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Rocket engines

Name: RAPTOR-M1
SKU: 479
Availability: InStock

RAPTOR-M1

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£50.00 – £260.00

What is this?

This is a 3D printed 1:8 scale model designed based on the SpaceX’s Raptor Rocket Engine – Mark 1

“The Raptor engine is a reusable methalox staged-combustion engine that powers the Starship launch system. Raptor engines began flight testing on the Starship prototype rockets in July 2019, becoming the first full-flow staged combustion rocket engine ever flown.” – source: SpaceX

Rocket engines are very complex machines and I’ve always been fascinating with how they work. So I reached out to Charles Lesher, whom is the original designer of this Raptor model and asked for his permission to let me further improve his design and turn it into an awesome educational model for STEM.

Product type

Clear

Printing & Assembling Instructions

If you want to print this model yourself, your printer need a minimum build volume of 163x163x196mm

In-depth guide on how to print and assemble this model: “How to Print & Assemble The RAPTOR-M1”.

Technical Specifications

Scale: 1:8
Overall dimensions:

Nozzle Diameter (bottom): 162.5mm
Height (top of Engine Mount to bottom of Nozzle): 395mm

Manufacturing lead time: 1 week
Total number of 3D printed parts: 35

How was this model designed?

This model was designed using publicly available material from the internet including CAD models, videos and pictures of the real SpaceX’s Raptor engine. See list below for more details:

SpaceX’s Raptor Engine
The Raptor Engine was designed based on the existing SpaceX Raptor Rocket Engine model by Charles Lesher (see LINK). He has done a fantastic job modelling the Raptor engine so I used his model (with his permission) as reference and added my personal touches. I re-designed almost every part of the original model so they can be fitted together without having to use super glue. Instead, all parts are held together by magnets. This has allowed my model to be fully stripped down and rebuilt as many time as required. Only two small parts of the model need gluing together (the LOX Valve and LOX Distribution Valve)

Crossed Arms Man
I came across the Crossed Arms Man model, designed by mcramblet on GrabCAD (see LINK) and I think it would be a really nice touch to print this model at the right scale and put it next to the rocket engine. This would definitely help people (including myself) to understand the true scale of the real Raptor engine in reality (as many of us don’t have the luxury to see it with our own eyes)

What are the differences between the RAPTOR-M1 model and Charles's original model?

Firstly, Charles has done a fantastic job modelling the Raptor engine – there’s no doubt about it. However, I found a couple of issues with his CAD model when I started to look deeper into the design (some geometries overlaps each other, some parts are fitted together but there’s no clearance between them, some parts are supposed to be symmetrical (I believe) but aren’t, etc.) so I decided to give his model a complete makeover.

I scaled the design up to 1/8 instead of 1/11 – just because I want to make some small details easier to print on an FDM printer and also 1/8 scale is much more popular than 1/11
I modified every part of the original model so they can be printed either support-free or with very minimum support, hence, better surface finish.
I merged some parts together so the pieces are located more accurately (instead of gluing them into place by hand). Specifically, I merged the ‘Mounting Plate’ with the 2 ‘Gimbal Upper’ and the ‘Control Strut Collar’ with the 2 ‘Gimbal Lower’
I redesigned the LOX Turbopump from scratch to make it easier to print and also looks better
I modified how all the main components are fitted together – you can now fit magnets into them (the magnet I use is 5mm diameter x 3mm thick) and they’ll stick to each other without having to use glue. This makes the model really fun to assemble! (and disassemble)
I redesigned all the small pipes from scratch to make them look more realistic – as you know, all complex pipes are typically manufactured from straight pipes, they get bent at several locations and welded with other pieces (e.g. brackets, clips, fittings, etc.) to achieve the final desired shape. Therefore, when you look at a real pipe on any engine, it normally have several straight sections and several bends. I think Charles’s original design of the pipes are a little bit too ‘curvy’. In addition, because the pipes are so ‘curvy’, it’s very difficult to orientate them to get an optimum print on an FDM printer. That’s why I decided to re-designed them all – you can see on the new pipes that I designed, each one has at least a straight section to help alignment with the print bed.
I added magnets to both ends of every pipe (both small and large), so you can attach/detach them to/from the engine core.
I removed all the arrows from Charles’s pipes, just because they are not every visible, and also, because the new pipes are detachable, what you can do is simply print them in different colours to show the flow of LOX and CH4 around the core
I removed some of the small bolts from Charles’s design (e.g. the ones on the flange at the ends of each pipe) because I think they are too small to be printed on an FDM printer.

FAQ

Does it work like a real rocket engine?

No, it doesn’t. It’s only a display model.
Can the model be stripped down to piece part level?

Yes, all parts are held together by magnets.
Does the model come fully assembled or as a kit?

The model comes as a pre-assembled kit, all magnets are pre-fitted so it’s really easy to assemble.
How was this model designed?

The Raptor Engine was based on the existing SpaceX Raptor Rocket Engine model by Charles Lesher (see here). He has done a fantastic job modelling the Raptor engine so I used his model, with his permission, as reference and added my personal touches. I’ve written an in-depth article explaining the design changes and upgrades I’ve made to Charles’ model, “Designing & Building The SpaceX Raptor Engine 3D Model”.

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Hatem Moussa

October 12, 2022 1:27 pm

I just bought a SpaceX raptor models, they are fantastic and the owner is very kind and responsive. I recommended this website if you want a good Starship or a Raptor and other 3D stuff.
https://twitter.com/HatemM91/status/1365002221977485312?s=20

Bernd

August 1, 2021 1:33 pm

Scale is 1/80 right? not 1/8

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Rocket engines

RAPTOR-M1

What is this?

Printing & Assembling Instructions

Technical Specifications

How was this model designed?

What are the differences between the RAPTOR-M1 model and Charles's original model?

FAQ

Does it work like a real rocket engine?

Can the model be stripped down to piece part level?

Does the model come fully assembled or as a kit?

How was this model designed?

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