Category Archives: Rockets

GIGA V – Fin brackets

During the pandemic in 2020-21 it became clear that in order to get a new design fin bracket machined I was getting too dependent on external factors. Hence the decision was made to become self-sufficient with the conversion of a manual HBM BF 25 / G0704 mill/drill into a full blown DIY CNC milling machine.

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BOOSTAR-TWO / GIGA IV – all-up test

On 24.09.2020 we tested to see whether the BOOSTAR-TWO and the GIGA IV would fit together in the launch rail and to prevent unpleasant integration surprises at the LRE. Espcially orientation of equipment and launch buttons are critical. All went well and within the hour the BOOSTAR-TWO / GIGA IV were erected and lowered from

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GIGA IV – Nose cone construction

  Lessons learned: Don’t take this route again using the M10 threaded section as a basis for concentricity. If going to machine on lathe, start with concentric mold before laminating / machining. Don’t rely on staightness  M10 threaded section which can get close but slightly off straight M10 threaded section will result in a significant

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GIGA IV – Common bulkhead

One of the design changes for the GIGA IV is a common bulkhead to join the previously central avionics bay of GIGA I-III (in control of recovery) with the updated nose cone electronics (camera and GPS tracker). With this modification there is no longer space for a separate main parachute compartment as can be expected

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GIGA IV – Airframe construction

The GIGA III was built completely from aluminium but heavy like a tank. That is probably the reason why it was so successful recovering from non-flight-critical failures. In order to shave some weight for the from the total rocket mass of the GIGA IV it was decided to replace the aluminium tubes with fiberglass (FG)

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