Presentation on clustering and staging

[Vanel]

I'm giving yet another presentation on clusters and staging to a group of young (high school) rocketeers in about a week. Thought I would post the pitch here (pdf format) and get some feedback from those far more knowledgeable than I.

You can get the presentation here (http://www.billcooke.org/clusters_staging_presentation.pdf).

Thanks in advance for any feedback/comments.

[Bill]

Insert a small ball of wadding into the front of each clustered motor so that a misfired one will not be tempted to light from the wrong end when the others eject. It can happen and the results are very ugly when it does.


Bill

[Vanel]

Excellent catch Bill! I will add that.

[Bill]

More thoughts after taking some time to actually read it instead of just skimming:


Lots of interesting history for us old timers. Might bore the youngsters.
You may not want to mention using Kleenex for keeping igniter in place, just say wadding.
Be sure to seal around motor tubes of a cluster so that ejection charge cannot escape.
If any of them want to attempt parallel staging, emphasize the importance of not allowing a parallel stage to light if it separates prematurely. This is easier said than done. It is essential that they master reliable clustering first!
Another reason for no more than three stages: by the time a fourth stage would light, it would likely already be well into a ballistic trajectory instead of vertical. You will accomplish not more altitude, but a much longer walk downrange.



Bill