Our Dr. Zooch Space Shuttle Build

[Slaintemaith]

This is how it turned out. Not -too- badly, considering how tiny it is, and how it's essentially a paper-model with some balsa thrown in for strength.

Planning on taking a few more pictures and some video when we launch it--as I don't expect it to come back to earth as anything but fiery embers. Such is backyard rocketry.

 

[ky]

Awesome! I remember doing one in 6th grade and launching it.

---------- Post added at 07:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:37 PM ----------

Is that an AXM logo I see on the strip of paper?

 

[astrosammy]

Cool! Can't wait to see the launch.
Yes, that looks like AXM ky.

Building one too, but not to launch it:

Still have to build two SSMEs, I guess that's how they store the engines in the OPF :lol: :

 

[ky]

Great to see im not the only one who builds card models from that site.

 

[Slaintemaith]

I'm also working on the paper model as well--which is under the Dr. Zooch's model. Well spotted!

 

[mrozigor]

I've built my own space shuttle too This is the STS-1 in launch configuration.

1

2

 

[Slaintemaith]

Launch/Landed photos.

...we took video of the actual flights--but they didn't turn out very well.
Suffice it to say: Twice up, twice down in the proper amount of pieces.

Daughter being trepidatious and thinking we're going to get arrested for setting someone's house on fire in the first one...

She got a LOT happier by the end once Mom & I proved we knew what we were doing. =)

 

[Slaintemaith]

And again last weekend.

Since the orbiter component last time basically toppled out of the sky, I did some thinking about the position of it's one control surface. I concluded that I'd given it too much 'up' elevator, and therefore created a spoiler on the back, destroying any lift that the wing might have generated.

...so I lowered it a bit.

And the Orbiter component glided what seemed to be forever, gently waggling its wings, gracefully flying straight with the wind...

...right into the waiting arms of a tree that was about 1000 ft. away from the launch site.

Spent about an hour throwing a roll of masking tape at it. Hit the branch that was supporting it once or twice. It stayed there. Mocking me.

...came back about three hours later with all the broom/mop/swiffer/pvc/wood scrap sticks I could find and a big roll of duct tape.

...to no avail. By then the wind had blown it out of the tree and it was waiting for me on the ground. I swear to this day I heard laughter coming from it.

Anyway, the last picture is my daughter triumphantly holding Discovery after its (somewhat ignoble) return home.

P.S. Ugh. Wish I could edit the pictures on -here- to have them display properly. Sorry for the neck-strain.