Sei sulla pagina 1di 5

Fuel for Black Powder Rockets

A long time ago Rich Wolter asked me


how to make nozzles for black powder
rockets. I told him that if he asked
ten people how to do it, he would get
at least eleven answers. Well when it
comes to fuel for black powder
rockets, that number goes up. This is
how I make it. I am not claiming that
this is the best or only way to do it. It
is just one of the many ways.

When I started making black powder


rockets, I was told that 60/30/10 was
what should be used for one pound
rockets. That’s 60 potassium nitrate,
30 charcoal, and 10 sulfur. Well, they
didn’t work too good. I asked Tim
Feider how to make good rockets. He
said, “Get them to blow up
consistently, and then back off on the
oxidizer.” Remember that. It does
work. Then Steve LaDuke told me that
wetting the mixture and drying it
doubled the power. Well I did want
double the power, so I tried that too.

With a lot of trial and error and


testing, I came up with the following
formula and technique. Testing is
important, and also fun.

I use 75 parts of potassium nitrate.


The nice fine free flowing stuff. Then
15 parts of airfloat charcoal. Not ball
milled. That is too fast. Then 10 parts
of sulfur. Again the nice fine stuff.
Rubbermaker’s is preferred if
available, but not totally necessary. I
screen that through a window screen
three times to mix it thoroughly. Then
I wet it until it is the consistency of
thick pancake batter.

I mixed up a batch one Sunday, and


was getting ready to dry it. Then my
wife, Margie, told me that we had to
leave. So I put the wet mix in an
airtight container and put it in the
magazine. The next weekend we came
up and I took it out and dried it. I
feel that the extended damp time
helped it a lot, so I always try to leave
it sit for some time.

To dry it I put it on a cookie sheet


that has aluminum foil on it. I put it in
the sun to dry. As it dries I mix it
around to break up the dry skin that
forms on the top. Slowly it will start
to solidify. As it finally dries up I
screen it with a window screen again.
Dry it some more, and screen it again.
Eventually it will be dry. Then I weigh
the batch and I add 3% mineral oil.
Now I have been told that this slows
it down. I assume that it does. But I
have successfully used this stuff in
black powder rockets from 4 oz (1/2
inch ID) to 4 pound ( 1 ¼ inch ID.) Mix
in the mineral oil, and then screen it
at least two more times. I then add 3
to 4 percent titanium. What I use is
about 80 mesh. Use what type of
titanium you have and see how it
works. Heh, heh, heh… It’s more
testing.

Once you have it made, make a rocket


and try it. If it blows up, add 5%
airfloat charcoal to slow it down, and
try again. Remember what Tim told
me. This is a basic formula. Try
tweeking it a bit one way or the other
by adding more potassium nitrate or
more charcoal to get the desired
effect.

Good luck and I’ll see you at the


rocket line.

Jim Biersach
jimpyro@hobbyhorse.com

Potrebbero piacerti anche