SCREAM modroc launchpads

From LUNARwiki

I use a stainless steel table section from a scrap yard for the launch pad. The stainless is thick enough to resist burn-through from modrocs. It is about 58" long and 14" wide, the edges roll over and are welded. Think Pink's hot dogs "tables". I used 1/2-13 bolts threaded through, with the head on top, and a hole drilled down into each for the rod. I drilled and tapped a hole through the side of the bolt head for a set screw to hold the launch rod in. The launch controller is a set of ten toggle switches. Those toggle switches are domestic light switches. They are about as high-rel as you will likely see for the amount of current and the voltage they will see. I used an ignition switch from Pep Boys ($10) for the safety interrupt switch (the God key) and bought a momentary push-button switch for the launch button from Radio Shack. Problem with that switch is reliability. The Cub Scouts mash that thing like a starter pedal on a '51 Dodge truck, and have destroyed one in a single session of 100 launches. The simple solution for this is to get a starter pedal for a '51 Dodge truck (haven't done that yet) as a stomp-starter for those guys. I tapped off another set of connections off the other side of the switches for continuity checking. I use a Micronta analog VOM for that. I made a console for the switches out of wood (so retro) and used two rows of five with 5-gang switchplate covers. Numbered, of course (using left over Cub Scout Pinewood Derby car numbers). I usually use a 6-volt lantern battery, but if I am going to see a lot of launches, I take the battery out of my car. The wiring is all good for 110 volts potential (18 gauge lamp cord), all the crimp connectors are soldered after crimping, and I use banana jacks set up on the wiring jumpering off the launch pad, so that if an alligator clip (Radio Shack, again) breaks, I can just unplug it and put on another, to keep the range moving. The launch rods are from Home Depot. I bought 4-foot lengths for the model rockets, assuming that some would get bent (of course, some did), and I could shorten them as I went. I bought some 2" PVC pipe and end caps to store and transport the rods to keep them from getting bent in storage or transport. One end is just a glued-on pipe cap, the other is a glued-on threaded fitting for a threaded cap. Works great. I still have to polish the rods to get the rust and residue off, but I believe they stayed straighter longer in that tube. Plus, they don'troll around the trunk in the tube. Hope this helps.