Crepe Wadding Update

Wadding alternatives come up on the forums and on rocketry FaceBook pages. I've done quite a few blog posts about cheaper wadding in the past.

Lonnie B recently wrote:
"I finally made use of the bag of yellow crepe paper wadding you gave me a couple of years ago. I was getting fed up with how my new 'chutes were quickly getting burned, even with extra sheets of conventional wadding, so I tried yours and it was fantastic! It made a perfect seal that better protected the 'chute. I would love to purchase/find/make more."

He added the link on an old blog post is no longer valid. (I've gone back and fixed the link.)
Here's the new link to Crepe Paper wadding SHEETS -
CLICK HERE
Notice I specified SHEETS. These are 20" X 7.5' sheets. This is not the party rolls you find at the Dollar Store. Party rolls do work as wadding but are not very wide.
(Note: Some party rolls might not be flame resistant! Test them to see before using them in your rockets. You don't want to have flaming paper raining down on the field!)

I prefer cutting 4" squares, smaller than the 4.5" treated toilet tissue squares from Estes. Crepe Paper wadding is stiffer than the Estes and is easier to pack when it is slightly smaller.
TIP: With the crepe paper wadding (and the stiff Quest style) you crush up the sheets into a small ball then reopen it before going in the rocket. This puts many creases in the paper and softens it up making for easier packing and a better seal.

The colored crepe paper is easy to find on the field. Usually the first piece (closest to the top of the engine) is burnt and not reusable. The pieces right above it look like new and can be used again.

If you buy crepe wadding from the CrepePaperStore.com you should buy more than one package or the shipping charges will offset any savings over buying Estes or Quest wadding.

Right now, the crepe packages are $1.12 each.
Buy 5 packages for $5.60
Add shipping at $8.05 (Florida destination)
Total for 5 packs is $13.65
You can get more than 100, 4" squares from each package
Pictured above is the Canary Yellow color crepe paper.

Estes list price for wadding is $5.49 or 7 cents a square! (No shipping charges added)
Cut your own Crepe Wadding (with shipping charges) is under 3 cents a square!
(Even less if you buy more packages to offset the shipping charges.)