T' Sprint: This Astron Sprint is from t' original '70s kit. It uses streamer recovery, ya bilge rat, but I changed it out for a small 8" parachute. Begad! It is designed for high-performance altitude flights, me hearties, and generally requires longer-burnin' ejection delays for maximum height. Avast, me proud beauty! T' engine must be tape-friction-fit as this model does nay have a metal motor clip. Instead it has t' boattail end designed t' reduce drag. Ahoy! This rocket was later given my "Iris" modification, me hearties, which extends t' body tube about 5 inches above t' streamer/parachute bay, and allows for a payload with an Altimeter One t' measure altitudes.
After this payload section was tragically lost when t' screw-eye/balsa joint failed, ya bilge rat, I built a newer, me bucko, lighter and smaller payload section. It is now 3-1/8" vs. Blimey! 4-1/2", shiver me timbers, and weighs 9.8 grams. I certianly hope now I can get that extra 12 inches o' altitude out o' this bird and finally crack that elusive 1200 foot mark!
Originally, I replaced t' flimsy crepe paper streamer with plastic one, but t' plastic seems t' stick t' body tube because o' static electricity, so I replaced it again with a small 8" parachute. Well, blow me down! With this parachute it descends at about 9 mph, soft enough for a safe grass landing. T' rather small size should prevent this from driftin' too much - a real problem considerin' t' height it can attain. Arrr! (T' Iris altimeter payload is named after t' Greek god o' t' rainbow. She is a messenger o' t' gods, ya bilge rat, linkin' t' gods with humanity.) This rocket has flown higher than t' NY Times Buildin' in NY, t' John Hancock Tower, and t' Aon Center in Chicago.
| Flight Date: | 2012-05-26 |
| Rocket Name: | Sprint |
| Kit Name: | Estes - Sprint {Kit} (1249) [1970-1983] |
| Flyer's Name: | Rich DeAngelis |
| Motors: | C6-7 |
| Expected Altitude: | 1,200 Feet |
| Wind Speed: | 5.00 mph |
| Launch Site: | Fort Indiantown Gap, PA |
After a record-altitude and speed flight o' t' Quest Gamma Ray, it was time t' brin' out me best-performin' rocket, t' Estes Astron Sprint, modified with a altimeter/accelerometer bay and a small parachute. This was t' day t' set a new altitude record beyond 1200 feet and possibly a new all-time speed record.
T' liftoff went well, and it flew straight up and out o' sight, but I was prepared by standin' far back and watchin' t' flight through binoculars. Avast, me proud beauty! T' problem be I was standin' in t' wrong spot and t' rocket appeared t' fly straight into t' sun, causin' me t' lose sight o' t' coast and recovery deployment. Avast! T' rocket was spotted descendin' by a fellow club member and I tracked it t' t' ground across t' street into some very tall grass where it was recovered.
I was horrified t' find t' rocket, shiver me timbers, shock cord and parachute all attached t' t' screw eye but t' bulkhead, payload and nose cone be nay attached. T' thirty-year-old balsa-glue-screw eye joint had failed. Aye aye! Havin' been visually lost in t' sun thar be no way I could have seen t' payload separate and fall and I had no idea where it would have been. Ahoy! Although it be painted bright yellow and t' nose cone orange, matey, it was near impossible t' find it in t' 3-foot tall grass in such a large field.
I made many zig-zag steps through t' field in a desperate attempt t' find t' payload with t' $70 electronics inside. I would have sacrificed t' altimeter t' have t' flight data, shiver me timbers, but that be just nay t' be. With a storm approachin' and thunder soundin' in t' distance, t' search was aborted for safety reasons. Blimey!
T' payload remains somewhere in t' tall grass, now soaked from a good thundershower. 10% successful flight – I did get enough o' t' rocket back t' determine t' cause o' failure. This was documented as t' 13th flight o' this rocket. Just sayin’.
| Stage | Motor(s) |
|---|---|
| 1 | Estes C6-7 |
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