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Building a real SRB


xendelaar

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1 minute ago, munlander1 said:

Would activated carbon (aquarium stuff) work? Could you also grind up a charcoal briquette?

Either of those will work yes, i just have a fire and the next day i harvest the charcoal and grind it up, and mix it with potassium nitrate, i use this mixture (also called black powder) as the ignition powder used in our test article.

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1 minute ago, Tristonwilson12 said:

Either of those will work yes, i just have a fire and the next day i harvest the charcoal and grind it up, and mix it with potassium nitrate, i use this mixture (also called black powder) as the ignition powder used in our test article.

Would store bought black powder be better? If so, what type?

Edited by munlander1
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5 minutes ago, Tristonwilson12 said:

In my experience, my homemade mixture has worked better, but if you want to try store bought, i recommend something like this , but please keep in mind the explosive power of this stuff (the store bought kind)

What mixture do you use for your black powder?

Is it better to use sugar or charcoal? 

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5 minutes ago, munlander1 said:

What mixture do you use for your black powder?

Is it better to use sugar or charcoal? 

My mixture is 80% Potassium Nitrate 20% charcoal

Potassium nitrate and suger is best as a main fuel source fir small amature rockets, potassium nitrate and charcoal is great as an ignition system

Edited by Tristonwilson12
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On 2/3/2017 at 9:42 AM, xendelaar said:

After playing +2000h of ksp I'm flirting with the idea of making my own real life SRB rocket. A small version off course...

I found some cool instructables online which explain how you can make solid rocket fuel using sugar, potasium nitrate and a pinch of iron oxide. 

The isp is not really high (100-130 ) but heck... it would be cool  to get a small craft of the ground.

Does anybody have any experience with building real life amature rockets? 

Do you have any kerbally design tips?  

:)

I have been doing pyrotechnics for about 3 years now ( mostly fireworks) and this is what I recommend.

Don't cook it, just mill each chemical SEPARATELY ( or kaboom will happen because of the friction) in a coffee mill, and then mix it with a screen. Then either ram the composition into a tube with a hammer, or add a bit of alchohol so it becomes a sticky mass and let it dry inside the tube.

The reasons for not cooking are:

-1  Having a explosive over a fire is just a bad idea in general ( I burned my entire face and hands pretty bad when I was cooking about 250g of it, god was I retarded back then).

-2 Cooked rocket fuel smolders way more than just grinded and mixed propellant, wich clogs the nozzle and just makes a mess in general.

-3 While the cooked rocked cools, it relases gases that create bubles inside the propellant, and when the fuel burns pressure builds inside the bubbles and makes the whole rocket explode.

Also here is a great pyro forum where you can find reliable and safe information: http://www.amateurpyro.com/forums/index.php

Edited by Stef Morojna
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2 minutes ago, Stef Morojna said:

Having a explosive over a fire is just a bad idea in general

What about an electric type thing?

4 minutes ago, Tristonwilson12 said:

Depends

On what?

3 minutes ago, Stef Morojna said:

While the cooked rocked cools, it relases gases that create bubles inside the propellant, and when the fuel burns pressure builds inside the bubbles and makes the whole rocket explode.

Powder it is then!

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2 minutes ago, Stef Morojna said:

Yep, the fire went all the way to the roof, there is still black marks

If I were to do this 1. What temp should I use and 2. What should I do to keep myself safe if there is an explosion and how to reduce the chance of an explosion?

Would you suggest cooking smaller amounts then pouring them in? Or would the different layers cause to many problems?

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1 minute ago, munlander1 said:

If I were to do this 1. What temp should I use and 2. What should I do to keep myself safe if there is an explosion and how to reduce the chance of an explosion?

Would you suggest cooking smaller amounts then pouring them in? Or would the different layers cause to many problems?

Well don't go over a 100celcius and for protection you could use heavy leather gloves and one of those masks for welding ( Some people who do pyro straight up get old firefighters quuipment :P but for the amount you are doing it would prob be overkill)

Also here is a vid of the mill and hammer into the tube way:

 

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Wow. This thread really took off. I will try the method without caramelising the sugar to make a SRM (not srb).

I will have to check if it's legal here in the Netherlands. Maybe i can join a amature rocket club or something.  

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6 hours ago, xendelaar said:

Wow. This thread really took off. I will try the method without caramelising the sugar to make a SRM (not srb).

I will have to check if it's legal here in the Netherlands. Maybe i can join a amature rocket club or something.  

From what I know ( I might be wrong tho, so double check), in EU its legal to do up to 100g, as long as you use it in less than 24h after you made it ( Basically they don't want people to store it)

Edited by Stef Morojna
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I guess it's not relevant for most people on this forum, but i found the Laws concerning the use of amature rockets in the Netherlands.

It states that it's legal to launch small to medium rockets if one is a member of a rocket club (i believe... i dont paralegal that well)and launches are performed on specific places.

I can't find information on the legality of KNO3 though.

Edited by xendelaar
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For those in the UK, it should be noted that manufacturing solid rocket motors is an offence under the 1875 Explosives Act, the 1883 Amendment, and later Prevention of Terrorism acts, since these are classed as an explosive.

Edited by RCgothic
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