Saturn V – Stacking Stages Model

Saturn V – Stacking Stages Model

The Saturn V rocket is a truly iconic piece of space history. Flown from 1967 to 1973, it is the vessel that carried astronauts to the moon and back, as well as carried Skylab into orbit. 🛰️

Like most other rockets, Saturn V was comprised of distinct stages, each with its own purpose. This model lets curious learners handle the stages of the rocket and get a feel for how they work in unison.

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☑ Explore all the Saturn V stages

☑ All the stages nest!

☑ Introduce kids to rocket science concepts

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This model is designed to illustrate the shear size of the rocket as compared to the command module (the part that carried the astronauts). The model makes it easy to see the largest dilemma in space travel:

🚀 It illustrates Tsiolkovsky’s rocket equation, also called the “tyranny of the rocket equation” which shows that the faster you want your rocket to go (or the farther you want to travel), the more propellant you need — but that extra propellant adds weight, which itself requires even more propellant to lift. This snowball effect is why getting to orbit, let alone deep space, takes such massive fuel tanks compared to the payload.

This is why Saturn V was about 85–90% fuel at launch and only a tiny fraction was the payload at the top.

📐 The model is approximately 1:250 scale.

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Materials:

Sunlu Black PLA+ 2.0: https://amzn.to/4zOxaHW

*Affiliate Links - I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase.

Support:

☑ Enable Support > Tree Support (auto)

☑ From build plate only

Assembly:

All the pieces nest neatly inside of each other. The ejector tower can be carefully placed atop the model. See the pictures of the stages.

The Stages of Saturn V:

S-IC (First Stage) – The S-IC was the Saturn V’s powerhouse, using five F-1 engines to blast the rocket off the pad and through the lower atmosphere. Each engine produced more thrust than an entire fleet of Boeing 747s at full power.

S-II (Second Stage) – After the first stage dropped away, the S-II’s five J-2 engines took over, propelling the rocket close to orbital speed. To save weight, engineers drilled holes in internal beams, giving it a “Swiss cheese” nickname.

S-IVB (Third Stage) – This stage placed Apollo into Earth orbit, then reignited to send it toward the Moon. Some unused S-IVBs from early missions still orbit the Sun today as artificial mini-asteroids.

Payload (Lunar Module) – The Lunar Module was the spacecraft designed to land astronauts on the Moon and return them to lunar orbit. Split into a descent stage for landing and an ascent stage for liftoff, it was so lightweight that even its walls were thinner than a soda can. Here in this model, I have only included the payload structure, but I may do a lunar module in the future!

Service Module – Housing the main engine, fuel, oxygen, and life-support systems, the Service Module sustained the crew in space. It was always discarded before re-entry, burning up in Earth’s atmosphere.

Command Module – The astronauts’ home and control center during the mission, the Command Module was the only part of Saturn V to return to Earth, splashing down safely in the ocean.

Launch Escape System (Ejector Tower) – Mounted above the Command Module, this tower could fire solid rockets to pull the crew to safety during a launch emergency. Fortunately, it was never used in a real Apollo launch, only in tests.

Commercial Use:

This model is for PERSONAL USE ONLY.

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If you would like permission to SELL THIS MODEL please subscribe to my Patreon here:

https://patreon.com/davidsitgarage

Happy Printing!