Dean's Model Rocketry Tips
For Beginners Like I Used To Be!

Big Disclaimer
Okay - I'm not exactly a newbie anymore, but I don't claim to be any kind of expert on the subject of Model Rocketry. My son Kyle (who's now 12) and I started in the world of ModRoc in the spring of 1997. The intent of this page is to share what we've discovered along the way because there just doesn't seem to be a lot of useful online advice targetted toward totally tenderfoot "rocket scientists".

In any case, always follow the safety procedures as specified by the National Association of Rocketry (NAR Safety Code) .
If you find that anything I've posted here seems to violate this safety code, please Email me: dizneyguy@yahoo.com

I've volunteered to keep an online database of known Center of Pressure (CP) values for retail rocket kits in the CP Archive . If you have any VCP or WinRoc datafiles for kits with no modifications to fins or body, send them along. Please!
Also available: What's New on this site, Launch Reports and our Estes Shadow project
What Rocket To Buy?
No plugs for any specific manufacturer intended here. Just some thoughts on what makes a good first-time model rocket.
Construction
What I've stumbled across, seen or thought up regarding good things to do while putting the beast together.
Pre-Launch
What did I forget? There's always something I wished I'd brought to the launch site, believe me.
Your First Launch
Simple do's and don'ts.
Estes Controllers & Murphy's Law
Troubleshooting your Estes launch controller when it doesn't work.
How High? How Far?
Some computer altitude estimates for a typical starter rocket. Then some typical drift estimates.
Later Launches
Why do these things happen?
What Goes Up...
Tumblers, Streamers, Parachutes, Gliders, Lawn Darts and that distant speck on the horizon.
- The website with everything related to Model Rocketry

Answers to a kazillion questions - The USENET rec.models.rockets newsgroup FAQ

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