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Old 09-22-2016, 06:42 PM
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Royatl Royatl is offline
SPEV/Orion wrangler
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Atlanta, GA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Gus
In doing some research I was looking at picutures and descriptions on the Smithsonian site. I noticed that the original Rock-A-Chute motors, made by Orville Carlisle himself were actually 13 mm motors ("Dimensions: Overall: 1/2in. x 3 3/8in. (1.3 x 8.57cm)"). The motors in the pictures below (from NASM) have printed labels so they were actual "production run" motors meant for sale, made by Orville himself, before G. Harry and before the motors made by Brown Manufacturing.

So a few questions:

Does anyone know why the switch was made from 13mm to 18mm?

Does anyone have any pictures of either these motors being used or the motor mounts of the earliest Carlisle rockets.

Does anyone know if the test models G. Harry initially got from Orville used these same 13 mm motors (I presume so since these were given to NASM by G. Harry).

Finally, does anyone have any idea what Orville Carlisles designations of "4-4" and "4-4-2" on the motors stood for?

Thanks,

Steve


This is probably already answered, but Brown said they could make motors for MMI cheaper if they used their existing tooling for the Zenith BuzzBomb! Harry first related this story in Model Rocketry Magazine when MPC introduced the MiniMotors in '71.

Specifically, look in the July 71 issue "The Old Rocketeer: Engines Full Circle". Page 27
http://www.ninfinger.org/rockets/Mo...03n09_07-71.pdf

The motors Carlisle sent to Harry in '57 were the 13mm motors. There was another manufacturer around 1965 that introduced 13 mm motors but was unsuccessful ("Uni-Jet").


Of course, things in Harry's articles were sometimes tinged with literary licence. Note the paragraph where Harry indicates that Vern walked in off the street unannounced, where it is now well established that Harry went looking for Vern. Though if you think about it, maybe it happened just as he said, he was just expecting Vern to show up after giving him the challenge.

As for the numbers:

According to Carlisle's letter to Stine of Feb 13, 1957,
The first number tells "how much booster is in the unit." Probably how many scoops of powder.
The second number tells "the kind of powder".
The third number tells "what the delay charge is made up of." where 2 is slower than 1.
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