AboutJames Bell Expertise I am a member of Tripoli Rocketry Association, and am certified to fly hi power rockets. I can answer questions anyone may have about design, materials selection, stability calculations, motor selection, altitude and performance predictions, and parachute and recovery options.
Experience I make my rockets from existing kits or parts readily made through commercial channels. I do NOT make my own motor propellants (they are challenging enough even for the companies that do this for a living), and I do not advocate making rockets using "typical household item" such as paper towel rolls.
Thanks!
And if you have any suggestions of good starter kits that incudle everything, then please let me know
(under 100$)
thanks
Answer Alex -
Model rocketry is a great hobby, and you will quickly get hooked. My first was an Estes Big Bertha that flew on an "A" motor for its test flight, then quickly moved up to the C6-5, the motor she flew best on.
The rocket and motors you choose will ultimately be your decision and I don't want to say one is better than the other, it all depends on how you are going to use it. Here are a few thoughts I'll share to help you make your decision:
1. "A" motors, like the 25-pack you are looking at, are a great starter motor to make sure the rocket is airworthy, but its quick burn rate and low power will make you want more right after the first flight. I would probably purchase a few "A" motors for initial flights, and look at "C" motors for bulk purchases later on. Since each rocket is different, look at various power and delay combinations to see which one flies the rocket the best. Once you find that perfect motor that gives you the best performance, buy that motor in bulk.
A powerful motor with a short delay time may not allow for sufficient deceleration time before the ejection charge hits, resulting in a "zipper", where the parachute slows the rocket down so fast that it rips the shock cord through the body and tears it open. Too long a delay and the rocket could hit the ground before the chute opens. It is a very fine balance to get the ejection charge to go off right as the rocket hits apogee and noses over toward the ground.
2. The description of the Astra 1 scares me: Will quickly fly out of sight, flights to 1,000 feet. Even the Starhawk can fly to 1,800 feet, but it has a streamer recovery. How big is your launch site? You will need a very large school yard to fly things going that high. A streamer recovery will tumble almost straight down, as the rocket is light enough that the steamer just retards its descent rate. But a parachute will carry the rocket on the wind. If the rocket hits 1,000 feet and you can't even see it until the chute opens, try chasing it as it glides down from that high altitude on the wind. My Big Bertha only hit 600 feet on average, and I still chased it a half mile once on a mildly windy day.
I found that I loved larger rockets with bigger motors that made a lot of noise but didn't go that high. My hi-power certification flight was made on a LOC IV with an "H" motor and went to 1,800 feet. The parachute opened and I had to trudge a mile through the woods to recover it. After that, I was a huge fan of electronics in my bigger rockets ... it fired a charge at apogee that broke the rocket in two, destroying its aerodynamics so it would tumble straight down, then a second charge fired just 250 off the ground. This enabled the rocket to tumble almost straight down and land close to the launch site.
After much experimentation, I found the best motor for my LOC IV in the local schoolyard was the Aerotech reloadable G64. If you get hooked on rocketry as fast as I did, you will probably want to get away from the A - D motors, and graduate to the E - G motors. "G" is the strongest motor you can fly and not need hi-power certification. Once you get into "H" and above, there are multiple levels of certification you would need. Yes, there is a thrill flying the hi-powered rockets, but my biggest thrill is still flying the schoolyard on the Aerotech G64's. I am at the point in my hobby where, instead of finding the best motor for a given rocket, I design my rockets to get the best performance from the G64's. That way I only buy one motor kit and fly all my rockets on that motor.
I hope this gives you some more things to consider as your involvement in the hobby grows. I have a web page set up at ...
On that site you can see a variety of different motors and rockets, with a LOT of links to different companies that sell rocket kits, motors, launch equipment and parts to build your own rockets from scratch.
Good luck, and don't hesitate to write back if you have more questions.
