rocket
Skeeter.

The official start of the launch was Friday morning Sept.

4th, and time to see how well all of the planning worked.
The morning was a beautiful, calm, mostly sunny day.
Throughout the day there were many great flights. A few
CATO’s happened including a research O motor that had a
really impressive earth shaking CATO.
Saturday was another good day to fly and the new RSO
check-in process seemed to be working well. Gary Dickin-
son, Tripoli Vice-president, stated that with the exception of
the face masks and the check-in queue, it was like a normal
AIRFest.
Sunday started out good once again, but by mid-afternoon
the Kansas winds had kicked up and the rest of the day was
cancelled due to the winds. During the afternoon downtime
I talked to Bob Brown, the launch director, about the launch.
We talked about the Kloudbusters concerns on holding the
launch, and how their changes were working. Bob said that
while they were nervous about the changes and doing some-
thing they had not tested beforehand, he was thrilled at how
well it had worked out, and additionally, how well the flyers

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 12

 Upper: Al Gloer with Real Men Fly Pink, a tribute to Marian
Hayes. It flew on a KBA M1450W - take off above.
Lower: (R) AirFest flight team member catches a take -off
on camera. (L) One of many dramatic AirFest rocket flights.

had accepted the changes.

Monday morning arrived and the rocket pasture looked mostly empty. There were still a few people flying rock-
ets, but it looked like most people had packed up during the downtime on Sunday.
Despite the challenges of holding a large launch during the pandemic, The Kloudbusters did a fantastic job of
putting a plan together and pulling it off. While most of the flyers I talked to would have preferred not to be
wearing masks, they were happy and excited at being able to get out and fly at the rocket pasture this year.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 13

 This page - more AirFest 26 Upper right: Jeff Jones with
flyers, attendees and rockets. his Thumper Junior Deluxe.

Upper left: Andrew and Crys- Center: Bdale Garbee/Altus

tal Grippo with their two-stage Metrum was present too.
rocket
Lower right: Nice-looking
Upper center: Strong rocket Patriot takes flight.
take-off on a red motor.
All photos on this page are
Lower left: Tyler Larsen get- courtesy Tripoli North Texas
ting ready to obtain his flyer via Facebook.
certification.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 14

 HIGH POWER ROCKETRY
ARGONIA
CUP
MARCH 27 - 28, 2021

by Lucas Utley
Introduction
The Argonia Cup is a recently-founded, Tripoli-spon- The objective is to launch a golf ball payload to an
sored collegiate rocketry competition that takes place altitude of 8000 ft and return the payload as close to
each spring and is hosted by the Kloudbusters of Ar- the launch site as possible. All flights are limited to a
gonia, KS. My name is Lucas Utley, and I’ve been a single L motor or less of impulse, each team must have
member of Tripoli since 2016 when I became active at least one Level 2 certified flyer, and 3 flight attempts
in high-power rocketry through the Oklahoma State are permitted per team throughout the weekend. In ad-
University rocketry team. I flew with Kloudbusters dition to the Tripoli Safety
throughout my time in college and graduate school, Code, a few other rules ex-
earning my L2 and L3 certifications there. During that ist to ensure safe launches
time, I also had the privilege of competing in the Ar- and recoveries, and lastly,
gonia Cup, since its inception in 2017. Having partici- each team is assigned an
pated for 3 years as a student but since graduated, it L3 safety mentor to serve
was especially exciting to return to the competition, as the team’s RSO and re-
this time as a spectator. solve any safety concerns
during flight preparations. While adhering to these
During the weekend of March 27 and 28, 2021 the basic rules, teams are encouraged to develop creative
annual Kloudburst launch took place in parallel with ways to return their payloads near the ground target.
the collegiate event, so I also got to fly a few rock- The team that lands their payload closest to this target
ets of my own during that time. I loved being a part after reaching 8000 ft of altitude is the winner.
of what turned out to be a full, exciting weekend of
competitive flights at the Kloudbusters Rocket Pasture Since 2017, various controlled recovery methods by
throughout this early spring weekend. means of autonomous drones, piloted gliders, and
steered parasails have been attempted, but basic dual
Competition Background deployment recovery has provided the winning en-
tries in 2017, 2018, and 2019. The 2020 competition
The Argonia Cup was founded in 2017 by members
was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That
of the Kloudbusters, TRA Kansas, Prefecture #34, as
first year, registration numbers began with 3 teams but
a collegiate rocketry competition and to provide a new
have since grown, reaching a new peak for this year’s
alternative to other competitions that require multiple
event with 17 teams, representing states ranging from
days of travel, days worth of presentations and launch-
Colorado to Tennessee and many in between.
es, and large budgets in order to participate. This event
would be a rocketry competition, rather than an en-
Prior to the Competition
gineering one, and be accessible to smaller, younger
college rocketry programs in the central United States. In the month prior to the 2021 Argonia Cup, all reg-

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 15

istered teams were required to submit a 5-10 minute Day 1 - Saturday, March 29
video summarizing their project and payload recovery
Prior to opening the range Saturday morning, Kloud-
strategy. This video requirement is an alternative to the
busters Prefect Bob Brown assembled all competitors,
extensive paperwork, posters, and presentations that
safety monitors, and mentors for a safety briefing and a
are a large element in other collegiate rocketry com-
quick recap of the rules. Of the 17 teams registered, 12
petitions. These videos were made publicly available
teams ended up making it to Argonia for the competi-
for all to view and served as a glimpse into the flights
tion, setting a new record for attending teams. Those in
and types of payload recoveries that could be expected
attendance included: two teams from Oklahoma State
throughout the competition.
University (OSU), Southwestern Oklahoma State Uni-
In the days leading up to the event, while the univer- versity (SWOSU), Northwestern Oklahoma State Uni-
sity teams were packing up rockets and launch gear, versity (NWOSU), the University of Oklahoma (OU),
the Kloudbusters were busy setting up the range. By LeTourneau University, the University of Missouri
Friday evening, the Nafziger Rocket Pasture was all (Mizzou), Missouri University of Science and Tech-
set with model rocket pads, 2 banks of high-power nology (Missouri S&T), Kansas State University (K-
pads (one of which was dedicated strictly for college State), the University of Tennessee Knoxville (UTK),
team use for the competition), and a bank of away pads the University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver), and
for M, N, and O motors. Several Kloudbusters and a Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE).
few college team members camped out Friday evening Each team was assigned a safety monitor that included
on site, while others stayed in nearby Anthony, Wel- experienced L3 fliers such as Kloudbusters members,
lington, and Wichita in anticipation of the first day of and even Tripoli President himself, Gerald Meux Jr.
competition.

Safety briefing on Saturday morning. Photo courtesy Samantha Huckabay.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 16

With the waiver open from 9 AM to 6 PM both days, Unfortunately many of these attempts were unsuccess-
many flying opportunities were made available, and ful, owing to failed parachute deployment on recovery.
while the weather Saturday was clear, increasingly However, not only was UTK able to claim the title of
windy conditions pushed some flights to Sunday. How- first qualifying flight of the competition with their Se-
ever, despite the higher winds, most teams launched VIIn rocket on an L1395, they also took an early lead
their first attempts of the competition, and other rock- and held first place well into Sunday with a ground
eteers took to the skies too. distance from the target of 3115 ft.

Southwestern Oklahoma State University performed In addition to the competition, some notable flights in-
two test flights, aiming for approximately 2000 ft in cluded TRA Director Chris Short (of Chris’s Rocket
altitude and a chance to test their recovery drone. Of- Supplies - an Argonia Cup sponsor) and his high-alti-
ficial competition attempts were made by CU Denver, tude N1000 flight, Jamie Weiss with Jam Packed on an
Mizzou, OU, K-State, LeTourneau University, OSU, M1650, and Justin Farrand with a minimum-diameter
and the UTK. L1000 flight to 27000 ft.

Tripoli President Gerald Meux Jr. performing LCO duties. Image courtesy Lance Lickteig.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 17

 Left: Chris Short’s N1000 flight.
Image courtesy Lance Lickteig.

Right: Image courtesy Lance Lickteig.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 18

 Left: Katelyn Powell’s successful L3
certification attempt on an M1500.
Image courtesy Lance Lickteig.

Right: Missouri S&T on an N6000.

Image courtesy Lance Lickteig.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 19

 Image courtesy Bob Phelan.

After a long day in the sun and wind, some of the far- Cooper with a Rattworks tri-brid K400. There were
thest-traveled teams returned home, but most would a couple flights by university teams unrelated to the
return the following day to utilize their remaining Argonia Cup, including Missouri S&T launching their
launch attempts up to 3. Sunday would turn out to be 120 lb Killer Queen Remastered on an N6800 and the
more favorable, not only for weather, but also for suc- University of West Virginia with a Spaceport America
cessful flights and sound recoveries. Cup (formerly IREC) test flight of Mountain Mama on
a research O3527 flying to 30000 ft. Finally, the whole
Day 2 - Sunday, March 28 weekend was full of certification flights, too. There
were 9 Level 1 Certification attempts, 5 for Level 2,
Sunday morning started with a drag race of rocket-
and a pair of successful Level 3 attempts by Katelyn
launched Phoenix gliders between Bob Brown and
Powell and Joshua Anderson.
Jay Bailey on G12 motors, and the weather only im-
proved as the day went on. It remained sunny, turned Sunday also represented the busiest and most excit-
warm, and winds were light. Many took advantage of ing day for Argonia Cup flights. Launches were made
the great weather, with exciting flights by Jay Hol- throughout the day by the two OSU teams, SWOSU,
combe flying his Red Raider on a research N2660, Missouri S&T, OU, SIUE, and K-State, many of whom
Steve Klausmeyer with a high-altitude flight of I Am attempted more than once on Sunday alone.
Groot on a research N2200 to over 42000ft, and Jim

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 20

 Above: Missouri S&T preparing Dioscuri prior to flight. Image courtesy Bob Phelan.

Below: Missouri S&T at the bank of dedicated competition pads. Image courtesy Bob Phelan.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 21

Following up their test
launches from the day be-
fore, SWOSU had an exciting
flight up on an L1420, and
then returned from apogee
by means of a piloted quad-
copter that landed just 568 ft
from the target, unfortunately
falling short when the on-
board battery died early. To
make this even more impres-
sive, a glitch in their control-
ler reversed all flight controls
to the pilot; the fact that they
still landed so close with re-
versed control input makes
their attempt even more sig-
nificant. This successful flight
put them in first place for the
weekend. Other quadcop-
ters were attempted by other
teams but either came down
uncontrolled, landed too far
away, or were lost altogether.

OSU’s Space Cowboys

launched Skittles on an
L1350 and also had an ex-
citing recovery attempt, but
rather than a piloted quadcop-
ter, they utilized an autono-
mous glider. After serving
as the rocket’s nosecone, the
glider ejected at apogee, de-
ployed spring-loaded wings,
and flew laterally to the target
zone before circling down-
wards just above the edge of
the flight range. As the glider
descended, team mentor An-
drew Walsh walked near the Missouri S&T’s Dioscuri on an Aerotech L2200.
LCO table, pointed upwards, Photo courtesy Bob Phelan.
and said, “It’s circling direct-
ly overhead.” Sure enough, a black dot grew in size as it circled toward the ground, eventually landing between
the first bank of high-power pads and the model rocket pads, just 349 ft from the target. With less than an hour
remaining in the waiver, this successful flight nudged them info first place, just ahead of SWOSU’s flight from
earlier. A few other launches took off before the range closed, and unfortunately 2 final flights didn’t make it to
the pads in time before 6 PM rolled around.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 22

 Oklahoma State University Space Cowboys recovering their autonomous glider.
Image courtesy Bob Phelan.

With the window for flights officially closed, teams Other qualifying flights by the Southern Illinois Uni-
finished recovery of their rockets, and the winners and versity Edwardsville, University of Oklahoma, and
prizes were announced. Missouri S&T reached the 8000 ft altitude mark but
were recovered further away. Of these qualifying
Results flights and additional attempts by other teams, recov-
ery methods included various designs of quadcopters,
In the 2021 Argonia Cup, third place was earned by
gliders, dropsondes, and simple dual-deployment re-
Rocket Top of the University of Tennessee Knoxville
covery. This was the first year that controlled recov-
by reaching an altitude of 8930 ft and landing 3115 ft
ery during payload descent was accomplished, so next
away.
year should be even more exciting for closer recover-
Second place was awarded to the Southwestern Okla- ies and higher altitudes.
homa State University Bulldogs who launched to
10034 ft before piloting a quadcopter down and com- Sponsors and Prizes
ing within 568 ft of the target. This year’s Argonia Cup wouldn’t have been the same
without its numerous sponsors who not only attended
Finally, first place went to the Oklahoma State Univer- the event and served as safety monitors, but also pro-
sity Space Cowboys for reaching an altitude of 10100 vided prizes to be awarded to the top 3 finishing teams.
ft and their autonomous glider drifting down, landing These sponsors included Wildman Rocketry, Chris’
just 349 ft short of the target zone. Rocket Supplies, Altus Metrum, Top Flight Recovery,
LOC Precision, Honeywell, and Glynn Kovarik.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 23

 3rd Place: University of Tennessee Knoxville Rocket Top. Image courtesy Lance Lickteig.

2nd Place: Southwest Oklahoma State University Bulldogs. Image courtesy Lance Lickteig.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 24

 1st Place: Oklahoma State University Space Cowboys. Image courtesy Lance Lickteig.

Each of the first 10 registered teams was awarded an Conclusion

Altus Metrum EasyMini flight computer just for reg-
The 2021 Argonia Cup made for an outstanding and
istering and attending the event. For the 3 finishing
memorable weekend for the college team participants,
teams, third place received $650 cash, (2) LOC Pre-
rocketeers attending Kloudburst, visitors, and specta-
cision Forte kits, an Altus Metrum TeleMetrum flight
tors alike. We look forward to next year’s event, and
computer, and a Top Flight Standard 120 in. para-
we hope you’ll consider either participating if you are
chute. Second place received $1200 cash, one of each
an interested college team, joining as a flyer for this
of the LOC Precision EZI-65 and Forte kits, an Altus
early spring launch, or checking it out just to see what
Metrum TeleMetrum flight computer, and a Top Flight
the weekend holds! More information can be found at
Ultra 120 in. X-Type parachute. Finally, first place re-
www.argoniacup.com. Thank you as well to all volun-
ceived $2000 cash, a LOC Precision EZI-65 kit, (2)
teers and especially the Kloudbusters for their efforts
LOC Precision Forte kits, an Altus Metrum TeleMega
in setting up and taking down the range, coordinating
flight computer, and a Top Flight CF120 in. Crossfire
the event, and hosting the entire launch. See you in
parachute. Thank you to each of these sponsors for
2022 at the Rocket Pasture!
their generosity, contributions, and involvement in this
year’s event.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 25

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 26
 HIGH POWER ROCKETRY
IF YOU BUILD IT, THEY WILL LAUNCH
THE REBIRTH OF TRIPOLI NORTH TEXAS (TNT)
by Steve Taylor
The Old Dogs
We had become a lunch crew instead of a launch crew.
Every week the club would meet for lunch and talk
about rockets. When I joined I became the new guy
and got exposure to some of the most exciting and
advanced rocket builders in Texas. All were very ac-
cepting and dedicated to helping and supporting new
flyers. All were Level 3 flyers except me, a lowly Lev-
el 1. Several years earlier the club had lost its launch
site and had teamed up with Tripoli Waco to hold joint
launches at their field. I got my Level 2 at Waco, but
unfortunately we lost that field soon after. We became
a club without a field.

The loss of our field accelerated the clubs’ focus away It continued like this for several years. Our website,
from the smaller stuff and on to bigger, faster, higher, hosted on one of our member’s home servers, grew
and larger projects. These were BALLS projects, and I stale, with the last sign of any update was our BALLS
was fortunate to work with this group and get my level trip in 2014. One of our members built a wireless
3 at a BALLS launch. So now what? launch controller, which worked great, but the pad
boxes only had one channel, basically for BALLS
The group had great chemistry, enjoyed weekly dis- launches. We only had two pads capable of H-J motors
cussions at lunch, and pretty much exclusively focused with one member-owned pad, capable of K-M motors.
on BALLS. If anyone wanted to launch just a regular We were down to a handful of members and had no
old L motor, we traveled to Tripoli Houston or Tripoli active recruitment of new members.
Austin.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 27

The New Blood We were starting to get some excitement as even more
members were beginning to join. We added another
We did have one thing going for us: Harry Spears – pilot who became the new, new, new guy and finally
The Motor Man. In addition to being a professional became just ‘new Dave’. The last piece was fortuitous
photographer/videographer, Harry is the motor ven- for me because it is right around this time I became the
dor for most Tripoli Texas based launches. He has a new prefect.
website and is physically present at all the launches. I
could ramble on about Harry and his contributions to Launch Site(s)
the hobby, but I want to focus on how he channels new
blood into the club. Every time a motor order came The most glaring issue that we needed to address was
from North Texas, Harry would talk about our club the acquisition of a new field. Our new members were
and offer them an invitation to our lunch meetings if just at the beginning of their journeys towards becom-
only to pick up their order. That hooked a number of ing high power certified flyers. We needed to get them
members who would play integral parts in our rebirth. the experience they needed to advance in the hobby.
Enter the new blood: Matt Bukin - the first new guy. Erick became the hero – he had a great relationship
Matt was a BAR like most of us that got started as with the owner of a private airstrip where he flew his
a kid, shared it with his kids, and was looking to get aerobatic airplane. The field already had an aerobatic
back in. In addition to real estate, Matt manages a box waiver and it was close to the Dallas Forth Worth
large deer lease in the Rolling Plains of Texas. Sec- Metroplex. Erick worked with both the landowner and
ond up is Erick McDaniel - the new, new guy. Erick the FAA and we “landed” our new field. It was about
is a commercial/private jet pilot and an aerobatic pilot an hour’s drive for most of the members and was as-
and instructor. Erick is very comfortable talking to the signed a nine-thousand foot waiver. A perfect field for
FAA; he speaks their language. level one and two flyers to cut their teeth.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 28

Next up was a field where we could fly higher. Matt since we have plenty of space for RVs and camping,
has managed a deer lease for the past 15 years in Sey- as well as great accommodations in nearby Seymour.
mour, Texas – perfectly suited for a high power field. Additionally, Matt has been gracious enough to open
Seymour has a population of under 3,000 and Matt the deer lease facilities to the group, where we gather
seemed to know everyone. He worked with his neigh- for meals and socialize during the evenings.
bors and got them to agree to let us use their land to
The response from the landowner and the town have
launch and recover rockets. Matt and Erick then con-
been overwhelmingly supportive. The launches are an
tacted the FAA and secured a 2-year, 16K waiver as
event with a large local draw, media coverage, and a
our initial, out of the gate altitude.
positive impact on the local economy. A real win-win,
Seymour is about a three-hour drive for most from the including several younger members of the town build-
DFW Metroplex which is a long way for only a one- ing and launching their rockets with us old timers.
day launch. So we decided to run two-day launches

TNT SEYMOUR FIELD

33.501037, -99.338722

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 29

Club Infrastructure fest had drawn our clubs together, sort of like brothers
from a different mother. The new logo was essential to
As we gathered steam re-establishing the club it be- give the club the new look and feel we were seeking.
came clear we needed more resources to support our
activities. Fortunately, we have a great relationship Logo in hand, it was time to replace our front end to
with the very successful Tripoli Houston club, and we the world with a new website and club management
followed their example for setting up our internal club software. Ray evaluated several packages that could
infrastructure. Ray Shepard became our president, and do the job, and after careful review, he chose Club-
through Ray’s leadership, our club took off. But un- Express. It gave us our new web presence - an area
fortunately we needed basically everything to support to post news, an event calendar, photo albums, mem-
large launches again. bership sign up and management, the ability to collect
membership dues and launch fees, and communicate
Leveraging our relationship with Tripoli Houston and with our members through email. Tony Huet, our past
to demonstrate the unity between our clubs, we asked prefect and current graphics guru, was tapped on the
and got permission to use a modified version of their shoulder to manage our website.
logo. Over the years our combined presence at Air-

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 30

Jenn McDaniel not only took on the role of our in-house counsel, but also the challenge of marketing the club
on social media. Jenn set up and manages the official Tripoli North Texas (TNT) Facebook and Instagram
pages. TNT now has followers from all over the world. You might recognize that last name, as Jenn and Erick
are one of our five high power certified husband and wife teams.

The last piece of our communications infrastructure is our direct communication with members through email
updates. We regularly send out club progress updates that outline the club’s priorities and capital improvement
programs. Our goal is to keep our members on board with our mission and be as transparent and responsible as
possible with their dues and launch fees.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 31

Launch Infrastructure port for first-time and mid-power flyers – if we were
going to build our membership, we needed to support
Our first event was a test launch at our new Akroville all levels from beginner to certified level 3 flyers. We
field. We hadn’t hosted a launch in a long time and all bought mid-power pads and rails with our PIP grant
the equipment needed to be vetted. We also had a new and one of our members, Al Gloer, was kind enough
landowner to introduce to high power rocketry. The to build a model rocket pad bank and donate it to the
landowners could not have been better hosts – they club. Although not yet complete, our infrastructure
stayed with us for most of the launch and even helped could now support all experience levels for a small
us recover rockets in the field with their mule. They launch.
appreciated our focus on safety and our respectful at-
titude towards their property. At the end of the day we Club BoD and Quantum Leap to a 501(c)(3)
presented them with a rocket kit to build and some liq-
uid inspiration. The relationship foundation we were Let me pause for a minute and talk about our new pres-
building was starting nice and solid. ident, Ray Shepard. Ray does not do anything small.
If you have ever been to an Airfest in Argonia, Kan-
The equipment, on the other hand, needed some atten- sas, run by Kloudbusters, you might have run across
tion. We only had three high power pads which had the Texas compound. Ray, in conjunction with some
been enough because our launch control equipment of the other Texas prefectures, has created a fantastic
could only support three pads. But we had no model or rocket experience. It involves three nights of feeding
mid-power pads, our PA system was circa 1980s, and upwards of sixty people catfish, jambalaya, and a last
our LCO popup was decrepit. The club needed to focus night blowout shrimp boil, accompanied by hydration
on the infrastructure required to hold larger launches. from his redneck margarita machine and the infamous
Wile E. Coyote rocket filled with his homebrew beer.
Step one was to take advantage of the phenomenal pre-
The excellent music and great conversation complete
fecture improvement program (PIP). The Tripoli board
“The Texas Compound” atmosphere. This experience
makes a grant available for any prefecture that needs
led to one of the club’s founding principles and a new
money to improve its infrastructure. We had a lot of
mission statement for TNT: “To offer our membership
needs but what’s first? Because the club’s focus was
the absolute best launch experience that we can de-
geared towards the big stuff, we needed to rebuild sup-
liver. Period.”

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 32

It became clear that if we were going to meet the goal to participate in national or international competitions.
set out in our mission statement, we would need more
We will be rolling out a program for our members to
launch infrastructure to support it. That would take
make it easier for them to get guidance on building and
capital and a formal club structure including a board
climbing the certification ladder. Working with several
of directors and a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
vendors, we’re creating a Level 1 certification package
We selected a good mix of new and old members to
complete with an assigned mentor. As Ray’s brainchild,
sit on the board and through the kind donation of an
the programs designed to remove the apprehension of
anonymous donor we incorporated the club in the state
building your first high power rocket and provide the
of Texas and filed for our 501(c)(3) status. The non-
support needed on the journey to certification.
profit status serves two primary purposes – it enabled
members to donate to the club and give them a tax de- To contribute to students and the academic com-
duction, and for those who have a corporate matching munity, we focus on supporting all academic rocket
program, help them double their donations. competitions. We will support any team from middle
schoolers through college that request our help. Sever-
In the first newsletter of this year, Ray outlined the
al members already support the Experimental Sound-
club’s priorities for capital improvements. We need-
ing Rocket Association (ESRA) International Rocket
ed a minimum of six high power pads, a new launch
Engineering Competition (IREC) held at the Space-
control system, an upgraded PA system, a club genera-
port America range in New Mexico. We mentor local
tor and a club trailer. These are significant improve-
university teams and participate in their critical design
ments that would usually take years of launch fees and
reviews as they prepare their projects. We also review
membership dues to acquire. But with our 501(c)(3)
progress reports and technical design documents for
status, we have been able to significantly accelerate
national and international teams to help ensure they
our equipment purchases thanks to our members’ in-
meet the Tripoli Research Safety Code.
credible generosity, several of whom have made large
anonymous donations. As a member of the ESRA board, I am the launch op-
erations director for the competition and ensure that
We worked with club member and owner of Frankum
all 150 teams safely get the opportunity to launch their
Performance Rocketry Products, Royce Frankum, to
projects. Harry Spears is part of the range safety team
manufacture the six new high power pads. Next on our
and the university teams’ final safety check before
list was a Wilson FX launch control system to han-
heading out to the pads. And Tony Huet is out at the
dle the increasing number of pads. Once again, a new
pads working as a pad manager helping teams safely
member stepped up with an extremely generous dona-
rack their rockets.
tion and we were able to order our new launch control
system. Ray took on the PA system himself. He refur-
bished our old electronics and com-
bined them with new technology and
housed it all in a carrying cabinet he
refurbished to create a state of the art
PA system complete with Bluetooth
connectivity, FM transmission, and
power supply and distribution.

Giving Back to the Hobby

Another guiding principle for the
club is to give back to the rocket com-
munity. We have a couple of different
pathways: support for all members
that want to become certified and by
mentoring academic teams that seek

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 33

Thumper Its been a rewarding two-year journey. The club has
grown from a handful of lunch buddies to sixty-nine
We can’t talk about the club rebirth and not give some paid members supporting all flyer levels. We’ve built
credit to our dubious, unofficial club mascot, Thump- a scalable infrastructure that will only grow in the fu-
er. Thumper is “awarded” to anyone that thumps their ture. We have a focus on our flyers’ experience and
rocket. The rules have been hotly contested, mostly by the community. We are leveraging many of our thirty-
the flyer that takes custody, but whether it be a CATO, one Level 3 flyers by actively mentoring and support-
a shred, deployment failure, hard landing, etc., if the ing the academic teams. Finally, we have a dedicated
rocket can not fly again SAFELY with minimal repair group of club members making this all happen and I
– it Thumped. This tradition has been around since can’t thank them enough.
the prefecture started and it is a right of passage for
new members (whether they want it or not!). Heck, Al Look for an announcement soon for what we hope
Gloer even built a shelf for the darn rabbit in his new will become one of our annual traditions, “The Texas
rocket workshop. Shootout” and let us show you some Texas hospitality.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 34

 DURANGO AND SOUTHWEST COLORADO
PREFECTURE ORIGINS
by Charles Hakes

Greetings from Durango and Southwest Colorado. I While Durango is one of the best places in the coun-
was asked to write a bit about the formation of Prefec- try to live, a downside is having to drive seven hours
ture 164 Tripoli Southwest Colorado/Durango – who one way to get to one of these front-range activities. I
we are, and how this prefecture came to be. In a sen- wanted some way to have students launch a payload
tence, I wanted a local place for Fort Lewis College without the long drive, and without having to chase it
rocket teams to launch high-powered rockets. I hope for 100 miles for the recovery.
writing more than a sentence and giving some details
of how this got started won’t get too tedious. On the rocketry side of things, my background is typi-
cal and not too exciting – I launched some small rock-
I am a faculty member at Fort Lewis College, and have ets as a kid, and also launched vicariously when my
been the affiliate director of the Colorado Space Grant son launched rockets at Scout camp. I began attend-
Consortium since 2009. Space Grant is a nationwide, ing (and taking students to) the 4 Corners Rocketry
NASA-funded program that gives college students Association (4CRA) National Association of Rocketry
hands-on experience with all sorts of STEM activities. (NAR) club launches in New Mexico in 2016, and got
One of the more active Space Grant programs in Colo- my Level 1 and Level 2 certifications there in 2017.
rado is called Demosat, where teams from around the
state build small payloads to launch on high altitude Also in 2017, I was asked to be the advisor for a team
balloons. participating in the First Nations Launch competition,

Figure 1 – The Fort Lewis College team gathered in Limon, Colorado, with other Colorado
teams to launch their payloads on a weather balloon. Here the teams are lined up with their
payloads on the flight string preparing for launch. These balloon launches are with the sup-
port of the Edge of Space Sciences (EOSS), an organization we need to thank regularly.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 35

sponsored by the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium. The rocket team called themselves the Spacehawks, a
variation on the Fort Lewis College Skyhawks mascot. The team entered in the American Indian Science and
Engineering Society (AISES) division and traveled to Wisconsin to compete.

Figure 2 – In 2019, the Spacehawks team, with Jodi James as a returning member and team lead,
had much more success and came in second place. Here are Charles Hakes, Alastair Luna, Brook
Hampton and Jodi James just before launching the competition rocket at the Richard Bong State
Recreation Area in Wisconsin.

The 2019 team has been the most successful and BS in Physics in 2019 and is working for a local model
earned second place. As part of the weekend activities train manufacturer. She says she received a solder-
in April 2019, there was a second day of launching, ing station for Christmas and is assembling electron-
and all three students were sponsored to join Tripoli ics to include in a payload that will go in her level 2
Rocketry Association; all three earned their Level 1 rocket. Alastair, a 2020 General Engineering gradu-
certifications after building Madcow 2.6” cardboard ate is a graduate student and research assistant at the
rocket kits. Alastair and Jodi built their rockets ahead University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Department
of time, but Brook built her rocket the night before it of Mechanical Engineering.
flew.
The local high-powered launch site is at what is now
This Durango prefecture really had its start that day in known as the Old Fort Lewis. It was a 19th century
Wisconsin in 2019. I joined TRA a month later. As of military fort that became a Native American board-
2021, the 2019 team members are all recent graduates ing school in 1911. That school eventually moved to
of Fort Lewis College. Brooke, the prefecture secre- Durango and became the Fort Lewis College of today.
tary, received her BS in Physics in 2020, “during the Native American students from around the country at-
strangest semester of her life” with a pandemic lock- tend tuition-free. The Old Fort site still hosts many
down. She is currently working at a local law firm, college field activities, so it was an obvious choice to
and keeping busy while social distancing with reading, look for a launch site.
cooking, and exploring local trails. Jodi received her

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 36

 Figure 3 – The Spacehawks rocket was a Wildman 4” Drago, shown launching here on an Aero-
tech K550. The rocket had small payloads in the avionics bay, the nosecone, and in the tiny
space between the motor and body tubes.

Figure 4 – View of the Old Fort Lewis from the air, with the La Plata Mountains in the background.
The site is five miles south of Hesperus, Colorado, and about fifteen miles west of Durango. The
wide-open irrigated hay fields have been and still are used for low- and mid-power launches.
The high-power launch site is on the left side just below the field of view.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 37

When picking a site for high-power launches, we went to Google maps and found a spot that gave us a 4000’
radius to any road or building and used that as the center of our cylinder for an FAA waiver. On the upside, it is
in the middle of nowhere. On the downside, it is so far into nowhere that it can be inaccessible with too much
snow or mud.

Figure 5 – Three masked members of the 2021 Fort Lewis College Spacehawks NASA Student Launch
team are from left to right, Daniel Sandner, Mark Heltman, and Roxie Sandoval. The La Plata mountains
make a picturesque backdrop for launching their subscale demonstration rocket on a G motor. A big
activity this year has been clearing sufficient sagebrush far enough from the site base to launch the 6”
rocket they are building on an L motor.

The 2021 Fort Lewis College eight-member team is composed entirely of rocketry rookies and potential TRA
members. They are making the huge step of competing in the NASA Student Launch, which will be held virtu-
ally this April. At least two team members are also working on their Level 1 rockets.

This is the time when I should invite everyone to come launch with us, but that isn’t going to happen while this
pandemic is in full swing. Hopefully everyone will get vaccinated and we won’t be having virtual competitions
next year.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 38

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 39
 FINDING YOUR ROCKET: THE LAST CHALLENGE
By Guillermo Descalzo - TRA # 14649 - ACEMA/Tripoli Argentina Prefecture # 151

Once a rocketeer has achieved some reliability in his launches and in his recovery systems, the biggest new chal-
lenge he faces is to FIND his rockets.
In the plains of the province of Buenos Ai-
res, in Argentina, the place where I live and
do most of my launches, the meadows are
flat but they usually include high grass and
groups of trees and groves, here known as
“mounts.” In fact, this is just a name that the
people give them, but they aren’t real mounts
or mountains, and from afar, they are seen
as little woods. But this presents a new chal-
lenge: even with a little and humble rocket, if
it falls behind one of those “mounts,” AND
if the place is covered with high grass… you
are in trouble. That’s the reason why most
Argentinean rocketeers - as in the rest of the
world, indeed - are looking for a GOOD,
cheap and reliable tracking system (such a
combination!).
In my case, as an old electronic technician
and as a professional systems integrator for
a long while, over the years I have tried sev-
eral methods, from “fox hunting” type sys-
tems, consisting of using highly directional
“Yagi” type receiving antennas, tracking an
audio tone modulated from the rocket… to
heavy, bulky, complicated and very expen-
sive systems that used commercial GPSs
(mostly from the Garmin line) connected to
a HF transmitter, that reports the position of
a rocket in flight. As anyone can see, any op-
tion of this style of setup creates very cum-
bersome situations… In the middle of that, I
found and tried several APRS tracking sys-
tems, but none of them seemed to be THE
solution. At least, not for me.
But around 2013-2014, I landed on a web
page named “Eggtimer Rocketry”… Imme-
diately, I thought “What? ‘EggTimer’? Will
you boil an egg in a rocket? What the heck
is that?"
Taking a deep breath, I splashed into this
web site, and… surprise!!! I found A LOT of

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 40

 The EggFinder Mini, the tiniest rocketry GPS ever!

great ideas and offerings from a nice guy named Cris The purpose is to track the rocket in flight and, more
Erving, that could lead to a real solution for rocket re- importantly, recover it. Using one of the most modern
covery and the tracking drama. GPS “engines” you can find in the market, powered
by SIRFstar IV technology, the Eggfinder TX trans-
The concept of this site is to sell the parts and instruc-
mitter sends a position update once per second, giving
tions to build your own rocketry electronics, all de-
you the exact latitude and longitude of the rocket. The
signed by a very seasoned engineer and rocketeer, as
Eggfinder LCD receiver has a display that shows the
Cris Erving is. Great idea!!! The first thing I bought
coordinates of the remote GPS, the altitude calculated
from Cris was his tiny but powerful dual recovery al-
by that GPS and some other data so that you can easily
timeter, named “Quark.” The device turned out so well
retrieve your rocket, even updating the location as you
that we made an informal arrangement to buy him the
get closer. You can “load” this lat/long info into a map
parts in bulk (but in small numbers, in fact), make the
in your cell phone or into a commercial handheld GPS,
device here in Argentina, and sell it finished, with a
and that’s it.
Spanish-language instruction book and special pack-
aging as “SkyTec Quark Recovery Altimeter, by Egg- With the advanced version of the LCD Receiver (more
Timer.” It was a great success. As many of you already on this later) you will also know the distance from
know, SkyTec is my own little rocketry company here, your position to your rocket, the compass direction in
in Argentina. I have my part in SkyTec with my part- relation to you… and you even will have an arrow on
ners Roberto Müller (another Black Rock “veteran”), the LDC display that will indicate the course to your
and Emiliano Lopez Marando. rocket. Follow the arrow and it will literally take you
to the rocket, as the system error is less than TWO
If I recall correctly, I met Cris Erving in person at
METERS (six feet)!!!
LDRS 35 at Lucerne Dry Lake, CA, in 2016; we met
again at LDRS 37 in Helm, CA, and finally in 2019 My first approach was building the basic version of the
in Las Vegas, NV, prior our trip with Roberto Müller LCD receiver and the TX Transmitter exactly as their
and Mario García to BALLS 28. In each encounter, he instructions specified. It was a resounding success.
shared bunches of information with me. It is really exciting to build your own GPS transmitter
In fact, over several years I bought and built a lot of and send its NMEA format data position to a handheld
devices from EggTimer Rocketry, but in this article, I receiver... that you made as well. I spent several after-
will describe briefly some of their tracking systems, noons and nights building the EggFinder designs, and
generally named “EggFinder GPS Tracking Sys- - believe me - I have had really a good time.
tem.” It is a complete GPS telemetry system that uses The first real test I performed was with a very little
NMEA-format data received from a transmitter lo- rocket, named “QMax”, built specially for this experi-
cated on your rocket, by means a receiver on ground.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 41

mental tracking system. It is very tiny, is a minimum diameter rocket, and it flies with an Aerotech G40 motor. It
flew several times, and it is today in mint condition. As calculated, the rocket reached well over a one-kilometer
apogee (3200 feet), and with a little wind, it drifted away, despite just using a streamer. Well… suspense!!! It liter-
ally skyrocketed upwards, and (go figure) nobody saw it anymore. But following the indications of the simplest
EggFinder tracking System configuration (just the LCD receiver, the TX Transmitter and nothing else), we found
the rocket on our first attempt, nearly one and a half kilometer away (one mile), behind several tree “mounts.”

“QMax” rocket, just a GPS carrier. I am holding the LCD Receiver, in its first “square”cabinet design.

You can see in the images above how tiny this rocket is!!! And you are seeing the whole system: the receiver (I
am holding it) and the little GPS / transmitter that, of course, is inside the rocket. The recovery procedures were
done in the middle of a high grass location, as you can see surrounding me. The rocket was found in the middle
of a low grass area, but… look at the whole scene!
Roberto Müller and I brought these electronic gadgets to Black Rock, and we flew it in our “Proteus II” rocket
(this rocket is right now “parked” - waiting for us at Chuck Duffy’s garage, in Gerlach. OMG).
After the success of several tests made with our “QMax” and “Proteus II” rockets, I decided to give a twist to the
idea: first, the new goal will be building one more handheld LCD receiver. In fact, I finally built more than this,
because I also built an EggFinder dongle, that allows any notebook to act as a GPS NMEA data receiver from any
EggFinder GPS transmitter.
Second, both handheld LCD receivers would have an option that EggTimer offers: an additional internal GPS, so,
in combination with the rocket GPS, the system can resolve the relative positions of the operator and the rocket
and tell the direction you must walk to do a proper recovery. It also provides, in real time, the distance between
the operator and the rocket, as well. A marvelous thing. It is not exactly as Vern Knowles’ “Kate” provides (obvi-
ously, it doesn’t speak), but… you know.
One of my LCD receivers would have wired external connectivity (the idea is use it as a ground configuration
device for all our EggFinder GPSs fleet) and the second one should go on Bluetooth connectivity, to use it as a
“repeater,” to see the rocket position not only at the LCD display, but also in a map in my cell phone in real time,
if needed.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 42

 Here, you can see the “guts” of one of the two new re-styled LCD Receivers, along with the other.

Both receivers worked very well, with both connectiv-

ity methods, and we tested them in several different
conditions, always with success. The EggFinder GPS
transmitters are as reliable as the receivers.
I decided to go with more sophisticated cases, so I
bought two cabinets from a local manufacturer. The
new cabinets are built by the old but proven thermo-
forming technology, and as you can see, they are very
nice. Additionally, I made some “Apollo style” but-
tons and switches for both handheld receivers with my
Creality 3D printer, and all the lettering and indicators
were made in Laser Color printing, on good quality il-
lustration paper. Really simple... but it works!
After several flights, I can tell that the whole system is
very accurate, reliable, simple to operate and relatively
cheap, even for a “poor” Argentinean! Great outcome
from EggTimer!
Drawbacks? In fact, none. Well, you must BUILD the
entire system, and this involves soldering multiple sur-
face mount devices (SMD). EggTimer gives very good
advice, but I don’t recommend this as a first project in
electronics. It requires some experience and very good
eyesight... which I no longer have, but that was solved
with good - and cheap - technical glasses.
In summary, I highly recommend these kind of ap-
proaches, if/when you dare to “fight” with electronics.
If the reader finds these topics to be matters of interest,
I am open to writing further details about this tracking
system and other electronic gadgets. Old and new receivers, on my desk

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 43

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 44
 Shoot the Shot: Cameras and Rockets

Article 2: ONBOARD SHOTS

Introduction

Onboard shots can be some of the most dramatic and eye catching
of all rocket images. And in no other way can we see some of the
events that occur during flight. Only with cameras onboard can we
get these shots and this article will present some methods and
solutions to the challenge of getting great onboard shots.

By TR Garman

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 45

 Rocket Introduction
Non-Integrated vs Integrated
What type of camera we use and how we mount
that camera determines the shot that we make. In Non-Integrated rocket/- Integrated rocket/camera
this article I’ll present a number of ways to camera systems can be systems use “incomplete”
mount a couple of different cameras and what the added to existing designs. cameras (aka, Split) and the
cameras will view during launch. A non-integrated system cameras are Integrated into
will use “complete” the rocket design from the
Each of the rockets below illustrate different cameras that contain beginning.
mounting methods and camera types. I’ll expand batteries, cases and
on each model on the following pages. switches for control.

The CINEROC /
OMEGA from Estes
used an integrated The RunCam Split
super 8 film camera
model is well suited for
and shot down the
C

an Integrated design
I
N
E
body tube of the
installation.
R
O
C
rocket.

As this is the first The basic RunCam orange

OMEGA

camera ship for me

model is well suited for a
(amongst others), I
Non-Integrated installation.
use it as a baseline
for comparison

Camera Symbol

Throughout this article I’ll

The ET-1
use the standard symbol
and the L1
use
for a camera to indicate
RunCam location and direction. The
orange red cone indicates what Camera View
cameras the camera “sees” in its
and view. The Camera View Camera
illustrate angle in the illustrations Symbol
non-inte- will not necessarily be to
grated scale or accurate to the
ET-1

systems. different lenses that we

may use.

The L2 illustrates
integrated camera
systems.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 46

The CINEROC The CINEROC had
a super 8mm film
camera in which the
The CINEROC shot views down the body of the rocket from the lens and shutter
were situated to
nose cone. We have all seen this classic view of rocketry.
shoot out the side. A C
mirror reflected the
The CINEROC was offered by Estes back in the mid 70’s and is a view down the I
good example to use to illustrate mounting a camera in the nose of rocket. See the N
a rocket. The CINEROC could be purchased alone or coupled with section “Using
Mirrors” for more. E
a two stage, D motor rocket kit called the OMEGA. Semroc Indus-
tries offers a reproduction of the OMEGA with a dummy CINEROC R
nose cone today. O
C
For me (and others, I imagine) the CINEROC was my introduction
to onboard photography (motion picture film), despite my lack of
success. I mentioned the CINEROC in the previous introductory
article and I’ll use it as an example throughout this article, and
others.
The transition not only
reduced the larger
payload to fit the
smaller tube of the

OMEGA
OMEGA but also
In this instance, the provided a small
CINEROC is less likely amount of viewing
to view the sustainer clearance for the
and other ejecta. camera. Keep this in
mind when designing

QUENC
your own camera/rock-

E
ets.

S E
T
H
IG

In this instance, the What the CINEROC

FL

CINEROC is more views under deploy-

likely to view the ment (later Phases)
booster drop away. depends on rigging.
See the next section,
“Rigging the
CINEROC”

On the launch Motor:

pad and during D-12
ignition, the
CINEROC views
down the body of
the rocket.

Motor:
D-12-0

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 47

Rigging The CINEROC

During launch the CINEROC views down the body of the rocket but
what it views during/after deployment depends on the rigging of the
parachute/CINEROC nose cone.

While few of us will actually fly a CINEROC, the principles illus-

trated here apply to any type of downward viewing, nose cone
mounted camera.

Personally, I don’t prefer the nose mounted camera. The rigging

issues illustrated here are some of my gripes. The following
designs/pages will show some of my solutions.

Rigging the
parachute/shock cord
in the typical “Model”
rocket fashion will
result in a view up
towards the parachute.

Estes referred to this

as a “Carrier
Parachute.” The
extension line wraps
over the nose cone
and tucks into the
body tube. The body of
the rocket deploys a
separate parachute.

Rigging in this manner

results in a shot
toward the ground.

Estes called this

rigging method
“Panorama View.”

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 48

Stick and Tape

The most basic way of mounting a camera on a rocket booster or

nose cone is what I call the Stick and Tape method. Use some
double sided tape and stick the camera on the side of the rocket.
Done. Well almost. Double sided tape will often not be enough to
hold the camera in place, so wrapping electrical tape or duct tape
around the entire diameter of the rocket will be enough for fairly
high power type sport/club flights. I have seen this method work
on J powered flights, and have heard of larger.

CAUTION: Any tape strong enough to hold our cameras will

likely remove paint/decals/finish/sanity.

A slightly improved model of the Stick and Tape is shown here. In

the selfie shot, the author can be seen holding the L1, a typical 4”
diameter certification type rocket.

The grey 3D printed ring holds two basic orange Runcam camer-
as. The black version of this ring in the selfie holds four cameras.
For the flight, double sided tape was used on the large flat area of
the ring and a bead of hot melt glue was added along the seam
between the camera and the mount. For a hard hitting H motor
flight, this setup worked flawlessly.

Double sided
tape here.

Bead of glue
along here.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 49

THE Flight of the ET-1

I wanted to a test an idea I had for a 3D printed mount for the basic
Two RunCam
RunCam orange so I designed a variant on a system of rockets that Orange cameras
I have been working with over the last year+. This model I dubbed mounted externally
the ET-1 and it carried two RunCam orange cameras mounted near on the ET-1.
the top of the booster, one pointed up and one down.

ET-1
ET-1

Altitude
:
450’
Arcover perfect with one
slight exception: ejection
charge fails to fire.

EQUENC
S E
T
H

ET-1
IG
ET-1
FL

The ET-1 Plugs into the

ground.
Launch and ascent
perfect. Cameras survive, test of
mount successful. Ejection
charge fires 2.6 seconds after
impact.
ET-1

Motor:
ET-1

E-28

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 50

 The Flight of the ET-1...End

Of course the drive home was filled with “Why this...” and “What
that...” running through my head, and more that I shouldn’t even save
for a later article. But in the end I learned a great deal from the one and
only flight of the ET-1.

One of the things that I learned was that the RunCam cameras that I used
could take quite a beating. Of the two onboard cameras, one of them
continued to record after impact, the other recorded just until a point
before impact. This page shows some of the results.

I learned quite a bit more from the ET-1, but that I really will reserve for
a later article.

Take pictures before

launch, it may not look
quite the same minutes
later.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 51

The Elephant in the Room

A photographer shooting a herd of elephants gets caught up in the

stampede. Awakening in the hospital, the doctor says,

“You have two broken arms, a broken leg, 3 fractured ribs, a punc-
tured...,” when the photographer interrupts,

“Yeah, but did I get the shot?”

OK, so what does an elephant gag have to do with our rockets? Well,
there is an unfortunate reality to photo/video work: the riskiest situa-
tions can create some of the most interesting images. And in order to An unscheduled recon-
capture those images we must risk life and limb. Well, our cameras figuration of a Yi Action
cam.
anyway. Please don’t risk limb.

Sometimes rockets don’t work quite right and they get a little scratch
here and there. Some of you might know what I mean (see the ET-1
page). Right and Wrong way of doing it

In order to get some of the best shots of our rockets, we must some-
times put cameras in risky situations. But if we treat them as just
another piece of onboard equipment, then the risk is no more than the I must admit that I tend to bristle when I hear
rest of the rocket. I realize this does not help much when our rocket someone refer to something as the Right way
noses over at apogee and picks up speed. or the Wrong way. To me, there is no Right or
Wrong way.

I like to look at it as there are ways of making

Years ago while hiking through the woods to find the smoldering it work and ways that don’t work. Everything
remnants of my time/effort/money/sanity a buddy remarked, is in the Doesn’t Work category until we
make them work. Everything starts in the
“Did you bring a bag to take it home?” Doesn’t Work category. Only once we make
it work does it move into the Works category.
Once the chuckles and snickers calmed, sheepishly I responded,
“Yes.” For me, in order for something to move into
the Works category it has to work well
Back in the shop another buddy commented, enough that I can check it off the list and
move on to the next challenge of the project.
“That was a beauty this morning... looks like a pile of s*!% now.” How well it works and how we accept its
success can be interpreted as preferential.
To which I replied, while sifting through the wreckage, Which is my whole point here.
“Yeah, but did I get the shot?” What I present in this article works for me to
get what I want (well, it is about the best I can
get for now but I am rarely happy with ANY-
THING. Future article perhaps.) And while it
works for me, it may not work the same for
you. Perhaps you prefer a different camera.
Maybe you would rather use mirrors (see
page on Mirrors.). I say “Great.”

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 52

The L1 Rocket

The L1 is based upon a 4” diameter tube with a 38mm motor mount

and illustrates a non-integrated camera design.

Four basic orange Runcam cameras are mounted on the booster

section of the L1. A 3D printed mount was used (see next page) that
houses each camera in a slot that allows the camera to be mounted
either up or down.

One feature of this type of design/installation is that it can be used

on existing rockets or easily added to kits prior to building. Integrat-
ing into the design is not necessary (although helpful).

Using a 3D printed mount (as is used here on the L1) is a slightly Four Orange
improved version of the Stick and Tape method of camera mount- Runcams (2 up, 2
ing. down) mounted on
the outside of the
booster section of
the L1 Rocket.

At ejection, upward cameras

QUENC
: capture the Rocket Action. Although rare, situations such
Altitude as this can arise where all

E
12 0 0 ’
Downward cameras view the four cameras lose view of the

S E
cloud. laundry and nose. The
booster will usually swing
back into view. Longer shock
T

cords may help.

H
IG
FL

On the launch pad and during

ascent, Downward cameras
view down the rocket (at the Once the parachute deploys,
ground) similar to the the downward cameras point
CINEROC shot. down and the upward
cameras point up.
Upward cameras view the
nose and sky.

Motor:
H-219

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 53

The L1 Rocket - Downward Cameras

The L1 has two downward (and two upward) facing cameras mounted
towards the top of the booster. During ascent the downward shots are
similar to the CINEROC type of shot but differ once the ejection charge
fires.

Note that the position of the rocket within the frame NEVER changes
during this entire video. If your rocket moves within the frame, check
your camera/mount as it might be loose.

These two frames

QUENC
were taken from the

E
same time instant.

S
The bottom one was

E flipped horizontally
and vertically.
T
H
IG
FL

Oops... the shock

cord wraps around the
rear and hooks onto a
fin. Luckily it slipped
clear.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 54

The L1 Rocket - Upward Cameras

The L1 has two upward (and two downward) facing cameras

mounted towards the top of the booster. Sitting on the launchpad we
see the rail and sky, and during ascent we see sky. We see sky for
about half of the flight. It is once the ejection charge fires that the
upward cameras capture the action.

If the flight goes as planned, only the upward cameras will capture
the rocket action of the goodies blasting out of the top on this type
of rocket/installation (see “L1 Downward” page for more).

A shot like this (from

one of the upward
cameras) is often a
good starting place to
make a finished
picture. More on Post
Processing in a future
article.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 55

 Make a Camera Sled

In lieu of 3-D printed solutions, a sled type mount can be made

easily with a section of body tube. Note that this may not work with
all tubes but the sled can be made with other materials as the design
idea is sound.

Another method uses dowels and plywood or fiberglass plate (see

below).

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3

Alternate

Cut the section

EQUENC down along the

length.

S E Continue cutting into

T

Cut a section of This may be all that you quarters (or whatever
tubing that is the need. A single cut makes a size works for your
H

same diameter ring that can be slipped application).

(or optimally over the existing rocket Use dowels and
IG

slightly larger) tube. If not, proceed... thin plywood or

as your rocket. fiberglass plate .
FL

Step 4 Step 5 Step 6 Step 7

Fly and MAKE

PICTURES!

Affix to rocket
Double sided tape with small
works well to position Apply a bead of hot
screws.
and hold the cam in melt glue or epoxy to
place for gluing. both sides where the
camera intersects
with the sled.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 56

The Case for Multiple Cameras

There are a number of reasons to use multiple cameras.

1. Coverage. A single camera may not capture the action. In the

case where a single camera is mounted in the CINEROC fashion,
the action can be blocked by the nose itself. A second camera
mounted on the opposite side in the same orientation will increase
our chances of getting the shot that we want.

2. Individual Perspctive. Each camera views or “sees” its own

perspective. The same action may appear different from different
views and camera angles. A ground shot does not look the same as
an onboard shot.

3. The Singular Event. Each rocket launch is an individual,

one-of-a-kind, Singular Event. It CANNOT be repeated. You may 2 shots from the L2
be able to load up the same motor and launch it again, but it is a
different flight. If you are looking for footage of a particular flight, The L2 rocket has two cameras on each side
you can only get it once. And if you don’t have a working camera of the payload bay, one looking up and one
pointing in the right direction and recording the action that you looking down, for a total of four. The two
images here are from the upward facing
want, you miss it.
cameras. Note that the two images are taken
from the same time (a few frames after the
4. Balance. Onboard installations benefit from cameras mounted MAIN ejection charge fired).
in pairs as mass distribution (weight) and aerodynamic drag
balance. Once the laundry dumps out of the top of the
upper tube, it all swings toward one side of
the rocket. One camera (right) catches all of
the action, the other misses it completely
(left).

3 Shots of the Same Chute

Each of these shots (below) came from

almost the exact point in time. From left to
right: ground shot handheld looking upward,
onboard looking straight up, drone shot tilted
slightly downward.

Can you guess

this one?

As a hint, it is not
handheld. I’ll reveal
more in the next
article.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 57

 Streamer deploys
at apogee.

The L2 Rocket Altitude

:
2750’

The L2 Rocket has four external RunCam Split Nano 3 cameras integrat-
ed into the central payload bay. The cameras are located on opposite
sides of the bay, one up and one down on each side. Deployment of the
lower section occurs at apogee and the upper section deploys at 500’ for
Streamer points
the main parachute. up during freefall.

Integrating the cameras into the design allows for reduced protuberances
on the outside of our rockets. In addition, all of the cameras can be
powered by a single switch (see wiring diagram).

I wanted something that would provide good visibility on camera for my

apogee event, so I chose a long streamer over a drogue chute. The
streamer changes depending on the flight phase and the wind and is
easier to see at a distance. Something like a streamer can add one more
element to our imaging toolbox. Think about these things as you
design/build/rig your own rockets.
The two
RunCam
boards are
mounted on
a vertical
partition
inside the L2.
The two
RunCam
cameras are
mounted on
the outside of
the body
tube.

Included
Spacers.
On launchpad and during
ascent, downward cameras
Streamer points in
view down rocket aka
wind direction
CINEROC. Upward cams
once parachute
view up rocket and sky.
deploys..

Motor:
J-570

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 58

Same Shot, Different Day

These two images from the L2 were shot on different days and at different times of the
year. Note the differences between the clear day on the right and the grey day on the left.
Furthermore, the landscape is bright green during the summer shot on the right and domi-
nated by autumn colors in the shot on the left. Like many of us, I too am working on a
weather machine to control atmospheric conditions (waiting on parts), but until it is com-
plete, I’ll have to stick with what I have. In other words, sometimes I have to do one of the
hardest things any of us can do and that is not fly. At least if I am looking for that pretty
postcard shot. There are some benefits to shooting on the grey day which I’ll leave for a
future article.

Colors almost get lost under

grey day lighting at left.
Something else gets lost in
the bright image on the right.

Can you find the booster?

Note this facility along the

river bank and how different it
looks under differing daylight
conditions.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 59

The “Split” Camera

The L2 Wiring
Small and lightweight, the “Split” type of camera is particularly
well suited for integrated camera/rocket designs. Split cameras
3s LiPo
consist of a camera module and a small circuit board. If we remove
all of the non-essential components of a camera, we have a Split.
SWITCH

Split type cameras require us to provide a battery and switching. We

can use a 2 or 3 cell Lithium battery or other various powering
methods (check your cameras’ requirements.) By wiring all onboard
cameras together, all can be powered up with a single switch. For
the L2 I used a latching push button (diagram at right.) Note that this
wiring method has no safeguard against battery drain. If the system
Yellow (Signal) wire
runs long enough to drain the LiPo batteries completely, the LiPo’s unconnected on the L2.
may require replacement. So don’t get stuck in the tree overnight.

A RunCam Split Nano 3

Split cameras from RunCam include a variety of

mounting hardware and other goodies.

One of which is a cable that can be used when Be cautious of heat! Split cams are designed for racing
wiring your own system. The wires that I drones so airflow is assumed. Heat sinks and/or small
received had a micro JST, 3 pin plug on each fans may be required to keep the temps down. A tiny
end. In order to use it for our systems, the wire heat sink stuck on the main processor may be all that
needs to be clipped somewhere in the middle. is needed for your installation. I used sinks and fans on
While the plugs are standard micro JST, be the L2 (one fan per pair of boards) and all is kept cool.
aware of wiring if you use third party connec-
tors. I purchased some that had the same color Connecting the red (+) and black (GROUND) wires to
wires but in the wrong order. battery power is all that is necessary for the camera to
function. The yellow signal wire outputs a composite
The Split Nano 3 also comes with a clip for the video signal that can be connected to a video transmit-
micro SD card. This clip holds the memory card ter for live viewing. More on that in a future article.
in place and while not required for recording, it
is highly recommended.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 60

Tips and Tricks

Don’t forget extra batteries and memory cards.

Mirrors

Mirrors can be used to get shots that would not ordinarily be

possible. We can use a mirror to redirect our camera view Flash your phone at the camera
from a side view to a CINEROC type view down the rocket. before launch. It will act like a
This is in fact how the CINEROC works. Hollywood clapboard recording
date, time, and whatever you like
That being said, I do not recommend working with mirrors (here I have the weather).
unless you have a specific application that requires a mirror.

Mirrors have a number of issues to consider:

WiFi
1. Obtain Mirror. Finding or making a mirror of just the right
size and shape can be difficult. Also, using a cheap mirror can
be like looking through a dirty window. A high quality mirror Many newer cameras come with WiFi connectivi-
should be used. ty. WiFi provides us with the ability to control a
number of functions of the camera wirelessly with
2. Position and Alignment. There are a number of factors to a smartphone or other device. Like anything, WiFi
consider: distance from camera to mirror, angle of mirror has its advantages and its disadvantages.
relative to camera, angle of mirror relative to rocket, angle of
camera relative to rocket, etc. It may be tricky to determine On the plus side, we have the ability to control
some of these values let alone align them onboard. various functions of the camera without the neces-
sity of a physical button.
3. One more lens to clean. Mirrors make lens cleaning diffi-
cult if not impossible. And the mirror has to be cleaned also. On the minus side, WiFi EATS batteries. Most of
the WiFi cameras that I tested had increased
4. Mirrors flip images. This is less of an issue as our comput- current consumption on the order of 2-3 times.
ers and software can transform our images as we please but This translates to less time before the battery goes
it’s one more thing that we must deal with. dead on us. For me, that is usually just as the ignit-
er is about to fire.
While mirrors can be a great way of diverting our image,
users should be aware of the issues involved. I find the electrical cost to be excessively high for
my own uses, but give WiFi a try when you fly.
You may prefer using WiFi.

We don’t TAKE photographs, We MAKE photographs.

We choose the type and make and model of camera that we shoot the picture with. We choose the
subject matter, composition, lighting, camera orientation and other factors affecting the image. We
choose when to press the shutter button. We press the shutter button. We post-process the image.
We choose how and in what format to view and display our images.

All of these decisions contribute to the final image, MADE by us.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 61

Conclusion
Contact Information:

In the previous article I neglected

Onboard shots are some of my favorites. And the only way to get onboard
to include my contact info. Feel
shots is with onboard cameras. Whether you integrate the cameras into
free to get in touch with me at:
your rocket design from the beginning or you stick a camera on the side of
an existing bird you can get great shots. I hope this article has demonstrat- [email protected]
ed this in a useful way.

In future articles I’ll bring back the L1, the L2 and eventually the L3. The
L2 has additional cameras and systems that I’ll detail later. Even the old
core digger ET-1 may have some secrets to reveal.

Upcoming articles will feature ground shots, handheld and drone shots
with more coming in future articles.

I hope that the material I have presented in this article and the series itself
is helpful to any who read to this point and I appreciate your time. I give
you credit if you have made it this far. There will be an exam later.

Can you tell how this picture was shot? A

couple of hints:

1. It is not a composite. That is, it was not put

together with multiple images. This is what it
looked like out of the camera, I just selected a
part of the frame to make this pic.

2. There are hints in the photo itself. If you

study it a little, you may be able to figure out
quite a bit.

I’ll reveal more in the next article!

Disclaimer: All images, illustrations, text, designs and bone head ideas are copyright the
Author, 1964-2021. No compensation of any kind was received for this article or any other.
All equipment, systems and batteries purchased and owned by the author. So there.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 62

 ROCKET FINISHING MATERIALS
by Tom Blazanin TRA #00003
This article covers surface finishing materials of applicable use on bare metal, fiberglass and carbon
fiber, up to the final color paint application. It does not cover polyester & epoxy resins. While many
people do things differently, the materials presented here are basic and time proven. Note that while
specific products are discussed, this is not intended to be an endorsement or advertisement for such
products. They are however, products with which the author is most familiar and have provided good
results when used as indicated. Surface paint will be covered in a separate and unrelated article.

When building rockets one puts a lot of work into

learning all about how they operate and how they go
together. But there is more than just that. Finishing
high power rockets is as different as building, com-
pared to ordinary model rockets. Model rockets use
basic white glues and light weight putties and primers
to obtain their smooth look. Weight is a major factor so
you really have to build light.

High power rockets require more structural integrity,

and weight in some cases can be an asset. Epoxies are
the adhesive of choice. There are several good adhe-
sives and epoxies you should become familiar with
which are covered in other documents. But in addition
to these there are other building materials you should
also become familiar with. High power rockets are
subject to massive stresses and need materials that can tube of hardener for curing, and if not over-used the lit-
stand up to them. Keep in mind you are also no longer tle tube of hardener will last the whole can of product.
working with cardboard.
The hardener usually is blue for DURAGLASS how-
Many people approach high power building using ma- ever any color, red or white, will work the same, as
terials of their own choice. In some cases, these are they’re all the same. The color is there to aid in the
items not readily available to the average high power mixing process.
builder. We’ll try to keep our selection to stuff readily
available without special ordering. All of the materi- There is a similar product called TIGER HAIR, which
als presented here are available in most any auto parts is DURAGLASS, or equivalent epoxy filler, contain-
store or body shop store, which are plentiful and locat- ing fiberglass fiber strands. While this is good in the
ed in nearly any town of size. Despite the title, a “body automotive industry, for building rockets its aggrava-
shop supply store” is open to anyone walking in off tion factor outweighs its usefulness - don’t use it.
the street. Prices are the same for anyone but unlike a
professional body shop you will likely have to pay tax. When DURAGLASS hardens it is really HARD. It is
best to shape-sand it with 30 or 40 grit dry sandpaper
FILLERS just after it begins to set. Work your sanding process
The first item we’ll present is DURAGLASS. This is onto a finer paper, 80 or 120, as the final shape nears.
a product of USC. It is an epoxy filler; a thick green
Keep in mind this is not a finish product so your de-
colored substance that has unbelievable bonding char-
sired shape need not be perfect, but good enough that
acter and strength. It bonds great to metal, fiberglass,
a final top coat of filler will be needed. The DURAG-
carbon fiber, phenolic and wood. It comes with a small
LASS is best used, once a fin is secured with epoxy,

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 63

as a fillet on a motor tube or a small fillet on a fin-to- skimming to fill low spots. The new soft BONDO will
airframe application. Remember most to sand it while sand easily while the hardened stuff maintains shape,
it is still somewhat “soft.” Once it hardens, it can still and you can even things out quite nicely. If sanding
be sanded but it takes more work. continues you will work into the older layers applied
so pay attention and sand with fine paper.
DURAGLASS can be purchased in a smaller can for
convenience. Since you do not use a lot of this when There is a second polyester
building a rocket, there is no need to buy a whole gal- filler you might be interested
lon when a quart will last quite a while. in. Made by USC it comes in a
large tube and is called ICING.
Once you have a solid DURAGLASS fillet shaped, It too uses the same hardener as
you can move to another filler from the automotive DURAGLASS and BONDO.
industry. The good old stand-by is BONDO. This is It is a very smooth fine textured
a grey colored polyester filler used for finish shaping. “bondo” material used best for
It also comes with a small tube of hardener, and even final skimming. Called a finish
though it’s polyester, the hardener is the same as used putty; it is no more than a Lite
with DURAGLASS. Usually it is red but again the version of BONDO taken to
blue or white works the same and helps aid in mixing. the extreme. It is very smooth
to work with and ideal for fill-
ing sand scratches and “pin”
holes in the work you’ve al-
ready smoothed.

The three items thus far mentioned all have one thing
in common, and most important to their proper use.
Never apply any of them over primer or paint. They
work best, getting a good etch bond, when applied di-
rectly to a raw well sanded surface. Again, the surface
can be fiberglass, wood, metal and even cardboard.

These fillers are mixed and spread using plastic squee-

gees. Rubber squeegees and even pieces of old leather
belt will also work. You want to use something that
will conform and shape the filler to the desired surface
required, for us usually a fillet. Repairs on nose cones
and airframes are also subject to curves and a good
There are several versions and brands that all work flexible squeegee is necessary.
well. BONDO was one of the first, and its name be-
came a generic term for polyester filler. To top it off, Also with these fillers, be careful with your sanding.
it is probably the cheapest and yet far from the worst. Without experience you can very easily over sand
There are versions given the title LITE or GOLD or and end up constantly reapplying filler to bring up to
FINE. These are specially formulated to actually make shape. When your finished surface does require a re-
them light weight and also easier to sand. The problem coat of filler, identify the exact area and circle it with a
is they cost more and you actually get less. pencil. This will make it easier to find with a squeegee
full of filler in hand.
Unlike epoxy fillers, polyester fillers can be shaped
just after kicking off with a rough sandpaper, however Another trick for finding imperfections, with filler or
if left to sit overnight you will find BONDO sands best final finish glaze, is running your fingers over the sur-
when actually hard. This also works well when re- face - with your eyes closed. Looking at the surface

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 64

while feeling it doesn’t work as well since your eyes colors: Gray, Red and Black. There are also two types
tell your fingers everything “looks” good. With eyes of primers: Sanding Primer and Filler Primer. KRY-
closed your fingers are more sensitive and it is amaz- LON Primer will work but their coverage and build are
ing how much you will find. limited. DUPLI-COLOR is available in AutoZones,
Advanced Auto, PepBoys and most auto parts stores
Last note for fillers is that their finish need not be final. across the country. DUPLI-COLOR makes both sand-
Strive to get it really good but keep in mind that fillers ing primer and filler primer, along with compatible
are not the final surface. color top coat paint for the automotive industry. This
is your best bet. Be sure to read the information on the
PRIMERS can. One emphasizes the need to look for the words
We cover primer paints next as they are “filler primer” and “sanding primer.”
actually the next step. We will only cover
primers here as finish paints are an article Sanding primers form a hard surface fin-
to themselves. As stated, never put fillers ish, very thin and with almost a highlight
over primer or paint. The next most impor- shine. This primer is best used as the
tant thing about primers and paints, both, is surface coat before the first color coat of
avoid using RUSTOLEUM! paint. It is sandable but they never tell you
to sand it with steel wool or an extremely
RUSTOLEUM is a product developed by fine dry paper just to break the surface, so
Norwegian whalers to protect their ships the color paint can bite in and bond. Any-
from rust and sea corrosion. It is fish OIL thing more and your nice smooth surface
based, which means while it’s great for will have more scratches and need recoat-
rust protection and re-coating with other ed. Sanding primer can be wet sanded to
RUSTOLEUM products, making your a nice smooth finish, but again using ex-
lawn furniture and railings look good for tremely fine wet paper only.
a long time, they will not be compatible
with GOOD and expensive “real” paint. In most in- Filler primer is what works best when working for a
stances your use of RUSTOLEUM primer will cover smooth uniform finish. It has a high build up of prod-
your project perfectly and you will be thrilled - until uct when sprayed which fills scratches and pin holes,
you apply your good paint final coat, and all hell will leaving a soft looking matte finish. You can put on sev-
break out with what is called, in the paint business, eral wet coats and it will build up thickness. Sanding
fisheyes. RUSTOLEUM paint also has a very long soft primer does not build up thickness - it actually goes on
life. This is due to the oil contained. Handling newly much like paint in thin layers. Filler primer builds up
sprayed RUSTOLEUM creates havoc to your finish. material and is easily sanded using wet or dry sandpa-
While it may seem dry and you can handle it, you will per, from about 320 grit to 600 grit. It dries, the same
find even slight pressure will leave permanent finger as sanding primer, very quickly.
prints - even days after spraying. It seems RUSTOLE-
UM never really dries! Best advice, if you take advice, When sanding, a light pressure works best. It not only
is never use RUSTOLEUM on rockets. lets the sandpaper clear itself, it also helps in leveling
high and low spots.
The best primer is regular automotive primer used in
commercial body shops. It comes in various colors, When buying spray paint in a can, look to see if it has
gray, red, green, yellow, etc. While ideal and very us- a fan nozzle. This creates a vertical fan pattern when
able, their cost is up there. Besides the primer you’ll spraying. It can be turned horizontal if needed. Un-
need thinner and a spray gun and a compressor, all of like “normal” spray can buttons that send the paint
which the average rocket builder may not have. to the surface in a round pattern, susceptible to runs
and banding of color, the fan button imitates a regular
Spray cans are the answer. They’re relatively inexpen- spray gun pattern for a more uniform covering.
sive and readily available. They also come in various

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 65

The photo on the right shows a Can Glazing putty will sand really easily
Gun mounted on a spray can. This is if little pressure is applied. It is ideal
a handle tool available in almost any for sand scratches, imperfections and
hardware store, auto parts store, Wal- pin hole filling less than 1/16” deep.
Mart, Harbor Freight or Home Depot. Again, do not try to use it as filler.
It lessens finger fatigue when press- When applying glaze use a rubber
ing the spray button and actually al- squeegee and drag the product toward
lows for better control of your spray you. The second squeegee of glaze
pattern. should be dragged onto the first appli-
cation. Do not start on the first and drag away. You’ll
GLAZING PUTTY crumble the glaze and rip open what you’ve already
Glazing, sometimes called Stain, is usually a nitro- got smooth. See the diagram at the bottom of the page.
cellulose product. That is, it is very very very thick
primer. It is made by 3M under the DYNATRON name The BONDO brand glaze dries with a
and sold as a BONDO brand product. It is available soft look. It is best dry sanded using
in Auto Parts stores anywhere you can buy BONDO 320 grit sandpaper or finer. It can be
products. wet sanded however. If it is too thick
or gets too wet, when it dries it will
actually crack and you’ll go crazy try-
ing to re-glaze it. Sometimes the “dry
cracking” will not show up until after
you begin applying your finish color
paint.

NITROSTAN, on the other hand, dries

with a smooth hard shell look. It is best
wet sanded. It can be dry sanded but
A similar product called NITROSTAN is an equiva- only with experience. After wet sand-
lent, although they do the same thing somewhat differ- ing it does not crack upon drying unless you’ve ap-
ently. NITROSTAN is considered “old school” by the plied it too thick. With both products a little bit should
automotive industry today, even though it is a superior be all that is required. Remember these are finishing
product. You will find the BONDO brand glaze to be glazes. What you see is what you will end up with.
more readily available and cheaper.
Once the glazing operation is done, apply one or two
Never apply this material to a bare surface. Body filler coats of sanding primer. When this is dry you can wet
is considered a bare surface. Glaze requires primer to sand with 400 grit paper or dry scuff with steel wool
be applied first for a compatible bonding surface. It to break open the surface for paint bonding of your
does not work at all with RUSTOLEUM. It also, un- color coat. Many people have their own ways of doing
like fillers, requires thin layer application. Putting it things and have their own favored products. The prod-
on thick will require a very long drying time, if it ever ucts mentioned and shown here are basics, and should
does, and when sanding it will crumble and rip open. perform well to meet anyone’s expectations.

The diagram to the right

shows the proper way to
apply both BONDO and
NITROSTAN glazing putty.

2020-21 COMPILATION HIGH POWER ROCKETRY PAGE 66