Commercial spaceflight may just be taking off, but private rocket enthusiasts have been launching their home kit variants for decades. One of the more colorful examples comes from John Coker, a self-described “born again rocketeer” who launched this amazing pack of stylized Crayon rockets.
A few years ago, Coker was working with a Loc/Precision I-ROC kit when a friend remarked that the I-ROC resembled a crayon. The idea sparked Coker’s imagination, and he decided to build a pack of Crayon rockets that would launch from a box that reflected the usual yellow-and-green Crayon box design.
The Crayon rockets came together from Loc/Precision components as mid-power, one-pound rockets. Coker’s on-and-off work that began in 1998 culminated in a launch attempt at XPRS 2004 in the Black Rock desert of Nevada.
A final countdown came under clear skies with perfect launch conditions. But when the DaveyFire electric matches popped, only four ignited their rocket motors. That still resulted in quite a show for spectators, even as green, brown, yellow and orange still remained in the box.
Check out the full details and account at Coker’s website here. Or take a look at PopSci’s DIY guide to making your own 5-minute rocket.