So how exactly do you control that plane/rocket/missile? Are there flaps built into the wing or is it hte kind of thing where you launch it into the air and watch it go up?
It is under full radio control. Flaps, rudders, ailerons, retractable landing gear, etc. The guy that built it is a professional jet pilot. He has built many scale model rocket gliders.
Sorry. I did not see the rocket the first time. That is one orsm looking rocket now I have seen it. I take my hat of to you all in the model rocket industry. The closest I get to see anything like that is on MythBusters.
Nothing like you guys do though. Keep em coming.
Good thing they didn’t tell us about the half mile rule in the Gulf War 
Everybody got back from BlackRock in one piece. Beacon worked fine (once they remembered to turn it on). Green bulbs would be better out on the playa… everything is white out there.
Dave flew his X2… #1 hit of the show…
those rocket motors sure beat bungie cords J)
Man you’re not kidding. I don’t think I noticed the light at all, if it was in that video…
I think it was pointing away from the angle that video was taken from… or wasn’t on at the time.
Bloody marvellous. I was waiting for the crash landing or the parachute but it never happened. What a smooth landing. Unbelievable. Well done guys. Thanks for showing us the video.
Some video from the X2 on-board camera… probably want to skip the first couple of minutes of boring setup…
Hats off to you guys, that is seriously cool right there. Well done!
Some videos of our local people’s launches… you can see the beacon in action at around 3:30
Hey that turned out pretty cool!
Well, the crew got back from the Balls 23 rocket launch at Blackrock a couple of weeks ago. I pimped out the big LED beacon with some nasty bright green MR16 bulbs… there’s nuthin’ green at Blackrock to confuse them with. It was used on the away pad at 2500 feet.
I also made a couple of smaller beacons using some 30 watt (2x15 watt… actually 2x10 watt) floodlight off of Ebay. They were used on the closer-in pads. They could also be used as work lights at night. I suspect they will soon get some green bulbs. They are a LOT more visible and don’r spew/waste light over a 150 degree arc.
Got some good videos:
Beacons visible around 1:30, 2:20, 3:40, 5:20, 5:50, and 9:45
Also:
Beacons at 2:30, 7:00, 7:40, 11:50
I built the airframe for the “Check My Shorts” rocket (second rocket on the first video, and at 2:30 in the second one). It was a minimum diameter (6”) carbon fiber airframe flying on a “P” class motor (around 50 pounds of propellent). The motor and electronics/recovery system were built by Ken Overton. Paint job by his son Chris. It should have done over 40,000 feet, but the thrust (around 2000 pounds) bent one of the legs on the launch tower causing it to come off at a 20 degree angle and it only did around 33,000 feet. Flying a “P” class motor requires an additional level of approval from the FAA… even though we had a 300,000+ foot airspace waiver.
Wanna know why when you have BIG rockets you need BIG distance…even small rockets can HUUUUURT! 
Wicked cool on the rocket stuff…
You guys are all out there, nothing is working…some dude is like “why is this so hard to get working, it’s not like it’s rocket science or something” then he smacks his head and is like “DUH”
Awesome…and that is one big ole honkering light…wonder if you put some big fat aspherics in front of those emitters if it would throw farther
:-D
Actually, as sciences go, rocket science tends to be pretty simple stuff.
Nice vids Mr pyro. Wheres the vids of the ones that went BANG?
Oh, they’re out there, I’m sure. It’s just that our little group is soooo good that never happens to us… 0:)
I think that our “P” motor flight was the only one that didn’t screw up…