Initially, mine was primarily price, size & simplicity. But I have since moved on to the Ravens and Altus products do to advanced features.
Stratologgers Available????
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Me too, but since I discovered I can successfully build eggtimer stuff, that would be my go to even for advanced stuff like tracking etc. They're hugely fun to build. Quantum does the same stuff PLUS you arm it with wifi as well as getting at your data via the same wifi...
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Inexpensive
Easy to use
Simple connections
I don't need/want "features". Deploy the chutes and tell me how high it went.
It also can output graph and data table and store flights in separate flights of the day if you do want data. I like the fact I can change the main deploy altitude without a computer and hear how high it went without a computer.
Edit: and I consider a Cell Phone a Computer ...
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I know in my case, I'm returning to rocketry after 10 years and one thing I never did years ago was dual deploy. So for me as a beginner to rocket electronics I picked one up for redundancy purposes. I'd like to get a few of the different more technology forward altimeters on the market to familiarize myself with everything, but the perfectflight is a bit of an attempt to idiot proof my execution. And I base that completely on the word of mouth surrounding it. The product has clearly built itself a following as being a failsafe altimeter, so as a newbie to rocketry electronics, it's going in the kit.
^ They are a Starting TARC team's favorite because of all that.
Can't really beat the price for a dual deploy altimeter that I can download a complete time vs. altitude curve from. The only one that does beat it on price for those features is the Eggtimer Quantum, but those cost an afternoon or so to build.
That said though, I have three of them now and am not looking for more.
What I like.
- They fly for years on a 9V battery!
- They beep out the battery voltage as part of the startup sequence so you know when to change out the 9V.
- Small and easy to install.
- Doesn't use a complicated common ground wiring scheme.
- Terminal connectors work very well.
- Super easy to configure with pushbutton and the software.
- Adjustable beep frequency so those of us older folks with high frequency hearing loss can still hear it.
- Downloadable flight profiles if you want them.
- Price
- The software is hard to get to work on Win11. It works perfectly on my old Win10 laptop.
- You have to buy a separate USB dongle to get it to talk to a computer. (My old 1st gen model dongle might be part of my problem with Win11).
I use the PF cord to a TTL $7 TTL/USB board that the cord fits in like maker stuff cables.
Totally don't understand any of that!
Totally don't understand any of that!
If you don't you won't.
The Perfect flight cable off the board talks in TTL signals, which is a standard that took over RS-232 decades ago.
You can buy Arduino TTL to USB tiny board that plug into your PC usb port and can using standard "maker" jumpers wire it up easy. I still have that in a plastic bag in a range box with altimeter stuff in it.
Things like this that "Makers" use : https://www.amazon.com/HiLetgo-CP2102-Converter-Adapter-Downloader/dp/B00LODGRV8
I can't remember just now, but I think the Perfect Flight altimeters need 3.3 volts for signals not the 5. that item above does both. Check the PF documents.
Here is a much newer one:
https://www.amazon.com/IZOKEE-CP2102-Converter-Adapter-Downloader/dp/B07D6LLX19/
https://www.amazon.com/IZOKEE-CP2102-Converter-Adapter-Downloader/dp/B07D6LLX19/
COrocket
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I think the SLCF feature set for the price is very compelling. Some things that come to mind (as a long time fan of both SLCFs and Ravens) are -
1. The baro vs time graph is just enough supplemental information for things like apogee timing, chute decent rates, rough velocity, but still extremely simple and approachable (especially for new flyers).
2. Single push button programming is a nice optional feature if you don’t want to fuss with hooking it up to an external device in the field.
3. Terminal pairs for battery, switch, main, apogee. When bay volume isn’t at a super premium it’s nice to be able to have all the ground points built into the board so there isn’t jamming multiple wires into a single terminal or an external junction point. The simple circuit and power perch seem popular for this reason.
4. Fleet friendly pricing - probably one of the biggest draws to the SLCF is the $59 price point. You can equip a full redundant dual deploy rocket for $118 vs $350 for a dual Raven setup. This makes it easier to be able to keep one or two SLCFs in each rocket (which drives sales volume). Transferring altimeters between rockets isn’t a huge deal but anything to cut down on field prep time is a huge win in my book. It might simply be more convenient to have a larger number of basic altimeters if the advanced features of something like a Raven isn’t needed.
From what I’ve seen at local club launches, the SLCF with a 100k baro sensor covers the needs of probably 90-95%+ of the HPR sport launches on any given weekend and has a reliable reputation. The Raven is certainly a class leader in capability but I generally keep them for large/complex projects. If I’m just doing a dual deployment flight and won’t be dissecting the data afterwards it’s hard to beat the SLCF. This is especially true if there’s a chance of electronics loss due to recovery issues (trees, upper level winds) or hazards (areas of standing water) in the vicinity of the flying field. In these cases I’d definitely fly a cheaper altimeter if it can get the job done.
I think a baro only Raven “Lite” with DD capabilities would fly off the shelves if it had similar features and price point to the SLCF. One thing I would improve with the SLCF is putting the USB port right on the board (a very nice Raven feature) so you don’t have to keep track of a proprietary data transfer cord.
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Simple, affordable, and reliable. It's hard to beat the PF line that you can adjust main deploy settings on the unit without a computer and for most flyers having the extra terminal block to make connecting wires simple is worth the space. My first altimeter was a PF MAWD and a few years later my second was a FW Parrot V2. Parrots/Ravens were not so simple and the features are awesome but for many it's too hard to justify the price difference. I must note: New Blue Ravens with the new app do make a big improvement in simplicity.
A agree with the above a simple DD would sell well.
A agree with the above a simple DD would sell well.
A lot of the positive comments on this page are valid, and most of the negatives are software issues that I don't have, mainly because I don't change settings in the field and I can easily download data with my Win 11 computer.
One of the main advantages that has not been mentioned is the external speaker. I have tinnitus, the external speaker overcomes this issue. Anything that has an avbay lid that I can fit the speaker on has one installed.
One of the main advantages that has not been mentioned is the external speaker. I have tinnitus, the external speaker overcomes this issue. Anything that has an avbay lid that I can fit the speaker on has one installed.
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I have several CF's and have had great success with them. Agree with most of the positive statements above. I, too, like the Eggtimer stuff and have built a least one or more of everything he sells. Most of my DD, I fly backup altimeters. So many times, I backup my Egg with a manufacturer's altimeter such as a CF or MW. That's in case my assembly was not optimal on the Eggs. BTW....I had one of the first Parrots and one had to download the data into a massive Excel sheet for post processing including lots of spreadsheet manipulations. When it lost it's memory, it couldn't be reflashed/recalibrated so it was unusable.
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My fleet of flight controllers consists of the Stratologger, RRC2+, RRC2L, RRC3, Quark and Quantum.
They all work well.
They all have small footprints - with the exception of the RRC3, just a tad long.
They all work well.
They all have small footprints - with the exception of the RRC3, just a tad long.
I don't own one myself cause they won't ship to me in Canada but if I could buy some I would.
They're cheap and allegedly have bulletproof programming that rarely if ever fails to fire a charge or fires one at the wrong moment.
The main factor though has got to be price, not every flight needs more fancy features like accelerometers or extra pyro outputs or bluetooth/wifi. I like my EasyMini for the simplicity and it's similar to the Strat. 2 pyro outputs + baro with solid programming + datalogging I can transfer to my laptop? Perfect for most flights.
If you're asking because you might be testing the waters for a market for something like a budget Raven, I would be all over that. There's a place for the higher end products like the Raven and EasyMega etc, but way more of my flights are suited to something a bit more barebones and cheap. The current mainstays in this region are the Strat, EasyMini, Quark (albiet with no logging), and RRC3. I own two of those four and would for sure be in the market for a similarly priced ($40-$80 USD range) product from Featherweight.
edit: I would say that of these products I much prefer the usb cable option to program/download data rather than a separate dongle like the Strat or RRC3.
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