Descon Protector

Scratch - Protector {Scratch}

Contributed by Nick Esselman

Manufacturer: Scratch
(Contributed - by Nick Esselman)

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Galaxy Quest - Protector

As I looked for a comedy spaceship, one that came to mind was the Galaxy Quest - Protector. Interestingly, there are not that many pictures of this ship out there, but I decided to make an attempt. "Attempt" being a key word, because after finding some shots of it, I set off to draw my plan and then started building. After getting the body and fins all glued together, I realized that I made a critical error in duplicating the look of the Protector. I'm sure you can spot it, but then I hope you ignore it and simply consider the looks of this little (yet to be determined) flier!

Parts List:

RMR Descon Apogee Ogive Vac-Form NC (#19207)
RMR Descon Apogee Hard Plastic NC (#19200)
RMR Descon 3" of 7mm tubing from Aerospace Speciality Products
RMR Descon 1/16" sheet of base wood

Construction:

The Hard Plastic (black) NC from apogee has the should provided separately to be glued in by the builder. I through that should away. I then trimmed the shoulder of the Vac-Form (white) NC to leave 1/8". This was then glued with CA into the Hard Plastic NC to form the body.

Nose Cones Pic

Next, I cut the 7mm tubing into (3) three 1" sections and glued them together to form the motor cluster. I then cut the black nose cone back to where the motor tubes would just fit in place. I glued them using CA. I then cut a piece of notebook paper to just fit over the top tube and glued it in place with CA. I then soaked it twice to strengthen it.

PicI then moved to cutting out the fin pieces. Each piece was then glued in place using CA. I had to really watch how these were held in place to make the right angles and for them to stay put. I then did multiple passes with CA to make fillets on each of the joints.

The upper fin is placed there to simulate some of the living quarters of the Protector, but also to try to give some stability for flight. We'll see.

I next, cut nose cone tip to make a separation point. I used an 18mm tube and placed it around the nose cone to draw a line. Then slowly used a hobby knife to cut through the plastic tip. I then took a piece of card stock, rolled it, and installed it into the piece of nose cone I cut off to make a shoulder. It required several wraps of 1/8" wide tape to make it fit properly.

On the PadNext, I used a 10" piece of Kevlar and epoxied one end into the nose cone tip and the other inside the body.

I sealed the openings in the rear (around the 3 motor tubes) with some glue to ensure a positive ejection force.

Lastly, I packed the nose cone with clay for balancing.

It was now ready for paint and detail. I used Testor model paint and a brush for the first several coats. I had to paint inside due to the extremely cold Vermont weather we were having. However, one day it reached 37 degrees so I went out and sprayed a coat of white paint on the rocket.

I didn't get to do the detail work I had planned. I was going to make some decals, but only had time for a stripe down each side. Yes, time in this contest ran out on me (or the other way around).

Flight:

I prepped the rocket with three motors. I took apart three Quest MicroMaxx ignitors and attached wire extensions to the leads. I then taped everything in place and prepared for a launch.

After getting 24" of snow the previous night, snow blowing all morning, and still getting snow, part of that preparation was to clear a small area in the driveway. My son and I ran out of the house, set up, and gave this bird a first attempt. I captured it on this video.

Post FlightUnfortunately, only 1 motor initially lit. I tried to lift the rocket. Then instantaneously, the ejection charge of the first motor popped while the remaining two motors lit. The ejection pop (and the 10 degree weather) caused the launch lug to break-away, the nose cone to eject, and therefore, it didn't have a chance under the power of the other two motors!

ENJOY, LISTEN, and ANALYZE the Video (MPG - 849K)

I wish I had one more day before the deadline, because I'm sure this will fly. I will try again, after I replace the launch lug.

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