Model Rockets are Awesome.

A hobby of mine for many (many) years has always been model rocketry.  It is not an extremely common hobby outside of boyscouts and after school science clubs, but it is actually a lot of fun.  My dad used to enjoy rockets when he was young, and then he spread the hobby to my brothers and I when we were young.  Over the years I have collected and built upwards of 20 rockets and they are always a blast (pun intended).

Model rockets are not fireworks.  They are far more expensive and they take more time and effort, but they are also very rewarding when you see your rocket come down on its parachute and land into your hands.  Most rockets are made by the Estes company, which owns probably (my guess, not real numbers) 90% of the model rocket industry.  They sell ready to fly and build them yourself rockets of all shapes and sizes, and they sell the engines for them. 

So, if you didn’t know, model rockets operate on a few simple principles.  First, the engine will push the rocket up hundreds of feet.  Rockets are rated with letters, A-E for the common ones, and even up to the letter P for more professional rockets.  Farther the letter is down the alphabet, the more power it has.  I have only used rockets with engines A-E.  Anyways, once the propulsion is used up, there is a small delay, anywhere from 2-10 seconds of smoke charge, then there is the ejection charge. 

Most engines have rating numbers like B6-4 or C6-7.  The engine ratings are based on impulse, which is a measure of Force times time.  The second number is the average force of the engine in newtons.  So a C6 and a B6 have the same average force but the B6 burns for less time than the C6.  The last number is the smoke delay in seconds.  Here it is laid out on Wikipedia.

Launching them is obviously the best part.  Range is anywhere in between 400ft to almost 2000ft for multistage rockets.  The only disadvantage is the need for a large area to launch the rocket.  Our favorite has always been the local high school parking lot.  The key is to have enough running room to go and catch the rocket and also not lose it in a field of grass. 

If you haven’t had a chance to light rockets, it is a lot of fun.  I will admit I am beginning to ramble, but go out, drop $20 bucks and try it out.  I highly recommend it!