Vehicle 76

The design of Vehicle 76, a sport model with payload section, is loosely based on the smaller Vehicle 9, previously covered here. Vehicle 76 was built in 1999, using various Vaughn Brothers, Estes, and Aerotech components. It utilizes plywood through-the-wall fins with a thickness of 2.3 mm. It measures 650 mm in length and 66 mm in diameter and is intended to be flown with 29 mm F and G composite motors.

The nose cone, 205 mm in length, conceals a tubular payload section with a length of 180 mm and a diameter of 42 mm. At the time, it was tailored to the altimeter I used most often, the Missile Works RRC2. The payload section is fully removable, for ease of altimeter access. The rocket is recovered by means of two silk parachutes.

Top photo shows Vehicle 76 in Zurich, Switzerland, in 2016. Lower photo was taken in Thalwil, Switzerland, after completion of the rocket in summer of 1999.

Vehicle 22 Redux

The evolved version of the original Vehicle 22 payload model rocket, Vehicle 22 B, while being prepared for launch from my metal theodolite launcher at Allmend Frauenfeld, Switzerland, on Saturday, April 26, 1986.

Vehicle 22 B flew with a Flight Systems Inc. 21 mm black powder D or E motor. And while my flight data sheet of that day indicates a very good deployment of the parachute and a perfect post-flight condition of the rocket, the flight itself is described by means of a brief, wry remark: "stability deficiencies".

Photography by Martin Kyburz.

Cox Model Rocket Ad, December 1972

Cox "Now: Two more ready-to-launch rockets" ad, featured in Model Rocketeer magazine, vol. XIV, no. 11, December 1972, published by the National Association Of Rocketry, McLean, Virginia, USA.

Shown are Cox' legendary X-15 plastic model rocket, recovered by parachute, and the elegant Space Shuttle America, whose booster section was recovered by parachute while the two "shuttles" glided back to the ground.

Cox ad © by Model Rocketeer, McLean, Virginia & L.M. Cox Mfg. Co., Inc., Santa Ana, California, USA, 1972.

N Project: 4" Glass Fibre/Carbon Fibre Rocket, Part 3

Top photo: Professor Eugene Trubowitz is examining one of the fresh arrived Rocketman parachutes at the machine shop of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland, in late summer of 2000. All three rockets of the N project used Rocketman main und drogue parachutes.

Second photo from top: the two custom threaded forward closures of the Dr. Rocket 98 mm aluminium motor cases used for the two 4" rockets of the project. We were very fortunate to be granted to use the tool machines of the Institute for any such special modifications required in the course of our project.

Lower two photos: first trail assembly of the electronics compartment for the 4" glass fibre/carbon fibre rocket. The design of the electronics compartments for both 4" rockets was identical. The mounting base for the electronics thus consisted of an aluminium ring/shoulder, screwed to the modified forward closure. This arrangement further provided a mounting point for the glass upper airframe section.

The circular white insulation foam disc was intended to shield the electronics from the head emitted by the subjacent N2000 composite motor. Again, four threaded steel rods served to hold four custom- made aluminium mounting bridges, to which the two BlackSky AltAcc dual deployment recording accelerometers would subsequently be attached.

N Project: 4" Glass Fibre/Carbon Fibre Rocket, Part 2

Further images depicting the construction of the 4" glass fibre/carbon fibre N-motor rocket built for the BALLS 10 experimental launch held at Black Rock Desert in Nevada, in 2000. Top photo shows the custom made carbon fibre 4" nose cone with glass shoulder and steel tip. This beautifully immaculate cone was manufactured by Swiss Composite, based on calculations by Professor Eugene Trubowitz.

Centre photo shows Professor Trubowitz working on the rocket while we were performing a first trial assembly of the full (but still incomplete and unpainted) vehicle at the machine shop of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland. Components of the other two rockets of the N project can be seen to the right: the red and silver 4" aluminium/glass fibre/carbon fibre rocket with its welded aluminium fins and, at lower right, a section of the carbon fibre fin can of the 6" glass fibre/carbon fibre rocket.

Lower photo shows the 4" glass fibre/carbon fibre N-motor rocket erected vertically for the first time, in mid-September of 2000. The red Dr. Rocket N2000 98 mm aluminium motor case can be faintly seen through the lower glass fibre airframe section. The steel tip of the nose cone is provisionally held in place by masking tape; it would later be secured internally by means of threaded steel rod.

Vehicle 79 (Redux)

Vehicle 79 Dominator III ranks among my favourite rockets in my fleet. It is an uncomplicated rocket to fly, and its simple design provides a consistently impressive performance on F and G composite motors. Vehicle 79 was constructed from a variety of US Rockets and Aerotech components, featuring through-the-wall plywood fins, a custom-made aluminium baffle unit, and a payload section with a length of 315 mm. Top photo was taken at my former workshop in Thalwil, Switzerland, on November 22, 2010.

Lower photo shows Vehicle 79 on a friend's aluminium launch pad, on the occasion of our "last launch of the century", held on December 22, 1999, in northeast Switzerland. We flew our rockets from 2 to 5:30 pm; the temperature fluctuated around the freezing point. This was our seventh flight that day and thus our last flight of the launch and of the century. Vehicle 79 was powered by an Aerotech 29mm F20-7W Econojet motor. The payload flown consisted of a Missile Works RRC2 altimeter and a custom 9V piezo sonic locator. The flight was perfect and loud, and the RRC2 indicated an altitude of 1274 ft.

1972 Enerjet Catalogue

Sample pages from the unique and intriguing 1972 Enerjet advanced rocketry model products catalogue (no. 721).

As deeply curious and utterly determined teenagers building model rockets in remote (from a consumer point of view) Switzerland in the mid to late 1970s, we were continuously driven towards increasingly advanced rocket concepts and the quest for rocket motors more powerful than the commonly available A, B, C, and D-class motors. Mind you, it was far from granted to find even such "regular" motors in Switzerland at the time. Our ambitions were satisfied to some extent when a German distributor brought the product line of Flight Systems Inc. to our hemisphere and we were finally able to obtain their range of D, E, and F black powder motors.

In our minds, however, Enerjet represented the holy grail of advanced model rocketry, and it therefore served as the underlying inspiration for many of our own projects. This was of course long before readily available information by means of the internet, and even though Enerjet was no longer trading as an active company by that time, the company, for us, was thus an entity equally shrouded in mystery and emitting a limitless fascination. The few things we knew about Enerjet had been glanced from pictures in books (the Handbook Of Model Rocketry) and Centuri brochures, or from the remnants of Enerjet's existence as evident in Centuri's catalogues.

I would have given anything to own the 1972 Enerjet catalogue at the time (or to even be granted to have a brief look at it), but any such publications remained unobtainably elusive for us two rocket obsessed adolescents in Switzerland. Only much later in my life was I finally able to obtain a pristine original edition. The infinite waiting period mattered little; Enerjet's very existence and iconic designs still represent the same captivating inspiration to me to this very day.

The above excerpts from the 24-page catalogue show, for example, Enerjet's revolutionary "port burning" composite motors with glass fibre casing, or the fantastic (and operable) Nike Smoke semi scale rocket (vaguely similar to the Centuri kit) and Nike Ram high altitude payload rocket.

1972 Enerjet catalogue sample pages © by Enerjet Inc., Phoenix/AZ, USA, 1972, scanned from my personal copy of the catalogue.

[Entry amended October 31, 2016; with thanks to Chris Michielssen.]

N Project: 4" Glass Fibre/Carbon Fibre Rocket, Part 1

Construction of the 4" glass fibre/carbon fibre N-motor rocket, the final of three flight vehicle designs built by our team for the BALLS 10 experimental launch held at Black Rock Desert in Nevada, in 2000. All three rockets were designed by the project's initiator, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Professor Eugene Trubowitz, who subsequently invited me to be a main partner in logistics, financing, construction, and launch.

Powered by an Aerotech N2000 motor held in a Dr. Rocket 98 mm aluminium N motor case, this 4" rocket was to comprise glass fibre lower and upper airframe sections, three carbon fibre fins, and a custom-made carbon fibre and steel nose cone. The rocket's design resulted in a length of 2336 mm and a diameter of 101 mm.

Top photo shows the very early stages of the rocket's construction at Professor Trubowitz' home, in July of 2000. The carbon fibre fins have been aligned and attached to the lower airframe section with epoxy adhesive.

The next step, undertaken at the machine shop of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, involved preparing a mould for the manufacture of laminated fillet strips. Centre photo shows these laminated fillets after attachment to the fin/airframe joint, in August 2000. One such laminated, formed fillet can be seen bottom left.

Lower photo shows Professor Trubowitz inspecting the provisional placement of the custom-made aluminium rail guide stand-off. The unfinished rocket in the foreground is the 4" aluminium/glass fibre/carbon fibre N-motor vehicle previously detailed on this blog.

Vehicle 77 Redux

A clear personal favourite in my fleet, the Enerjet Nike Ram-inspired Vehicle 77, photographed in northeast Switzerland on July 30, 1999, on the occasion of a flight powered by a 24 mm Aerotech E28-7T RMS composite motor. This flight took place in the early afternoon of a beautifully clear day, with low winds, and a temperature of around 30 degrees Celsius.

Launched off an Aerotech Mantis pad, Vehicle 77 carried a 6 volt piezo sonic locator. The rocket flew fast, very stable, and out of sight, to a computed altitude of slightly over 800 meters. The parachute deployed perfectly, but the rocket's payload section and parachute became entangled in a barn drain pipe upon landing. The tallest member of our little launch group was just able to pull it free, but the piezo sonic locator was lost during the retrieval, and the plastic parachute was damaged. Vehicle 77 itself survived in perfect condition.

A few weeks later, I replaced damaged parachute (it had likely been the wrong choice for such a rocket at any rate) with a nylon parachute by Rogue Aerospace.

Rocket Fleet, 1989

Scans of two regrettably very deficient analog photos taken at my former home in Nürensdorf, Switzerland, in autumn of 1989, depicting part of what was then my rocket fleet as well as some designs under construction at the time.

Top photo shows, from left: Vehicle 59, built from Flight Systems and Centuri parts and designed to fly with Flight Systems E black powder motors. Vehicle 59 measured 886 mm in length (including a payload section of 456 mm length). The rocket in the center is my scratch-built Honest John semi scale model (still lacking any finer details), while the model on the right is Vehicle 51 B Enigma II, a development of the earlier Vehicle 39 A Enigma. Vehicle 51 B was constructed using Estes, Centuri, and CMR components and intended to be flown with Flight Systems E and F motors. It measured 896 mm in length and featured a payload section of 158 mm usable space. The lower and upper sections of the rocket were recovered by means of two separate parachutes.

Lower photo, from left: Vehicle 32, a cluster design utilizing three 18 mm motors and featuring a payload section. Next to it are Vehicle 23, a 24 mm experimental design with ultra thin, high aspect-ratio plywood fins, and Vehicle 22 B, also using three high aspect-ratio plywood fins that were strengthened with an epoxy coating. The rocket line-up is completed by Vehicle 48 A Heracles (designed for 21 mm and 24 mm D motors), Vehicle 39 A Enigma, and Vehicle 44 A Rhea (a sport model with payload section, built specifically for Flight Systems D18 motors).

Homage To Model Missiles, Inc.

I scratch-built this semi scale Aerojet-General Aerobee-Hi in 1986, using Centuri parts. It was an homage of sorts to the beginnings of our hobby and thus to some of the protagonists that had inspired me during my youth, ten years earlier: Orville H. Carlisle and G. Harry Stine.

As described, for example, in a fantastic article titled The First Model Rocket Kits, authored by G. Harry Stine and published on pages 5 to 9 of the February 1978 issue of Model Rocketeer magazine, Carlisle and Stine's Model Missiles, Inc. produced the Aerobee-Hi as the company's first proper model rocket kit in 1958. Moreover, I also admired the early Aerobee-Hi model rockets when I obtained what was my first copy of the Handbook Of Model Rocketry (Fourth Edition) in 1976 or 1977, such as in the formidable launch photo on page 125. We were model rocket obsessed teenagers at the time and not only glorified G. Harry Stine but also the beautifully pure design of the Aerobee-Hi rocket.

My own Aerobee-Hi was first launched on May 28, 1999, many years after I had originally completed it. The top photo shows the final preparations for this maiden flight, conducted with an Estes B6-4 motor in northeast Switzerland. As can be expected for such an immaculate design, it performed flawlessly. The lower two photos show the same rocket in May 2016, in Zurich, Switzerland.

Estes Maxi Alpha, 1978

Although the Estes Maxi Alpha first appeared in Estes' 1977 catalogue, we only discovered it a year later. Having originally found out about the existence of Estes in 1976, we had nonetheless been unable to obtain the 1977 catalogue in Switzerland. This made the contents of the 1978 Estes catalogue even more unpredictable and exciting to us, once our mail ordered copies finally arrived.

Next to the Der Big Red Max Deluxe Model Rocketry Outfit with its gloriously unique Big Foot launch pad, it was also the spectacular upscale appearance of the Maxi Alpha on page 46 of the catalogue that captivated me deeply. So I ordered the kit for the then pricey sum of $ 9.50 and built (deficiently) and flew it that summer. The recovery of the rocket by means of a 60 cm parachute always looked spectacular.

The above photo, taken in front of my childhood home in Nürensdorf, Switzerland, seems to be the only record of my Maxi Alpha during its existence.

Rocket Fleet, 1986

Part of my active fleet, photographed on the occasion of our morning to afternoon launch at Allmend Frauenfeld, Switzerland, on Saturday, April 26, 1986. It was a beautiful, clear day with only low wind and a temperature of 20 degrees Celsius. Incidentally, this was also the day the Chernobyl nuclear disaster took place.

Lower photo shows, from left: the black Vehicle 31 (featuring self adhesive Mylar foil on payload section), the white and black Vehicle 39 A Enigma, (flown for the first time during this launch), and the black Vehicle 28 A (with white fin and nose cone), a rocket built specifically to fly with Flight Systems E and F black powder motors. The flights of Vehicle 28 A revealed stability deficiencies which subsequently led to a redesign.

Next are the two prototypes of Vehicle 30; #8230 B is on top and #8230 A at bottom. I was about to lose the latter that day. Then the silver/black/red Vehicle 44 Rhea, a payload carrier built from CMR components. To the right of Vehicle 44 are my Estes Bandit (repaired from its previous motor failure) and my trusty Centuri Starfire. Then, the newly completed silver/white/black Vehicle 48 A Heracles (bottom) and the red/white Vehicle 36 B sport model, built from Centuri parts (top).

This is followed by the silver/white/black Vehicle 22 B payload model with its high aspect-ratio fins, my Centuri Excalibur 2, and my Estes Titan II ICBM. The line-up is completed by Vehicle 33, a delta-wing boost glider loosely inspired by Estes' legendary Astron Skydart. Vehicle 33 was scratch-built in 1981, using Flight Systems and Estes components.

In addition to all of these rockets, the top photo also shows one of my Estes Astron Alphas (far right), frequently used to open a launch and determine the wind conditions.

Photography by Martin Kyburz.

[Entry amended October 17, 2016.]

Swiss Model Rocket Competition, 1980

Following my participation in the 6th Swiss Modellraketen-Flugtag model rocket competition in 1978, I had originally intended to partake again in September of 1979. I built a rocket designed for the altitude event, called Vehicle 2. Although I really liked that rocket, I ultimately didn't enter it, for reasons that are no longer clear to me now. The second time I thus participated in the Modellraketen-Flugtag was on the occasion of the competition's 8th edition, in September of 1980.

As usual, the competition was organized by the Technorama science museum in Winterthur, Switzerland, and held at Allmend Frauenfeld military training grounds. After having built rockets for the altitude category in 1978 and 1979, I now tried my hand at the considerably less striking egg-lofting competition. In the course of the summer of 1980, I thus built Vehicle 21 (shown above) from various CMR parts, including CMR's ENC 77 egg capsule, something of a secret weapon at the time.

All rockets of the egg-loft competition had to complete two flights using Estes C6-5 motors, both flights having to carry the same egg as high as possible and subsequently land it intact. Most rockets entered were finished rather crudely and utilized off-the-shelf Estes or Centuri parts, including heavy plastic parachutes. Astonishingly, I therefore was the only contestant with a rocket built from what for Switzerland, at that time, amounted to highly advanced competition components.

Nonetheless, this young teenager was surprised (and considerably proud, of course) when my first flight turned out to be the highest of the field. Unfortunately, the Mylar parachute was damaged upon ejection, and the rocket returned to the ground with considerable speed and only minimal braking. As it impacted, competitors and spectators alike all laughed, and I could hear how they universally predicted a smashed egg. But CMR's fantastic egg capsule had worked, and I was able to present a pristine egg to the judges and thus qualify for the second flight. It goes without saying that I suddenly received incredulous and grumpy looks from my fellow competitors.

The impact forces had been absorbed by the blown plastic of the egg capsule, however, and it had cracked along almost half of its length. Next to repairing the parachute, I thus had to perform an emergency fix with electrical tape, which made the rocket heavier and compromised its aerodynamics. Accordingly, my second flight came in some 22 meters lower than the first, which cost me what would likely have been a first place overall. Then again, I still came in second, which was fantastic at any rate, especially given the circumstances.

My participation in this contest also resulted in the very first time I ever read my name in a magazine, when the March 1981 issue of the Model Rocketeer printed a brief report titled "Eight Swiss Nationals".

As was the case when I first participated in 1978, there were again people who blatantly disregarded the contest rules; in this case the rule that the person entering the rocket also had to be the one who actually built it. There was at least one entrant I personally knew who had zero model rocket experience and yet entered a rocket built by a third party with considerable expertise. When the person in question won the altitude competition in this manner, I felt truly disappointed. I didn't bother to report it this time around, but I decided to refrain from ever participating again. I would be perfectly happy just flying rockets with my friends.

Vehicle 31

Vehicle 31, at the time one of my most advanced model rockets, seen on my metal theodolite launcher. I built Vehicle 31 in 1982, using CMR components; it measured 770 mm in length and 29.5 mm in diameter and was specifically designed for Flight Systems Inc. E and F black powder motors. It further featured a payload section with a length of 230 mm, plywood fins, and a Mylar parachute.

The photo was taken at Allmend Frauenfeld, Switzerland, on April 26, 1986. Vehicle 31 was flown extensively that day on various FSI motors. It was a very graceful and stable design, and it survived the launch in very good condition, if my contemporary notes are to believed.

Photography by Martin Kyburz.

1970s Model Rocketry, Part 4

Launching a scratch-built, still somewhat crude boost glider from my Centuri Power Tower launch pad in northeast Switzerland, in July of 1978. Once again, the 38 years that have elapsed in the meantime have unfortunately caused me to forget the name and specifics of this design, other than the fact that the propulsion section was designed for 18 mm motors.

I am also no longer certain whether this boost glider managed to fly successfully, although I built a vaguely similar (but improved) model two years later, in order to enter it for the 8th Swiss Modellraketen-Flugtag model rocket competition. That later design performed quite satisfactorily.

Photography by Hans Hofer.

Vehicle 75

Maiden flight of Vehicle 75, powered by an Aerotech E15-7W 24 mm composite motor, northeast Switzerland, July 30, 1999. The rocket was launched from an Aerotech Mantis launch pad and carried a custom 9 volt piezo sonic locator with a diameter of 31.5 mm. It was a delightfully flawless and high flight.

Vehicle 75 is purely a sport model; it measures 670 mm in length and 42 mm in diameter, weighing 124 grams. The airframe was constructed with Estes components, and it utilizes plywood through-the-wall fins. Vehicle 75 is designed to fly with D to F motors and is recovered with a nylon parachute.

Bottom photo shows Vehicle 75 in Zurich, Switzerland, in May of 2016.

High Power Research Magazine, Fall 1984

Front cover, sample page, and back cover of High Power Research Magazine, issue of fall 1984. High Power Research Magazine was printed in black and white (save for the coloured paper used for the cover pages), and it had a distinct underground fanzine feel. It was based in Cuba/OH, edited by Mike Nelson, and featured a number of individuals who were or became key figures of modern high power rocketry.

I received this particular issue as a gift from Vulcan Systems Inc., a composite motor manufacturer with whom I was corresponding at the time. For us living in Switzerland, any such publications were treasure throves of previously unknown and highly inspiring information on advanced rocketry.

This 24-page issue of High Power Research Magazine contained high power rocketry news, numerous intriguing ads by emerging rocketry companies, kit and motor reviews, coverage of a launch at Lucerne Dry Lake, further launch reports, reader's letters, and - of course - a detailed feature on Vulcan Systems Inc.

Of note, among many other things in the magazine, is a photo of a younger Gary Rosenfield of Aerotech, during the Lucerne Dry Lake launch (centre image, photo top left).

High Power Research Magazine covers and pages © by High Power Research Magazine, Cuba/OH, 1984.

Eagle Aerospace Systems Inc. Catalogue, Mid 1980s

Sample pages from an eight-page high performance rocketry brochure by Eagle Aerospace Systems Inc., published in the mid 1980s. Sharing the provenance, down to the zip code, with the previously featured Astro Dynamics Corporation, Eagle Aerospace Systems Inc. similarly hailed from Everett/WA and also catered primarily to parties interested in serious, high-powered rocket applications. There were many other obvious parallels between the two companies.

According to this brochure, Eagle Aerospace Systems Inc. offered both rockets and propulsion, and it was particularly the description of their motors that set the company apart from most others of the period. The high power Eagle Dual Thrust Motors operated in two phases ("two motors in one"); a boost phase provided maximum acceleration, while a second, longer burning sustainer phase was designed to provide the rocket with a steady momentum. The propulsion means mentioned in the brochure range from 24 mm G40 motors to "professional Aquila System motors for use by science and industry".

Eagle Aerospace Systems Inc. also offered three series of rockets with payload compartments: Series I consisted of rockets using 24 to 29 mm motors. Series II was designed for "advanced sounding rocket activities". The Aquila System consisted of a complete sounding rocket system "specifically made or scientific and industrial applications".

The Eagle 150 and Eagle 175 rockets were powered by G motors and recovered by streamer. Eagle 200, Eagle 250, and Eagle 300 were intended for the aforementioned Dual Thrust motors and recovered via parachute.

Eagle Aerospace Systems Inc. also provided parts and supplies, such as glass/epoxy sheet stock, epoxy adhesives, a digital electronic timer, body tubes, nose cones, and other components.

Eagle Aerospace Systems Inc. brochure pages © by Eagle Aerospace Systems Inc., Everett/WA.

Estes Bandit Motor Failure

These are the last photos to show the only Estes Bandit I ever owned while it was still in pristine condition. They were taken in northeast Switzerland on April 16, 1986, during the same launch that saw an Estes D12-5 motor failure destroy my Centuri Nike Smoke.

When building the Bandit, I had converted it to fly on 24 mm motors, and this would turn out to be its ruin. The top photo shows pre-launch preparations; this flight was also going to use an Estes D12-5 motor, which can be seen already installed, with the Estes Solar Ignitor in place. Also of note are the Flight Systems Inc. E and F black powder motors in the range box.

The lower photo shows the Bandit on my converted theodolite metal tripod launcher, shortly before the launch button was pressed. Upon ignition, the motor disintegrated before the rocket lifted off. A single, burning motor fragment was ejected from the resulting fireball. The rocket suffered significant internal damage, but the main airframe was surprisingly still somewhat intact.

This was the second Estes D12-5 motor failure that day, and another one (a D11-9) was still to come. The damage to the Bandit was rather disappointing; its beautifully nostalgic design was among Estes' most attractive at the time, and its internal baffle system made it an intricate and unusual model.

Photography by Marco Schenker.

[Entry amended October 17, 2016.]

Vehicle 65

Vehicle 65, a minimum-diameter, high-performance sport model rocket intended for 18 mm C6-7 black powder motors.

Vehicle 65 was built in April of 1999, using Centuri (PNC 76 nose cone) and Estes (BT-20 body tube and EB-20A engine block) parts as well as 1.7 mm plywood fins. The rocket measures 306 mm in length, and it is recovered by a Centuri RS-20 streamer.

Given the small size of this rocket and the altitudes attainable with it, it likely wasn't my greatest idea ever to paint it green and thus render it camouflaged after recovery.

Top photo shows Vehicle 65 shortly after completion and on an Estes Porta-Pad II launch pad in Thalwil, Switzerland; bottom photos were taken in Zurich, Switzerland, in August 2016.