Easy fairing/shroud between 2 liters
Posted: Sat Jul 26, 2014 12:42 pm
Not sure if anyone else has tried this, but I've found an easy (if not aerodynamically ideal) method to add a fairing/shroud to cover the tornado tube (or similar) coupler between 2-liters.
Unfortunately, the distance between the straight sides between two coupled 2-liter bottles is longer than the straight sided portion of a 2 liter (that you would use to harvest material to make a fairing). So to make a nice straight sided fairing, you will need to splice your 2-liters just to make the fairing - kind of a pain.
To simplify construction, I decided to use the straight portion of a 1-liter bottle since it's smaller diameter effectively shortens the amount of straight sided bottle required.
To make one, just find a straight sided 1-liter and carefully cut it down until it just barely fits snug once your coupler is fully tight. You need to be careful that you don't leave it too long or have irregular/rough edges or it will dent the 2 liter and may cause structural weakness in the 2-liter pressure vessel. I painted the inside of my fairings with spray paint to hide the couplers and add some flair...
Not sure how detrimental the hourglass effect is on the aerodynamics, but when properly fitted the fairing adds a lot of stiffness and integrity to the rocket which helps to keep it from kinking while handling on the ground.
-uberpixel
Unfortunately, the distance between the straight sides between two coupled 2-liter bottles is longer than the straight sided portion of a 2 liter (that you would use to harvest material to make a fairing). So to make a nice straight sided fairing, you will need to splice your 2-liters just to make the fairing - kind of a pain.
To simplify construction, I decided to use the straight portion of a 1-liter bottle since it's smaller diameter effectively shortens the amount of straight sided bottle required.
To make one, just find a straight sided 1-liter and carefully cut it down until it just barely fits snug once your coupler is fully tight. You need to be careful that you don't leave it too long or have irregular/rough edges or it will dent the 2 liter and may cause structural weakness in the 2-liter pressure vessel. I painted the inside of my fairings with spray paint to hide the couplers and add some flair...
Not sure how detrimental the hourglass effect is on the aerodynamics, but when properly fitted the fairing adds a lot of stiffness and integrity to the rocket which helps to keep it from kinking while handling on the ground.
-uberpixel