John Simmons's (BAR-04) The Rocket Sled

Back in the 1970's I scratch built a rocket designed to launch from a wooden track that I had made.  I never launched it... once I got my drivers license my focus changed a bit.  Kiss

 

So fast forward 4 decades...  This rocket was designed with my 1970's rocket in mind.

This design has an aluminum cart, call it a sled, that the rocket is lashed to.  The sled runs inside a wooden track that is horizontal and then transitions via a curved section to a vertical orientation.  Once the rocket / sled gets to the end of the track the rocket is cut free from the sled.

The sled has a 24mm motor.

The rocket has 2 stages, both utilizing 24mm motors.

The rocket booster motor and the cart motor are launched as a cluster.

During the stability swing test of the rocket the rocket came loose from the string and impacted some rockets in our yard.  This damaged the body tube (a tube from a Reynolds wrap aluminum roll), which I subsequently repaired by slipping a C-55 coupler over it.

The rocket is built, as is the sled.  I have not yet built the wooden track, nor has the rocket been launched.

 

The Rocket Sled: Front 3/4 View of Rocket and Sled
The Rocket Sled: Rear 3/4 View of Rocket and Sled
The Rocket Sled: Rear 3/4 View of Rocket / Booster and Sled
The Rocket Sled: Conceptual Drawing
The Rocket Sled: How It Works

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