On the left is my cloned Estes Mosquito with MicroMaxx motor adapter.  The ejectable motor pod has its own streamer to aid recovery.
The adapter tube is part of a Bic(R) "Round Stic"(tm) pen casing.  The centering rings are from a spent A10-3T motor casing, sanded down to slide out easily.  It took a few layers of paper and glue to build up the pen tube to the inner diameter of the centering rings.  CA glue was used.
Notice the small wire motor retainer pin, made from a straightened staple passign through two holes in the tube so it holds the motor without crossing the nozzle area.  An upper thrust ring is formed by a short piece of the pen's end-plug and is friction fit inside the engine tube.

This MicroMaxx powered Mosquito configuration first flew at the 10/22/2000 MASA launch, with a perfect flight.

The rocket on the right is my upscale version of the Mosquito, called TriSquito, sized for a cluster of three MicroMaxx motors.
TriSquito's body tube is a MicroMaxx ignitor storage tube.
The motors are taped together with a Kevlar thread running through the middle.  A large knott hardened with CA is used to retain the motors against an upper cardboard thrust ring. The upper end of the string has another knott which slides into a small cut in the top of the body tube and is held in place by the nose-cone.
Three MicroMaxx ignitors were removed from their plastic holders and soldered together.  The rocket is launched from a standard 12v 1/8" rod launcher.

TriSquito made its first flight in November 2000 with perfect ignition of all motors and flight to about 150'.  The ejection charges failed to deploy the nosecone/streamer and the rocket lawn-darted into the snow but was undamaged.  The deployment failure was probably due to blow-by of the ejection gasses towards the rear, past the engines.  I had tried to fill the gaps with rolled Estes wadding tissue, but this burned away.

"Bic" and "Round Stic" are registered trademarks of the MM Bic Corporation, Milford, CT.
Designs copyright (c) 2000 by Jeffrey P. Hove, all rights reserved.
Non commercial use granted provided credit is given and this web page is linked to any on-line display of rockets derived from these techniques.

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