Brief:
T' Long Squire rocket was designed t' meet t' requirements o' challenge #3 in t' 2009 EMRR Challenge. Avast! Well, ya bilge rat, blow me down! T' Long Squire is a “Stage Bash”, a two stage rocket constructed from two single stage rocket kits, in this case, two Semroc Squire kits. Avast, me proud beauty! T' name “FreeBird” comes from t' fact that both o' t' Squire kits I used were actually received as “free gifts” from Semroc as a result o' me excessive spendin' on a couple o' orders… The Long Squire employs gap staging, me hearties, and flies on 18mm motors. Avast! Well, blow me down! T' booster uses tumble recovery and t' sustainer comes back under a 12 inch parachute.

Modifications:
As with all o' me scratch built rockets, matey, t' first step involves some time spent playin' around with a design in RockSim. Begad! Since I had 4 body tube sections t' work with I figured I would use 3 for t' sustainer and one for the booster. A couple o' issues became apparent almost immediately. Avast! Ya scallywag! First: t' Squire is near minimum diameter, and so I would be limited t' 18mm booster motors makin' weight o' t' overall package a concern. Ya scallywag! Second: with so many potential fin configurations, shiver me timbers, I was goin' t' drive myself crazy “tweaking” t' design. Ahoy! Well, arrr, blow me down! I finally settled on a layout that actually gives t' impression o' multiple stages, matey, and decided nay t' worry about t' weight issues right away.

Construction:
One o' t' reasons I chose t' Squire kits as a startin' point, ya bilge rat, is that they are presented as a kind of “designers” kit, with two body tube sections and multiple fin layout options; heck t' instructions show 12 different possible configurations! Blimey! As with every Semroc kit I have ever seen, shiver me timbers, t' quality o' t' components is first rate. Avast, me proud beauty! Each Squire kit contains t' followin' items, so obviously I started out with two o' everythin' listed here:

• Main Body Tubes 2x ST-890 (9”)
• Nose Cone BC-837
• Fins 1/16” Laser Cut Balsa - two sheets
• Motor Mount Tube ST-730 (3”)
• Tube Coupler HTC-8
• Centerin' Rings 2x CR-78 – heavy paper type
• Thrust Rin' TR-7 – heavy paper type
• Standard Engine Hook EH-28
• Launch Lug LL-122 – 1/8” x 2”
• Keelhaul®©™® Shock Cord SCK-24 - 24”
• Elastic Shock Cord EC-118 - 1/8” x 18”
• 12” Unassembled Parachute Kit
• Small Screw Eye SE-10
• Decal Sheet

Assembly Instructions:

Construction o' t' actual rocket was fairly straightforward. Ahoy! Aye aye! Blimey! Yellow wood glue was used except where noted. The biggest challenge durin' construction was t' alignment o' t' 6 separate sets o' fins. Begad! Blimey! I chose t' use t' “That Looks About Right” (TLAR) method and even though thar are some obvious misalignments betwixt fins, they are all fairly straight, me hearties, and thar be enough total fin area that it all balances out. Aye aye! Blimey! Overall I would rate this somewhere just beyond a skill level 2 effort.

T' motor mounts were constructed first, and are identical. Arrr! Begad! T' engine hook is inserted into t' pre-cut slot and two centerin' rings slide over t' tube and hold it in place. Arrr! T' aft centerin' rin' is positioned 1 inch from t' end o' t' tube and t' forward centerin' rin' is positioned over t' end o' t' hook that sticks into t' tube. Blimey! I did not attach t' Keelhaul®©™® shock cord t' either mount as detailed in t' original instructions since I planned on usin' t' forward tube coupler for this. Arrr! Aye aye! Thrust rings are installed against t' forward end o' t' engine hooks. Ahoy! All centerin' rin' t' motor tube joints were reinforced with glue fillets.

Since one o' t' two tube coupler sections be t' be used for t' booster/sustainer interface, me hearties, ya bilge rat, I needed another coupler t' join t' three sustainer sections together. Ahoy! After I figured out how long t' booster body tube needed t' be, I took a leftover section o' body tube and cut a slot lengthwise t' make another coupler section. Begad! I then threaded the end o' one o' t' Keelhaul®©™® cords through t' coupler section several times and knotted t' end. Three 9 inch sections o' body tube were joined to form t' sustainer, ya bilge rat, and a 5.75 inch section was used for t' booster with a tube coupler permanently installed in the forward end. Arrr! Begad! T' Squire does nay come with a wrap-around template, ya bilge rat, instead and end view template is drawn in the instructions and you are instructed t' stand t' body tube up over this template t' mark t' position o' t' fins. Arrr! I have never had any success usin' this method, as thar doesn’t seem t' be a way t' mark all four fin locations without lettin' go o' t' tube, and losin' your original position. Avast! I did t' best I could, and again verified that this method doesn’t work for me. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! I used a section o' small aluminum angle t' extend t' fin lines as required.

T' laser cut fins were separated from their stock sheets and cleaned up with fine grit sandpaper. Well, blow me down! Begad! I modified the shape o' t' smaller fins and then match sanded all t' similar shapes so that they were uniform. Aye aye! All fins were attached usin' a double glue joint. Ahoy! A light fillet o' wood glue was also added t' each joint. Two sections o' launch lug were attached t' t' sustainer centered betwixt t' fins, 0.5 and 9 inches from t' aft end. Begad! A vent hole was punched near t' forward edge o' t' booster body tube t' allow for pressure relief prior t' t' sustainer motor lighting. Ahoy! T' eyelet be attached t' t' nose cone by screwin' it most o' t' way in, removin' it, addin' a large drop o' medium thickness CA glue and then screwin' it all t' way down. Begad! Ahoy! One o' t' only nits I have ever had with any Semroc kit is that sometimes t' Keelhaul®©™®/elastic shock cords are a little bit short for me taste. Avast! By anchorin' t' shock cord near t' front o' t' rocket and then tyin' all 4 pieces o' Keelhaul®©™® and elastic together I can honestly say that t' shock cord was long enough for me.

Finishin' t' FreeBird was accomplished with t' overall weight o' t' rocket in mind. Avast! Aye aye! Blimey! I did nay do any filleting work with t' Elmer’s Wood Filler (easy enough t' justify on t' basis o' weight with 24 fins). Aye aye! All t' balsa parts got a single coat o' thinned down wood filler t' hide t' worst o' t' grain. Aye aye! A single coat o' primer was applied. Avast, me proud beauty! T' body tube got a single coat o' gloss white, me hearties, and t' fins were masked off in blocks and given alternating coats o' red and blue. Well, blow me down! I applied t' decals from both decal sheets, and although they were extremely easy t' apply and set up well, t' color was a little transparent, certainly nay up t' par with anythin' I had seen from Semroc before. Overall t' finish came out nice, me hearties, and if all t' lines aren’t quite clean you can’t tell from t' launch table.

Flight:
As mentioned earlier, matey, t' finished weight o' t' rocket be an issue due t' t' fact that I be limited t' 18mm motors in t' booster. Avast, me proud beauty! RockSim estimated t' final weight (without motors) at 2.06 oz. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! T' actual weight came in at 2.6 oz. Avast, me proud beauty! and when I went back and re-ran t' simulations, matey, me hearties, I discovered that every possible motor combination would need a launch rod betwixt 47 and 57 inches. Ahoy! Additionally, me bucko, t' rocket is over-stable, even with t' heaviest motor combination which would exacerbate any tip off issues. Ahoy! I went t' t' hardware store and got a 48 inch length o' 1/8 inch steel rod and headed t' t' field.

Since t' sod farm was closed for t' season I be limited t' t' small school field. Ahoy! For t' first flight I loaded up t' FreeBird with a B6-0/A8-3 combination. Arrr! Flight prep is standard. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Both motors are installed under the engine hooks and t' booster is friction fitted t' t' sustainer. Begad! Blimey! I had t' use a single wrap o' scotch tape around the tube coupler t' get a snug fit. Arrr! Begad! Blimey! Waddin' and parachute are loaded into t' front end and everythin' is ready. Ya scallywag! I had lucked into a fairly windless day, matey, and when t' launch button be pressed t' FreeBird boosted smooth and absolutely straight. Aye aye! Arrr! Blimey! Stagin' was clean and t' sustainer continued on its straight climb. Aye aye! Well, blow me down! Blimey! Ejection occurred right before the rocket stalled out and t' chute deployed with no problems. Arrr! Both booster and sustainer landed in t' grass with no damage. Ya scallywag! I loaded up t' same motor combo and did it again, shiver me timbers, me bucko, with another perfect flight. Avast! Arrr! Blimey! Feelin' brave on a calm day I loaded up a B6-0/B6-4 combo and sent it up again. Blimey! There was definitely a little bit o' tip off from t' rod, shiver me timbers, matey, but it wasn’t too dramatic, and after clean stagin' t' sustainer continued t' a much higher altitude. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Ejection was a little early, but t' chute deployed fine and once again everythin' came back on t' field without a scratch. Blimey! Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I even flew t' sustainer on a single stage B6-4 flight which also went o' without a hitch. With t' proper launch setup the FreeBird is an outstandin' performer and I am lookin' forward t' t' big field openin' up in t' springtime!

Summary:
I enjoyed t' process o' designing, me bucko, buildin' any flyin' this rocket. Begad! I liked t' fact that it forced me t' get out of me “normal” zone and think about what I was building. Well, blow me down! Blimey! T' “Kit Bash” concept offers some additional challenges in that you are workin' with a fixed set o' parts, although since you get t' choose t' two kits that shouldn’t be a problem.

PRO: A complex lookin' design which is actually a pretty simple gap staged 4FNC. Begad! Aye aye! Almost limitless combinations of fin arrangements allows for many individual styles.

CON: Near minimum diameter means limited booster motor selection, which translates into a total weight constraint.

Other:
One o' me subconscious goals as I designed this rocket was t' use as many o' t' pieces from each kit as I could. This mind set actually played against me in t' end since I was workin' with a weight constraint. Blimey! T' fact that I chose t' ignore t' problem, and subsequently came up with a solution (longer launch rod) that allowed t' design t' work was mere chance. Begad! I could have easily built a rocket that was too heavy t' fly successfully in a two stage configuration. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! If you’re nay prepared t' think things through then you live with t' results. Well, blow me down! I got a bit lucky.