Brief:
A lilliputian scale-down o' one o' me favorite rockets, t' Spudnik. Begad! Or, in other words, shiver me timbers, I've too much time on me hands.

Construction:
T' materials were all scrap, ya bilge rat, destined for t' dustbin. Avast! So, me hearties, one rainy Saturday night with nothin' t' do, me bucko, I decided t' build a replacement for me son's crippled space traveller, t' Spudnik. All I used be a 1 inch styrofoam ball left over from a Christmas decoration project, shiver me timbers, 4 Q-tips, a length o' junk mail and some white glue.

Actually, this be t' easiest rocket I've ever scaled up or down, and all measurements were more-or-less SWAG'd. Aye aye! I just hollowed out a styrofoam ball with a 6mm drill bit. Begad! After that, I cut t' cotton off each end o' a plastic handled Q-tip, me bucko, ya bilge rat, then pushed them about 3mm into t' styrofoam, me bucko, evenly spaced around t' hole. Avast, me proud beauty! Aye aye! Next I rolled some "junk mail" around a 6mm drill bit, arrr, applyin' glue as I wound it around twice. Arrr! Once t' glue dried, ya bilge rat, me hearties, I cut a circle out o' a Post-it note with t' hole puncher, and stuck this over one o' t' ends o' t' rolled junk mail (after removin' t' drill bit). Begad! Arrr! I coated this whole assembly with a liberal dose o' CA, and once it dried thoroughly, arrr, inserted it into t' styrofoam ball. A short snippet o' Q-tip tube also serves as t' launch lug, me bucko, matey, and was unceremoniously shoved through t' styrofoam, parallel t' t' motor tube and was trimmed flush. Begad! Avast! Simple, matey, but effective. Blimey! But here's t' gotcha- as an oversight, I didn't think about t' legs extendin' too far t' allow t' ignitor t' reach anywhere NEAR t' motor on t' Quest launcher. Time for Plan B. Well, blow me down! Aye aye! Build a new launcher. This was accomplished by takin' one o' me patio lights (that t' kid next door had destroyed), removin' t' light bulb, matey, me hearties, shiver me timbers, trimmin' some plastic, ya bilge rat, matey, and meltin' a hole in t' top for a launch rod. Ahoy! T' Quest ignitor fits into t' socket designed for t' light bulb like it was originally designed for this purpose! This makes it a true "back yard rocket" in every sense o' t' word! And since t' light was 12 volts, thar's plenty o' power. Just turn on t' light switch inside t' doorway, ya bilge rat, and away she goes! T' other patio lights make a nice runway effect. Begad! Just can't forget t' replace t' light bulb afterward!

Flight:
There is only one motor for this rocket, shiver me timbers, t' Quest Micromax. Ya scallywag! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Prep couldn't be easier- just install t' motor, ya bilge rat, like its big brother t' Spudnik. Begad! Blimey! Well, me bucko, blow me down! Blimey! Flight characteristics are almost t' same as for t' Spudnik on an A10-3T: Slow ascent, decent altitude but nay really high, me hearties, and a total cessation o' movement when t' thrust stops. It sort o' "wobbles" t' t' ground, unharmed. Begad! Blimey! Ejection shoves t' motor out t' back. But, ya bilge rat, it seems t' me that proportionally, matey, a Micromax motor has a better thrust-to-size factor than a 13mm motor. Arrr! Blimey! Seems these little motors pack a good wallop for their minuscule size.

Summary:
Pros: ease o' construction, cheap flights, great conversation starter at barbecues, me bucko, and you won't lose it in t' clouds. Cons: overall lack o' a plan from t' start led t' a design challenge in buildin' t' launcher, and t' styrofoam can't take too much abuse.

Other:
When buildin' a Micromax rocket, usin' a hollow Q-tip for a launch lug works great. Ya scallywag! Just cut off t' cotton.