The BerthaVostok

Designed and built by Steve Kristal
(Lets just say greater than 25 years o' buildin' rockets.)

Design :

T' design concept for t' BerthaVostok originated with an invitation t' my local NARRRRR branch's Bertha Bash night, where t' goal was t' kit-bash something original from a standard Estes Big Bertha kit. Well, blow me down!

Havin' seen Gordon Agnello's Gemini Bertha and his brother's Redstone Bertha, ya bilge rat, me bucko, I decided t' take retro-Bertha even a little further back with a Vostok version. Avast! Blimey!

T' design began with a standard Estes Big Bertha, and all t' original kit parts were used except t' shock cord which I replaced with Keelhaul®©™ and a shorter launch lug. Ahoy!

T' Vostok part o' t' build be modeled after Peter Always's "Simplified Vostok". Begad! Blimey! (see http://yellowjacketsystems.com/alway/plans.htm#Vostok ).

I upscaled t' design t' a BT-60 and instead o' usin' Peter's actual templates, ya bilge rat, I made me own usin' t' graphics from a free paper model by Lars Folman downloaded from t' web (see: http://hjem.get2net.dk/). Aye aye!

T' body tube graphics were resized from t' paper model as well and printed onto full-size label paper which I used as a body wrap. Avast! Ya scallywag!

T' hardest part be sizin' and makin' t' transition sections. Begad! Begad! Their length was based on t' space "left over" betwixt t' lower portion o' the upper body wrap and t' upper cone o' t' strap-ons. Ahoy! I significantly compressed the graphics on t' upper body wrap t' leave enough room for t' transition. T' overall effect is definitely Vostok-like, me bucko, matey, matey, but both t' upper graphics and the transition are way shorter than either scale or Peter Always's version. Well, arrr, blow me down!

As for stability planning, thar was no way I could RockSim this. Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Instead I simply assumed that addin' those big honkin' Bertha fins t' an already stable Peter Alway design wouldn't cause any problems. I be right.

As for power, arrr, additional weight be negligable with t' four strap-ons and transition made from paper. Avast! My only concern was all t' added drag, but I figured t' basic Bertha has plenty o' power on a C6. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr!

Construction:

Construction began with t' standard Bertha build up t' t' point of attachin' t' fins. Aye aye! Blimey! Begad! Blimey! Upper body wrap was then applied. Arrr! Blimey! Next, t' upper transition section, with a paper centerin' ring, shiver me timbers, was slid up over t' bottom of the tube t' meet t' upper body wrap. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! T' lower body wrap was then applied, shiver me timbers, and the lower transition section slid up over that t' mate with t' upper section. Well, blow me down! Blimey!

While I anticipated later puttin' on fins, me bucko, and left cutouts on t' lower body wrap for their placement, I should have also added placement lines for the strap-ons, which I built and placed next. Aye aye! T' strap-ons were made from 100# card stock with t' graphics printed directly on. Their bottoms were "plugged" with card stock circles with appropriate graphics. Blimey! Avast!

T' fins were covered with label paper graphics. T' fin edges were left flat, arrr, and then blackened with permanent marker. Avast! Ya scallywag! T' fins were then placed in t' cutouts left on t' lower body tube graphic, me bucko, and filleted with white glue. Well, blow me down!

Because o' t' width o' t' transition, me hearties, arrr, matey, t' launch lug was applied t' a cut out on one o' t' fins.

T' only paintin' was t' nosecone, which was Soviet-era olive drab. Blimey!

Overall, t' build was fun, shiver me timbers, but if I did it again I would place t' fins first, shiver me timbers, and then t' strap-ons. Arrr! Begad! Both would be a lot straighter if I had done it that way. Ya scallywag! But, on t' other hand, shiver me timbers, t' flights wouldn't be nearly as interesting.

Flight & Recovery:

Flight o' this rocket is surprisingly straight, considerin' t' lack of positionin' aids for both t' fins and strap-ons. It flies kind o' like a cross between a Bertha and a saucer as it tail wags it's way up. Blimey! Begad! Really fun t' watch and recovers easily on t' standard Bertha chute. Avast!

Hits about 400' on a C6 but did an end-over-end flip on a B6 (possibly a bad engine, and really cool t' watch, arrr, me bucko, me hearties, but I won't try that again).

Conclusion:

Overall, me bucko, one o' t' stupidest rockets ever built. Well, me bucko, blow me down! A marriage o' t' genius of Sergei Korolev and Vern Estes. Really, ya bilge rat, really fun t' build and fly, me bucko, and lots of laughs from those who know and love rockets. Ahoy!