As a part of CalPoly Space Systems, we are given the opportunity at the beginning of every school year to build a medium powered amateur rocket from scratch that protects an egg during the whole flight. Rocket Balboa, my rocket, was built by my friend and I in about 12 hours of work time. During the build of this Rocket, I gained experience in molding composites, aerodynamics, propulsion, and recovery devices.

The main fuselage and nose cone were constructed from fiberglass and was molded by my team and I. Other core components were constructed out of wood, for example the engine centering rings and the fins were constructed out of wood.

All of the painting was done with spray paint and stencils were used to make the letters and symbols. In order to create our custom template, we created our design on Adobe Illustrator and laser cut the design onto adhesive vinyl. Then using transferring tape, we attached the vinyl to the rocket and spray painted over the vinyl to use it as stencil.

Launch took place on November 5th, 2016 in the Mojave Desert, CA. The rocket reached approximately 2,000 feet and kept an egg intact during the whole flight.