2024 ⬩ Design, build & launch ⬩ small project
Toolblox Labs
A small model rocket: designed and simulated in OpenRocket, 3D-printed on a Bambu Lab A1 Mini, launched and compared against the simulation.
Context
Toolblox Labs is where I run small experiments in public. Prototype 1 is a model rocket built as a personal challenge: to test aerodynamics from design to launch.
What I did
Designed the rocket in OpenRocket and simulated the flight before printing anything: a predicted 82.9 m apogee, a top speed of 35.9 m/s and Mach 0.105. The design was split into print-friendly segments joined with friction-fit couplers, no glue.
Sliced every part in Bambu Studio and printed them on a Bambu Lab A1 Mini in ABS. Tuned the build around a 5 Ns solid-fuel motor (average thrust 4 N), wired the pad with a 9 V electric igniter and launched twice from 10 m away.
Open-sourced the whole build: the GitHub repository holds the detailed specifications, the full 3D files and instructions to replicate and launch the rocket.
Outcome
Both flights were stable and the measured performance landed close to the OpenRocket predictions, closing the loop: design, simulate, print, fly, compare. The repository carries the full 3D model, STLs, motor thrust curves and flight simulation data.
- Links
- github