On Tuesday we released part 7 in the video series on how to assemble the revolutionary new Gliding Parachute. This finally solves the problem where the model drifts away and recovery is difficult. Instead of walking to retreive your rocket, the parachute can be steered and the whole thing can be brought right down to your feet. Unless you love searching for lost rockets, this is something you may be interested in.

If you missed the video, you can view it from our archive page (here).

Other Internal News from Apogee

Our laser cutter has been slowing down - unfortunately, this is normal. It slowly loses power from daily use, and makes cutting through thick wood (like plywood fins) a slow and painful process. So once every couple of years, we have to replace the laser tube. The good news is that it is up and running at 100% again. Yeah! I know this isn't really useful information, but for us it is pretty exciting. We don't want to run out of kits because our machine can't keep up.

We had a question from a customer this week that may be pertain to you too. The customer was in the Colorado mountains for a ski vacation, and was wondering if they could stop by the Apogee facility. The answer is: "YES." We love visitors. We'll give you the 5-minute tour, and let you browse and shop our rows-and-rows of rocketry goodies. Don't forget to take pictures while you're here. We love seeing them shared on social media. Our hours of operation are listed on our website, along with our address.

The other exciting news is that Tim took a vacation this week, and is currently visiting his daughter in Florida. Since it has been very cold here recently, I'm sure Tim is enjoying the warmer weather. He is doing a little work while he's gone, such as doing the Apogee presentation at the virtual NARCON on Friday night. Let's hope he remembers to show up...

Did you miss the Industry Updates Newsletter?

One of our fastest growing publications is the Industry Updates Newsletter. This email newsletter comes out about once a month, and features short promos for the newest items from not only Apogee Components, but other manufacturers as well. If you aren't already a subscriber to that newsletter, you can get on the list at: https://www.apogeerockets.com/Industry-Update-Subscribe

Stop Struggling With Sanding in Tight Spaces

If you struggle with getting sandpaper into tight locations on your rocket, we've got a simple solution for you.

Each month, Apogee Components is offering a promotion called the "Tool-of-the-Month" to invest in their customers. By making a small purchase, customers can save on a tool that can improve their model building process. The goal is to encourage customers to expand their tool collection. If you have the right tool, you'll save yourself a lot of time and frustration, and end up having models that other people would drool over.

This month, the special rocketry tool being offered is a pack of custom-made sanding burrs, ideal for tip sanding and reaching tight spaces. The burrs have perma-grit on the shafts for fine sanding and a lifetime durability. The promotion for January is that for $100 spent on merchandise, a set of 5 sanding burrs can be purchased for $2.39, a significant discount (80% off) from their regular price of $11.95. The offer ends at midnight on January 31st and will not be repeated. Don't miss out on this great opportunity to save on valuable tools that will bring you pleasure when building rockets.

Coming Next Week:

On Tuesday (Jan 31, 2023) we'll have the 592nd issue of the Peak-of-Flight Newsletter. The feature article is written by our own rocket designer, Martin Jay McKee. He'll be showing the process of tip-to-tip reinforcement of fins. "Tip-to-tip" means to literally run fiberglass from the tip of one fin to the tip of the adjacent fin. This is useful on a high speed or a large high-power rocket where the forces of flight can be great enough to rip the fins right off the tube. By applying tip-to-tip reinforcement, you can really increase the strength of the fins and keep them attached on those high-intensity launches.

You're already on our newsletter list, so look for that in your email in-box next Tuesday.