Circuit Wizardry
STARLIGHT – The ultimate hacker’s model rocket flight computer
STARLIGHT AND STARLIGHT MINI are our two flagship flight computers. These flight computers fully support custom firmware as well as pre-written flight computer firmware with full MissionControl integration!
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The hidden layer of HORIZON I: Software struggles
In the beginning, I simply wanted to build a self-stabilizing model rocket. This turned out to be a much more difficult task than I was prepared for. From PID loops to sensor fusion & integration, writing the thrust vector control (TVC) software was a huge struggle. There were many obstacles in my path to my…
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CNC machining on a budget – progress on a custom CNC mill
A few months back, I was really interested in CNC machining. Specifically, I wanted a CNC mill to be able to mill parts out of aluminum. I would soon learn how much of an expensive ask this was. The cheapest options I could find were upwards of $2000 (the 3018 is nowhere near good enough…
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From a junkyard E-scooter to a functioning ride to work – Repairing an old Gotrax GXL V2
This is the story of how I was able to take an old broken Gotrax GXL V2 electric scooter and bring it back from the dead. Below are all the steps I went through to get this thing working again. It was fun and rewarding – and in the end it gave me a reliable…
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Prusa vs Bambu: Prusa MK3S+/MK4 vs Bambu Lab X1-Carbon – Which is the better value?
In a world where there are so many different 3D printers to choose from, where do you even start looking, and how can you get the most value for your money? Unfortunately, it can be extremely difficult to find a low-priced printer with great print quality. However, in this day and age, two high-end hobbyist…
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Public transport trash to functioning utility display – Repurposing an old LED display from a bus
Introduction A few weeks ago, I got my hands on an LED display recycled from an old bus used for public transport. However, getting this hardware to work with tools I had access to in my workshop was incredibly difficult. From strange data transfer protocols to completely gutting the insides of this piece of technology,…
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STARLIGHT is now available for purchase!!
After many months of work refining and touching up my development board STARLIGHT, I’m pleased to announce that it is finally open for pre-orders! This is another huge milestone in my journey, launching my very first original product. The board does not come with firmware already installed, this is a development board targeted towards model…
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From hobbyist to design engineer: The story of STARLIGHT
The design of STARLIGHT represents a massive leap in my technical ability, and a huge milestone overall. However, I didn’t start from nothing. You may wonder what prompted me to begin designing my first circuit board? The beginning of STARLIGHT It all goes back to December of 2022, during a vacation to Oklahoma to visit…
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Harmless fun, or cancer-causing chemicals? Health implications for 3D printing with resin
Ah, resin printing. If you’re someone looking to 3D print aesthetic models, this is the technology for you. Much better surfaces, more detail, and nicer corners are huge benefits to this technology. However, there are some downsides to resin printing that are not talked about very often – mainly related to the safety of resin…
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Motorized Bike Review – My (very frustrating) experience with 2-stroke kits from BikeBerry
Recently, I picked up a 2-stroke 66cc engine off of BikeBerry’s website. I planned to build myself a motorized bicycle using a regular mountain bike at home for getting to and from work, as my electric scooter was no longer cutting it. This taught me a lot of lessons, and here’s what I think you…
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Starlight: The Ultimate Model Rocket Control Board
This is the story of Starlight, my model rocket control board. That’s right, at 16 years old, I designed a circuit board from scratch. And it works – beautifully. On the first revision! It’s my magnum opus thus far, and signifies a huge leap in my technical ability. So here’s the story of my circuit…
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Recent Posts
- A simple demonstration of motor control with a Raspberry Pi Pico – EGR-101 final project
- Visual product prototyping that turns heads: using Blender 4.4 to impress investors
- Introducing my automotive restoration project – The 2002 Toyota Camry
- Battery Safety in Practice: BMS Revision A
- A peek into the quality assurance process for STARLIGHT: Why is proper QA so important?
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