So let me ask bluntly. Will my StratologgerCF fire these without fail, assuming I set it up right and the battery is good.
A little back ground first regarding my units:
I have a company name & a real "live"person I can e-mail there [China], when I need to order, or any get info regarding composition and firing current, etc. After my first order, I went direct to a manufacturer and got the scoop on how all this works, since then I work direct.
As in most product runs there are "firsts" and seconds. Ordering direct and in bulk gets you the "first's". Where do you think all the second's go?..LOL
When I receive a very sizable amount of these things, the first thing I do is go through the entire shipment [usually 10,000] and visually inspect every one! Not in one sitting, that would take all day but a 1000 at a time.
First thing you look for is any "chipping" of the top coat. Regardless of color, if chipped the undercoat shows up white.[in my case] I remove those.
This can easily happen when the plastic covers slid down, and the heads rub/bang together during shipping.
I'm also looking for any heads that are bent at severe angle from wire as this can cause stress or a possible short. Remember a short in the match head will show positive continuity when checked with altimeter, but a high impedance when checked with meter[but NOT always] nix those.
Rarely...but every now & then you will see solder that has "wrapped" around the entire head, those get nixed too.
If shipping box is damaged those that are behind the damage get extra care in inspection & any chance at all of compromise those go too.
It not uncommon for me to pull out 1-10 from an order or as many as 5-600 [fork lift hole in side of container] when damage or moisture has compromised a package. I don't just pass these through as some do, they look fine....but are they? I don't want to find out the hard way, nor do I want any of my brother fliers to either.
I am a rocket guy and try to treat all my rocket flying pals as I would like to be treated. Most of what you see now is being handled by folks selling dolls , tools, fireworks or anything else that can make a buck. Not that there is anything wrong with it, but your best interest is not theirs. If a unit fails on the ground as in fireworks/ground test...no great loss. If it fails in a rocket we stand to lose a lot of moola and one of our prized possesions.
So what do I do with all the "iffy" ones?
Use them for starting BP motors, ground testing. I do a lot of ground testing since making Boron pellets.
To answer your question:
There is no way you can be 100% sure of anything when it comes to a rocket, after all it IS a rocket and what can go wrong? LOL
But you can do everything in your power to prevent disaster.
This is why we use redundant systems, Completely redundant....2 of everything with our electronics...if you want to be safe.
I have had over the years, 2 Oraxl's.....2 Daveyfire..[white & black] and 1 J-Tec fail.
None of mine yet, but sooner or later it will happen. Statistics say so...it's a fact of life.[and it did for Wayco]
All of my extreme rockets are set up with 2 altimeters to alleviate this and minimums where I can only fit 1 altimeter I do this:
use 2 matches on the drogue and main stuck in each charge.
Done this with Adept 22 MissleWorks RRC3 and RRC2 and Stratologger 100 & CF . They have all worked flawlessly.
The all fire current is .40-.37 A [amps] the test current is .5MA [milliamp] so having enough current is not an issue with these altimeters, as they can pass through the 4 amps of a 9v battery.
You must know the all fire current of the units YOU are using and battery specs,to safely do this.
In conclusion there are a lot of suppliers selling these now, they all may look alike, and you must:
INSPECT your units for flaws, remove any with doubts & save for ground test.
Know the all fire current.
Use 2 altimeters when possible
When using 1 altimeter, if it can handle firing 2 units, then use 2 in each charge.
Be careful when installing in charges/altimeter to prevent any damage.
Don't let bare metal short against metal charge cups. A tiny sliver of tape wrapped under head, around the solder area will prevent this
Store them in such a way, they do not bang, or rub against anything that can damage them, during the long ride to & from launches.
This will increase your chance of success to as "good as it gets" :smile:
