Building and Launching Silo Model Rockets #modelrockets @joebarnard @bps_space
Because I’ve been writing about DIY technology and makers for so long, people often ask me what’s my favorite maker channel on YouTube. Definitely one of my current faves is BPS.space. On it, Joe Barnard experiments with scale rocketry at a level of sophistication I never could’ve imagined as a young rocketeer launching Estes rockets from car batteries in the mid-70s. On Joe’s channel, you will see (successful!) silo launches, air launches and air motor starts, booster separations, thrust vectoring, and powered landings — pretty much everything you see today in full-scale modern rocketry, but at scale.
One of the technologies he’s experimented with is silo launches where the rocket is ejected from a tube and air-started above the silo. The silo hatch even closes after the rocket clears the tube. Nice to see these back-to-back silo launches employing good ol’ consumer-grade Estes motors (F15). A search on “silo” on his channel shows his silo launch progression.
I love the channel teaser he posted last year. It gives you a great idea of the sorts of things Joe’s experimenting with and it shows you the level of sophistication (and enthusiasm) he brings to his projects. Truly impressive, next-generation amateur rocketry.
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