        ROCKETS AND CANNONS                                             131


                                    Chapter 9
        
                                ROCKETS AND CANNONS
        
             Rockets and cannon are generally thought of as heavy artillery. Perpetra
        tors of violence do not usually employ such devices, because they are diffi
        cult or impossible to acquire.  They are not, however, impossible to make. Any 
        individual who can make or buy black powder or pyrodex can make such things. 
        
        ROCKETS
        
             Rockets were first developed by the Chinese several hundred years before 
        Christ. They were used for entertainment, in the form of fireworks. They were 
        not usually used for military purposes because they were inaccurate, expen
        sive, and unpredictable.  In modern times, however, rockets are used constant
        ly by the military, since they are cheap, reliable, and have no recoil. Perpe
        trators of violence, fortunately, cannot obtain military rockets, but they can 
        make or buy rocket engines.  
        
             Model rocketry is a popular hobby of the space age, and to launch a 
        rocket, an engine is required. Estes, a subsidiary of Damon, is the leading 
        manufacturer of model rockets and rocket engines. Their most powerful engine, 
        the "D" engine, can develop almost 12 lbs. of thrust; enough to send a rela
        tively large explosive charge a significant distance. Other companies, such as 
        Centuri, produce even larger rocket engines, which develop up to 30 lbs. of 
        thrust. These model rocket engines are quite reliable, and are designed to be 
        fired electrically. Most model rocket engines have three basic sections. The 
        diagram below will help explain them.
         _________________________________________________ 
         |________________________________________________| -- cardboard
          \  clay | - - - - - - | * * * | . . . .|c|            casing
           \______| - - - - - - | * * * |  . . . |l|
            ______  - - thrust -| smoke | eject  |a|
           / clay | - - - - - - | * * * | . . . .|y|
          /_______|_____________|_______|________|_|______
         |________________________________________________| -- cardboard
                                                                casing
        
             The clay nozzle is where the igniter is inserted. When the area labeled 
        "thrust" is ignited, the "thrust" material, usually a large single grain of a 
        propellant such as black powder or pyrodex, burns, forcing large volumes of 
        hot, rapidly expanding gasses out the narrow nozzle, pushing the rocket for
        ward. 
        
             After the material has been consumed, the smoke section of the engine is 
        ignited. It is usually a slow-burning material, similar to black powder that 
        has had various compounds added to it to produce visible smoke, usually black, 
        white, or yellow in color.  This section exists so that the rocket will be 
        seen when it reaches its maximum altitude, or apogee.  When it is burned up, 
        it ignites the ejection charge, labeled "eject".  
        
             The ejection charge is finely powdered black powder. It burns very rapid
        ly, exploding, in effect. The explosion of the ejection charge pushes out the 
        parachute of the model rocket. It could also be used to ignite the fuse of a 
        bomb.


                                (c) 1990 
        132                        The Survivalist's Second Strike Handbook


        
             Rocket engines have their own peculiar labeling system.  Typical engine 
        labels are: 1/4A-2T, 1/2A-3T, A8-3, B6-4, C6-7, and D12-5. The letter is an 
        indicator of the power of an engine.  "B" engines are twice as powerful as "A" 
        engines, and "C" engines are twice as powerful as "B" engines, and so on.  
        
             The number following the letter is the approximate thrust of the engine, 
        in pounds. The final number and letter is the time delay, from the time that 
        the thrust period of engine burn ends until the ejection charge fires; "3T" 
        indicates a 3 second delay.
        
        
             NOTE: an extremely effective rocket propellant can be made by mixing 
        aluminum dust with ammonium perchlorate and a very small amount of iron oxide. 
        The mixture is bound together by an epoxy.
        
             BASIC ROCKET BOMB
        
             A rocket bomb is simply what the name implies: a bomb that is delivered 
        to its target by means of a rocket. Most people who would make such a device 
        would use a model rocket engine to power the device. By cutting fins from 
        balsa wood and gluing them to a large rocket engine, such as the Estes "C" 
        engine, a basic rocket could be constructed. Then, by attaching a "crater 
        maker", or CO2 cartridge bomb to the rocket, a bomb would be added. To insure 
        that the fuse of the "crater maker" ignited, the clay over the ejection charge 
        of the engine should be scraped off with a plastic tool. The fuse of the bomb 
        should be touching the ejection charge, as shown below.
        
                  ____________ rocket engine
                  |                         _________ crater maker
                  V                         |
             _______________________________V_
             |_______________________________|  ______________________
              \   | - - - - - -|***|::::|      /# # # # # # # # # # # \
               \__| - - - - - -|***|::::|  ___/  # # # # # # # # # # # \
                __  - - - - - -|***|::::|---fuse--- # #  explosive  # # )
               /  | - - - - - -|***|::::|  ___   # # # # # # # # # # # /
              /___|____________|___|____|____ \_______________________/
             |_______________________________|
        
        
             thrust> - - - - - -
             smoke>  ***
             ejection charge> ::::
        
             Duct tape is the best way to attach the crater maker to the rocket en
        gine. Note in the diagram the absence of the clay over the ejection charge 
        Many different types of explosive payloads can be attached to the rocket, such 
        as a high explosive, an incendiary device, or a chemical fire bottle.








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        ROCKETS AND CANNONS                                             133


           Either four or three fins must be glued to the rocket engine to insure that 
        the rocket flies straight. The fins should look like the following diagram:
        
        
                  |\
                  | \
                  |  \
                  |   \  <--------- glue this to rocket engine
                  |    \
                  |     \
                  |      \
                  |       |
          leading edge    |
           ------->       |
                  |       |
                  |       |  trailing edge
                  |       |    <--------
                  |       |
                   \_____/
        
             The leading edge and trailing edge should be sanded with sandpaper so 
        that they are rounded. This will help make the rocket fly straight. A two inch 
        long section of a plastic straw can be attached to the rocket to launch it 
        from. A clothes hanger can be cut and made into a launch rod. The segment of a 
        plastic straw should be glued to the rocket engine adjacent to one of the fins 
        of the rocket. A front view of a completed rocket bomb is shown below.
        
                                |
             fin                | <------ fin
              |                 |           |
              |                 |           |
              |               __|__         |
              V              /     \        V
             ---------------|       |---------------
                             \_____/
                                |o <----------- segment of plastic straw
                                |
                                |
                                | <------ fin
                                |
                                |
        
             By cutting a coat hanger at the indicated arrows, and bending it, a 
        launch rod can be made. After a fuse is inserted in the engine, the rocket is 
        simply slid down the launch rod, which is put through the segment of plastic 
        straw. The rocket should slide easily along a coathanger, such as the one 
        illustrated below:










                                (c) 1990 
        134                        The Survivalist's Second Strike Handbook


                                 ____
                                /    \
                               |     |
                  cut here _____     |
                               |     |
                               |     |
                               |    / \
                               V   /   \
                 _________________/     \________________
                /                                        \
               /                                          \
              /____________________________________________\
                                           ^
                                           |
                                           |
                            and here ______|
        
             Bend wire to this shape:
        
                                 _______ insert into straw
                                 |
                                 |
                                 V
                  ____________________________________________
                  \
                   \
                    \
                     \
                      \  <--------- bend here to adjust flight angle
                       |
                       |
                       |
                       | <---------- put this end in ground
                       |
        
        
             LONG RANGE ROCKET BOMB
        
             Long range rockets can be made by using multi-stage rockets.  Model 
        rocket engines with an "0" for a time delay are designed for use in multi-
        stage rockets. An engine such as the D12-0 is an excellent example of such an 
        engine. 
        
             Immediately after the thrust period is over, the ejection charge ex
        plodes. If another engine is placed directly against the back of an "0" en
        gine, the explosion of the ejection charge will send hot gasses and burning 
        particles into the nozzle of the engine above it, and ignite the thrust sec
        tion. This will push the used "0" engine off of the rocket, causing an overall 
        loss of weight. 
        
              The main advantage of a multi-stage rocket is that it looses weight as 
        travels, and it gains velocity. A multi-stage rocket must be designed somewhat 
        differently than a single stage rocket, since, in order for a rocket to fly 
        straight, its center of gravity must be ahead of its center of drag. 
        


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        ROCKETS AND CANNONS                                             135


             This is accomplished by adding weight to the front of the rocket, or by 
        moving the center of drag back by putting fins on the rocket that are well 
        behind the rocket. A diagram of a multi-stage rocket follows:
                            ___
                           /   \
                           |   |
                           | C |
                           | M | ------ CM: Crater Maker
                           |   |
                           |___|
                           |   |
                           |   |
                           | C | ------ C6-5 rocket engine
                          /| 6 |\
                         / | | | \
                        /  | 5 |  \
                       /   |___|   \ ---- fin
                      /   /|   |\   \
                     /   / |   | \   \
                    /   /  |   |  \   \
                   /   /   | C |   \   \
                  |   /    | 6 |    \   |
                  |  /     | | |     \  |
                  | /      | 0 |      \ |
                  |/       |___|       \|
                  |       /     \       |
                  \______/   ^   \______/ ------- fin
                             |
                             |
                             C6-0 rocket engine
        
        
             The fuse is put in the bottom engine.
        
             Two, three, or even four stages can be added to a rocket bomb to give it 
        a longer range. It is important, however, that for each additional stage, the 
        fin area gets larger.




















                                (c) 1990 
        136                        The Survivalist's Second Strike Handbook


             MULTIPLE WARHEAD ROCKET BOMBS
        
             "M.R.V." is an acronym for Multiple Reentry Vehicle. The concept is 
        simple: put more than one explosive warhead on a single missile. This can be 
        done without too much difficulty by anyone who knows how to make crater-makers 
        and can buy rocket engines. By attaching crater makers with long fuses to a 
        rocket, it is possible that a single rocket could deliver several explosive 
        devices to a target. Such a rocket might look like the following diagram:
                      ___
                     /   \
                     |   |
                     | C |
                     | M |
                     |___|
                  ___|   |___
                  |  |   |  |
                  |  | T |  |
                 / \ | U | / \
                /   \| B |/   \
                |   || E ||   |
                | C ||   || C |
                | M ||   || M |
                |   ||___||   |
                \___/| E |\___/
                     | N |
                    /| G |\
                   / | I | \
                  /  | N |  \
                 /   | E |   \
                /    |___|    \
               / fin/  |  \ fin\
              |    /   |   \    |
               \__/    |    \__/
        
                       ^
                       |____ fin
        
             The crater makers are attached to the tube of rolled paper with tape. The 
        paper tube is made by rolling and gluing a 4 inch by 8 inch piece of paper. 
        The tube is glued to the engine, and is filled with gunpowder or black powder. 
        Small holes are punched in it, and the fuses of the crater makers are inserted 
        in these holes. A crater maker is glued to the open end of the tube, so that 
        its fuse is inside the tube. A fuse is inserted in the engine, or in the 
        bottom engine if the rocket bomb is multi stage, and the rocket is launched 
        from the coathanger launcher, if a segment of a plastic straw has been at
        tached to it.
        
        CANNON
        
             The cannon is a piece of artillery that has been in use since the 11th 
        century. It is not unlike a musket, in that it is filled with powder, loaded, 
        and fired. Cannons of this sort must also be cleaned after each shot, other
        wise, the projectile may jam in the barrel when it is fired, causing the 
        barrel to explode. 



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        ROCKETS AND CANNONS                                             137


             BASIC PIPE CANNON
        
             A simple cannon can be made from a thick pipe by almost anyone. The only 
        difficult part is finding a pipe that is extremely smooth on its interior. 
        This is absolutely necessary; otherwise, the projectile may jam. Copper or 
        aluminum piping is usually smooth enough, but it must also be extremely thick 
        to withstand the pressure developed by the expanding hot gasses in a cannon.  
        
            If one uses a projectile such as a CO2 cartridge, since such a projectile 
        can be made to explode, a pipe that is about 1.5 - 2 feet long is ideal. Such 
        a pipe MUST have walls that are at least 1/3 to 1/2 an inch thick, and be very 
        smooth on the interior. If possible, screw an endplug into the pipe. Other
        wise, the pipe must be crimped and folded closed, without cracking or tearing 
        the pipe. 
        
             A small hole is drilled in the back of the pipe near the crimp or end
        plug. Then, all that need be done is fill the pipe with about two teaspoons of 
        grade blackpowder or pyrodex, insert a fuse, pack it lightly by ramming a wad 
        of tissue paper down the barrel, and drop in a CO2 cartridge. Brace the cannon 
        securely against a strong structure, light the fuse, and run. If the person is 
        lucky, he will not have overcharged the cannon, and he will not be hit by 
        pieces of exploding barrel. Such a cannon would look like this:
        
                 __________________ fuse hole
                 |
                 V
         _ _______________________________________________________
        | |_______________________________________________________|
        |endplug|powder|t.p.| CO2 cartridge
        |  _____|______|____|_____________________________________
        |_|_______________________________________________________|
        
             An exploding projectile can be made for this type of cannon with a CO2 
        cartridge. It is relatively simple to do. Just make a crater maker, and con
        struct it such that the fuse projects about an inch from the end of the car
        tridge. Then, wrap the fuse with duct tape, covering it entirely, except for a 
        small amount at the end. Put this in the pipe cannon without using a tissue 
        paper packing wad. When the cannon is fired, it will ignite the end of the 
        fuse, and shoot the CO2 cartridge. The explosive-filled cartridge will explode 
        in about three seconds, if all goes well. Such a projectile would look like 
        this:
                   ___
                  /   \
                  |   |
                  | C |
                  | M |
                  |   |
                  |\ /|
                  | | | ---- tape
                  |_|_|
                    |
                    | ------ fuse
        




                                (c) 1990 
        138                        The Survivalist's Second Strike Handbook


             ROCKET FIRING CANNON
        
             A rocket firing cannon can be made exactly like a normal cannon; the only 
        difference is the ammunition. A rocket fired from a cannon will fly further 
        than a rocket alone, since the action of shooting it overcomes the initial 
        inertia. A rocket that is launched when it is moving will go further than one 
        that is launched when it is stationary. Such a rocket would resemble a normal 
        rocket bomb, except it would have no fins. It would look like this:
                   ___
                  /   \
                  |   |
                  | C |
                  | M |
                  |___|
                  | E |
                  | N |
                  | G |
                  | I |
                  | N |
                  | E |
                  |___|
        
             The fuse on such a device would, obviously, be short, but it would not be 
        ignited until the rocket's ejection charge exploded.  Thus, the delay before 
        the ejection charge, in effect, becomes the delay before the bomb explodes. 
        Note that no fuse need be put in the rocket; the burning powder in the cannon 
        will ignite it, and simultaneously push the rocket out of the cannon at a high 
        velocity.





























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