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99% eclipse: not worth looking outside 100%: would travel to see

One of the coolest things I've done is fly a glider in the Alps. The one I was lucky enough to fly is self-launching, but you fold the prop away after climbing above the airport and just glide the rest of the time. More pics and a short video here...

Maybe stretches the budget too much to be called “low end” but I think Bambu’s $299 A1 Mini shows a ton of promise for what it delivers. I would put this in the category of, “Any bargain printer that sucks is a waste of money, but a printer that costs a little more and is great is worth every...

Mike will be missed. He put a lot of time and energy and passion into rocketry. Before his health issues he waged a heroic fight to earn a living in rocketry, and it wasn't easy or always as successful as he could have hoped but he kept going. He was fun, and opinionated, and even those he might...

I’m not sure a picture would help. What I mean is that the tension from the band trying to pull the pin out of the swivel needs to be trying to pull the pin straight out of the hole, and that the swivel in the unit which can rotate the hole to different directions isn’t swiveled upwards so that...

The most visible difference is if the accessory boxes are bright white rather than brown. But the difference in swivel looseness is obvious, too.

Yep, recommended hole sizes are always "minimums" to reduce the pressure lag to an acceptable level. "Bigger is better," at least until they interfere with something else (like motor ejection if the holes are in the fuselage). A "puff test" by blowing on the motor mount can assess that pretty...

FYI, the latest Chute Releases (that began shipping a week or two ago) have a more free-pivoting swivel that largely should eliminate the problem of the pin being pulled at a catchy angle.

If I was planning to develop a device like this (though I'm not), I would: 1) read the regulations that apply to model rockets (and only model rockets) 2) assume what is not specifically disallowed is okay 3) avoid misinterpretation by naming it thoughtfully (something like Drift Limiter, which...

This was a really good answer, and it's the advice I would give. As an aside, it's important to keep in mind that the release altitude you choose has nothing to do with how hard your rocket will land. A rocket that releases at 1000' will land at the same speed as the same rocket releasing at...

There's nothing magic about our bands. Def buy your own for convenience. We choose the ones with the highest latex content (more stretchy, fits more situations), and lately some ones that stand up a little better in the sun. And we have to find them in bulk. Just make sure what you use is...

Jolly Logic rubber bands have more latex than the Advantage line from Alliance (see their "Pale Crepe" for our spec). And our new black bands are increased UV-tolerance. But all bands get old and dry eventually, so make that a maintenance item.

That's probably the most thorough set of directions I've seen someone post all in one place. Well done. My favorites I left above, and I added a couple of comments, expand them to read. Always delighted to hear that someone read the User Guide, btw. I would also add a couple more notes: 1...

I'd rather see folks experimenting with sleds and longer bands than ever relying on zip ties. Zip ties are super wicked strong, stronger than the mechanism of Chute Release itself. Zip ties are "brute force" tools. You solve one problem (weakened bands) at the potential expense of the entire...

You can also use really long rubber bands that constrain the bundle from all directions, like putting a ribbon on a package, where the ribbon goes around the box in a crossed fashion and Chute Release is the knot and bow. Of course: with that added length comes added ground testing caution that...

Also one bit of advice I would add: unbeknownst to some Chute Release has a swivel that the pin is inserted into that swivels from side to side. Always make sure you make sure your pin is being pulled straight out by your band. After manufacture the swivel is rather stiff, so it might not...

Google "static pressure port" to learn more about how one or more holes on the side of a rocket or aircraft are used to measure the ambient pressure accurately even when the rocket or aircraft is moving rapidly. In use for many years and quite reliable.

This is not something I've implemented or tested, I just pass it along here in the spirit of demonstrating integer math. This example uses the assumption of 1/100 seconds sampling of a 250 dps full rate gyro. Can be modified for other sample rates and gyros. Use at your own risk, I just whipped...

My main point—and I did have one—was to always try to rely on fast, simple integer math. It's essentially free and it can reduce the amount of processing power you need as well as power consumption of the ultimate solution. In this case I suppose you could think of it as a poor man's...

Yes, but you can do this just by accumulating gyro integers. You don't need to calculate a quaternion with floating points, etc.