The Frocket

What it is and how to make it:

Boredom sometimes gets the best of you when you have a bag full of fireworks left over from the 4th of July holiday. My husband and I were about 16 or so when we got bored one day and made a rocket that launches about 200-300 feet in the air. Not too shabby of a distance for two old vegetable cans, water and some black cats. Through these steps we created a firecracker water rocket. We call it, The Frocket!


**DISCLAIMER**

Most of us know how to not get ourselves hurt and stay out of the way of a launching or falling tin can, BUT, I will say it anyway...

FIREWORKS CAN BE DANGEROUS! Every single firework has a warning label saying so. Don't try to relight a failed firecracker with a shorter fuse, just toss it out and use another. Don't put your head over the cans as you are lighting the fuse and stay there; the can WILL bust you in the jaw. Heads up when the can flies into the air, it could come down and hit you. Be careful around the sharp edges of the can where it was opened and where you drill the hole; it can slice you open and it will hurt.

I made the Frocket by using the following materials:

• (1) 8.25 ounce fruit can with pull tab top
• (1) 6 ounce tomato paste can
• (1) Regular fire cracker per launch you desire
• Water
• A lighter or other fire source for lighting the fuse
• A drill with a 7/32 bit, or a medium size phillips head screw driver will work

**It doesn't matter what size cans you use as long as one will fit inside the other and the narrower the small can, the better the launch will be. The two cans should have just a small amount of room in between them when put together. You could also use a "Rotel" or condensed soup can with a regular vegetable can**

Peel the label off of your cans (or at least the small one). Turn the smaller can upside down and drill or poke a hole into the center of it that is the same size as the fire cracker. I just used a black cat brand regular fire cracker and the hole was just a little bigger than a 7/32 size bit. I used a screw driver to help make the hole a little bigger. Don't make the hole too much bigger than the fire cracker. You want the can to be able to hold onto the top part of the fire cracker, and not fall through.

You can use a screw driver to help make the hole slightly larger if it is a bit too small. Also, if you make it a bit too big, you may be able to come from the underside of the can and bend some of the can back to make it a tight fit.

Insert the fire cracker into the bottom of the small can until just the tip of it is showing. Add water to the larger can. This will be somewhere between 1/8 and half full. In all of our launches we got about the same height no matter how much water we used. After water has been added to the larger can, insert the smaller can into it with the fire cracker sticking up. The can will sink to the bottom without any force.

Now, light the firecracker on the Frocket, step back and watch it launch 200- 300 feet into the air.

Each time you want to relaunch your Frocket, simply load another fire cracker, add water, insert the small can into the larger one, and ignite. Happy Launching!!