Rocketry Club General Info
THE NEXT BIG LAUNCH: March 25th. Click here for details.
The Jane Hebert Memorial Rocketry Club is open to Green Jays of all ages.
The club meets in Mr. Kolf’s classroom (4B) every Tuesday after school from 3:30-4:30.
Weekly meetings run roughly on a four-week cycle: 2 weeks to build new rockets, 1 week to paint them, launches at WA on the 4th week, repeat.
A few times a year on Saturdays we take special outings to launch at NASA’s JSC or at the airport in Hearne, TX.
To join the club, just show up on Tuesday with a rocket kit!
Materials Available Through the Rocketry Club
Buys can obtain their own rockets and motors from Hobby Lobby or elsewhere, or purchase them from through the club.
The club purchases a simple rocket kits in bulk to make available for students. Currently we have Estes Viking rockets available for $5 each.
The club has a limited number of standard rocket motors available for $2 each.
We have a selection of more specialized and higher power motors available for purchase as well.
Questions?
Contact Mr. Kolf
Buying Rockets
Here are a few principles to keep in mind when picking out a rocket for your son:
It’s good to find a kit that is challenging, but not impossible to build.
This is most interesting and fruitful for the boys.
The easier it is to build the rocket, the sooner your son will finish it, launch it, and want to buy the next rocket to build.
It is good to start with simple rockets so your son can develop his building skills bit by bit.
Unfortunately, there are quite a number of systems out there for rating the building challenge of a rocket, even within the same manufacturer. So here are a few tips:
Plastic fins are easy.
“Fin cans” (where the fins come already attached to a short section of rocket) are easy.
Thin rockets are easier than fat rockets.
2-stage rockets are harder than 1-stage rockets.
See below for a list of some rockets commonly available at Hobby Lobby (much better selection than Michael’s) and some helpful info on each one.
You don’t need a “starter set” unless you want to launch on your own.
The club has tons of launch equipment, so if you son only launches at school or with the school, he won’t need any of his own launch gear.
It is very easy to lose rockets launched at Western Academy.
There are three ways to approach this problem:
Buy rockets that don’t fly very high.
Rocket kits indicate projected altitude on the packaging. Rockets that stay under 500’ have a much better chance of recovery and than those that fly higher.
All other things being equal, the fatter the rocket, the lower its ceiling will be.
But… Boys always want to launch their rockets really high.
Don’t launch at WA.
If you buy a rocket that you absolutely don’t want to lose, don’t launch it at school. Save it for a trip to NASA or Hearn.
But… Who wants to wait so long to launch their rockets?
Buy cheap rockets.
Then, if you lose it, it won’t be such a tragedy.
But… As you advance in the hobby, the cheaper models might become too simple to build and keep you challenged.
Smaller engines are cheaper.
Low-power engines come in three sizes: 13 mm, 18 mm, and 24 mm.
18 mm engines are the most common. Most A, B, and C engines are 18 mm. These engines generally cost about $3 a piece, and they come in packs of three.
13 mm engines come in packs of four. They cost about $2 a piece. Engines designated as “1/2 A” and A3 are usually 13 mm engines.
Most D and E engines are 18 mm. They cost about $5 each.
Rocket kits indicate on the packaging what type of engines they fly on. If you want to keep the per-flight cost low, look for rockets that take small engines.
A few companies now sell “micro” rockets. Designed for backyard launching, they are really tiny and only fly about 75’ high. The engines only cost $1.50 a piece.
However, these engines may be harder to find, and you won’t want to pay the HAZMAT fee to have them shipped.
Some Rockets Commonly Available at Hobby Lobby and Some Info About Them
Rocket; Difficulty; Max. Altitude; Engines; Approx. Cost
Generic; Extremely Easy; 1000’; 18 mm; $8
Alpha III; Extremely Easy; 1100’; 18 mm; $13
Fletcher; Very Simple; 325’; 13 mm; $9
Mini Mosquito; Very Simple; 800’; 13 mm; $4
Nova Payloader; Very Simple; 1000’; 18 mm; $11
Yankee; Very Simple; 1400’; 18 mm; $8
Wizard; Very Simple; 1500’; 18 mm; $8
Viking; Very Simple; 1500’; 18 mm; $8
Alpha; Simple; 1000’; 18 mm; $11
High Flyer; Simple; 1600’; 18 mm; $7
Mni Fatboy; Moderate; 250’; 13 mm; $8
Big Bertha; Moderate; 500’; 18 mm; $16
Der Red Max; Moderate; 600’; 18 mm; $12
Baby Bertha; Moderate; 600’; 18 mm; $9
Patriot; Moderate; 600’; 18 mm; $11
Mean Machine; Moderate; 700’; 24 mm; $20
Big Daddy; Moderate; 900’; 24 mm; $21
Goblin; Moderate; 1400’; 24 mm; $12
Magician; Moderate; 1600’; 24 mm; $15
Bullpup 12D; Challenging; 700’; 18 mm; $12
Mini Comanche III; Challenging; 900’; 13 mm; $9
Boosted Bertha; Challenging; 1000’; 18 mm; $18
Comanche III; Challenging; 2250’; 24/18 mm; $15
Rocketry Websites
The BEST rocketry website out there: www.apogeerockets.com
National Association of Rocketry: www.nar.org
Tripoli Rocketry Association: www.tripoli.org
Tripoli Houston Rocket Club: www.tripolihouston.com
NASA Houston Rocket Club: www.nasahoustonrocketclub.org
Introduction to rocket motors: www.nar.org/standards-and-testing-committee/
