This is the build of my smallest and lightest payload yet, using the tracker that I made recently. First job was to solder 3 Lithium Energizer AAA cells together and strap them to the tracker:

I deliberately placed the cells next to the radio transmitter, and put some hot-melt glue in there, to stablize temperature-related drift of the transmitted frequency.

Next, the insulation. This is pretty minimal, intentionally to keep the weight down. This will mean that the electronics will get quite cold, but not as cold as on Buzz1. I’m expecting the radio frequency to drift more than usual as a result, but again not as bad as on Buzz1.

The flight may well not be till Easter (depends on the wind predictions) so I chose a suitable theme. Here’s Buzz holding the shell …

First job, crack the egg open. Larger ones come in 2 hollow parts but this one is solid with a weld which I cut through:

After gouging out the innards to hold the tracker, and painting the outside in a natty shade of pink …

… I soldered the 1/4 wave antenna to the tracker and inserted into the top half of the egg:

And here’s the final result, weighing a mere 42g. As a reference, you would need about 24 of these to weigh the same as my first payload! With ‘chute and line, it will be about 50g total for the balloon to lift.

2 Replies to “An Egg Is Laid”

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