2 Stage Water Rocket - Part 27 - Booster Release Mechanism

In this video we look at making and testing the booster release mechanism. This mechanism holds down the entire rocket while it is pressurised, and then releases it during launch. It needs to hold down about 700Kg.
We also make a set of 3 inner liner tubes from carbon fiber for the booster.

[@pavanj.b3197]

when im having a bad day, a video from air command rockets lightens up my mood

[@AirCommandRockets]

Thank you. : ) Hope your having a good day.

[@Peter-pu7bo]

You not the only one :)

[@chrisp6582]

Greetings from a Physics teacher in the UK - what a brilliant project - its mad to think your pressure x nozzle opening = 7000N of force. Its also nice to see the three generations working together. Best wishes

[@AirCommandRockets]

Thanks, yup definitely fun working on the rockets with dad and the kids. :)

[@bw4786]

I watched all the ads to support your project

[@AirCommandRockets]

Much appreciated :)

[@bw4786]

@@AirCommandRockets Where I live cannot even fly kites, let alone water rockets. There are only rainforest and skyscrapers, I really want to live in countryside.

[@rorypenstock1763]

It's always a happy occasion when I see that you guys have uploaded a new video.

[@christianmichael4020]

I applied the techniques you detailed for making your tubes to a 29mm carbon fiber tube I was making with biaxial sleeve. Worked great. Some small adjustments will need to be made to fit my setup, but the tube turned out leagues better than my first try at it a while back. Thanks!

[@AirCommandRockets]

Great to hear. :) Are you making a 29mm min diameter rocket?

[@laurence4051]

The forces which the release handles is absolutely amazing

[@shere_kan8329]

This project is amazing ! Can't wait to see it fly. Keep it up !

[@simonpouillard3262]

What an awesome video to relax after a long day at school. Really nicely done as always. I cant wait to launch some rockets again myself this summer.

[@istvanfrank9201]

Nagyszerű ötletes és nagyon komoly! A videók szórakoztatóak de ami nagyon fontos informatìvak 😊 And that moment at 10:29 simpy just ♡ 3 generation thogeder.

[@AstroCharlie]

That intro was awesome!

[@AirCommandRockets]

Cheers :)

[@gonzalomarting]

Impressive development, congratulations

[@simonelomolino2904]

I'm building a sounding rocket with my university and it's always such a pleasure to look are your progress too. I'd love to try and build a water rockey too

[@ThienTran-in1lr]

Love ur channel so much. Keep uploading videos.

[@AirCommandRockets]

Thank you.

[@michaelsilva7085]

I can’t wait until the next one! Thanks for the content.

[@nerdtronaut]

Best Intro ever 😂

[@AirCommandRockets]

Cheers :)

[@조재현-e7c]

Very informative! Thank you

[@jeflarremore7170]

Very cool intro! Made me laugh. Thank you.

[@MuhammadDaudkhanTV100]

Awesome

[@ericlotze7724]

3:40 I can see in a few months: "So we now decided to friction stir weld the isogrid stainless steel pressure vessel panels for the water rocket..."

[@ericlotze7724]

(and i love this project almost specifically for it's "overegnineering" / "being rediculous" aspect, keep up the great work!)

[@ericlotze7724]

Also i feel the DIY-ing + documentation/open sourcing of workign with high pressures (this and the tank video) can easily be applied to non-water rocket systems, and your help via these videos may inspire others.

[@AirCommandRockets]

ha ha .. yes there is a bit of that "over engineering" going on here. :)

[@juan.2438]

Hi from Spain!

[@AirCommandRockets]

Hello from Sydney :)

[@kwinvdv]

I wonder if some of the water stays behind, sticking to the walls. And thus whether it might be worth coating the inside with something hydrophobic?

[@AirCommandRockets]

The amount of water left inside the rocket is quite small after a launch. The acceleration helps drive any water stuck to the walls to the nozzle. You would have to consider the weight of the hydrophobic coating to see if it is less than the amount that coating would improve things by. But a good question.

[@kwinvdv]

@@AirCommandRockets One indeed has to take that in consideration. So it might be worth testing. But that would probably be better suited for a simpler single stage rocket. And the result might even be (almost) negligible and thus hard to measure. Especially when also considering the unpredictable effects of things like the wind.

[@benisjammin8926]

Henry approves 👍

[@scorpionsteve]

Hi George. Will the G force not cick open the servo spring release?

[@valeriydzhura1182]

Amaaaaazing! But what is the second white layer after carbon fiber and why/how it was ripped off so easily? Thanks!

[@AirCommandRockets]

This is called peel-ply usually made of nylon or something similar. You apply it over the composite part to smooth out the surface, and any excess epoxy will flow out through it. When the part is cured, you can peel this layer off removing the excess epoxy with it. It is commonly used when vacuum forming parts. It also removes Amine blush which can form with some epoxies.

[@fabioferreiragomes]

...........INCRÍVEL............ESPETACULAR..........

[@Karlemilstorm]

I have watched until 5:36. Don't know if u address this later in the video - just wanted to say before I forget. The g-forces from the launch will make the small leaver arm move down and release the sustainer too early.

[@AirCommandRockets]

This is the release mechanism that launches the rocket. This mechanism stays on the ground and is attached to the launcher so it is not affected by g-forces.

[@bertballenback]

cool!

[@lukaslieb7085]

Great work as always. Did you check that the third release mechanism with the spring, won't accidentally release on launch, because of the high acceleration?

[@AirCommandRockets]

Thanks. That stays on the ground, and is actually what causes the rocket to launch. The staging mechanism on the rocket, is protected against acceleration.

[@lukaslieb7085]

@@AirCommandRockets That makes a lot more sense, thanks. I already thought a metal pipe would be to heavy to fly... But somehow figured it would be from metal for test purposes only.

[@lukasdimmler2622]

I see a problem with this design: During the initial acceleration you are likely pulling 50 to 60 Gs and your whole rocket is rattling. The spring holding the lever might not be strong enough to hold it in place and you might have an early launch of the second stage. To mitigate this problem you might simply cut a hole in the secondary lever and open the release to the top. This way the G-Forces secure the release during takeoff. To push the release up you could use a rigid wire connector, like in RC-planes. If you want to build a smaller and lighter release mechanism, it might be interesting to look at the release mechanisms of medieval crossbows and roman ballistas. They had a quite similar mechanical problem. In the case of the roman ballista the release mechanism can be made to have very minimal forces after just one stage.

[@AirCommandRockets]

I think you misunderstand what this release mechanism does. This doesn't fly, and stays on the ground as a part of the launcher. This is what launches the rocket. You may be getting this confused with the staging mechanism that flies on the rocket to release the second stage. See this for more details: kzbin.info/www/bejne/imqzfXVvoMaLoq8

[@lukasdimmler2622]

@@AirCommandRockets I did confuse it with the staging mechanism. Thanks for the clarification.

[@AirCommandRockets]

@@lukasdimmler2622 No Worries, I think there were a couple of other people who assumed the same, perhaps I did not make it clear. :)

[@lukasdimmler2622]

@@AirCommandRockets I just watched the video you linked and that mechanism is indeed much better suited for the staging. From an outside perspective it is also interesting to see you work with relatively low tech sheet metal manufactoring compared to your extremely educated manufacturing of composite materials.

[@nathanhastings8293]

We have been removing very high pressure hoses for decades with light weight ball detent designs is there a reason we are not seeing modifications of these designs here?

[@AirCommandRockets]

Yes, it's the amount of force that's required to pull back on the collar holding those balls in place. We are talking about an equivalent internal hose diameter here of around 35mm @1000psi. For our low pressure launchers that's exactly what we use. This launcher, only requires a small servo motor with little torque to activate it. Also normally you wouldn't be disconnecting a high pressure hose while it is still under pressure.

[@nathanhastings8293]

@@AirCommandRockets Actually there are designs for 3000 psi

[@AirCommandRockets]

@@nathanhastings8293 Meant to be disconnected at 3000psi? Do you have link, I'd be interested

[@nathanhastings8293]

I understand that there are constraints for the release of the high pressure fittings sorry I didnt address that earlier. I am suggesting a rotation of a specially machined collar that allows for a rotation to a cocked position with a fine trigger release. Also instead of balls that focus the load in a small surface area, square thread or buttress thread could be used. I think this area may present some fun engineering. Ill send you some sketches of what I am thinking of after I work out the details.

[@AirCommandRockets]

@@nathanhastings8293 Yeah definitely a good engineering challenge. I'm always on the look out for new ways of doing things.

[@CrazyTrainOfThoughts]

"🖐That was perfect!"

[@nraynaud]

how do you chose the rocket aspect ratio ?

[@AirCommandRockets]

With water rockets long and thin is the preference. Less drag and better pressure containment. For the booster that allows you to use long launch tubes on the launcher to assist in better altitude.

[@nraynaud]

@@AirCommandRockets I see, that make sense. I guess that makes the rule: as thin as you can mechanically get away with then?

[@AirCommandRockets]

@@nraynaud Yup, up to a point, the very long and very skinny rockets have a tendency to bend at higher accelerations,

[@alienbeef0421]

Question: what if the lever arms snag on to the rocket?

[@AirCommandRockets]

They are not allowed to do that. There will be guards in place that prevent anything from the launcher getting snagged.

[@alienbeef0421]

@@AirCommandRockets nice! Thank you

[@alienbeef0421]

@@AirCommandRockets nice! Thank you

[@makerbeelab5546]

700kgs of holding force is insane! Is it going to be a single release on each booster? Are they going to be synchronised in some way?

[@AirCommandRockets]

In a previous multi-nozzle booster design we held down each nozzle independently, to help spread the forces, and then synchronized the release mechanism to let them all go at the same time. kzbin.info/www/bejne/o3bLoYiNrqyNotE That wouldn't have worked here, because if one of those was even slightly late, all the force of the entire booster would act on that slightly delayed release mechanism. With these pressures the timing is even more critical. So to avoid that problem, we just have the single release point, but have to deal with the higher forces on it.

[@Briaaanz]

Ha ha! Blooper reel!

[@adaptablerubenvideos3097]

I think this rocket might be able to reach 1600 meters/1 mile

[@AirCommandRockets]

This is unlikely. We'll be happy if we get 1100 - 1200m.

[@alienbeef0421]

First!

[@sleepy_bwoi]

second