Parachute deployment help

[maxilius]

Hi guys...I have a 30 inch (diamter) parachute..can someone link me some good websites that gives good suggestions on that? OR you can give me some advice..detailed plz.. OR..link AND give me good detailed advice! Thanks very much!

[Brian]

this site has lots of examples for any type or of recovery systems, including parachute recoverys. http://www.aircommandrockets.com/recovery_guide.htm
for small rockets a big parachute may not be necessary because big parachutes tend to drift far and small parachutes should still do the job.

[RebelRockets]

Welcome maxilius,

A very basic round parachute made from one piece of material, 30 inches in diameter, should support a load of 200 grams / 7 ounces at a safe 10 feet per second descent. A specially made parachute could support almost twice that weight.

Unless you have a lot of open, treeless land to launch in, too large a parachute is unnecessary and could make packing and deploying more of a problem. It could also add more weight than you need for your rocket.

Did you make the parachute yourself or did you get it already made? That information would help others in giving their advice.

Dennis

[U.S. Water Rockets1]

Hi guys...I have a 30 inch (diamter) parachute..can someone link me some good websites that gives good suggestions on that? OR you can give me some advice..detailed plz.. OR..link AND give me good detailed advice! Thanks very much!

a 30 inch parachute would be suitable for a large heavy rocket. You should consider making your own from a plastic bag, if you are using a light rocket. A large parachute on a light rocket would make the flight last longer but the rocket could drift for a long distance with a chute that big. You could lose it in trees or on a roof, etc.

[danb]

i dont know if this would help but i use old broken or cheap umbrellas remove the material off the umbrella cut a circular hole in the middle of the material i use duck tape on the cut edges to stop any fraying or ripping i then stick strips of duck tape on the outer edges where you will attach the strings once the tape is on there use a hole punch then you can tie the string through the holes il post some pics up if this sounds very complicated, my rocket weighs 400grams and the size of umbrella is about 3ft and it brings the rocket down at a safe speed hope this helps

danb

[U.S. Water Rockets1]

i dont know if this would help but i use old broken or cheap umbrellas remove the material off the umbrella cut a circular hole in the middle of the material i use duck tape on the cut edges to stop any fraying or ripping i then stick strips of duck tape on the outer edges where you will attach the strings once the tape is on there use a hole punch then you can tie the string through the holes il post some pics up if this sounds very complicated, my rocket weighs 400grams and the size of umbrella is about 3ft and it brings the rocket down at a safe speed hope this helps

danb

Unless you have a really large rocket, an umbrella will probably be overkill. The material is very thick and adds a lot of weight and the parachute itself is so large the rocket will drift a long was as it comes down. Are you sure you can't just use a plastic shopping bag or trash bag for your parachute?