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Rocket Car
As a working rocket scientist, Travis has always wondered why we don't have rocket cars. The power of a rocket engine could give a standard car a rapid burst of speed that could have actual military applications, such as a Humvee that shoots to safety with a “rocket assist.” So Travis brings the guys together to build a rocket car.
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Toy Car Test
They start out small: testing toy pedal cars with large hobby rocket engines. The cars jet off out of control, revealing the biggest problem with rocket engines: lots of power, not a lot of control.
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Building the Hybrid Engine
Travis thinks he has the answer: a hybrid rocket engine. It’s rare in the hobby rocket world, but a hybrid rocket has more control because it combines two forms of fuel – a solid and a gas.
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First Tests
To demonstrate. Travis borrows a small hybrid rocket and tries out various forms of strange “fuel: like bologna, cheese, wax and asphalt. Any solid substance with carbon can actually become “rocket fuel” when combined with a gas. The test reveals that asphalt is actually a powerful – and cheap – rocket fuel alternative.
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Test Truck
Rog and Michael buy an old truck that they’ll strap the rocket on for their test. Michael wants one more chance to use a traditional solid fuel rocket motor: which is essentially gunpowder in a tube.
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Ready For Blast Off
The guys strap giant hobby rocket engines on to the toy cars and let ‘em rip.
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Buckled Up
A Yoda doll buckled into the rocket car before launch.
