Fin and Nose Cone Section for 1" Compressed Air Rocket

thingiverse

This MakerShed newsletter featured an intriguing compressed-air rocket kit; I decided to make one myself. Instead of the 3/4" valve in the kit, I used a 1" valve (Orbit 57101 Sprinkler System Valve) for faster rocket speed (though I'm not an engineer). The launcher proved impressive, with over 100 yards on our first shot! The original rocket survived two flights; the paper tube crumpled in the second, but the plastic held up. For the next project, we plan to incorporate a whistle into the nose cone. To print the cross sections (0.028"), we used 0.4mm extruder with 1 perimeter and no infill. These fit nicely on 1" SCH40 PVC but can be scaled down to 3/4" PVC with about 80% size reduction. Clearance should be around .010 - .015". Safety reminder: do not launch rockets towards people, houses or vehicles!