Designer: Adam Lapensky

Motor Manufacturer: Estes Industries
Propellant Type: Black Powder
Motor Designation: (3) C6-3, (1) E9-8

Motor Diameter: 18 mm (C), 24 mm (E)

Motor Length: 70 mm (C), 95 mm (E)
Propellant Mass: 0.0682 kg
Total Motor Mass: 0.1375 kg

Total Impulse: 55.5 Ns

Burn Time: 3.09 s
Maximum Thrust: 61.74 N
Average Thrust: 23.24 N
Specific Impulse: 83 s

Notes: Designed in the spirit of Ralph Steadman, Leadbelly is clearly the most evil vehicle in the fleet. With forward-swept fins on the tail, and aft-swept canards on the nose, all sanded to razor-sharp points, this baby was bound to draw blood at some point. Unfortunately, it was Adam himself who suffered from the ghastliness and madness of his own creation.

Designer: Brad Gambach

Motor Manufacturer: Estes Industries
Propellant Type: Black Powder
Motor Designation:
(2) D12-3, Booster
(1) D12-0, Booster
(1) E9-8, Sustainer
Motor Diameter: 24 mm
Motor Length: 70 mm (D)
95 mm (E)
Propellant Mass: 0.0991 kg
Total Motor Mass: 0.1869 kg

Total Impulse: 78.39 Ns

Burn Time: 4.74 s
Maximum Thrust: 89.19 N
Average Thrust: 30.63 N
Specific Impulse: 81 s

Notes: The Black Thruster combined both clustering and staging of motors to achieve excellent performance and spectacular launches. This combination of engines sported the longest burn time of any vehicle in the fleet, and the highest max thrust of any black powder rocket, providing a fantastic viewing experience.

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Designer: Andrew McCombs

Motor Manufacturer: Estes Industries
Propellant Type: Black Powder
Motor Designation: (3) E9-8
Motor Diameter: 24 mm
Motor Length: 95 mm
Propellant Mass: 0.1074 kg
Total Motor Mass: 0.1947 kg

Total Impulse: 85.5 Ns

Burn Time: 3.09 s
Maximum Thrust: 58.41 N
Average Thrust: 27.06 N
Specific Impulse: 82 s

Notes: Conceived, designed and constructed in one long, intoxicating night, Black Betty represents the essence of Jules Verne’s “genius of will.” In one monumental push, Andrew brought this flagship to fiery life, and a mere two days later, she flew. Flaunting three “E” impulse engines, Black Betty was known for her thunderous, roaring liftoffs and commonly climbed beyond visual range. Though she suffered from several initial recovery system anomolies, much like Mach Me, she always returned in one piece. Subsequent overengineering of the shock cord restraints solved these problems, and Black Betty remains in the Principia fleet to this day.

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Designer: Brad Gambach

Motor Manufacturer: Estes Industries
Propellant Type: Black Powder
Motor Designation: D12-5
Motor Diameter: 24 mm
Motor Length: 70 mm
Propellant Mass: 0.0211 kg
Total Motor Mass: 0.0452 kg

Total Impulse: 16.84 Ns

Burn Time: 1.65 s
Maximum Thrust: 29.73 N
Average Thrust: 10.21 N
Specific Impulse: 81 s

Notes: Brad’s first creation, Mach Me was probably more renowned for its spectacular decents and landings than for its launches. Plagued with recovery system problems, this hardy little missile returned on a ballistic trajectory more often than not. After each successive core sample, the body tube would be trimmed a little shorter to remove any damage that the airframe had sustained on impact, and in no time she’d be prepped to fly again. Sadly, Mach Me was lost on her final flight, but she lives on in memory.

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Designer: Brian D. Wendt

Motor Manufacturer: AeroTech, Inc.
Propellant Type: Composite (Ammonium Perchlorate)
Motor Designation: I211

Motor Diameter: 38 mm
Motor Length: 240 mm
Propellant Mass: 0.251 kg
Total Motor Mass: 0.473 kg

Total Impulse: 435 Ns

Burn Time: 2.1 s
Maximum Thrust: 353 N
Average Thrust: 210 N
Specific Impulse: 177 s

Notes: Construction of Isabelle was an ongoing project throughout the spring 2002 launch season. This rocket served as the vehicle to achieve Tripoli Rocketry Association Level One certification with its first and only launch. It was an excellent introduction into the handling and performance characteristics of high-power composite motors. The Binder Design kit used very similar construction techniques to the Estes kits with which we were already familiar. Since there was no requirement for fiberglassing, heat-curing or use of carbon composites, the technical advancements were confined to the stress and recovery considerations of using the larger engine. Also, no flight computers or barometric/acceleration recovery triggers are required for a Level One certification, so these were omitted.

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Designer: Brian D. Wendt

Motor Manufacturer: Estes Industries
Propellant Type: Black Powder
Motor Designation:  C6-0, Booster
 C6-7, Sustainer

Motor Diameter: 18 mm
Motor Length: 70 mm
Propellant Mass: 0.0216 kg
Total Motor Mass: 0.0444 kg

Total Impulse: 17.64 Ns
Burn Time: 3.72 s
Maximum Thrust: 14.09 N
Average Thrust: 4.74 N
Specific Impulse: 83 s

Notes: J-III is the third iteration of the venerable Josephine series, which began with Principia’s first rocket back in the fall of 2001. The first vehicle of the fleet to incorporate multiple stages, J-III flight tested several important design characteristics unique to the class, such as stage coupling and interstage vents which prevented the booster from separating before the core had ignited. This vehicle also validated chute-less recovery of the booster stage, which relies on the aerodynamic instability of the separated booster to reduce its terminal velocity and allow for a safe landing.