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Show Us Your Rocket!

Harmon or Radial?

Heh heh.. here is a Radial Rocket im painting..<br>
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Looks like a fun project, John! Is it yours, or is it the Radial Rocket Company's new plane? Or, a customer's that he's is building?

It belongs to Pete Malone of Cape Giradeau MO.

MT built a special FW 190 Replica Prop for it. It will be the 3rd Radial Rocket flying.
 
Indeed, Peter is the owner. Its been under construction for a little while 3 doors down from me at 77t, by John Farquhar (i got to help a little).. First engine run was last week.. now im getting it ready for paint.
 
well there was ALOT more finish work that needed to be done before i could begin painting.. but finally the paint is going on!
This was a great project, but the build time was grossly under estimated!!
Even with us 2 professional composite guys!!

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here is a little video of Part 1 of my assistance with the construction of the Rocket
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42lK4e5jEmU
 
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Chin Scoop

Where does one purchase the awesome chin scoop. Building an 8 with a Subie Engine and the scoop would be perfect for cooling the PSRU and Oil Cooler.
 
a chin scoop like on the Radial Rocket? or the other one?
Ive built a several cowlings and scoops for lots of other aircraft.. I could build something for yours. Or give you some pointers if you wanted to do it yourself
 
Chin Scoop - Regular

I'm interested in the scoop on the standard rocket. I was under the impression that it was available for purchase but have been unable to locate a source. My fiberglass skills are, lets say, developing.
 
well there was ALOT more finish work that needed to be done before i could begin painting.. but finally the paint is going on!
This was a great project, but the build time was grossly under estimated!!
Even with us 2 professional composite guys!!

here is a little video of Part 1 of my assistance with the construction of the Rocket
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42lK4e5jEmU

what is the apeture/ tube sticking out of the wingtip at 2:08?
 
thats the mount for the pitot tube. Its a heated pitot that is new old stock from the 1940s.. not sure which aircraft used it, but i know several did.
It was one Pete found and we graphed it in to the wing.
 
Tracy Knight's HR2

Was digging through my photos and found this gem taken on our way to OSH last year. It is Nathan "Skids" Hawkins flying his HR2 he built while serving in the USN at Top Gun. It is a very light, fast aircraft with basic panel, 380 tires and a D twist Hartzell. He sold it later that year to Tracy Knight who now flies it everywhere along with his RV4.

Owns a 4 and an HR2, what a guy!

Enjoy!
Smokey
HR2



Uploaded with ImageShack.us
 
Gotta like Black...

Remember the movie, Black Beauty?

Could be a new name...

Smokey
HR2

PS: I was proud to be your first Rocket Ride, they tend to be expensive! :)
 
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Black Beauty sounds great, but she got a name already. She is named Midnight Pearl....
And yes, Smokey, you got me infected with the rocket virus:), Thanks a lot :D
Expensive, well I share the whole thing with my Lady, so we both enjoying the flying...
 
Here you can see a little bit why she is called Midnight Pearl.
Any of you guys has a idea for a cool nose art?

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The design of the registration letters will be changed accordingly...

I post some pictures of the cockpit as well, now that I know how to do it ;)
 
Wow!

Stunning! I love that color! The Rocket's sexy lines really lends itself to more hardcore paint jobs - just wouldn't look the same on a C172 (no offense intended).
 
"Midnight Pearl" nose art

Rambo,
World War 2-ish pinup nose art, scantily clad in a half night gown (but tastefully done), standing in front of a large, full-moon like pearl. Done right it would be just as stunning as the rest of the plane.

Best,
 
Larry Vetterman's F-1

Way back in 1995 I ordered a 4-pipe exhaust system from a then cult following RV exhaust maker named Larry Vetterman. The system is still on my RV4 with it's new owner(still with no cracks) 1500 hours later. Larry built me a beautiful system for my HR2 and my RVX and was kind enough to include a couple of photos of his F-1 with my last order. I scanned them for your viewing pleasure.

Foot note: Larry has removed the IO-540 since this photo was taken and replaced it with a custom built IO-360 and Hartzell BA prop. His claimed performance differences were minimal in cruise at 55% power, with flying qualities rated superb and overall weight loss of 150+ pounds.

For all that you do, Thanks Larry!

Smokey
HR2



Larry's F-1
 
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Red on Black

Rambo!

Again I am very excited to have had a chance to meet you and take you up in my HR2 last year. Here is my 2 cents on the paint/trim idea.

Red on Black, or midnight blue as previously mentioned, Rocks!

Smokey
HR2

 
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Rambo!

Again I am very excited to have had a chance to meet you and take you up in my HR2 last year. Here is my 2 cents on the paint/trim idea.

Red on Black, or midnight blue as previously mentioned, Rocks!

Smokey
HR2


And you'll look like one of the bogey's in Top Gun! :D (As flown in the movie by "Jambo" Ray...different Ray...good man like you Smokey! ;))

Cheers,
Bob
 
What are the differences between the rocket and the regular 8's?

Are there changes in the fuselage? a different kit, different instructions? or is it just like the regular 8 kit and you just go off on your own and make extreme modifications? i know they have 6 cylinder engines. But can you make a regular 8 (look) like an super 8? ;)

I just love all of these designs. It would be nice to have one of these!

I'm trying to find some build sites but not a whole lot have been popping up.
(just to take a peek)
 
What are the differences between the rocket and the regular 8's?

Are there changes in the fuselage? a different kit, different instructions? or is it just like the regular 8 kit and you just go off on your own and make extreme modifications? i know they have 6 cylinder engines. But can you make a regular 8 (look) like an super 8? ;)

I just love all of these designs. It would be nice to have one of these!

I'm trying to find some build sites but not a whole lot have been popping up.
(just to take a peek)

The Rocket and the 8 have almost nothing in common, tho both are made from aluminum. What you may be referring to is a Super 8? Mike Stewart can answer all your S8 questions.

If you have Rocket questions, I can probably help get those cleared up...

Carry on!
Mark
 
What are the differences between the rocket and the regular 8's?

Are there changes in the fuselage? a different kit, different instructions? or is it just like the regular 8 kit and you just go off on your own and make extreme modifications? i know they have 6 cylinder engines. But can you make a regular 8 (look) like an super 8? ;)

I just love all of these designs. It would be nice to have one of these!

I'm trying to find some build sites but not a whole lot have been popping up.
(just to take a peek)

Hey NickB,
Take a look at the FAQ section on the Team Rocket blog (http://www.teamrocketaircraft.com/faq/index.html). It may answer a lot of your questions. Check out Vince Frazier's FAQ section, too: http://www.vincesrocket.com/FAQ.htm. Vince has a veritable treasure trove of valuable information, photos and links like this article by Bud Davidson: http://www.vincesrocket.com/Davisson's Rocket II review.htm
Here's a couple other F1 Builder sites:
http://www.pflanzer-aviation.com/
http://www.docthrock.com/
http://www.members.optusnet.com.au/ragraham/
and this on the Super RV8: http://www.mstewart.net/super8/
Hope this helps,
Mark S.
 
Radial Rocket "05"

February 19th 2011, Radial Rocket "05" N69PE Is now a flying aircraft! In the last week of testing it has achieved a cruise speed of 186 knots, a climb rate of 4400 feet per minute and still had 5" Manifold pressure!!! Its now back home in Missouri with it very happy and proud owner.
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February 19th 2011, Radial Rocket "05" N69PE Is now a flying aircraft! In the last week of testing it has achieved a cruise speed of 186 knots, a climb rate of 4400 feet per minute and still had 5" Manifold pressure!!! Its now back home in Missouri with it very happy and proud owner.
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Can you detail what you mean buy "it still had 5" of Manifold pressure"? Do you mean that you were able to get 186 Kts with only 5 inches MP?
 
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For the climb he was at 35" MP at 3000' 130KTs IAS and 2600 (prop) RPM and not at full throttle. He still had 300 RPM and probably 5" of MP he could have put in. He was probably 3-400#s below max gross weight.

At sea level 1 person and half fuel (35 gal) The (400HP) Radial Rocket averages 4200' a minute through 5000' at 42"MP and 2900 (prop) RPM.
At full gross it is off the ground in 800'

In cruise he was getting 186 KTS IAS at 22" and 2200 (Prop) RPM (at 6000') Normal cruise for the Radial Rocket is 28" and 1850 (Prop) RPM AT 10,000 feet this usually gives 195-200KTS TAS depending on how heavy the load is at about 15 GPH this represents approximately 65% power. Pete has subsequently taken the plane higher and reports 215KTS TAS ,lightly loaded, at his cruise settings (which I do not know).

Subsequent increases in speed come at the price of a huge (logarithmic) increase in fuel consumption.

The plane holds 70+ Gallons. The engine is 400HP geared, supercharged and 620 cubic inches driving a 98" MT prop patterned after the FW 190 prop.

The engine has a relatively low compression ratio of 6.3:1 and the gear reduction ratio is .658:1

Having the 400HP version vs the 360 makes a huge difference in takeoff and climb performance. The only difference between the 360 and 400 HP versions is the gear ratio of the supercharger drive. Both engines weigh the same. The video below is a takeoff on a close to 100deg F day fully loaded at 30" MP and 2800 (Prop) RPM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdEMYd8B-4A
 
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Got asked in another thread to post a couple of pix of my solid color Rocket. I like solid colors on airplanes and ever since Jim Winings was kind enough to give me a ride in his all yellow F1 and I saw pictures of Doug Rosendahl's all red repaint of Mark's original F1, I've thought a solid color was the way to go. Hope you like 'em!

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Regards,


Lee...
 
Simply stunning Lee...thanks for posting the pics!!

BTW, there's a "Show Us Your Rocket Panel" thread too.... :D
 
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Got asked in another thread to post a couple of pix of my solid color Rocket. I like solid colors on airplanes and ever since Jim Winings was kind enough to give me a ride in his all yellow F1 and I saw pictures of Doug Rosendahl's all red repaint of Mark's original F1, I've thought a solid color was the way to go. Hope you like 'em!


Regards,


Lee...

I had a paint scheme all picked out for my rocket, but now you threw a WRENCH in the works....! It's a beauty. What tail did you put on it...?
 
Prporter: Mine is a Mark Fredericks classic F1, quick build. The empennage is the standard Team Rocket tail just as it came from the factory. FWIW, I thought about the Evo wing, but when I bought mine, there were only a few Evo's flying and they did not seem to be getting the large top-end increases out of them they were hoping for (some, but not all). Also, I had an RV-4 at the time and really liked the performance of the 23013 airfoil, so the "Sport" wing on the F1 appealed to me. As to the performance of the tail, I have not seen any shake or untoward flying characteristics on mine whatever and I have tested it to redline and beyond---it flies beautifully. Fredericks is a genius!

The only thing I did differently from the factory build manual on the tail was to flush rivet the trailing edges on the elevators and rudder (completely flush---countersunk both sides). After a couple of stories about a bent stick, I also fabricated stainless steel sticks for both seats. I'm told most RV's come with steel sticks, but my Rocket came with aluminum. Can't imagine it ever bending, but pitch loads on my Rocket do seem higher than on my RV-4, so in an abundance of caution, I changed it out. Stainless steel looks pretty cool, actually.

Instrument panel: I'm working on a new one. I'll post the current one tonight, but the new one will be more interesting since I have a Levil 1831 in it---haven't seen any pix of one of those in action yet. I'm waiting for hurricane season to be over before taking it down for the swap. I want to be able to hurrivac readily if one comes our way!

Thanks for the kind comments, guys. Big flying days here this weekend--I'm the designated tow pilot for the glider club today (not in the Rocket though!) and tomorrow the South Carolina Breakfast Club meets at Palmetto Air Plantation (SC41). Triple Tree starts next week, too...some great flying in SC this week, if only Katia will stay away!

Regards,


Lee...
 
Prporter: Mine is a Mark Fredericks classic F1, quick build. The empennage is the standard Team Rocket tail just as it came from the factory. FWIW, I thought about the Evo wing, but when I bought mine, there were only a few Evo's flying and they did not seem to be getting the large top-end increases out of them they were hoping for (some, but not all). Also, I had an RV-4 at the time and really liked the performance of the 23013 airfoil, so the "Sport" wing on the F1 appealed to me. As to the performance of the tail, I have not seen any shake or untoward flying characteristics on mine whatever and I have tested it to redline and beyond---it flies beautifully. Fredericks is a genius!

The only thing I did differently from the factory build manual on the tail was to flush rivet the trailing edges on the elevators and rudder (completely flush---countersunk both sides). After a couple of stories about a bent stick, I also fabricated stainless steel sticks for both seats. I'm told most RV's come with steel sticks, but my Rocket came with aluminum. Can't imagine it ever bending, but pitch loads on my Rocket do seem higher than on my RV-4, so in an abundance of caution, I changed it out. Stainless steel looks pretty cool, actually.

I did an RV-8 tail as per Mark's suggestion. It fits well, and hopefully should do the job- I have the sport wing as well- I like the looks of the Evo, but my budget dictated otherwise. But with 296 HP, I think i should be happy (as wife says, I had BETTER be happy)!
 
Hi Lee

Your ship is absolutely beautiful but I cant help but ask one question:

Your wheel spats look like they are set up parallel to the ground rather than the line of the airflow? If this is the case they would be tail high and nose down in flight possibly costing you some speed.....?

Did you do this due to flying off grass strips (to improve rear underside clearance to the Spats) or was it unintentional...?

I spent many hours getting my spats aligned with the airflow in accordnace with the vans drawings and now I have less than ideal clearance to the rear underside of my spats (I fly off a grass strip).

Just interested - not intended as a criticism...

Regards,

Jon.
 
Jon: Good call. I actually set my wheel pants up to allow me to comfortably operate off of grass strips. I set the pants a bit high on the tires (for more tire exposure) and the tails of the pants a touch high on purpose to avoid dragging them in the grass any more than necessary. You can see that the waterline of the wheel pants is slightly leading edge down. We have both a hard surface runway at my home field and a parallel grass strip.

In addition, here in South Carolina, we have a great organization called the South Carolina Breakfast Club that hosts a cookout breakfast at different state airfields every other weekend all year long. It's been going on since 1936, I'm told. Great fun and I attended the one at Palmetto Air Plantation yesterday morning---a neat airpark with a turf runway and paved parallel taxiways. Many of the airports that host events are private grass strips; if you aren't comfortable on grass here, you miss getting to land at some really nice (otherwise private) airfields.

The big question at the moment of course, is what price am I paying in speed to gain this useful utility? Honestly, my impression is that my Rocket displays about the same speed as the others I've read about (I've not done any side by side testing). I see something like 215 knots indicated level at 1,000' (during the summer). Don't know how that compares to Doug's 'faster' red Rocket (!), but 215 kias on a hot summer day = something like 247 mph. That's basically redline in straight and level flight! I can't guarantee that my airspeed indicator is 100% reliable at that speed, but it seems awfully close on the slow end. Frankly, I don't worry about it too much, since basically if I want to go faster than I'm going in typical cruise conditions, I can always push it up and the airplane responds. I don't X-C with it all that much, I just fly it like it was a dirt bike---stop by the hangar on the way home, push it out, fly for 15 minutes with a little acro and a tour of the area, plunk it down and put it away. I'm a lot easier to get along with when I get home, that way!

Anyway, I do think I overdid it a bit and my big planned upgrade for next year (new instrument panel going in this year), is to revamp the gear leg fairings (cosmetic issues) and to replace the wheel pants. I plan to lower them slightly, reduce the size of the opening, and drop the tails to line them up better with the (apparent) airflow. Can't say for sure what the 'real' airflow is in the area of the wheels, but at least cosmetically they would be better aligned. I've seen enough wind tunnel test results and tufting videos to know that viscous airflow does not necessarily go where you think it should. It plays by it's own rules, for some reason! All that to say, that I don't expect to generate a significant (or even measurable?) increase in speed by doing so, just a modest improvement in the 'lines' of the airplane.

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Sorry about the quality of this picture (cell phone shot), but it illustrates just what you are talking about. Lot of tire showing and the wheel fairings definitely ride a bit high. As I said above though, I don't have any evidence that they are slowing me down particularly, though. I was pulling 22.4 inches MAP the other day at 10,500 trying to out climb the weather (I lost!) and we were honkin'! This thing is a bit of a beast---you gotta love Rockets!

Best of luck with your project; when it make the new changes I'll post up again.

Regards,


Lee...
 
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Hi Lee
Your wheel spats look like they are set up parallel to the ground rather than the line of the airflow? If this is the case they would be tail high and nose down in flight possibly costing you some speed.....?

The stock rocket pants are quite long so its not possible to get them to align perfectly in-flight and not have them drag on the ground. I have 380 tires and Van's wheelpants on mine. Since the wheelpants are shorter and the tire is taller, I was able to get mine oriented horizontally at an in-flight attitude and still have good ground clearance. As I recall someone did some tuft testing and found that the wheelpants can be misaligned quite a bit and still work well as far as speed goes.
 
Wheel pant alignment made simple.

1 to 1.5 inches of clearance between the top of the tire and the wheel pant, more on grass less on pavement. I have mine way down to the ground and I operate from smooth grass.

With the aircraft in the three point attitude (tail dragger) the bottom aft corner of the tail of the wheel pant is one hand width from the ground.
With the aircraft loaded to a mid load situation the wheel pants are visually lined up with wing ribs, ie parallel to the centre line.

I know lots of people will talk about the angle of the gear etc etc but this is easy, the pants look good on the ground and in the air, and I have the fastest RV/rocket period so they are not hurting my speed.

If it looks good to the eye it will look good to the air that goes by it.
 
So, what's the verdict on mine, Tom. Worth reworking or not? They are slightly nose low in the air, but for all I know, that might be the best angle!

I may change them anyway since they are not the best cosmetically...

Lee...
 
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