Toilet Paper Tube Model Rocket Kit

prusaprinters

This kit includes all the bits required to turn a cardboard tube into a real rocket. Well except for the actual rocket fuel.There is a fair amount of variation in the size and quality of paper tubes. The nose cone and tail assembly are based around a 40mm diameter tube. I ended up using these tubes from Michael's Craft Store. But with a bit of luck, glue, or tweaking the scaling in your slicer toilet paper or paper towel roll tubes should work as well. I would use PETG over PLA. PETG is less brittle and is more likely to survive landing. On the topic of survival, these seem to survive being launched on a c motor without issue so long as the parachute (or streamer) deploys properly and the rocket doesn't find a tree on the way down.The random calculator I found on the internet has the following flight predictions:A8 3.5 meter (11ft) peak altitudeB6 50 meter (175ft) peak altitudeC6-5 125 meter (400ft) peak altitudeI have only flown this rocket on C motors, as they are the only size I have on hand. I did not measure the maximum altitude, but it seemed plenty high and roughly inline with the internet's predictions. I would not fly this rocket on an A motor for obvious reasons. I recommend the following print settings:Nose cone - 4 perimeters and 5% infill. Rockets are more stable in flight with more weight higher up. Tail assembly - 2 or 3 perimeters and 5% infill. The goal here is strong and light.Whatever settings you like for the other parts, the specifics are inconsequential. You will need the following for assembly:CA glue. 2x M3 screws between 6 and 20mm. These hold on the engine retainer16inches (or 40cm) of 3/16inch shock cord. This gets glued into the hole in the nose cone and to the inside of the body of the rocket.A parachute or streamer. Tie this onto the shock cord to control the speed of decent.  I used a 3inch wide by 36inch long piece of painters drop cloth. An 18mm diameter rocket engineWading as not to burn up your parachuteA standard Estes launchpad Assembly itself is straight forwards and should be self explanatory, but feel free to message me if you have questions. Update 4/11/2024: I added a single piece guide. The pair of smaller ones works, but they are a bit finicky to get aligned and have minimal surface contact to glue to the body tube. This one piece version is a bit more robust. Update 8/10/24: I added a connector to connect multiple sections of tube together to create taller rockets.  Update 8/24/24: Slightly modified versions of all parts uploaded. These newer parts should help reduce potential breakage from rough landings and to allow for easier assembly.