This flight went wildly unstable… just as I predicted on GeekDad…. but I had to give it a try. =)
“Flower Power” (R.I.P.) was a mélange of three rocket kits, with altimeter nosecone, and festooned with flower stickers. This flight added a D12-0 with booster fins, taped to a D12-0, taped to a E9-8…. Each motor ignites the next at burnout.
Soon after liftoff, it went into an upward spiral, but when the booster fins on the first stage fell away with a burst of blue smoke, it started to wildly flip about overhead (cue Devo: Whip it Good… Jerkin’ Back ‘n’ Forth).
When the weight of the second booster stage fell away, the E9-rocket combo finally stabilized, but the random walk left it pointing down… So it hit maximum acceleration in a straight zoom back at us.
It landed about 15 ft. from the pad, a lawn dart under thrust.
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