1. Aerotech E30-4, 515 grams without the motor. The rocket went straight up even though there was a 5 to 10 mph wind. The parachute for the booster section worked well, but the chute for the nosecone shredded and was attached by only one line. However, the nosecone is quite light and it landed without damage in plowed ground.
12/2/2006, AARG Launch, Hutto Hippodrome Field
2. Aerotech E30-4, 515 grams without the motor. Replaced the two plastic chutes with a 28" nylon chute. The rocket went straight up and ejection was near apogee. The rocket landed about 150 feet from the pad. 11/4/2006, AARG Launch, Hutto Hippodrome Field
12/30/2006, Hill Country Rocketeers Launch, Hutto Hippodrome Field pictures
3. Aerotech E30-4, 515 grams without the motor. Excellent launch and recovery.
4. Aerotech E30-4, 515 grams without the motor. Weather-cocked into the wind on launch. Cracked two fins on landing.
4/1/2007, Amateur Rocketeers of Texas Launch, Meek Ranch pictures
5. Aerotech E28-4 reload, 515 grams without the motor. First launch after repairing two cracked fins. This is my second launch with an Aerotech reload. The launch and recovery were good. After I got home I discovered a 1/4" zipper in the body tube. I will repair this by gluing some cardstock on the inside of the body tube.
5/19/2007, Amateur Rocketeers of Texas Launch, Meek Ranch pictures
6. Aerotech F39-6 reload. I determined that the zipper from the previous launch was not very bad, so I did not repair it. However, I discovered that one of the fins had cracked again. I repaired it with 5-minute epoxy the morning of the launch. I attempted to reduce the delay by about 25% by drilling one-tenth inch into the four-tenth inch delay element. I also scraped the extra delay material around the edge of the delay element to make it flush with the drilled hole. I beleive this caused the delay material to separate from the cardboard tube, which shortened the delay. After a straight launch the ejection charge went off about a second after motor burn-out. The rocket recovered without damage.
6/2/2007, AARG Launch, Granger Lake pictures
7. Aerotech F39-6 reload. This was my second attempt at reducing the delay by 2 seconds. I drilled out 2/32" from the delay element, as recommended by the Aerotech site. This time the delay was about right. The launch was OK, except that the rocket arched with the wind for some reason. It landed about 300 feet down wind. The rocket may have been marginally stable. I will double check the Cp and Cg using this motor.
8/25/2007, Amateur Rocketeers of Texas Launch, Meek Ranch pictures
8. Aerotech F39-6 reload. This was my third launch of the V2 on an F39. I reduced the delay by 2 seconds as before, and timing of the ejection was just right. The launch was good. It arched a little bit because the launch rod was tilted slightly. It landed about 200 feet from the pad.
8/30/2008, LDRS Launch, Argonia, Kansas pictures
9. Aerotech E30-4. It had been a while since I used the E30 motor. This was the first AP motor I used, and I enjoyed launching with it again. The motor did not ignite the first time -- probably because the launch controller's battery was low. I moved to another launch controller, and the V2 flew great. The wind carried it a few hundred feet away. The rocket recovered fine without any damage.
9/20/2008, Amateur Rocketeers of Texas Launch, Meek Ranch, Fredericksburg, Texas pictures
10. Aerotech E30-4. This was my first and last chance to launch at Meek Ranch this year. The V2 was the last rocket that flew at this launch. While I was checking the V2 out the night before, I dropped it about a foot onto the floor and popped open one of the fins. This was the only fin that had not been previously repaired. I glued the fin with 5-minute epoxy. The V2 flew great, and it landed a couple of hundred feet from the pad. The rocket recovered fine without any damage.
12/6/2008, AARG Launch, Hutto, Texas pictures
11. Aerotech E28-4 reload. Another nice launch of the V2. Ejection was near apogee, and the rocket landed a few hundred feet from the pad. As usual, there was some fin damage. One of the fins suffered severe damage, but it can be repaired.
