My son and I are getting ready to launch his new rocket and need to construct a launch pad. The rocket is an Aerotech Astrobee D. It's about 5' tall using a G71 4G motor. What length rod to you need? We found a 5' by 1/4 steel rod that looks like it would work. It that too short? Don't want to see it go sideways lol!

Thanks,
Shaun Bell

5' long rod should be plenty. I also have that kit and will use that length rod for launching.

have fun,
John

If you really wanted to do somthing out of the box why dont you make a launch tower ??? Do a google search on launch towers and you should find some really kewl designs
It would be two sets of rods for each fin. Generally the smaller solid rockets come up to speed pretty quick and dont need much launch guidance.

My last project was doing mach 3.1 until it glitched http://www.rockethigh.com

5' should be enough unless something is tangled up, hahaha

Yeah, 5"' by 1/4" is fine just make sure your pad is solid enough and you'll be fine. A few years ago I made a pad out of an old computer chair 5 legged base and added a 8" square piece of 1/4" steel plate. It handles my mid power stuff just fine. If you wanted a tower you'd be best going with a C-rail which is the standard rail type. If you check out any of the companies that have high power rocket stuff you'll see what I'm talking about. It's overkill for most mid power rockets though.




Mike