Mercury Atlas – That ’70s Rocketeer

"You know, it, uh, won’t fly unless somebody pushes the button." From the movie October Sky.

Mercury Atlas Part 3

Posted on October 4, 2019October 16, 2019 by Rocketeer

Transition and adapter leading up to the capsule. I used a BNC-60AK from Semroc, same cone as the Estes K-41 Mercury Redstone. I sanded the Redstone adapter ring off to make it match up to the Atlas. The paper capsule wrap in the picture is just a mock-up. I used 1/12 dowels Continue Reading

Mercury Atlas Part 2

Posted on October 4, 2019October 16, 2019 by Rocketeer

I used the same method for the fairing shrouds that I used on my BT-80 Saturn V using body tube. Semroc’s BT-58 turned out to have the perfect radius. And I started adding some of the corrugated details using corrugated plastic sheet material.

Mercury Atlas Part 1

Posted on October 4, 2019October 16, 2019 by Rocketeer

For a second time, I’m reviving a project I started some time ago. I’ve wanted a Mercury Atlas, so I decided to scratch build one around a BT-80. It seems like the perfect size and I’ve configured the motor mount for a 24mm D engine. I started by cutting the two specialized Continue Reading