Affordable/Reliable Tracker

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Interesting stuff, thanks for the pointer. Even the micro is a bit on the heavy side at 14g, though very reasonably priced. I feel like there were some smaller and lighter ones out there, but again I don't remember where.
Can’t think of anything lighter than 14g/.5oz - the Pratt Micro is twice that but does have slightly smaller dimensions. Only downside to both the Transolve Micro and Pratt Micro are the oddball batteries - neither is pricey, just not likely to be on the shelf at WallyWorld.
 
Can’t think of anything lighter than 14g/.5oz - the Pratt Micro is twice that but does have slightly smaller dimensions. Only downside to both the Transolve Micro and Pratt Micro are the oddball batteries - neither is pricey, just not likely to be on the shelf at WallyWorld.
This is one I was thinking of, no longer available: https://web.archive.org/web/20190112100704/https://www.adeptrocketry.com/SB1.htm. Turns out it's only slightly lighter than the Transolve Micro, so maybe about 1/2 oz really is close to the minimum.

Someone on this forum was making some very simple ones as well, a year or two ago, but I haven't found that yet.
 
If they are the 12 volt 23A's (from the photo that's what they look like) you can get those just about anywhere. I saw the Mouser part number listed but that's just their p/n number. I buy them all the time at Wally world and Walgreens. Use tons of them in the remotes for pyro systems. Good batteries with long life.
 
If you go with the Eggfinder GPS, I suggest throughly reading the user manual. Cris tends to go on a bit (just my opinion), but on the other hand, there's some important info in his instructions which many times are missed. Like changing the frequency, the sequence for turning the equipment on, adjusting the display, antenna info, using the Eggfinder with geographic applications, battery requirements...
I don't think any rocketry-type GPS is currently plug and play. You must get through all the operator type errors with experience before you will absolutely need it to find your rocket.

If you get a Featherweight GPS it's a bit more intuitive in my opinion, although there seems to be frequent required updates. It's settled down a bit since the first release, but I suggest checking for updates the day before the launch. Btw, cellular service is not required to run the Featherweight. So, people have obtained old iPhones/iPads with just WiFi to run the application at the launch. This is what I do for 2 stage flights. I'm running two Featherweights on my iPhone and iPad for the booster and sustainer and choose two different voices to announce their status.
 
I'm running two Featherweights on my iPhone and iPad for the booster and sustainer and choose two different voices to announce their status.

You have to use two iOS devices to track two Featherweight transmitters? That's crazy. I thought a big selling point of the Featherweight was the ability to monitor many transmitters seamlessly - yours, your friend's, the entire club, lost rockets over the mountain, etc.
 
Eggfinder ((mini)TX/RX combo or the TRS/LCD combo) is a great solution and it supports a rocketry vendor and is "cheap". I'd recommend any of the GPS trackers by EggFinder or MissileWorks or Featherweight or any of the rocketry vendors. Support the rocketry vendors that have solutions designed for rocketry rather than cobble something together from bits/parts from Amazon/AliExpress/etc.
I’m really pleased with the Eggfinder ((mini)TX/RX combo or the TRS/LCD combo).

For anyone investing in making a L1 or L2 rocket that can fly over 2,000 feet, GPS recovery, such as the Eggfinder solutions is a very affordable insurance policy.
 
Do these bugs get worked throu
If you go with the Eggfinder GPS, I suggest throughly reading the user manual. Cris tends to go on a bit (just my opinion), but on the other hand, there's some important info in his instructions which many times are missed. Like changing the frequency, the sequence for turning the equipment on, adjusting the display, antenna info, using the Eggfinder with geographic applications, battery requirements...
I don't think any rocketry-type GPS is currently plug and play. You must get through all the operator type errors with experience before you will absolutely need it to find your rocket.

If you get a Featherweight GPS it's a bit more intuitive in my opinion, although there seems to be frequent required updates. It's settled down a bit since the first release, but I suggest checking for updates the day before the launch. Btw, cellular service is not required to run the Featherweight. So, people have obtained old iPhones/iPads with just WiFi to run the application at the launch. This is what I do for 2 stage flights. I'm running two Featherweights on my iPhone and iPad for the booster and sustainer and choose two different voices to announce their status.
Do these bugs get worked out in the soldering, testing, etc., etc, stage.?? Or is it left to the "flyer.??" Also, I don't understand why the product isn't ready to go when it's paid for. Wait..... I know. Labor costs. Well guess what, many are going to pay the labor costs to get the units going. Put a price on the darn thing and see if the consumer responds. I'll sell you a car but you need to install the gas tank. I'll sell you a pair Levi's but it comes without a zipper. You'll have to install that. lol.
Maybe I should squeeze my budget for the Simple GPS Tracker.?? That's the unit that I like most at this point.
 
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Do these bugs get worked throu

Do these bugs get worked out in the soldering, testing, etc., etc, stage.?? Or is it left to the "flyer.??" Also, I don't understand why the product isn't ready to go when it's paid for. Wait..... I know. Labor costs. Well guess what, many are going to pay the labor costs to get the units going. Put a price on the darn thing and see if the consumer responds. I'll sell you car but you need to install the gas tank. I'll sell you a pair Levi's but but it comes without a zipper. You'll have to install that. lol.
Maybe I should squeeze my budget for the Simple GPS Tracker.?? That's the unit that I like most at this point.
There are no "bugs" to work out. Follow the instructions and at the end you'll have a working bit of electronics. Egg products aren't for everyone and there is nothing wrong with that. I'm willing to use an hour of my time to build an Eggfinder GPS and save half the cost. It's similar to people who like to assemble AT RMS motors vs SU or CTI motors.
 
Also, I don't understand why the product isn't ready to go when it's paid for. Wait..... I know. Labor costs. Well guess what, many are going to pay the labor costs to get the units going. Put a price on the darn thing and see if the consumer responds. I'll sell you car but you need to install the gas tank. I'll sell you a pair Levi's but but it comes without a zipper. You'll have to install that. lol.
Maybe I should squeeze my budget for the Simple GPS Tracker.?? That's the unit that I like most at this point.

Selling the tracker as a kit for the customer to assemble has been the EggTimer business model from its inception. There are many alternatives that come ready to go out of the box. There are a bazillion threads on every tracker known to man in this forum.
 
Do these bugs get worked throu

Do these bugs get worked out in the soldering, testing, etc., etc, stage.?? Or is it left to the "flyer.??" Also, I don't understand why the product isn't ready to go when it's paid for. Wait..... I know. Labor costs. Well guess what, many are going to pay the labor costs to get the units going. Put a price on the darn thing and see if the consumer responds. I'll sell you a car but you need to install the gas tank. I'll sell you a pair Levi's but it comes without a zipper. You'll have to install that. lol.
Maybe I should squeeze my budget for the Simple GPS Tracker.?? That's the unit that I like most at this point.

There is definitely testing that you need to do as a consumer to make sure you assembled the unit properly. Other than that, it’s relatively seamless.

I believe that another reason for selling as a kit is that it simplifies/eliminates FCC review.
 
Do these bugs get worked throu

Do these bugs get worked out in the soldering, testing, etc., etc, stage.?? Or is it left to the "flyer.??" Also, I don't understand why the product isn't ready to go when it's paid for. Wait..... I know. Labor costs. Well guess what, many are going to pay the labor costs to get the units going. Put a price on the darn thing and see if the consumer responds. I'll sell you car but you need to install the gas tank. I'll sell you a pair Levi's but but it comes without a zipper. You'll have to install that. lol.
Maybe I should squeeze my budget for the Simple GPS Tracker.?? That's the unit that I like most at this point.
Cris Irving who, basically, is Eggtimer spent and hour and a half talking with the guys from The Rocketry Show podcast. It’s a very informative episode with some great tips on building Eggtimer kits. One of the reasons that his products are sold as kits is pretty simple - it’s the only business model that works for him as a semi-retired owner of what, in real everyday terms, is a very small niche business in what is, really, a very small niche hobby. The numbers simply aren’t there to justify small job lot assembly of his stuff. He’d either need a big upfront investment to have inventory built (which would mean an increase in unit price) or his customers would have to be ok with the increase (again) in price and very long lead times while batches of products are built.
 
Do these bugs get worked throu

Do these bugs get worked out in the soldering, testing, etc., etc, stage.?? Or is it left to the "flyer.??" Also, I don't understand why the product isn't ready to go when it's paid for. Wait..... I know. Labor costs. Well guess what, many are going to pay the labor costs to get the units going. Put a price on the darn thing and see if the consumer responds. I'll sell you a car but you need to install the gas tank. I'll sell you a pair Levi's but it comes without a zipper. You'll have to install that. lol.
Maybe I should squeeze my budget for the Simple GPS Tracker.?? That's the unit that I like most at this point.
Selling a finished product is not Cris' business model.

These are kits built by the buyer, so the better analogy is that you wanted a pair of Levis and either couldn't afford them or just enjoyed sewing, so you buy the pieces that make up the jeans from Cris and you sew your own pair. Cris is not responsible for your sewing, er, soldering.
 
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You have to use two iOS devices to track two Featherweight transmitters? That's crazy. I thought a big selling point of the Featherweight was the ability to monitor many transmitters seamlessly - yours, your friend's, the entire club, lost rockets over the mountain, etc.
Please keep in mind that there have been many updates to the software and upgrades with additional features since I started using Featherweight GPS. I haven't had the opportunity to use some of them for almost the last year. I am a fan of FW trackers and the Raven. For me, having two and sometimes three systems going is not a big deal.
Do these bugs get worked out in the soldering, testing, etc., etc, stage.?? Or is it left to the "flyer.??"
I hope I didn't get the impression that there's anything wrong with the Eggfinder; there isn't. It just isn't for everyone. Assembly can be a challenge if you are not accustomed to surface mount technology (SMT). Most of the assembly is not through the hole type of soldering which many people know how to do. There are kits which teach how to solder components using SMT.
Some people get the kit and the first thing they say when they see the components is "are you kidding me." You need a good soldering iron with appropriate tips and a magnifying glass to do a good job. My SMT soldering is marginal at best although I've noticed that a glass or two of wine helps.

Cris at Eggtimer does an excellent job responding to questions and concerns. Having units assembled is remarkably affordable and you can drop ship them to them and they complete the job and get it shipped to you pretty quickly.

I also don't think anyone has mentioned the HAM version of the Eggfinder which has a longer range.
Some clubs do a group buy on a CommSpec receiver and individuals purchase the transmitters. You should have a HAM license to operate one, although many people do not do this.

In my opinion, most of the bugs to be worked out using any new tracking system are operator error bugs.
 
OP here..... I don't know who Cris is and I'm not making it personal about her. I'm simply saying as a consumer, I want(need) a complete unit that is ready to go out of the box. So, if Eggtimer is not for me I will find a unit that is. And I haven't entirely given up on the Eggtimer. I've emailed them for a price on a complete unit and I'm waiting to hear back from them. Further more, they don't sell one complete package and I'm not sure why that is the case. Question......

Can I buy an Eggtimer receiver and use it with a Featherweight transmitter.?? Can I use the Eggtimer transmitter with any other receiver on the market today.?? If the answer to both those questions is no, then why doesn't Eggtimer combine a transmitter and a receiver as 1 unit.?? And add an LCD screen to the purchase because that too is needed. I'm just asking questions to get answers.

So you see, I have to mix and match to get a tracker to track my rockets. Even if the units are produced under one roof. Why is there not a package of a receiver, a transmitter and an LCD screen.?? Everything I need in one bundle. It should be that simple.

g. pitts ...... I know how to sew so I'm all set for jeans. And thankfully I don't have to search for a zipper. It's included.

Still waiting to hear from Eggtimer.
 
OP here..... I don't know who Cris is and I'm not making it personal about her. I'm simply saying as a consumer, I want(need) a complete unit that is ready to go out of the box. So, if Eggtimer is not for me I will find a unit that is. And I haven't entirely given up on the Eggtimer. I've emailed them for a price on a complete unit and I'm waiting to hear back from them. Further more, they don't sell one complete package and I'm not sure why that is the case. Question......

Can I buy an Eggtimer receiver and use it with a Featherweight transmitter.?? Can I use the Eggtimer transmitter with any other receiver on the market today.?? If the answer to both those questions is no, then why doesn't Eggtimer combine a transmitter and a receiver as 1 unit.?? And add an LCD screen to the purchase because that too is needed. I'm just asking questions to get answers.

So you see, I have to mix and match to get a tracker to track my rockets. Even if the units are produced under one roof. Why is there not a package of a receiver, a transmitter and an LCD screen.?? Everything I need in one bundle. It should be that simple.

g. pitts ...... I know how to sew so I'm all set for jeans. And thankfully I don't have to search for a zipper. It's included.

Still waiting to hear from Eggtimer.
Glad you are fully clothed, so we've answered that question. 😂

If you want something that is "plug and play" out of the box, then my humble opinion is that the Eggtimer products are not for you. They require assembly (soldering) and testing, and sometimes rework. Cris Erving's products are solid, and his support is excellent, so this is not a ding on his product line, just an observation that his business model does not align with your wants. To your question of interoperability between vendors, no. You can't use a tracker from vendor A with a receiver from vendor B. But there are excellent trackers and receivers out there that are of the "plug and play" nature that you are looking for.
 
Glad you are fully clothed, so we've answered that question. 😂

If you want something that is "plug and play" out of the box, then my humble opinion is that the Eggtimer products are not for you. They require assembly (soldering) and testing, and sometimes rework. Cris Erving's products are solid, and his support is excellent, so this is not a ding on his product line, just an observation that his business model does not align with your wants. To your question of interoperability between vendors, no. You can't use a tracker from vendor A with a receiver from vendor B. But there are excellent trackers and receivers out there that are of the "plug and play" nature that you are looking for.
Nice post. Thanks.
 
Do these bugs get worked throu

Do these bugs get worked out in the soldering, testing, etc., etc, stage.?? Or is it left to the "flyer.??" Also, I don't understand why the product isn't ready to go when it's paid for. Wait..... I know. Labor costs. Well guess what, many are going to pay the labor costs to get the units going. Put a price on the darn thing and see if the consumer responds. I'll sell you a car but you need to install the gas tank. I'll sell you a pair Levi's but it comes without a zipper. You'll have to install that. lol.
Maybe I should squeeze my budget for the Simple GPS Tracker.?? That's the unit that I like most at this point.

If you go the Eggfinder route, I think you should get it assembled by someone else. It costs much less than I would expect. I think any of the assemblers will test the GPS to make sure that it does work.

Any of the trackers will require getting to know how it works. When you receive it you will want to play with it so that you know how to work it yourself. I had my daughter hide the transmitter at a high spot in our neighborhood and then I found it.

Cris sells the items individually so you can tailor it to your needs. I already have an LCD unit for my TRS, so I only buy the Mini unit for my other rockets. Cris helps you understand what you need before you buy.
 
I know you asked about GPS trackers, but this RF tracker is rock-solid reliable and simple to use, no smartphone needed: https://wildmanrocketry.com/collections/receiver/products/tracker-receiver . IMHO, it's best paired with the falconry transmitters from LL Electronics, which can be put in very small places, or simply taped to a shock cord, which I often do. Easy to move transmitter between rockets on launch day.

Expensive, perhaps, but has paid for itself where I fly, not just in lost rockets & cases, but time saved finding them.
 
One of the things we’ve found really cheap is used radio trackers for our native birds(I’m from New Zealand).
Endangered species gets small (2cm) radio tracker that is encased in a hard plastic shell. When it eventually falls off it gets picked up (to check why bird is not moving-sometimes they are dead).
And because they are fully encased they get thrown out.
We cut the case open and replace the battery.
They switch on and off with a magnet switch so are pretty handy
 
Maybe I should squeeze my budget for the Simple GPS Tracker.?? That's the unit that I like most at this point.

I don't think you are looking for the most affordable/reliable tracker, which is fine. We often find what we value changes as we research a product.
Based on what you've written above, I think you are looking for the most easy to use product, with price not a top consideration.
What did you end up getting?
 
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