Inside of an Estes Astrocam camera

[AcadiaRockets]

Did you ever want to see the inside of an Estes Astrocam camera?
No?
Me either - but since I fumbled my laptop (its fine) while the camera was inserted and smashed it - I present to you - Astrocam camera deconstructed!

Follow up - Do we still like these little cameras? I have Runcam2's on my HPR's. But do we have ultra light small options for the LPR stuff?
I have (had) two of these and they work OK but always on the lookout for the next thing.
Thanks

 

[bad_idea]

I've had poor luck getting the sequence right to get one of these to record video. It's a pity that discrete physical switches have become so rare in recent years. My ideal camera wouldn't have soft-buttons that had to be manipulated in a particular way to get results, it would only have an "on/off" switch and a status LED bright enough to read outdoors.

 

[bad_idea]

Thanks for posting the guts. Interesting how the camera is on a ribbon cable. Could presumably be adapted to a very small streamlined pod outside of the rocket body while the circuit board, battery, etc. stay inside.

 

[NTP2]

Thanks for posting the guts. Interesting how the camera is on a ribbon cable. Could presumably be adapted to a very small streamlined pod outside of the rocket body while the circuit board, battery, etc. stay inside.

I would get one if you could do that!

 

[bad_idea]

I would get one if you could do that!

If you look at the photo, seems feasible. You'd need to rewire the control button or else turn it on before buttoning the rocket up.

 

[Wrightme43]

Mine came with a large black piece of trash on the inside of the lens, and a small chinese persons finger print. Both on the inside.

 

[K'Tesh]

Sorry about the damaged camera. I don't know your skills with a soldering iron, but it might be fixable.

On the plus side, it looks like this *WOULD* work in my CinerocDV project. With the lens/sensor on a ribbon cable, it could be mounted to peer at the first surface mirror on the Cineroc's shroud. Getting it to activate still might be a PITA, but the lens should work.

 

[BABAR]

Sorry about the damaged camera. I don't know your skills with a soldering iron, but it might be fixable.

On the plus side, it looks like this *WOULD* work in my CinerocDV project. With the lens/sensor on a ribbon cable, it could be mounted to peer at the first surface mirror on the Cineroc's shroud. Getting it to activate still might be a PITA, but the lens should work.

I’ve seen a bunch of #16 (and other #s) keychain cameras with accessory lenses on ribbon cables, but then I have looked up how to connect them, it looked pretty hard to do (I am not even good at soldering, this looks harder.). Also figure it it was easy a lot of people would be doing it, and I personally haven’t seen any. SOMEBODY must, or they wouldn’t sell the extension cable with lens piece.

even the Estes AstroCam looks to me like a nose cone itself customized to fit a pre-existing camera, rather than an original camera designed for a rocket.

I am a bit surprised, while maybe model Rocketry itself isn’t that huge a market for a small diameter, maybe a bit longer if needed camera with a lens on a small cable, so bulk Of camera can fit in body tube and small low drag lense be surface mounted, combine rocketry with RC airplanes and maybe RC ground vehicles and I would think a good system would have a nice niche.