Cable Cutter vs. Parachute Cannon

[mbeels]

I'm weighing the pros and cons of a cable cutter vs parachute cannon (for my Celestial Jet) and seeking more opinions and experiences. A parachute cannon seems more straightforward to me, but there seems to be a preference for cable cutters here.

One question I have about cable cutters is how does one prevent the e-match wire from getting yanked around? The parachute bundle is flopping around in the breeze, so the e-match wire seems vulnerable. Is it necessary to strain relieve it somehow?

 

[mikec]

Is it necessary to strain relieve it somehow?

Yes.

It's common sense that you have to have some kind of service loop to avoid yanking on the cutter and ematch, but on the other hand it can't be too long lest it get tangled in the shock cord. When I've been successful it's because I have a minimal amount of shock cord from the chute bundle to the attachment point and the shock cord run in such a way that it can't tangle up in the wiring. And I suspect there is always an element of luck. I prefer to avoid cable cutters if I can, I don't think my average success rate is much better than 50/50.

Chute cannons have their own tricky aspects, I've only tried that once or twice and have no useful advice.

 

[mbeels]

It's common sense that you have to have some kind of service loop to avoid yanking on the cutter and ematch, but on the other hand it can't be too long lest it get tangled in the shock cord. When I've been successful it's because I have a minimal amount of shock cord from the chute bundle to the attachment point and the shock cord run in such a way that it can't tangle up in the wiring. And I suspect there is always an element of luck. I prefer to avoid cable cutters if I can, I don't think my average success rate is much better than 50/50.

Thanks for the input. It seemed to me that the chute bundle could really tumble and twist during free fall.

What kind of failures have you had with the cable cutters? Not cutting? Cutting but no deployment?

 

[mikec]

What kind of failures have you had with the cable cutters?

Tangling. I did have one that fired the ematch but failed to cut the tie-wrap, but I blame that on bad/insufficient BP. I'm using Archetype Rocketry cutters.

 

[tfish]

I use sort of a deployment bag,,

https://www.rocketryforum.com/threads/chute-reef-line-cutter.17067/#post-150026

Tony

 

[mbeels]

I use sort of a deployment bag,,

Interesting, thanks for the thread link.