Ground test of similar motor?38rms.gif
The LV-0 was designed with an interchangeable motor mount to allow the use of most commercially manufactured motors. This includes the High Power Rocketry standard 29mm, 38mm, and 54mm motors.
The motor mount is essentially a fiberglass tube slightly larger in diameter than the motor with a 4-inch diameter adapter that allows it to fit snug in the main body section. This motor mount then buts up against a thrust ring inside the main body that keeps the adapter from shooting through the rocket. The Adapter is also held in the body by small bolt. This insures the ejection charge from the motor does not blow the motor and mount free of the rocket. Gravity assisted pieces of the rocket raining from the sky should be avoided. It is also financially undesirable.
For the maiden flight of the LV-0 we decided to use an Aerotech J350 motor. This motor burns for about 2 seconds and has an average thrust around 78 lbs.( 350 N). The total impulse of the motor is 700 N.s. This motor is approximately one tenth the size of the motor we will be using for the LV-1 launch.
The J350 is a 38mm motor. It is a composite fuel comprised mainly of Ammonium Perchlorate, Aluminum, and a Polymer known as HTPB. Total weight of the fuel is 375 grams and is purchased as a reload kit, that is you buy the fuel, nozzle, and o-rings by themselves. You then load them into the appropriate size aluminum motor casing that you can purchase separately. This makes the total cost per flight much lower in the long run. To purchase the J, K, and L size motors from Aerotech you must have a level 2 certification from the Tripoli Organization.