Rocket Launcher

[50caliber]

I have resently been making some very small rockets (1/4" ID x 2" long x 1/16" Wall) and have been successful with a sugar/kno3 mix and black powder. I was wondering if i could make a rocket launcher type thing for these. How would i get a igniter the would glow red hot and last over 10 launchers or more and it needs to light almost instantly.

 

For normal rockets do you put the stabalising stick inside a metal tube or just in the ground?

 

Thanks

[itwasntme]

I use a mortar tube because of ease and balence, you could just glue a piece of PVC pipe to a block of wood, I used to use that. Make it about 9 inches long and a big peice of wood on the bottem for support, or just place a brick onto it for weight.

[50caliber]

yea I found some pipe thats cemented in the ground so I just place the rockets on the edge

[Frozentech]

I have a 6 foot piece of 1" metal electrical conduit, with the bottom cut at an angle, like a giant hypodermic needle. Works great for all my rockets.

[50caliber]

so do you guys just drop the rocket in the pipe or hang the stick on the inside of the pipe and the rocket leans on the edge of the pipe?

[Andyscoolsn]

have you ever lit off a simple bottle rocket???? The same holds true for these rockets (respectively) just everything is larger. Be creative....

[Mumbles]

I would just put the stick in the tube with the engine itself outside hanging over the edge. I wouldn't feel comfortable dropping homemade rockets in a tube. If it were to CATO it could essentially become a fragmentation grenade. I mean if I were Steve LaDuke, then maybe I would trust it, but I can't say I am quite as accomplished of a builder as he is. I wonder how long it's been since he's had a CATO.

[50caliber]

oh ok i was just checking. we dont have bottle rockets or any rockets for that matter for sale in new zealand

[shadopyro]

Hm, on the subject of bottle rockets, do you use tooling for yours? i was thinking of buying a set from wolter pyro tooling but thinking that theres probably somewhere cheaper( i know, wolters tools are very high quality). -Should be quite fun for a bit of novelty fun.

[pa_pyro]

For my small bottle rockets(1/4"I.D. 2"length)I ram the clay, drill the nozzle then ram my fastest BP. I make these endburners because I dont have the proper tooling to make coreburners.(and I would have to slow the BP down) I've tried to make my own tooling but I find it very hard to drill a centered hole into a small dowel. My spindle consists of a piece of hanger nailed through a small block of wood. I don't quite have the budget to pay 48$ for a spindle from wolter tools.

[itwasntme]

For my small bottle rockets(1/4"I.D. 2"length)I ram the clay, drill the nozzle then ram my fastest BP. I make these endburners because I dont have the proper tooling to make coreburners.(and I would have to slow the BP down) I've tried to make my own tooling but I find it very hard to drill a centered hole into a small dowel. My spindle consists of a piece of hanger nailed through a small block of wood. I don't quite have the budget to pay 48$ for a spindle from wolter tools.

You know that you could just make the hanger wire longer, and use green mix. A hanger wire is about 3/32 normally. I use a drill bit and sugar fuel/green mix. They work greatly.

[ewest]

I've tried to make my own tooling but I find it very hard to drill a centered hole into a small dowel.

To do that you really need a lathe. I've tried hand drilling and even on a drill press and you just can't get a hole drilled in the direct center, especially on the small sizes like you're trying to do.

 

Plastic (polyethylene) MIGHT work if you heat up an ice pick until it glows red, then jam it into the plastic rammer. I've often thought about that but never tried making one. A plastic rammer won't last very long. But for small bottle rockets you might get by with it. To protect the end you hammer, try cutting a larger dowel about 2" long and drill a hole in the middle the size of the rammer. You can put this over the end sort of like an end cap and it'll protect the end from smashing and help distribute the force of the hammer blows.

[Mumbles]

Drilling a hole in the center of a dowel is fairly easy if you have a drill press and a straight dowel. I am just using the example of 1/2", but any size will do.

 

Attach a 1/2" bit to the drill press, a spade bit works nicely. Clamp some scrap wood to your drill press, say the about 3-4" of wood minimum and raise the platform so the bit will clear through all the wood. Drill the hole all the way through. Without moving the platform insert your dowel into the hole you just drilled. Replace the bit with a bit the desired size of the center hole. Drill as deep as you desire. This will result in a hole directly in the center of your dowel.

[ewest]

Now that's a nifty little trick, it's so simple it's genius I'll have to try that one.

 

Mumbles, if this chemistry thing doesn't work out for you, I see carpentry in your future......