94 replies to this topic

[ProfHawking]

Another of my 1lb motors failed the other night. Im pretty much ready to give up with the home-made tooling and buy proper kit.

So, what is the best bet?
Are there any suppliers of tooling in the UK whatsoever?

If it has to be the US, which supplier is best?
wolter - $88
firefox - $70
skylighter - $102.25
Harold - ??? I emailed him a couple days back but no reply yet.

Or better yet, does anyone have any second hand tooling for sale?

[Pretty green flames]

You can buy it from Greg Boyd for 40$ (1 pound rocket tooling)

Great quality.

[Draco_Americanus]

I am happy with the tooling I bought from skylighter, the main spindle is stainless steel and has a large stable base. I also have tooling from firefox and they have an aluminum spindle and a smaller base but they are cheaper in cost and come with instructions. So if you use rockets with titanium in the fuel you may wish to use the more robust tooling from skylighter.

[Yugen-biki]

I have the Wolter tool. It is good but somewhat expensive.

[ProfHawking]

Cheers guys, Greg Boyd looks like a decent deal.

aim i going mad or have some posts disappeared?

[alany]

Wolter's is excellent, I can personally recommend it.

Greg's is definately the best all-round deal if you are just starting out. I really like the way he has turned-down bulk of the drift length, its great if your tubes are a bit tight like one particular batch I have that are just under the 3/4". The knurling is excellent too, but I think I prefer (or would like to have on Greg's tooling in addition to the knurling) the extraction T-bar that Rich's offers for stubborn extractions, expecially after pressing the nozzle hard rather than ramming it. Admittidly it is less of an issue with his because of the looser fit of the bulk of their length.

I don't know what's happened to Harold, he was in the process of making me some end-burning tooling and he has vanished. I hope he is OK?

I've never used the Firefox tooling, but my god, just look at the photos! It isn't even in the same league.

Edited by BigG, 13 November 2005 - 02:23 PM.

[Frozentech]

Wolter's is excellent, I can personally recommend it.

As you may have heard, Rich Wolter recently had heart surgery and is taking a couple of months off. It was evidently quite successful and his wife has posted that he is doing well. I had gotten email from him ( he must have mailed all customers ? ) saying he was 'on vacation' until February 2006. I love his tooling and have a wish list already made up for my next order.

I also highly recommend Greg Boyd's products, have not tried out anything from Harold (yet).

[ProfHawking]

Ive ordered from Greg Boyd. Exciting!

I was only going to get one set, but i couldnt decide which. I went a bit mad and ordered both sizes

[burningbush]

Good choice! Always start cheap! unless a sacrifice in craftsmanship, I can atest the sets from boyd
are good quality!
Ive personally bought from firefox and am very happy with performance and the grade of metal seems to have held up to avarage abuse !
One note they do wear out ,be sure you dont use to much grog etc ..in clay plugs and they should last for many years of use.
Good luck,have fun ,be safe.
P.

[Von Bass]

just a quickie.. are there any sites that are based in the UK, or will send tooling out here? I dont think my homemades just up to scratch!

[ProfHawking]

i came to the conclusion that there isnt anyone in the UK. If there is, they are not advertised or anything.

All of the ones mentioned above ship to the UK i think. I ordered from pyrotooling.com and he seemed very nice, and efficent. I havent got the tooling yet, but he said he sent it, and didnt charge me extra for international shipping.

[sizzle]

Well, speaking of rockets, I just made my first, waiting for the Pollyfilla nozzle to dry at the moment but i'll let you know how it goes and post a video when I launch it tommorow. Thanks to everyone for the advice by the way.

[Von Bass]

oh wow! i know i didnt start this forum, but one of my homemade rockets just worked amazingly well! i used electrical ignition for the first time, and after a small sputter, the rocket rose beautifully, shooting orange sparks and a tail of orange fire.. wow. The rocket is truly a noble of fireworks! Dont give up to anyone who is trying!

[ProfHawking]

At last! My tooling arrived this morning, from Greg Boyd.
Excellent quality and value. Highly reccomended.
Its so much easier and efficient than drilling a core

I got a video of my first try with the new kit. Its a 1/2" ID, with a single red star header, just to let me know if/when the passfire worked.

[The_Djinn]

Aah, got an E-mail from Greg the other day as he was updating his contacts list and wanted me to confirm my details... hadnt responded as I was trying to remember who the hell Greg Boyd was...lol

He does make some very nice tooling and oh boy does that Rocket kit work.... hasnt failed me yet.

Mark