Quote:
> =
> >Mine went to 6280 on a I211, and 4800 on an I161 at Bend last weekend.=
> =
> How did you track a Graduator at 6280 and 4800 feet ? You must be
> the champion of Squinters there ;-) Or maybe you used a pound of
> tracking powder? :-)
> =
> --
> Yves
It's painted white at the nose, black at the fin can, and transitions
through fluorescent orange, red, green in between. With the sun at my
back, I can usually track the lower flights. With the higher ones, I
rely on crowd participation. It really helps to have Steve "Eagle Eye"
Bayer on the team. He could probably track an Estes Mosquito second
stage on a FULL "A" motor, boosted on a "Z".
I usually fly out of Steve=92s tower, which yields a really straight
boost. I also use dual stage recovery. Between the two, It usually
comes down relatively close to the pad, even in wind. The engine blows
the rocket in half , I don=92t use a streamer or chute for the initial
deployment. It free falls horizontally, slowly enough that on several
occasions when the secondary chute didn=92t deploy, damage was minimal,
ranging from nothing to broken fin tips.
Also I use about .75g of black powder in the secondary deployment
charge. With a 2.5" x 9" payload bay, it makes a big enough bang at
250=92 that even if you are looking in the wrong direction it draws your
attention to the great big Dave Fox chute.
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|Andrew Sanders | Mind like a steel trap. Old, |
|Boeing Employees | rusty, and prone to springing |
|Model Rocket Club | shut without provocation! |
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