i saw junk yard wars and they wre building model rockets, in different configuration and it looked fun!  i wanna see if my "design" will work but have no clue how to build em.  anyone into this stuff?

there is a lot of information to be had on this subject.. I suggest you start here:

The [b]Tripoli Rocketry Association[/b]

[url]http://www.tripoli.org[/url]

I build them for fun all the time! Not into the hi power but am into mid power ( E,F ) series motors. My largest rocket is 4'5" tall and 3.5" dia. It will go to 2500 feet easy. The best way to start is , don't laugh , Estes rockets. Once you have figured out what works and how they work go to mid power. Unless you have enough clear field to recover a rocket that can approach 5,000 feet in altitude don't go beyond mid power. It is very painfull to send a 500 dollar rocket into the unknown. Hi power is expensive and must be done in a very controled enviroment. Mid power can be done in most 40 acre feilds, and only costs about 5 to 10 bucks a shot, Estes, low power, is done in a school yard and cost about 3 to 5 bucks for 3 motors. The estes rockets can get to 1500 feet in altitude if you are good at it.
So back to your Question where to start?? Easy go to Kmart/wallmart or your local hobby store and get an estes starter kit. Once you have mastered them and want to move into fields of 40 acres minimum go the the web and look up "aerotech". I recomend the Mustang with an f-25 12 w motor. Itw ill reach 3500 feet easy and puts on quite a show....pat

If there is a site that gives winds aloft at certain altitudes you might be able to calculate drift starting at the Zenith of the climb.  That way you would have a rough estimate of the radius under which your rocket will come down.

do you guys build your own from scratch, in whatever confuguration you think will work?  or is it all kits &c?

There is a group in Arizona , A Bunch of Ungineers, that build theres from scratch.  They the last time I heard were working on designing thier own SOLID Fuel Motor. But that was years ago, I don't know what they are working on now. If I remember correctly they were shooting for 100,000+ feet.  I don't remember though.

They had a special on one of the science channels. Very impressive seeing their rockets.

But I have never built one before, I just launched one when I was a kid and have kinda just kept my EAR open for information since then.

Ben

I often build from scratch, but it is a lot of work. The body tube is easy, the fins are ok, the motor mount is a pain and the nose cone is just a bitch! It can be done though. My latest which has not yet flown is an all balsa body tube 3 inches in dia and 3 foot long with 4 balsa fins built up over ribs. the nose cone is balsa over a foam core.
the body tube was made by wrapping 1/8 inch wide strips of balsa around a piece of wax paper covered PVC. the wrap is on a diagonal of 45 degrees then rewrapped in the opposite direction. All of this done while the thing is wet with wood glue. This is one of the strongest and lightest tubes I have ever made.
I am planing on powering it with 3 e15 motors and expect to get to 5,000 ft.
When I need a rocket to perform well and be retrieved I use a kit.

I've always liked the simple Estes rocket kits.  Still a blast and I don't need a tracking device to find it when I'm done.

[url]http://www.estesrockets.com/[/url]

Hey, don't laugh.  I still like my .22 single shot as well. [:D]

just remember, if you decide to get into the hi-power rockets, you get to play with the BATF in a second hobby.  Lots of rules and regs regarding purchasing and storage.

Mine are all scratch built, it's a lot more fun to let your imagination run wild. Plus, I like the .022" (Wall thickness) X 2.90" ID because I've got a few hundred Ener-JECT 72, 85, & 105lb thrust X 24, 17, and 14 sec. duration respectively.
Any one of the Ener-JECT SP engines will get a 3½ LB rocket to Mach 1.2 (±).

I've managed to get EJ-105s to hit Mach 1.8 several times by drilling out a ¼" hollow core just over 3" long. They lose some burn duration, but they hit at least the same altitude -- go figure.
They move so much faster because the hollow core has a lot more of the propellant surface exposed to combustion, so it burns / moves much faster because the nozzle is still the same and the gas HAS to come out (Yes - I've gone too far & had engines kB! -- along with $400 rockets and 150 hours of labor).

These guys will tach you everything you could possibly want to know about building your own rockets.  They have a video/software/book package for $60 that will teach you how.
[url]http://www.space-rockets.com/Cptechno.html[/url]
This hobby, if you build yourself, is almost entirely free from regulation.  All you need is a FAA wiver to shoot rockets off, and that's a breeze to get.

I bough it myself but I've been too busy/broke/no workspace to start making my own rockets.  I used to do Estes model rockets when I was in grade school, but I want to build these suckers, powered by the same fuel used in the space shuttle's boosters!

I was approached about going on that show. I turned down the invitation though. Did you know that it takes 14 days to do one of those shows? The first set is 6 days and the second and third set is 4 days each! Man, I aint using all my vacation to win some junkyard trophy!

I work on rockets everyday; and yes they are built from scratch, so I didn't see the point in building one on vacation.

Aint it strange that rockets and biscuits are made from the same ingredients?

All my rockets would only carry a 1lb payload about 3000 horizontal feet.  But they always went bang.  Then the cops escorted me home back to my parents.  This was in my younger days.  About 7 years ago.  I still have a lot of notes if anyone is intereted in them.  It might take me awhile to dig them up though.  All my motors were based on a KNO3/Sucrose fuel, worked extremely well, also made excellent smoke grenades.

Damn you Pangea,
Why not just tease me with "Pepsi can thin" titanium bodies, and avionics that I can only dream about! [;D]

The Estes rokets are fine for me.

I experimented in making model rockets that used a sugar/KNO3/S fuel mixture that was compacted into the engine casing using a ram and madrel. They worked pretty good. The info I have has engine designs up to "G" size engines, but I never got that far.

Yeah, i've played with Potassium Nitrate quite a bit.

I also like to play with H2O2 and Ethyl Alky. I've been messing around a bit with liquids but not on the scale i'd like just small stuff.

I really generated [b]A LOT[/B] of smoke one day with a solid fuel engine I was testing. Buried it upside down in my yard and the fumes filled my brothers place....took a long time to get rid of the fumes.

I used to be in PGI and WPA so my rocket applications weren't for stuff that was coming back.