Scratch Cardinator Original Design / Scratch Built

Scratch - Cardinator {Scratch}

Contributed by Blake Eric DeMarcy

Manufacturer: Scratch
(Contributed - by Blake Eric DeMarcy - 07/31/08)

Brief:
A small Micromaxx rocket made from nothing but a single sheet of 8.5 by 11 inch 110 pound cardstock.

Construction:
All you need is one sheet of 8.5 by 11 inch 110 pound cardstock, a spent Micromaxx motor casing (for insertion of thrust ring and nose cone shoulder), 1/4 inch dowel (to roll tube), tape, Elmer's white glue, and Loctite super glue.

Roll body tube, make motor adapter, insert thrust ring, and cut and mount fins. Then roll nose cone, make nose cone shoulder, and insert 2 BBs for nose weight. Finally, form launch lug. It takes less than an hour to build due to it's simple design.

Flight and Recovery:
This one uses Micromaxx motors and takes advantage of those tiny 1/8 A motors. Flights up to 150-200 feet are possible with this bird. I also flew a FlisKits Doohicky and the Cardinater beat it both in height and speed. It is pretty cool. It has had two flights so far and both were perfect. I tied to rig it up with a recovery system, but the tube is too small for even a shock cord so it just separates into two pieces and both fall down, landing within 10 feet of each other.

Summary:
I like the Cardinater. It looks and flies great. What else could you want? Maybe multi stage, but it is good as a single stage rocket. I should make a whole fleet of cardstock Micromaxx rockets! PROs: No wadding needed, free, simple design, high and fast flights, good looks. CONs: It uses lawndart recovery which can damage the rocket over time so when flying, call heads up please.

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