Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Remember these?

6 comments:

Suz said...

If I am right I have one questions...Uncle Kendall--how many hours did you spend trying to figure out how to get a 2 liter bottle to go even higher up in the air?

Kendell said...

More time than learning how to spell... thats for sure....

Kendell said...

It took just the right percent of water to air in the bottle to get the maximum thrust.... And then you would have to ask Gordon about aerodynamics and weight distribution ....

Erik said...

Davis, Martell, and I used to put grasshoppers in there and send them to the moon!

Kiersti said...

And we'd go around finding little bug parts all over the place.

Gordon said...

Putting more wieght on the bottom of the two liter bottle helped to control the fall. I found that using an empty Leggs egg worked ideal for the nose cone. By using the larger end of the egg, stuffing it with a few nuts or bolts, and surrounding it with cotton and then stuffing this inside the egg, then taping it to the bottom of the 2 liter bottle produced a sturdy rocket which would land nose-down every time.
Cutting plastic fins from ice cream container lids worked well. The fins had to follow the contour of the 2 liter bottle. By gluing the fins with a slight curve, it gave the missile the spin needed to control flight and maximize distance. The fins were attached with hot glue and reinforced with electrical tape. Using these devices made one high flying missile!