6" Saturn V Model Rocket - Flight Tested

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6 inch Saturn V High Power Rocket Model To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, here is a 1/66th flying model of the Saturn V Rocket. Some parts are from remixing and scaling up Saturn V components by Works-of-Claye and scottdee, and other parts are designed by myself. Please have a look at the pictures to help makes sense of the description below. Liftoff weight was 8.6 kg (19 lbs). 2 kg (4.5 lbs) of ballast in nose for weight and balance. A long piece of 1/4-20 all thread is threaded into the bottom of the command module and holds the the upper parts of the rocket together. The lead ballast is cast in a cylinder shape that fits in the service module and is held in by a nut and fender washer on the all thread. There is a 4 inch length of 4 inch diameter airframe tubing for the 4th stage. 3rd to 4th transition is reinforced internally with expanding foam. Pour the foam into the four holes in the base of the transition, and trim off excess foam when cured. The recovery harness attaches to an eye nut on the end of the all thread and holds the bulkhead in place too. Bulkheads are ¼ inch thick plywood and were made on a manual lathe. I'll post CAD drawings for the plywood bulkheads later. 10-24 all thread and hardware used to join the other airframe parts together internally in 3 places. ¼-20 all thread and eye nuts for recovery harness attachment in the avionics bay. Avionics bay closures/ airframe couplers are covered with Nomex for protection from the ejection charges. The airframes are attached to the coupler with 4 ea 6/32 set screws in a radial pattern. This way the airframes can be replaced if damaged. The outboard F1 engines are attached to a removable bulkhead held in place by the motor retainer nut. The center F engine is attached to a plug that fits inside the 54mm motor retainer. The F1 engines (and the escape tower) are removed before flight - they are just for ground display. Decals sourced from apogee rockets. https://www.apogeerockets.com/Building_Supplies/Replacement_Parts_for_the_Saturn_V/Saturn_V_Decal_Sheet Recovery sourced from Rocketman Enterprises (7 foot diameter Apollo 11 parachute) https://the-rocketman.com/apollo-11-nasa-parachutes/ Avionics sourced from featherweight altimeters (Raven and Power Perch) https://www.featherweightaltimeters.com Airframe and 54mm motor mount tubing sourced from Always Ready Rocketry https://alwaysreadyrocketry.com. Beware of the tiny fins! Make sure things like weight and balance (CG/CP) are correct, the power to weight ratio is sufficient, and the launch rail is stout and long enough to get it going safely. Flight test motor was a 54mm 2000 N/sec "K1000" motor. 2 seconds burn time. Peak Alt was 1900 ft.