Quick Quest Questions

[MarkII]

A couple of quick product questions (igniter division). Quest's office is closed until Tuesday, but that will be after their President's Day Sale is over, and I would like to know about this before then. I know that Quest staff would really be the people who should be contacted for answers, but while they enjoy what is no doubt a well-earned holiday, I thought that I would try crowdsourcing some thoughts about the following.

Quest's launch controller is not being shown on their web site; I take that to mean that it is out of stock. I realize that Quest's regular unit is the most appropriate device to fire Q2G2 igniters, but perhaps I don't actually need to order a new one. I have an old trashed MicroMaxx Silo in which the 9 volt hockey puck controller is still good (I think). I know that I can just unsolder (or clip) the leads from the contact surfaces inside the Silo, remove the puck controller and solder on microclips to make a stand-alone unit, but my question is - will this safely fire a Q2G2 igniter?

My second question: the new 8" Q2G2s are described as being perfect for igniting Aerotech motors. Which ones, specifically? Are they a suitable substitute for First Fires? First Fire Jrs.? I will check with Quest after their office opens next week, but in the meantime, does anyone have any thoughts about either question?

Thanks in advance.

MarkII

 

[shreadvector]

Silo launch controller is the same electronics in a round package. Clip the wires and solder on micro clips. I've done it.

The Quest contoller is included in ALL starter sets, including the MicroMaxx Super Value Starter Set, so buy one of those for a new Quest controller.

The longer Q2G2 igniters will work in any Aerotech motor where they can reach the top of the propellant grain, so that would include virtually all the Model Rocket power motors since they are certainly not any longer on the isnde than the igntiters. The big question is the pyrogen and heat. I'm not sure (since I don't have any of these new longer igniters) if they have the same blob of pyrogen as the standard short Q2G2 or if they have a hotter burning mix. I also don't know if the head is longer for a bigger burning surface, but hopefully it is not any larger in diameter or it will not fit into the smaller motors with the tiny nozzle throats.

Let's hear from someone who has already bought some and done both test fits into various sized AT motors and also tried to ignite them.

 

[MarkII]

Thanks, Fred. I suspected that the Silo controller would work, but I wanted to check to see if anyone had experience with using it with Q2G2s. I don't have a multimeter (and don't even know how to use one), but I thought that maybe if I asked around, someone might be able to tell me if the current passed by the hockey puck during the continuity check was low enough to be safe with the new igniters. But I would be surprised if the internals were any different than those of the standard Quest 9v controller in any appreciable way.

I didn't think to check the Micromaxx section when I looked over the site last night (oddly enough), but today I included the Micromaxx launch control system (which includes the standard controller) with my order, so I should be all set.

The issue that you raise about whether the pyrogen gets hot enough and burns long enough to ignite composite propellant was the thinking behind my second question. The 8" leads are long enough - the question is really about the pyrogen head. Also the head size issue. I had a devil of a time getting the small head of the Copperhead igniter into the slot opening of a G40 that I bought last summer. I haven't flown with composite motors all that much, but that experience raised my awareness of the issue. Thanks for your response.

MarkII

 

[billspad]

Let's hear from someone who has already bought some and done both test fits into various sized AT motors and also tried to ignite them.

I haven't tried to ignite anything with them yet but the long igniters have more pyrogen. The blob is about the same diameter but longer.

 

[shreadvector]

I haven't tried to ignite anything with them yet but the long igniters have more pyrogen. The blob is about the same diameter but longer.

Then I will make an educated guess and say they will ignite the Aerotech motors just fine. And I would bet that Bill tested them quite a bit before selling them as igniters for Aerotech motors. Thanks.

 

[Hangar 11]

From the Quest website.....

DESIGNED FOR USE WITH THE QUEST 9V LAUNCH CONTROLLER - Please note that since they are very low current igniters (150mA No - Fire current), some model rocket launch controllers can set them off during continuity tests. Be sure to test your model rocket launch controller, by connecting an igniter to your controller before inserting it into the model rocket engine to make sure it does not prematurely activate when you insert your safety key and/or when you perform a continuity check.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS: No-Fire Current = 150mA, All-Fire Current = 350mA

 

[MarkII]

From the Quest website.....

DESIGNED FOR USE WITH THE QUEST 9V LAUNCH CONTROLLER - Please note that since they are very low current igniters (150mA No - Fire current), some model rocket launch controllers can set them off during continuity tests. Be sure to test your model rocket launch controller, by connecting an igniter to your controller before inserting it into the model rocket engine to make sure it does not prematurely activate when you insert your safety key and/or when you perform a continuity check.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS: No-Fire Current = 150mA, All-Fire Current = 350mA

Thanks, Bobby. I did see that description on Quest's web site.

MarkII

 

[shreadvector]

From the Quest website.....

DESIGNED FOR USE WITH THE QUEST 9V LAUNCH CONTROLLER - Please note that since they are very low current igniters (150mA No - Fire current), some model rocket launch controllers can set them off during continuity tests. Be sure to test your model rocket launch controller, by connecting an igniter to your controller before inserting it into the model rocket engine to make sure it does not prematurely activate when you insert your safety key and/or when you perform a continuity check.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS: No-Fire Current = 150mA, All-Fire Current = 350mA

I think those values are new/different than originally quoted when they first were introduced. I like these new values much better. Thaks for pointing this information out.

 

[Rocketjunkie]

I think those values are new/different than originally quoted when they first were introduced. I like these new values much better. Thaks for pointing this information out.

I agree. They are much more in line with the results of my testing. I got no fires at 220 ma, all eventually fired at 250 ma, and they all fired immediately at 320 ma. These were purchased as soon as the bulk packs were made available.