Newbie question

My son got an Estes rocket as a gift. We put it together last weekend and would like to launch today but last night I noticed we are missing the plugs that hold the igniter to the engine. They were there at one time, I looked and looked but can not find them. The question is do I have to have that exact plug or can I make one myself and expect it to work. I took a golf tee and cut off the tip, about a quarter inch lone, the end that sticks into the ground and right now am planning on using that with either a tiny bit of glue or maybe tape to hold it somewhat secure. Is this a recipe for failure or should this allow the engine to ignite?
Steve

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The plastic plugs that come with the engine are relatively new. Previously the common method for retention of igniters was to use a small wad of tissue as a plug. Push it in place with an intact golf tee and secure with a small piece of masking tape. Leave enough room to attach the micro clips close to the nozzle without touching.

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Thanks. I originally was thinking of just taping it on but thought there may need to be something to kind of contain the spark to help ignite. Will give it a try, wish us luck.
Steve

GOOD LUCK!! Let us know how it goes!!
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Roger that. Taking the camera, will attempt to get video.

We have liftoff!
http://media.putfile.com/Andrews-Rocket
Video is about 7 megs and the guy behind the camera was so shocked it launched he forgot to follow the rocket for a few seconds. The first attempt failed as we did not have good contact between the igniter and the engine, used tissue and tape. 2nd attempt worked fine, we used tape but no tissue.

Before Estes came out with those plugs, the prescribed method was to use masking tape. Just insert the igniter all the way up and make sure it's touching the propellant, and tape in place.

Everyone here has given good advice...before the plugs came out I used to just roll up a small piece of tissue or wadding and stuff it into the nozzle using the end of the launch rod...never even bothered to tape it after that. It worked better than 90% of the time (on occasion I wouldn't get it tight enough and it would slip loose). When the plugs came out I did think it was a good idea, made prepping the engine go just a tad faster and they seemed to hold the ignitor more securely.
Another bit of advice, use the smaller engines until you get a feel for how the winds are going and how far it might drift. Then proceed up the power scale accordingly. An excellent program (free) for predicting altitude is a program called WRASP. (http://www.wrasp.com /) Good luck and one word of warning...Estes might just a start. After a little while you might get a thirst for even bigger rockets and motors....(http://www.aerotech-rocketry.com /). I should know...it happened to me! :-)
Craig PS Congratulations on the launch! Hope it was recovered safely....from the video it looks like it might have drifted a bit far. Are you near the Cincinnati, OH area? If so you might want to check out www.quarkers.org, the local chapter of the NAR (National Association of Rocketry).

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Recoverd just fine, no damage to anything. Probably drifted 500 feet total. We were next to a baseball field and it shot up behind home plate and then drifted right out over the center field fence. Probably cleared it by 30 or 40 feet. Had a decent wind but since the area we used, a junior high school, had such a large field, I was not too concerned. Probably had at least another 1000 feet before we would have hit a building.
I am in Seattle although the launch site is about an hour SE of Seattle.

Just use a tiny bit of the chute wadding, have done that countless times and engine fired ok.
www.starlords.org