Exploding Compressed Air Rocket

thingiverse

A 3D printable rocket designed to work with the Make: Compressed Air Rocket kit. http://makeprojects.com/Project/Compressed-Air-Rocket/585/1#.UAxRPzGe5sE Printed in two pieces from PLA on an Ultimaker, these rocket look great, and might work great... OR MIGHT EXPLODE. One lasted for three successful launches before breaking into two pieces on landing. The other two shattered on launch. Oh, the Humanity! Photo & Videos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cbonsig/sets/72157630700622384/ Instructions Make a compressed air rocket launcher!! See description for a link. Improve the design! Native Solidworks 2012 files attached, along with a PDF drawing. Slice and print. I used Cura 12.07 with default settings. 0.2mm slice height. 190 degrees. The base uses the full height of the Ultimaker, so it might have to be adjusted for a different printer. Printed in a vertical orientation, though the thumbnails here show it horizontal. Clean up print if necessary. These were pretty clean for me, but I used a dremel to clean up any little overhanging materials at the top and bottom that would create interference on assembly or on the launcher. Assemble the top and bottom. I heated up the bottom of the top piece to soften it a bit, and applied some cyanoacrylate glue to the top of the bottom piece, then slid them together. Prepare for launch! I pumped up the chamber to 80 psi. Stand back! Fire! Admire flight, and/or collect shattered pieces for forensic study! Possible improvements: a. I would be interested to know if ABS is any more durable than PLA. Calling all Makerbotters and Reprappers! b. Solidify the nosecone a bit. On my one successful rocket, the tip busted open to a ~4mm hole after the first flight. c. Open up the inner diameter a bit? Its a bit tight on the 1/2" Schedule 40 launch pipe. Maybe if it was opened up a bit, more energy would go in the vertical direction rather than toward explosive destruction. Photo & Videos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cbonsig/sets/72157630700622384/