How to pack a rocket engine
Filed in Howto on Jan.21, 2006
DMarc85 asked:
This is the way that I pack my rocket engines, it works really well. I also show my custom fab tool that makes them perfect.
plans at www.pdxpower.com/download
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January 21st, 2006 at 6:22 am
just light it with a match and run like **** lol
January 22nd, 2006 at 3:27 pm
lol… “it should go together like soo…” nice vids.
January 25th, 2006 at 12:27 pm
epic fail put together at :54 XD
January 27th, 2006 at 11:30 pm
wats the science behind the cupler (sorry for spelling) wats it do to make it any better
January 31st, 2006 at 2:56 am
anything with an adjustable tempreture control should work. There’s lots of videos on making rocket candy on yt by the cooking method. some people add water and boil it all out. the problem then is getting ALL the moisture out. This is why I bought a big bag of Sorbitol which instead melts easily at 95C and it way easier to handle and clean up…
February 2nd, 2006 at 5:06 am
ye i have already orderd a electric cooker to try this way but it cost me 29.99£ not $ and i can’t go to walmart cause it takes like 12 hours by plane cause i live in uk not usa
February 3rd, 2006 at 6:37 am
You should forget about using packed powder fuel. Go to Walmart and get a Griddle (Flat Hot Plate) for $21. For KN-Sugar, turn it up to 325 and pour the powder on it. Use a spatula to mix it and mash it until it’s a gooey paste. Pack this in your rocket motors, let it harden for 2-3 days, then try. You’ll never have a problem with the fuel coming loose.
February 6th, 2006 at 5:13 pm
i think your exsplination is good that the throat is to small and by the throat you mean the littel hole in the engine
you can watch my only rocket vid and see the fuel was badly packed so it fell out as soon as the rocket left the ground thats not the one that blew up tho
February 9th, 2006 at 5:36 am
I’m not sure if you’re saying you tried the way shown in the video using powder, or if you tried as I suggested by melting it first, but if you’re saying you melted it first and it still blew up, and you molded into the right dimension, the shortest explaination is that you’ve got too much burning surface area vs. the size of your throat. fix this by making your grain shorter or your throat bigger…
February 10th, 2006 at 8:47 pm
i did this and it just blew up
February 12th, 2006 at 10:27 am
yea a forgot .
February 15th, 2006 at 10:58 am
By using packed powder fuel you’re more likely to get an uncontrolled burn. The stuff will burn in all kinds of crazy patterns making the motor extremely unpredicatable and highly likely to CATO. If you just melt and mold the fuel into the same shape ‘hollow cylindrical’ shape, you can ‘ensure’ that only the core and ends will burn, creating a more controlled, predictable burn rate, which you can use to fine tune the throat and nozzle dimensions to make a more productive burn
February 17th, 2006 at 12:42 pm
cont…
you can make your aluminum tubes re-usable, and with a bit thicker, your PVC too. PVC is also lighter than aluminum, and yes, flammable… in place of sugar, PVC could also be used as a fuel, then again… so could aluminum
February 20th, 2006 at 12:28 pm
i think you meant 660.32C, but yet, KNSU, KNSB, and KNDX are all capable of generating well in excess of that much chamber temperature. If you have access to KNSU, you can demonstrate by putting a small amount in a soda can. You might be lucky to have the base of the can left.
If you have a thick enough aluminum tubing, no, it may not burn thru the side, but there will definetely be internal errorsion, making it not re-usable. simply introducing a thin liner however and you can make your
February 22nd, 2006 at 5:18 am
Melting temperature of aluminium is 660320 degrees celsius and burning KNO3 can’t make that high temperature.
February 23rd, 2006 at 1:50 pm
You say that aluminium would burn without the cardboard liner? I know that you need high temperature to melt aluminium and KNO3 can’t make that high temeperature when burning. PVC would burn even exposed to the flame of match. I’m saying that you dont need cardboard. You can put KNO3 directly into aluminium pipe and no way that it would melt during the proces of burning.
February 23rd, 2006 at 10:30 pm
possession and use of rocket motors over 160 Ns (H class or higher) is restricted to citizens who possess the required certificates and permits from the NFPA (National Fire Protection Agency) thru NAR (National Association of Rocketry). I don’t know the exact numbers for KN-Sucrose, but I use KN-Sorbitol which has a lower Isp (Fuel Specific Impulse), and 160Ns equates to about 135g of fuel. This would be a fuel grain that is 1″ diameter, 1/4th” core diameter, and 5.5″ long. quite smaller
February 25th, 2006 at 10:09 am
2″ pipe and powdered mix shouldn’t be recommended for a beginner. If the core was to collapse, it will be filled with loose powder and rendered useless as a motor, then you’ve just got a pvc pipe bomb. pvc is slightly safer in the event of a catostrophy in that it shatters into fibers, unlike metal tubing which will make shrapnel. they should start with a motor that has signifigantly less energy.
February 27th, 2006 at 8:15 am
PVC Can be re-usable if you have a “thick” layer of cardboard between the PVC and the propellant. Remember, KNO3 against the PVC surface will make the PVC burn. This is the same reason aluminum would never be used without a cardboard liner, it too would burn. any type of metal would be preferable over pvc primarily for the higher chamber pressures you can obtain. i’m a fan of the pvc myself, it is cheap, and still re-useable with a liner.
February 28th, 2006 at 5:18 am
Why wouldn’t you make all that out of aluminium? It’s a little bit expencive but when you make that you can use it again and again and again and again….. you get the point. Then you wouldn’t have to buy pvc pipes every time so you could save some money.
February 28th, 2006 at 8:48 pm
Thats why I hide behind something when I test them.
March 1st, 2006 at 11:31 am
Just a one time use. Its really cheap tho.
March 2nd, 2006 at 2:53 pm
Tell me, do you use that pvc pipe again or it’s for only one use, because all my pvc pipes that I use get melted after burning.
March 3rd, 2006 at 1:02 pm
hay dude if you melt your mixture insted of useing a powder youre engins will explode less
youtube “how to make rcandy” to learn tow to not blow your rocket up
ps.
the skillet methed works better than the oven methed