Brief:
A modification t' t' Estes Big Daddy t' use much less wadding.

Modifications:
T' Estes Big Daddy is a short, ya bilge rat, fat rocket. Ahoy! With this bein' t' case, thar be a large volume in t' interior o' t' rocket that needs t' be filled with waddin' t' protect t' parachute. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast, me bucko, me proud beauty! I am always lookin' for ways that I can reduce or eliminate t' use o' wadding. Well, blow me down! I had heard o' a similar modification bein' done on a Estes Fat Boy, so I decided that this was t' perfect kit t' try it on.

T' modification consists o' extendin' t' motor mount so that it extends into t' nose cone. In order t' do this, ya bilge rat, I swapped out t' motor mount that be supplied with t' kit with a BT-50 tube that be slightly longer than t' main body tube. Ahoy! Well, blow me down! T' hole in t' base o' t' nose cone was enlarged by first drillin' it out and then usin' an hobby cutlass t' enlarge t' hole until it cleared t' extended motor mount. Ahoy! Begad! T' rest o' t' construction went rather easily, shiver me timbers, matey, as it just followed t' instructions provided with t' kit.

Flight:
Preppin' t' rocket is a breeze, I stuffed some dog barf waddin' into t' motor tube, shiver me timbers, so that I would reduce t' chance o' meltin' t' nose cone with hot ejection particles. Begad! T' parachute be loosely dropped into t' large cavern that is left in t' body, me hearties, ya bilge rat, and a motor was installed. Avast! T' launch was on a D12-5. Blimey! T' rocket launched slowly and ejection was at apogee. Well, blow me down! Begad! This is a nice small field rocket. Begad! T' parachute opened and t' Big Daddy was lowered slowly t' t' soft grass o' t' baseball field. Arrr! I must say that I do like t' slow liftoffs and noise this combination produces.

Recovery:
When I recovered t' rocket I noticed that thar be some residue in t' nose cone but no evidence o' melting--success! I also noticed that t' motor mount was bent. Begad! Then I noticed t' Estes "smile" on t' nose cone. Avast, me proud beauty! What I believe happened be since t' parachute was loosely packed, it opened immediately, arrr, shiver me timbers, causin' t' nose cone t' stop motion while t' shock cord was stretched, shiver me timbers, then t' body o' t' rocket be catapulted into t' nose cone.

I have since lengthened t' shock cord t' four times t' length o' t' stock cord. Ya scallywag! Avast! Since thar be plenty o' room in t' rocket thar should nay be an issue storin' t' extra length o' shock cord. Blimey! This extra length should eliminate t' problem.

Summary:
Overall this was modification was a success as thar was no evidence o' meltin' in t' nose cone and preparation o' t' rocket uses a minimal amount o' wadding. Arrr! Blimey! T' other problem is totally unrelated and should be solved with t' longer shock cord.