The author has been active in the solid propellant industry for more than 45 years, and has experienced many different things during those years. He has worked with relatively large rocket motors, including some of the earlier very high thrust units. He has also worked with very small, very short burning time rockets, and with a wide range of rockets between the two extremes. The paper will present comparisons of the sizes and general performances of various rockets, and will describe how the author adapted to the requirements of new systems. As an example of dramatic changes, work with one employer required rocket motor action time to be complete in less time than the previous employer required for ignition to full thrust. The author will address his work with other aspects of the rockets, including elastomer-based insulation, and other thermal barriers. The presentation is intended to reflect some of the author's experiences, rather than being a tutorial on specific aspects of rockets.
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