Rocket cloning ethics

 The Thirfty Rocketeer blog continues...

A fellow Rocketeer learned that I was building a up-sized Der BIG Red Max the other day. I had bought it on a sale from a regional rocket supplier and decided to upgrade it with plywood fins and centering rings to allow more powerful motors someday.


But this has opened up an interesting can of worms that I thought I might share.

Now remember, I bought the licensed kit produced by Estes new in the box, PLUS a separate baggie that holds replacement 1/8" plywood fins and centering rings.  I am not reselling nor producing anything other than my personal rocket with these materials.

So, my friend, who is preparing to build his Level 3 rocket from scratch, asks me if I could give him the measurement of the nosecone for him.  No problem.  It is 12.5" long, and fits into a 3" body tube.

As it's hard to find balsa wood, I figure he's either going to turn his own nosecone on a lathe, or order a nosecone of the same dimensions.  Either way, he's got to match the measurements to make it fit.

A little while later, he asked me if he could get all dimensions of the rocket, to aid him in up-scaling something similar to the Der BIG Red Max.

 I understand how to make measurements, but having never done this, I wonder how complete  data he's going to need.  So I ask experienced rocketeers on a forum if I was missing anything.

Several responded that by downloading a file from RocketSim or elsewhere, that it was easy to scale it up or down and produce a clone of the original.

That night, I finished measuring every aspect of the body tube, motor tube, fins and nosecone and sent it to my grateful friend.   But then I began to wonder about the legality of doing this cloning. Does the original designer have a patient or copyright on the dimensions of a rocket?

I was under the impression that if no one was producing and selling an up-scaled rocket, and you're the first, you have a clear field to do so.  But I'm thinking it may be a slippery slope once you start mass producing fins,  centering rings or nosecones to make the same rocket.

 I have no desire to tear a scab off a problem in the industry, but I wonder to what extent up-scaling or modifying an existing product may impinge on a legitimate entity in our hobby industry.  I began to wonder about the ethics of what we were doing.  And I'm not certain how loudly I want to ask. 

Certainly, I don't want to do damage to a business that is so important to our industry, but I am wondering if this cuts into their business, when one starts to manufacture enough parts that one could build from scratch a substitute rocket.

I'm not going to loose any sleep over this, but I am interested to hear varying opinions on the practice.  Which of the above entities are at risk? Or are any of them at all?

Please post your responses below.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The End of the Line

Image
 The Thrifty Rocketeer blog continues... Well, for years, the state of the model rocket industry relied upon plans and patterns that were photocopied or printed out, and then applied to standard sheets of balsa to be cut out. Eventually, the various parts for various sized rockets were packaged in groups or blister packs, and sold at hobby shops across the nation.  The emphasis was on home brew or building a rocket to specifications and plans. Eventually, entire kits were pre-packaged, with all the parts that one would need.  And then, laser cut shapes, fins or parts were already pre-cut, doing away with the need for most of the patterns and tracing. So what happened to all those bags and bister packs of parts of rockets?  That is, a baggie of various nose cones... or connectors... or transitions or more ?   Many of  those packages remain at your local mom and pop hobby store, just waiting for someone to come in and buy some of their pegboard stock.  And the number and frequency of the
Read more

sleeping with the enemy

Image
 The Thrifty Rocketeer blog continues... First thing I did when they put in a Hobby Lobby in my smaller metropolitan town, 40 miles away, was to grab an application to work there.  Now I know what you're thinking... "How could you?  Who would want to work for that conservative corporation?".. as my daughter would say.  And you'd be partially right. I saved the application and took note of the mailing address. Within the first month or so, most of the initial buying frenzy was over, having sold out of some things, but not everything.   But it seemed nothing new was getting restocked. So, I got on my word processor and wrote a letter to the store management, THANKING them for bringing the store to our isolated metro area. I pointed out that many of the items had sold through completely, and how much we had appreciated their stocking rockets. Then I also encouraged them to restock and consider expanding the display, pointing to the fact that as rocketeers grow older, the
Read more

Cleaning House

Image
 The Thrifty Rocketeer blog continues... Alright, I promise I won't keep harping on this, but I have a few things to share with regards the last posting about " The End of the Line " for a hobby department when a mom and pop hardware store closed up this month. First, to my great amazement, that single posting  has been the single most-viewed entry of this entire blog.    It's more than 25 times as much as I had expected. Unbelievable! Second, I've been sharing on Facebook the countdown to the store's closing, and encouraging my rocketry friends in the area to go score some supplies before it was too late.  I guess I either struck a nerve, or I have been succeeding in my efforts.   Third, there were some vintage model airplanes that hung from the rafters for years that were priced to sell. They were gone as of yesterday.  Someone went after them. Good for them! A good friend of mine who has been a vendor at area launches for years drove to see the store today
Read more