posted 07-21-2024 12:31 PM
As far as I know, every flown Apollo-Saturn F-1 engine was fired at least twice - fired solo in the engine test stand, and then fired in the overall S-IC test firings, usually about 125 seconds of all five engines. Does any documentation exist regarding post-firing refurbishment? I know there were several one-use parts (the hypergolic cartridge with its pressure-burst seals, and the four pyro igniters, which had copper wires that burned-through, signaling engine start to the IU), and surely after an F-1 firing and the associated heat and soot, seals and connections all had to be checked, parts needed cleaning, and at some point the thrust chamber tubes were loaded with glycol. These jobs seemed like they could be performed at the test stands, since some S-IC's had multiple static firings, and attempts at firing across a few days (vs. returning the engines to Rocketdyne).
I'd love to see the refurb procedure lists (or the F-1 "owner's manual"!), or at least hear recollections of what this job entailed, how hard it was to access these parts, and what a post-firing refurb consisted of.
I've seen some cool procedure docs for Apollo, things like command module power-up sequence on launch day (I understood about 10% of it, but it was cool imagining the techs and backup crew "turning the lights on" for the upcoming flight). Just really curious about maintaining and prepping the F-1.
posted 07-21-2024 12:31 PM
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