Make Ultra Lightweight Carbon-Fiber Tubes for Model Rockets

Make Ultra Lightweight Carbon-Fiber Tubes for Model Rockets

This course will give you the information and confidence you need to make high-quality, customized carbon-fiber/epoxy tubes that are used in international competition rocketry. This was used by the USA team to win the silver medal in the 2021 World Space Modeling Championships held in Romania. The key to winning was having ultra-lightweight rockets made from carbon-fiber that had a low-drag surface which was a result of being a customized shape and being glass-smooth. This is the latest cutting edge in technology!

These are primary objectives of the carbon-fiber tubes made in this course:

1. Light weight tubes - lighter than anything made from fiberglass cloth/epoxy

2. Durable - strong enough to handle rough handling, and the forces of a high velocity rocket launch

3. Super smooth surface finish - so that the tubes look good and have a low skin friction drag coefficient

4. Air Tight - The outer shell holds air pressure, which is needed in order for the ejection charge to push out the recovery device

5. Consistency - We want each tube we make to have the same properties

6. Ease of manufacture - We don't want to have to be a skilled artist to make these tubes. Everyone should have success!

The keys to achieving these objectives comes down to these items:

• Knowledge - You have to know what is important during the process, and what isn't. That is why you will find this course invaluable, because it offers you the information that isn't available anywhere else. Having this wisdom will save you an enormous amount of time and frustration.

• Tools - Unfortunately, there is one tool — the "mold" — that is absolutely critical to making the carbon-fiber tubes. We'll describe this in detail so you can have it made to the correct specifications needed for success. Additionally, there are a number of assembly tools that will be needed in order to complete the construction of these tubes. You'll learn what they are, and how they are created.

• Materials - The basic materials required for making these tubes are two types of carbon-fiber and epoxy. But that by itself doesn't give you a high-quality tube that meets the primary objectives. There are other "secret ingredients" which are also necessary for success. In this course, you'll be shown what they are and why they are absolutely critical to making tubes successfully.

• Process - An example of a "process" is baking a cake from the individual ingredients. Even if you have all the correct ingredients, you have to follow a specific sequence of events and specific techniques of putting things together. What you'll see in this course are the unique techniques that aren't available anywhere else.

The result from this course is you'll be able to make tubes that are as lightweight and smooth as anyone in the world. You'll also come away with skills that you can use in other hobbies as well, like building lightweight carbon-fiber model airplanes. They can also be scaled up to make larger hobby rockets as well.

The Complete How-To Guide for Creating Composite Tubes for Competition Rocketry

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What you will learn

• Discovery why would you want to make a carbon fiber tube for a model rocket
• Anticipate the challenges you'll need to overcome when creating an air-tight tube
• Identify the problems that will cause a tube to fail during construction

Rating: 4.7

Level: Expert Level

Duration: 5.5 hours

Instructor: Tim Van Milligan