Greetings all. I'd like to share a little history (personal) of my Saturn - IV Dual Egglofter I
built in 1978. Since my daughter has purchased a HP Printer that has a scanner, I can now
share this with you.

My Saturn - IV came from Gary Cole's Roc Egglofter plans that appeared in the December
1973 issue of the Model Rocketeer. You can see that same plan here in the NAR website:

http://www.nar.org/competition/plan...ocEgglofter.pdf

This model was built in the spring 1978 as one of my entry for the Toilet Bowl Regional Meet
that was to be held in Dripping Springs, TX in July 1978 (Mercury Dual Eggloft - altitude only,
as we didn't have any of the eggloft duration events then, yet). I modified mine from Gary's
plans to use a 24 mm core and three 18 mm for the strapsons. The Mercury Dual Eggloft
required an impulse of 30 n/s for the event. For this, I planned on using a D12-5 for the core,
one C6-5, one B6-4, and one A8-5 for each of the strapons (add up the n/s under the NAR's
S/T values and see what you get).

The temperature for both days at Dripping Springs was well over 110 degrees F (I think it
topped out at 114 F). Those present predicted gloom and doom with the "unbalanced" thrust of the strapons selected (this includes several current NAR members who are now
working for a model rocket company). This was also the first time I was going to try to use
the flashbulb ignition system.

The guy you see in the first pic is yours truly (then 22 years old!!). Look closely at the base
of the model and you can see the flashbulb cluster ignition setup. Of course, behind me is
the cow pasture/ranch that was our launch site for both days; it certainly looks very hot!

Just as the countdown was commencing, a number of those present started crouching
behind cars to expect the coming "gloom and doom," except myself, of course! As the second picture shows, the model flew very straight and pretty high for a very successful
launch. The elation was tempered by the discovery on recovery that the D12 - 5 casing
had ejected, which netted a DQ for this flight (couldn't attempt a second flight, as the
preparation of wiring the flashbuilb system was too labor intensive). In any case, I was
thrilled of the success of the flight.

Both pictures were taken by Matt Ota, who was then serving in the USAF (Reese AFB out
of Lubbock, TX). The prints have faded over the years.

Later in this thread, I'll highlight some more stuff about the Saturn - IV from over the
years....(hope you like it).

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Dave, NAR # 21853 SR.

That's really cool Dave! I like the vintage photos. Cool selection of motors for the event.

I also used flashbulb ignition around that same time to ignite motor clusters with the thermalite fuse FSI provided with their motors.

.

__________________
Steve Naquin
TRA# 677 L2
NAR# 85518 L2
SAM# 0052

🚀 In Construction: Der Blue Maxx/Minie-Magg 5.5” & Vander-Burn MDRM Clone w/Stickershock23 Custom Decals
🚀 In Paint & Detail: USR Banshee
🚀 In Build Queue: Estes Doorknob w/Vander-Burn Rocketry Upgrade Kit [Sport Decor], Semroc Centurion-F, Semroc Egg Crate
🚀 In Repair: SLS Lil’ Hustler, SLS Aero-Dart 1969 Trim
🚀 Stay Tuned For Fall 2021 Launch Dates

Thanks, Steve! In case you're wondering, since I notice you're from Louisiana too, the
small town I drove from to Dripping Springs/Austin was Natchitoches. Lived there for about
15 years, and our permanent home is there.

I used the flashbulb ignition until 1981, when I eventually went AWOL from the hobby beginning in 1982. Using flashbulbs for clusters was such a sure thing that I was more
than happy to use my Estes 1/100 Saturn - V (three C5-3's) and Centuri 1/100 Saturn 1-B
(two B6-4's) in a demo/presentation I did for a college project (NSU). The crowd sure loved
seeing that moment of bright flash just before the engines ignited!!

BTW, I still have a few of the thermalite fuses and at least one match head igniter from
FSI....

__________________
Dave, NAR # 21853 SR.

After a lull of nearly three years, the Saturn - IV was pressed to work as a aerial photography payloader launch vehicle. Right about 1981 or so, I had made a request to
the NAR a list of members in the state of Louisiana (and did the same with Estes, asking
for a list of regular model rocketeers who ordered). From this list, I mailed out several
dozen form letters seeking others who would like to get together and fly model rockets.
I got excellent responses from a young man in Baton Rouge, and agreed to drive down
one weekend to fly model rockets.

We flew a number of times from a park called Independence Park, which was near a police
headquarters. The park was large enough (then) that we could almost fly anything (power-
wise) we had at the time, or what I was willing to try.

I decided to press my Saturn - IV to loft my Cineroc I still had at the time; around that time,
I had a great source of 8 mm film with loading service from the late Herb Desind. We'd met
at a rocket launch in Alabama a few months earlier, and he'd offered to reload my Cineroc
flight cartridge with new film provided that I send my exposed film to him for processing
and copying.

Well, at this particular launch at Independence Park, I'd decided to fly my Cineroc/Saturn -
IV using the new ProJet E20 - 7 as the core, and three C6-7's for the strap ons. The "trick"
here, as far as ignition was concern, was to use two separate launch controllers, press the
button for the E20 first and listen to the chamber pressure buildup, then, before it could
ignite, set off the C6-7's which were rigged with the flashbulb system. Believe it or not, this
worked like a charm! All I can remember of this flight was the Saturn - IV with the Cineroc
took off like a storm, and I couldn't see anything until the delay charge was visible very
high up. At ejection, the three C6-7's ejected and gave a "starburst" pattern in the blue
sky. The model was safely recovered, and the film was sent to Herb for processing. Sadly,
the film feed had jammed (excessive acceleration?!) and I got no images from that flight.
Also, the spent E20 casing was stuck really bad in the engine mount, and I was simply
unable to get it all out.

Shortly after this, I had a career change that made it virtually impossible for me to continue
model rocketry, and most of my stuff got put away in boxes and closets. They would remain
there beginning in 1982 until 2003.....

Below is a picture I took inside my apartment in May 1981 shortly before that Cineroc/
Saturn - IV flight. The model is in the middle. You can see my Centuri Saturn 1-B (which I
still have today) and my Astrocam - 110. Sorry, I didn't take nor get any pictures of the
launch activities at Independence Park, as I wasn't much into photography then.

More coming later....

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Dave, NAR # 21853 SR.

Fast forward 21 years later and a career change in 2003 afforded me the chance to have
weekends/nights off and get back into my hobbies, especially model rocketry. In late
2003, I rejoined the NAR and got back into flying with several rocketeers in the Houston
area, among them members of the NASA/Houston Rocket Club (NHRC Section # 365). Through the Sport Rocketry magazine, I learned that the NSL - 2004 was set to be held
very close to home, at Hearne, TX the primary launch site of NHRC (then) and the Tripoli-
Houston (now).

I decided to build a near duplicate of the Saturn - IV with slightly redesigned fins and a
few other modifications. Otherwise, the model and the paint scheme looks strikingly
similar to my vintage one. Only this model (the Proton/Saturn - IV) would be used to
boost the remaining Cineroc I still had ("in-the-box") and was itching to fly. I knew I'd
have to find a way to reload the film cartridge with new film and find new "N" batteries
for this to work. Joining the Cineroc Yahoo! Group server early 2004 led me to several
outstanding rocketeers who were experts on the Cineroc and I soon had several new
8 mm film cartridges & new film loaded.

The first test launch of my Proton/Saturn - IV was flown about a week before NSL - 2004
with a single D12-5 (no strap on engines were used) and a dummy Cineroc payload section
to test the flight characteristics. So far, so good.

On the second day of NSL - 2004, was the day I chose to try to fly my Proton/Saturn - IV
Cineroc. I had originally planned on flying it three stage, with four motors in each. The
motors selected were: Stage one - D12-0 & three C6-0's; Stage two - D12-0 & three C6-0's;
and Stage three - E9-8 and three C6-7's. I spent a good part of early Sunday morning of
the launch at home prepping the model and putting the stages together (used the Scotch
Tape method of joining the engines together).

Upon arriving at Hearne around 9 AM, it became obvious that the weather wasn't ideal for
launching the model three stage (too windy and low overcast). So I made the decision to
remove the first stage engines and just fly it two stage (hence, one of the reason I used
the Scotch Tape method). The core stage segment looks like a Nike booster, and the
three strap ons below the final stage were individual pods with trapezoid fins. Each booster
segment was designed to fall away separately from the other (necessary, as the burn times
of the engines are not always exactly the same).

After checking out the operation of the Cineroc and the film feed (it did seem to work prior
to my proceeding to the launch area), I went ahead and checked the model in. Using the
Estes igniters, I had made my own cluster clip whip for ignition (the flashbulb stuff was a
thing of the past, but sorely needed).

The pictures below pretty much tells the story. On the pad and at launch. However, the
staging was not all that smooth, and only two of the upper stage engines ignited, one strap on
and the core E9-8. It gave the upper stage segment a rather wobbly flight, but the recovery
system deployed ok and the model and most of the first stage segments were recovered.
However, the film feed apparently had jammed so no useful footages came from the 8 mm
film .

The first picture below is mine; the next three were taken by Tim Sapp of the DARS, and
the last picture was taken by Jim Flis (of FlisKits), who also recovered one of the strap on
pods near where he was standing (thanks, Jim!!).

Next up, a redemption flight of the Proton/Saturn - IV Cineroc at JSC....

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__________________
Dave, NAR # 21853 SR.

With NSL - 2004 behind us, I set my sights on the next club launch of the NASA/Houston
Rocket Club at the Johnson Space Center, scheduled for June 5, 2004. Not fully satisfied
with the overall performance of the Proton/Saturn - IV Cineroc the previous Sunday (May
30, 2004) at Hearne, I wanted to keep the momentum going and fly the Cineroc again.

June 5th at JSC was very overcast and a bit humid, but very little wind, so the conditions
were pretty much ideal for flying. Besides, the restoration work on the mighty Saturn - V
over at Rocket Park (very visible from NHRC's launch site) was just getting underway, so
the real Saturn was still "naked" at this time.

For power, I decided to fly the Proton/Saturn - IV in a slightly different configuration than
the weekend before at Hearne; used a single D12-0 booster and a D12-7 with three C6-7's
for the strap ons for the second stage. At launch, the three C6's will ignite with the D12-0
first stage for the first phase of the powered flight.

The flight itself was a total success!! But for some reason, during the powered phase of
the flight until burnout, the model's flight characteristics was that of a corkscrew, as if
something was out of alignment (in looking as the pictures below, the adapter between
the BT-55 to BT-60 tubes may be slightly out of place). Other than that, the entire flight
went without incident and the 8 mm film returned decent 20 - 30 seconds of excellent
footages. One thing to note from the Cineroc footage is that not all of the C6 strap ons
ignited at the same time (probably an issue that affected the NSL - 2004 flight the week
before, among other possibilities).

For the video clip of this flight, go to:

http://nhrc.homestead.com/DM-JSC.mpeg

My thanks to Daniel Franklin from California for his help in loading the 8 mm film, processing
and converting to mpeg file, as well as his many advice and pointers. Same goes to Royce
Frankum from the Dallas, TX area for the incredible assistance, furnishing perfect clones of
the Estes Cineroc flight cartridges, and also loading 8 mm film.

All the pictures below were taken by me, except the second one, which was taken by Warren
Benson (seen in the first picture in the background).

More later, stay tuned....

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__________________
Dave, NAR # 21853 SR.

Coming on the heels of the June 5th successful flight at JSC, I set my sight on the very
next Saturday at Rushing Park near Katy, TX. The Challenger 498 Section, which had been
revived by Brad Winbigler after the club had been dormant for several years, was having
its' first full club launch.

Since I had two more fresh flight packs that had been loaded and furnished by Royce
Frankum, I decided to fly the Proton/Saturn - IV Cineroc again, only this time as a single
stage but clustered. The day was really perfect for model rocket launching, plus we had
a great turnout by current and pending club members as well as several notable guests.

The engines selected for this flight was an E9-8 for the core, and three C6-7 for the strapons.
Since the model, fully loaded in this configuration, isn't all that heavy, the longer delay would
allow the mass provided by the weight of the Cineroc payload to coast high enough for good
recovery system deployment.

I used the same cluster clip whip used at the NSL - 2004 launch; Estes igniters were being
used in this and the previous launch attempts.

Below are the pictures of this flight. The first picture is the model in its entirety (probably
the best picture of this model I have). However, after turning on the Cineroc and moving
a safe distance while the countdown was underway, I had to aim my 35 mm camera and
try to get a picture of the liftoff.

As the second picture shows, I pretty much missed most of the rocket. As soon as I heard
the ignition and the model started moving up the rod, I knew something wasn't right. The
E9 failed to ignite!! So, without further ado, the result (sorry, to say the least) is what you
see in the third picture (actually, it's two separate pictures spliced together to create a
composite). Since the Proton/Saturn - IV Cineroc had no means to activate the recovery
system, the model flew "perfectly" on the three C6-7 strapons to about 600 feet before
gracefully arching over and meeting its' maker below.

The impact to the ground was really massive. Notice how totally pulverized the Cineroc
is; even the flight pack was busted in two separate pieces and the 8 mm film was strewn
out. I sent my son, Davey, to the launch area (the impact point was about 300 feet from
the launch pad) to get me a plastic bag so I could try to collect as many pieces as I could.
Some of the components of the camera were no where to be found (I couldn't find the
on/off switch), and the impact even dug a small crater in the hard ground (not visible in
the photo).

Disappointed and dejected, yes. But I think I have enough parts/pieces of the launch
vehicle and the Cineroc (this is my second Cineroc that suffered a crash) that I should be
able to rebuild a "new" one. I just got to get the time and will to do it. I still have the
solder pen I bought from Estes in the early 1970's (remember the Transroc catalog?!).
Royce Frankum, as mentioned earlier, has excellent clones of the Cineroc nose cone and
base adapter, which he willingly donated to me. I have a cardboard tube that's a perfect
match to fit the nosecone & adapter, so one day (maybe will make this my Christmas
Holidays project) I'll get all the parts on hand and rebuild the Cineroc & a "new" Proton/
Saturn - IV.

Next up, a surprising find during a Spring Break vacation.....

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Dave, NAR # 21853 SR.

The NASA/Houston Rocket Club (NHRC, NAR Section # 365) usually holds a Wacky Wockets/
V-2 contest yearly. This year, 2004, promised to be really special. I had gotten word from
Daniel Franklin that he was going to be in the Houston area during this time, and several
quick e-mails to Royce Franklin convinced him that he wanted to be in attendance, too.
We were going to turn this event into a Cineroc/Astrocam fest with the wackly wockets &
V-2's during the day.

Since the Cineroc's I had had already been busted in their last flights (you already know about the Proton/Saturn - IV Cineroc from the previous post; the Cineroc I had before that
had flown in my last Estes Omega two stager in 1981 or 1982 in which the second stage
D12-7 failed to ignite - pressure of the forward gas of the D12-0 - and the second stage
lawndarted in), I still had my old Astrocam - 110 payload from the early 1980's that was
in great shape and needing a workout.

In looking over my fleet of models currently available, I came to find out that my FSI
Maverick vintage model worked perfectly; the Astrocam base adapter fits into the
Maverick's payload tube with a nice, tight fit. I had modified my Maverick so it could use
the Estes E9 engines.

During the day at JSC, I flew my Astrocam - 110 (the one with the string shutter release)
twice; the first flight was on a single E9-6 that was pretty high up. The second flight I went
a little further, using a D12-0 booster (same booster section used for the Proton/Saturn - IV)
staged to an E9-8. This combination sent the Maverick/Astrocam really up there; in fact,
we lost sight of the rocket after burnout and I was afraid it was a goner. Warren Benson,
then the President of NHRC and contest director, had his binoculars handy and was able to
spot the Maverick drifting not too far away (I used a 12" parachute for recovery, so that
helped a lot).

The first three pictures below, you can see the Maverick/Astrocam in the two stage
configuration on the pad. Notice I used nearly the same paint scheme as my Saturn - IV and
Proton/Saturn - IV models.

In the third picture, Royce Frankum is on the left loading what looks like the upperstage
Omega & Cineroc (Tim Berg is on the right); the next picture is Daniel Franklin with his
Cineroc & Renegade booster on the pad.

The fifth picture has both Royce and Daniel loading their models on the pad; Royce is getting
his upscale clone of the popular Cineroc/Omega HPR ready for launch. The seventh pic
has the liftoff...a really fantastic flight!! The last picture shows Daniel about to move away
from the pad after turning on his Cineroc (sorry, this was the last picture of my 35 mm
camera).

After the day's flying, we retired to the nearby Mario's Pizza restaurant for some great
food and rocket talk. Royce brought along his 8 mm movie projector and we watched about
400 feet of Cineroc film that really wowed all those who were there (and the kid's couldn't
figure what the 8 mm projector was, since it comes from the "stone age" as far as they're
concerned!!).

Next up, the story continues.....

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Dave, NAR # 21853 SR.

Your Maverick/Astrocam with the Proton/Saturn - IV is really cool. Did you get any decent high altitude pics with the Astrocam on those flights? It looks really cool with the little booster tucked up under there!

Now that you mention it, the Maverick would seem to be a good choice for a carrier for the Astrocam. I seem to remember ruining my Delta II after a hard landing from one of it's first flights and wanting a Challenger-II to replace it with.

I always really liked my FSI Maverick rocket. The last flight that I have any pictures for were taken on 5-15-88 when I flew it twice with an F100-8. A friend of mine still has that FSI LP-2B heavy duty steel launch pad with the 1/4" rod. I need to build another Maverick some day .....

.

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__________________
Steve Naquin
TRA# 677 L2
NAR# 85518 L2
SAM# 0052

🚀 In Construction: Der Blue Maxx/Minie-Magg 5.5” & Vander-Burn MDRM Clone w/Stickershock23 Custom Decals
🚀 In Paint & Detail: USR Banshee
🚀 In Build Queue: Estes Doorknob w/Vander-Burn Rocketry Upgrade Kit [Sport Decor], Semroc Centurion-F, Semroc Egg Crate
🚀 In Repair: SLS Lil’ Hustler, SLS Aero-Dart 1969 Trim
🚀 Stay Tuned For Fall 2021 Launch Dates

Hey Steve!

In answer to your main question in paragraph one, it'll be answered at the conclusion of this
thread (I don't want to give away too much, yet!).

The FSI Maverick worked perfectly for the old Astrocam that used the string shutter release
method. As you know, the new Astrocams have the tab/button release that's much different than the old one. I haven't been able to figure a way to modify it for use on my
Maverick. My camera with the string release now has a stuck shutter, so I'm afraid to try
to use it anymore until I can figure a way to make the stickiness disappear. If anyone has
any suggestions, I'm all ears . Actually, the stuck shutter problem came up
shortly after that September 18, 2004 launch, and I really didn't bother to tackle it until
later (which will lead to the next several "chapters" of this thread).

Lucky that you were able to get your Maverick on the F100's. I still have three F100's
in my collection, but really can't use them as I tried one of my F7-6 not too long ago for
the NAR OOP motor testing program on my FSI OSO kit (newly built at the time, I might add).
The F7 catoed immediately after ignition and literally destroyed my OSO (a subject thread
under "Projects" in YORF, with some pics). BTW, that's a nice looking Maverick you have
there in your pics, and I like your launch site. In Louisiana?

As for a "new" Maverick kit, I would hope some vendor will come out with one. Shouldn't be
too hard to clone one; maybe we'll have to do some research by looking through several
websites of the vendors here in the USA and see what they got. As for the FSI kit I have,
I remember putting it on my "must get" list in the late 1970's (along with the FSI Black
Brant - II & OSO kits), as I had heard rumors back then that FSI may be going out of business. I'm glad I did, as I eventually did go AWOL from the hobby (as noted in the forth
posting in this thread) and FSI was no more when I got back in 2003....

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__________________
Dave, NAR # 21853 SR.