Would one of these
https://www.bgmicro.com/push-on-push-off-switch.aspx
work, or do you need multiple contacts?
I'm looking for a simple (inexpensive!) SPST POPO lighted 12vdc low current (less than 1 amp) switch. I've got one of the above switches, but I'd like a lighted version.
I guess it depends. Would the lighted version draw power from the onboard electronics? You definitely wouldn't want it to drain your batteries. And does it allow you to see it inside the av bay? I use a 1/4" dowel to arm mine through an access hole, and as long as care is taken in building the board so the switch will be in the right spot (vertically), and the end bulkheads and all-threads are oriented so the switch is in the right spot (radially), you shouldn't have any problem finding the switch with an arming tool. It won't be deep.
There are probably as many ways of doing stuff as there rocketeers, so I'll caveat my comments with "this has worked for me". So yes, the switch you cite would probably work just fine as an On-Off switch. One would have to ensure that, if using back-to-back sleds, the "submerged" end of the switch and its associated wiring did not interfere with the adjacent sled. On mine, since both sleds have switch access holes centered in the av bay band, there would be a higher likelihood of conflict. On the GC switch I use, the contacts are on the top (side), so they can butt up next to each other and still have plenty of room.
I don't know about Tripoli, but there is a requirement under NAR to "
externally disarm all pyrotechnic devices on-board the rocket. In this context, ‘disarm’ means the ability to physically break the connection between a pyrotechnic system and its power source. Simply turning off the device controlling the pyrotechnic(s) may not be sufficient." Some altimeters fire the ematch with an on-board capacitor, which stores electrical potential, which is why just removing power to the altimeter may not fulfill that requirement - the capacitor would still be charged. Some of my larger projects have used 10 grams of BP for recovery events, so it would be more than an inconvenience if one went off inadvertently. Therefore, in my sleds, in addition to breaking the circuit from the ematch to the altimeter, I shunt (short) the ematch leads together. This could be done with a separate switch, but the potential exists, as mentioned previously, of turning on the altimeter but leaving the ematches unconnected. This would hopefully caught when the continuity check failed, but to reduce the likelihood of that failure, I prefer to put it all in one switch. One less thing to mess up. A 4PDT is the minimum number of contacts that will do that. Switch ON = altimeter powered and ematch leads connected, switch OFF = altimeter OFF, ematch leads disconnected AND shunted.
The only current link I could find in the GC online catalog is for a DPDT switch, part number 35-491. The GC switches I have been using have part number 35-492-BU on the packaging. (The BU signifies they were purchased in "Bulk", and then re-packaged individually.) I bought them from "Jaytronics", an electronics supply store in Rockford, Illinois. You can contact them at 866-965-6775 or 815-965-8786. Very helpful people. Ask for Andy.
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