DIY Stomp Rockets

In this instructable I will show you how to make stomp rockets out of house hold materials. I first saw how to make these a while back in a class when we learned about how rockets worked, I did tweak the design a bit, so this isn't quite designed by me. however, these do do a great job of explaining how rockets work and are great for class activities for students young and old.

You'll Need:

-paper
-tape
-scissors
-2 liter soda bottle
-1in wide bike tube( at least 3 ft long)
-1in wide pvc, abs pipe (at least a foot long)
-pen or pencil

Step 1: The Launching System

To make the launching system stretch the bike tube over the 2 liter soda bottle and add some tape if it doesnt seal well enough, then attach the other end of the bike tube to the pvc pipe and add tape if needed, now the launching system is done, so now we need to make a rocket.

Step 2: Making the Rocket Body

Yo make the body of the rocket start with a piece of paper and roll it up longways and place it over the pvc pipe, before you tape it make sure it can easily slide on and off of the pipe, if its to tight it wont come off, to loose and and wont go as high. So once its at the right diameter tape it down the entire rocket to seal it better. Try experimenting with different diameter rockets and see if a tighter tube works better than a looser tube.

Step 3: Add the Nose Cone

Now to make a nose cone I started out with a triangle shape piece of paper which work really well, but it doesnt really matter how you make as long as it has a cone. Once you have your paper cone taped place it on top of your rocket body, most likely there will be some "edge" sticking out, just cut this off and tape it on. now you need fins...

Step 4: Making the Fins

To make the fins fold a piece of paper four time and draw a fin design, theres no correct way to draw them so you can make them how ever you want. To attach them stick a piece of tape to one side and place it one the rocket wherever you want then add a second piece of tape to the other side, repeat this step with the rest of the fins.

Step 5: Launching!

To launch the rocket, slide the rocket onto the pvc pipe and hold it pointing up (or at your desired target/person) and stomp on the 2 liter soda bottle, the harder you stomp the higher the rocket will go. after a while you may have to replace the bottle because sometimes it splits open, and you may also have to reinforce the nose cone, after a while it gets smashed in too.

Ask if you have any questions

Enjoy!

Comments

[smith230040]

Thank you for this

[smith230040]

I think this is going to work...

[ilovescience123]

sweet mother of atombrough, what a good design! my holy einsteinium that is incredibly gorgeous

[lolady5]

This really helped make my DIY stomp rockets! Thanks!

[ilovescience123]

no problem science is my life

[ilovescience123]

omg this is amazing I love this !!!!!!!!!!!!

[lolady5]

[joramous]

I use this with my physics classes. They love it! The only thing we do differently is we use the bottle cap to seal the top of the rocket before placing the nose cone. It does add mass but the better seal (than you get with taping alone) allows for more air pressure in the rocket.

[mayrabenitez]

[colB]

Tried this with my son for a school project and it was great. we made one with a narrower pipe and one with wider. The narrower pipe was significantly better. A also found that a narrow racer tube that kept it's shape worked way better than a flat mb tube. got the tube free from local bike shop that recycles load of used tubes.

[Cheeseduck]

I do this all the time with my nephew. The only thing I do differently is use zip-ties to attach the rubber tube to the pvc pipe and the bottle. They are cheap, easy to attach, make a tighter seal than tape, and don't leave behind a sticky residue.

[Lovebug1812]

i am so gonna try this.

[sithlil]

how far does it shoot?

[retrotimelord]

cooooooooooooooool i want one but i dont have a bike tube
can u use something other than that?
plz respond

[Emsaid]

just anything that air can be passed through so maybe a hose of some sort??

[redlizard5]

would it work with 3/4 pvc instead

[retrotimelord]

of course it works just make the rocket bigger

[asarris]

instead of stomping you could use pressured air for a more "explosive" flight.

[stringstretcher]

A rocket like this flies a LOT higher if you add a small weight to the nose. Read a little bit about ballistics to find out why. Do some experimenting with weight and report your results here! Stomp rockets are great!

[omnibot]

Excellent use of simple parts. Many stomp rocket launchers are discouragingly complicated.