R
ebuilding the Gray Ghost
 

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When the Gray Ghost was cut apart it was found that the engine tube (used to duct the
ejection charge to the parachute compartment) had been burned open by the fireball
shooting through it. The reinforcing tape held up, but what it was taped to was ashes.

 
 
The top bulkhead - the "floor" of the parachute compartment.
The heat burned the shock cord to a cinder, but it stayed pliable 'til it cooled.
From the back it appears fine. Most of the
heat went through the tube as designed.
 
The rocket had to be cut into pieces to remove the engine tube and its two bulkheads.
 

I decided to do away with the internal tube and rely on the engine to provide enough ejection charge to pressurize the entire rocket body.
Yep, rely on a poor quality, high priced Estes engine, which caused the damage to begin with.

 
Since there is no bulkhead to create a parachute compartment, the remains
of the engine tube were cut into 3/4 inch lengths and made into a baffle.
This will prevent the parachute (and Orville) from
falling into the bottom of the rocket at liftoff.

 
All the parts are back together and it has a new coat of paint.
The rocket is longer than before, now at 4' 9".

I got a sag in the paint in one spot. I was going to sand it out but realized the
life expectancy of this rocket (so far) has been ONE flight. Why bother?


 
...and what happened to Orville? When we get get a parachute guy back he gets hung on a nail in the garage. A "Nail of FAME".


                                 Yay Orville! Woot-woot!!!
By the way, these are all named "Orville".

Origin of the name "Orville" for a plastic parachute man launched in a rocket.

March 20, 1983   4:20PM

"Today we launched Andy Ramsey's "Maxi-Streak" in his back yard. It was powered by a D12-7 engine and contained
a little plastic paratrooper which we named Orville. Orville was about an inch and a half high and had his own parachute.
The rocket shot off the pad, veered slightly when it cleared the launch rod and went out of sight. We caught sight of it as
it fell, but no sign of Orville could be seen. It slowly descended on its 12" 'chute and landed in the top of a tree.
Paul Ramsey recovered it with a ladder, but no trace of Orville was ever found."
 

 
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