(Cuyahoga Falls, OH – April 29, 2011)
This weekends launches at GLRMR XI were postponed due to not-so ideal field conditions. Two weeks of almost constant rain has left the flying field in Amherst pretty soggy.
The event has been pushed to April 7th / 8th. As of this moment, long range weather forecasts do not look good: rain and thunderstorms are in the forecast.
Stay tuned for the latest!
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(Cuyahoga Falls – April 21, 2011)
Perseus Rocket “Gallifrey” got it’s trademark fade paint scheme today. Weather and temperatures were nice enough to get a quick painting session in.
Gallifrey with it's trademark Perseus fade paint scheme..
Gallifrey is totally set for launch day on April 30th.
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(Cuyahoga Falls, OH – April 21, 2011)
The last piece of the construction puzzle was completed on Perseus (X4-05) “Gallifrey” with the installation of the ejection baffle system. This completes the construction phase, and Gallifrey now awaits the application of its final coat of paint ass soon as weather permits.
Even without the finished (final) paint scheme, Gallifrey is GO for launch on April 30th @ the Tri-City Skybusters’ GLRMR XI meet in Amherst, OH.
This should be exciting!
Mission notes to be posted soon!
((( )))
(April 17th 2011 – Cuyahoga Falls)
In the pipeline is another Perseus Booster – X4-06. This booster is to be called “Vega”. Scheduled to be in operation by late May, Vega will join Gallifrey as the primary launch vehicles for all high performance experiments involving Perseus boosters. Eagle and Columbia will remain in service in a different capacity.
Perseus rocket "Gallifrey" with its first coat of paint...
Both will fly regular support missions testing new electronics for future missions. In addition to these tests, Eagle and Columbia will also provide long term data on my rocket building techniques. Each of my rockets are designed for at least 100 flights. None have flown that many to date. Eagle and Columbia will be the pioneers here, and the plan is for both to fly another 20 missions by the end of 2011.
Eagle and Columbia were designed with Estes black powder single use motors in mind as their “power plants”. Since their introduction, I have been routinely flying re-loadable composite motors – which offer more power at a cheaper price than black powder. This extra power has revealed some construction deficiencies in the early Perseus and Aurora rocket builds…namely tiny errors in fin placements which caused the rockets to “spin” during flight. Gallifrey is built with the newest production techniques proven by Aurora boosters “Firefly”, and “Big Red II” which virtually eliminate this spin.
This improvement is hoped to bring the Perseus booster fully to its potential as the highest performance / highest speed booster rocket design in my fleet. Gallifrey will be the rocket to put this to the test at the end of the month with a maiden launch in Amherst, OH. One of the lunches planned is to attempt officially break the 2000 foot ceiling. Eagle came close last January (2011) by reaching the 1800 foot mark on an F-24 white lightning motor.
Perseus rocket "Eagle" lifting off on January 16, 2011 in its 2,000 foot altitude attempt...
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( Cuyahoga Falls, OH – April 17th)
The newest entry in the Perseus booster lineup is nearing completion. I’ve decided to rename the rocket to “Gallifrey”. This keeps the Dr. Who theme, but with a better name, I think 🙂
The base coat of paint has been applied. The next coat (a maroon color fade) will be applied in a few days. “Gallifrey” will make its maiden voyage on the weekend of April 30 – May 1st at the Amherst flying field. Under consideration will be a mission to fly on the F-35 motor…
Under construction at the moment is the ejection baffle system.
((( )))