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Awhile back, I bought a FlightSketch Mini from another member. I want to be able to very quickly move it from rocket to rocket, putting it in sport models that are built according to the instructions with no special provisions for carrying an altimeter. So I've been mulling over making a fabric pouch to protect it from ejection gases, dirt and dust, and whatever other slings and arrows might come its way. I've been putting off doing that for a ridiculously long time, for reasons I didn't quite understand. It turns out it may have been an intuitive sense that I wasn't quite sure how to do it at a step by step level. Today, I dove in. It turns out my intuition was right. I ended up starting over about four times before I got it all the way done successfully. Figured that warrants a how-to so other people can just get after it. And so I can remember in case I need to do it again in the future.
The FS Mini in all its glory. My FS mini by itself weighed 2.968 gm. I used the built-in hole as an anchor for a 150-lb Kevlar cord to attach it to a Dr. Fish #1 BB snap swivel. The snap swivel by itself weighs 0.56 gm. I used Perfection Loop knots in the Kevlar and dressed the ends with a drop of CA to prevent fraying, but kept it away from the knot itself. Before this was all over, I dressed the edges and knocked the sharpness off the corners of the circuit board to allow it to slide in and out of the pouch much more easily. Sharp corners wanted to hang up on the fabric.
I originally thought I'd make it all neat and pretty, turning it inside out so the seams would face inward, as in the photo below. Two problems made that not work.
1. Having all the extra material on the inside created features that the altimeter hung up on, so getting the altimeter in and out of the pouch was much more difficult than it needed to be.
2. I couldn't get a drawstring cord through the sleeve that was formed. You can see where I nipped a little hole in it with a razor blade, but there is just no way to push a rope around that loop, and unless I had a circular needle, that wasn't going to help, either.
What I finally did that worked:
I started with an old, discarded pillow case. Cut a chunk off the hemmed edge, so it already had a really nice fold in it. That made the rest a lot easier. Cut it much bigger than it needs to be. The sewing machine likes bigger pieces of fabric a lot better.
I stitched along the folded edge, with the fold at the side of the sewing machine's foot. Used a large, blunt needle to pass the Kevlar drawstring into the little sleeve that was formed. I flipped the cutting mat over for the photos to show scale.
I then cut one side of the material away so just the sewn sleeve was left at the top. Picked the side with the nicer looking stitching to be outside. I folded the assembly over and marked the corners of where I wanted the sewing on the final pouch to be. Then sewed the other two sides in a continuous run, starting at the bottom and turning at the corner. Stopped just before the stitch line that makes the drawstring sleeve. I then used a hand needle to pass one tail through the fabric so they were both on the same side and tied them off. Used a teensy drop of CA to lock those knots and trimmed the ends.
It was very important at this point to NOT cut the drawstring, so I cut partway through the sleeve and then came in from the end.
I was then able to pull the drawstring out of the way and cut off the rest of the sleeve.
To finish it, I gave myself a long enough loop to be able to tie both sides, then joined the ends of the drawstring with a simple overhand knot including both ends. I used a Perfection loop to connect the longer end to the snap swivel. The drawstring is tightened and held tight with a simple overhand knot looped back through, so pulling on the end will untie it.
Here is is with the FS Mini in the bag and both lines attached to the snap swivel. Belt and suspenders. Both lines get taught about the same time, but the FS Mini is ultimately held to the swivel by its own leader. This assembly will hook onto a recovery harness wherever you want. It still fits neatly in a BT-20. The entire assembly shown here weighs 4.376 gm, so the bag, harnesses, and 0.56-gm snap swivel all together added 1.408 gm to the mass of the altimeter. Looking forward to flying it.
The FS Mini in all its glory. My FS mini by itself weighed 2.968 gm. I used the built-in hole as an anchor for a 150-lb Kevlar cord to attach it to a Dr. Fish #1 BB snap swivel. The snap swivel by itself weighs 0.56 gm. I used Perfection Loop knots in the Kevlar and dressed the ends with a drop of CA to prevent fraying, but kept it away from the knot itself. Before this was all over, I dressed the edges and knocked the sharpness off the corners of the circuit board to allow it to slide in and out of the pouch much more easily. Sharp corners wanted to hang up on the fabric.
I originally thought I'd make it all neat and pretty, turning it inside out so the seams would face inward, as in the photo below. Two problems made that not work.
1. Having all the extra material on the inside created features that the altimeter hung up on, so getting the altimeter in and out of the pouch was much more difficult than it needed to be.
2. I couldn't get a drawstring cord through the sleeve that was formed. You can see where I nipped a little hole in it with a razor blade, but there is just no way to push a rope around that loop, and unless I had a circular needle, that wasn't going to help, either.
What I finally did that worked:
I started with an old, discarded pillow case. Cut a chunk off the hemmed edge, so it already had a really nice fold in it. That made the rest a lot easier. Cut it much bigger than it needs to be. The sewing machine likes bigger pieces of fabric a lot better.
I stitched along the folded edge, with the fold at the side of the sewing machine's foot. Used a large, blunt needle to pass the Kevlar drawstring into the little sleeve that was formed. I flipped the cutting mat over for the photos to show scale.
I then cut one side of the material away so just the sewn sleeve was left at the top. Picked the side with the nicer looking stitching to be outside. I folded the assembly over and marked the corners of where I wanted the sewing on the final pouch to be. Then sewed the other two sides in a continuous run, starting at the bottom and turning at the corner. Stopped just before the stitch line that makes the drawstring sleeve. I then used a hand needle to pass one tail through the fabric so they were both on the same side and tied them off. Used a teensy drop of CA to lock those knots and trimmed the ends.
It was very important at this point to NOT cut the drawstring, so I cut partway through the sleeve and then came in from the end.
I was then able to pull the drawstring out of the way and cut off the rest of the sleeve.
To finish it, I gave myself a long enough loop to be able to tie both sides, then joined the ends of the drawstring with a simple overhand knot including both ends. I used a Perfection loop to connect the longer end to the snap swivel. The drawstring is tightened and held tight with a simple overhand knot looped back through, so pulling on the end will untie it.
Here is is with the FS Mini in the bag and both lines attached to the snap swivel. Belt and suspenders. Both lines get taught about the same time, but the FS Mini is ultimately held to the swivel by its own leader. This assembly will hook onto a recovery harness wherever you want. It still fits neatly in a BT-20. The entire assembly shown here weighs 4.376 gm, so the bag, harnesses, and 0.56-gm snap swivel all together added 1.408 gm to the mass of the altimeter. Looking forward to flying it.
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