Nose cone harness anchor - feedback solicited

[David_Stack]

Courtesy of a fellow TRF member I came into possession of a LaserLoc 163 (38mm) 'OG' first generation basswood nose cone as turned by Ron Schultz. Hollowed out (23.13mm ID) as you can see:


I wish to install a GPS tracker inside the nose cone (a Featherweight will fit, with a long slender form factor 1S LiPo (barely)).

For a recovery harness anchor I am considering boring a hole across the shoulder, and inserting a metal rod to which the harness would be attached (rod will be removable of course to allow installation/removal of the tracker).

Any negatives to this approach? Nose cone weighs 103g unladen. What diameter metal rod would be sufficient, and could I get away with aluminum as opposed to steel?

Thanks in advance

 

[Hobie1dog]

I'd go with either a 1/8 in steel rod, or a 1/4-in aluminum rod. Very good idea though.

 

[OverTheTop]

I would probably go 3/16" or 5/32". Aluminium may bend with recovery forces, making it more difficult to remove, which you may or may not want to consider.

 

[lakeroadster]

For a recovery harness anchor I am considering boring a hole across the shoulder, and inserting a metal rod to which the harness would be attached (rod will be removable of course to allow installation/removal of the tracker).

I'd be inclined to use a wood dowel and glue it in place. Then put the tracker someplace else.​

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Making the rod removable seems like an opportunity for a mishap.​

 

[jqavins]

Or to put that another way, if you can remove the rod, what's to keep ejection and deployment violence from removing it?

Also, I'd make the holes big, then use bushings to get down to the rod/dowel size. The grain direction on the nose cone is such that a rod, especially a small one, could split its way out. A large hole is less of a stress concentrator, and if the bushing is glued in it hold the wood shoulder together rather than trying to split it apart. With a glued in dowel that's probably not an issue, but I would bush anything else, and even with a glued dowel the bushing couldn't hurt. If the bushing itself is wood, make sure it's grain is orthogonal to the grain of the nose cone.