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Contributed by Harvey Miller
(Contributed - by Harvey Miller - 06/13/05)
 Brief:
Estes Industries recently released the first production digital video camera
rocket. I had read about the Oracle many months ago on an Internet user forum.
The insider information described a low quality, short duration, video camera.
I was pleased to learn that Estes had made a couple of upgrades before final
release. This easy to build and great looking rocket with respectable digital
video capability would make a worthwhile addition to any rocketeers fleet.
Construction:
The kit contents:
- Lower BT-60 body tube with fully assembled motor mount and fin can with 4
plastic fins
- Upper BT-60 body tube
- Nose cone with factory assembled video camera
- 12" assembled nylon parachute
- 36" x 1/4" rubber shock cord
- USB cable
- Video Capture CD-ROM
The camera uses a CMOS detector at 9 frames per second for 30 seconds. The
controls on the camera are easy to use. When the rocket is on the pad and ready
for launch, you just turn on power to the camera and press the Start button. A
red LED will illuminate to let you know the camera is powered on and ready.
After depressing the Start button, you will hear a series of beeps and a green
LED will flash for 15 seconds giving you time to get back to the launch
control. After that 15 seconds has passed, the camera will begin taking video.
Only one video can be stored in memory at a time. The memory is wiped clean
when the power switch is turned off so you'll need to leave the power switch on
until you can download the video to a computer using the included USB cable. To
conserve battery power the camera goes into standby mode after taking the
video. I'm not sure how long the AAA battery will last in standby mode, but I'm
guessing it would last long enough to get the camera home to download the
pictures to your computer. A laptop at the launch site makes it possible to
take more than one video at each launch.
Before your first flight, Estes recommends installing the video capture
software and drivers provided on CD-ROM onto your computer and testing the
video camera. The software installed just as described in the instructions. The
rocket was delivered to me late in the evening so when I was ready to test the
video camera, it was dark outside. I shot and downloaded two indoor test videos
and both were so dark that very little showed in the video. It made sense to me
that the camera would be better at taking outdoor lighted pictures, but I was
still amazed at how completely useless the camera was in an indoor lighted
environment. The next morning, I went outside and shot another test video. The
outdoor video was better than expected! By then I couldn't wait to see the
Oracle in action.
After the camera is connected to the computer with the USB cable, you'll
need to launch the capture software. The application is named TwainApp. The
video capture software is extremely simplistic but not very intuitive. There is
no help file--not even any bubble help pop ups on the button controls. To get
your video out of the camera, follow the simple steps in the instructions.
While testing the video capability, play around a little with TwainApp. Since
the camera only holds one video at a time and the TwainApp starts fresh with
each video capture, the default save name will always be vid0000.avi,
so be sure to rename the file after each video capture (to prevent it from
overwriting any previous videos).
This rocket is an E2X kit, which means it is easy to build. The instructions
were clear, concise, and well illustrated. So much of the rocket was
pre-assembled that there were really only 3 steps to complete the rocket: glue
the body tubes together, glue on the typical Estes shock cord mount, and tie
the shock cord and parachute to the nose cone. The video camera requires one
AAA battery. The battery cover is held on with a Phillips head screw.
When attaching the parachute to the nose cone, there are 2 choices. The
first is the typical connection to the bottom of the nose cone. This
configuration would only yield pictures of the sky during descent. The second
option is to tie the parachute to a short cord (not provided) which can then be
attached to a hole in the tip of the nose cone. A notch in the bottom of the
nose cone provides room for the cord to fit nicely along the nose cone's
shoulder and down into the upper body tube.
I added tape around the tube coupler to compensate for the slightly loose
fit. I then friction fit the tubes together instead of using glue.
Finishing:
No finishing was necessary. The Oracle came with a nice factory finish.
Construction Rating:
4
out of 5
 Flight:
The motor is held in place with a twist lock motor retainer. The 30 seconds of
9 fps video matches flight duration perfectly. I missed not having sound along
with the video. Maybe Estes will add sound on a future version.
D12-3s were used for all three flights.
The first flight was perfect and the 30 seconds of video ran from liftoff
to touchdown.
On the second flight, video was again perfect from liftoff to touchdown.
The rocket landed squarely on one of the fins, causing it to pop off. The fin
was not damaged though. The fin snapped back into the slot in the fin can and a
little thick CA was used to hold it in place. It was ready for flight #3 in
minutes.
I forgot to screw the motor retainer on for the third flight. I also
launched the rocket early. The video started midway through the flight. At
apogee, the motor ejected. Luckily, the motor was just tight enough to deploy
the recovery system before it kicked out the back of the rocket. Due to the
lighter weight, the rocket drifted further and so the video ended while the
rocket was still aloft.
Recovery:
I was surprised to see the 12" nylon parachute. It was well constructed.
The chute seemed to be sized about right. A slightly larger chute might yield a
softer landing, but the video would no longer match the flight profile. I very
much liked the hole in the tip of the nose cone for the parachute mount to
provide ground video footage.
I'm not a big fan of the Estes shock cord mount method. I prefer a more
robust engine mount type shock cord. I would replace the 1/4" rubber shock
cord with a longer piece of Kevlar®.
Flight Rating:
4
out of 5
Summary:
The Oracle was a pleasure to fly. The construction was extremely easy, the
flights were straight, and the recovery went well. It is a great looking rocket
and the video was acceptable.
I thoroughly enjoyed viewing and reviewing the video footage. The final
.AVI file is roughly 65MB at 320x240 pixels. Just big enough to enjoy many
details, but small enough to easily store, process, and send lots of videos.
The Oracle is a great introduction into aerial photography.
Overall Rating:
4
out of 5 Flight Log| Date | Rocket Name | Motor(s) | Altitude | Notes |
|---|
| 2005-06-05 | Bruce Canino's Estes Oracle | D12-3 | - | Nice Stright boost | | 2005-06-05 | Bruce Canino's Estes Oracle | D12-3 | - | Nice boost, slight rotation | | 2005-06-23 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Nice first flight but I was not able to obtain the video, RATS!!! Very nice otherwise. No damage. | | 2005-06-25 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-0/D12-7 | - | Worried a little about the 7 second delay, but it was perfect (ejection was 1 frame past apogee).... | | 2005-06-28 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Very nice flight and recovery. Got a great video this time. Never occured to me to try a new... | | 2005-07-02 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | C11-3 | - | The C11-3 delay is better-suited for this rocket than the D12-3, because you get video of the... | | 2005-07-02 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-3 | - | 3 seconds delay is not enough for a straight up launch on a calm day. Good video. Caught the spot... | | 2005-07-03 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Very nice flight and recovery. Got a great video of this flight with lots of detail and a nice... | | 2005-07-04 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Beautiful flight and recovery, one thing I really like about this rocket is that it is not an... | | 2005-07-26 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Another great flight, recovery, and video. No damage. | | 2005-08-13 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Another mighty fine flight of the Oracle. A short lived misfire before launch caused the video to... | | 2005-08-15 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Another nice flight but the camera messed up again, finally occured to me that the battery... | | 2005-08-15 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Great flight, camera messed up which meant no video. Nice otherwise. No damage. | | 2005-08-15 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Great flight and video. It appears that the battery is good for about 5-6 flights max. No damage. | | 2005-08-19 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Nice flight. Post flight inspection revealed that the camera and body tube made contact at... | | 2005-08-21 | John Chapman's Estes Oracle | C11-6 | - | Fin popped off on landing, despite touchdown on turf and chute deployment well before contact. No... | | 2005-08-27 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-0/D12-7 | - | Another perfect flight, which may be posted soon on the COSROCS site. A better view of the first... | | 2005-09-04 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-0/C11-5 | - | Weathercocked severely, shock cord failure. Camera parachuted and is fine, body OK except 1 fin... | | 2005-09-11 | Allen Smolenaars's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | This was the first flight. Slight spin on the way up, NC ejected at an almost perfect 90 degrees... | | 2005-09-24 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-0/D12-7 | - | Another great flight. My first try at mounting the parachute on the tip of the camera so it points... | | 2005-10-08 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Added a vestigal fin with an anti-spin tab which works great. Less than 1 rotation per flight now.... | | 2005-10-09 | Chan Stevens's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Forgot batteries for video. D'oh! | | 2005-10-22 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Great flight, nice straight boost. Unfortunately, the camera was acting up so no video was... | | 2005-10-28 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Nice flight, rather long drift on recovery. Unfortunately the camera acted up again, no video. I'm... | | 2005-11-04 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Very nice flight, nice straight boost to about 500 feet. Excellent recovery and I got a great... | | 2005-11-20 | Chan Stevens's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | | | 2005-12-04 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Very nice flight and recovery. Got a great video. No damage. | | 2006-02-11 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | C11-0/D12-7 | - | Asphalt dart. Sustainer didn't ignite. Camera smashed to bits, but after soldering one wire back... | | 2006-03-09 | David Culp's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Perfect flight, boosted straight up, ejection was just past apogee resulting in a good horizon... | | 2006-03-28 | Donald Besaw's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Nice flight, slight weathercock. A very energetic ejection charge severely scorched the chute... | | 2006-03-31 | David Culp's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | D12-5 = perfect motor for this bird. Ejects just past apogee for good horizon shots. ... | | 2006-05-04 | David Culp's Estes Oracle | D12-7 | - | I thought the 7 second delay might give better horizon shots. The delay was a little long and the... | | 2006-05-13 | John+Eric Thompson's Estes Oracle | C11-3 | 149 feet | Worked well for a small field area. Recovery was good and the video recorded the flight from lift... | | 2006-05-18 | David Culp's Estes Oracle | D12-7 | - | 7 second delay is too long for this rocket. Ejection was nose down. No damage and good straight... | | 2006-05-21 | Mike Simonds's Estes Oracle | D12-6 | - | Straight up, ejection charge blew off shock cord, NC came down slow on shute. Body tube came down... | | 2006-06-17 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-0/D12-7 | - | Another perfect flight. Download the video at Brandango.us, click fun stuff, click rockets. This... | | 2006-08-27 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Another beautiful flight. Launch was a little early (camera started recording at 50 ft or so). | | 2006-09-03 | Galen Hazelwood's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Flew twice; great flight both times. Got one video started before liftoff, and other just before... | | 2006-09-16 | Galen Hazelwood's Estes Oracle | E15-7 | - | Wow--the Oracle really flies on this motor! Estimate it easily doubled it's altitude over the D12,... | | 2006-10-20 | Michael Jenkins's Estes Oracle | D12-3 | - | This video Rocket is very cool. Nice to watch and then you get the video of the flight from the... | | 2006-10-22 | Michael Jenkins's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Beautiful flight. Great video. No damage. | | 2006-11-11 | Michael Jenkins's Estes Oracle | D12-3 | - | Nice flight on the way up. Was spinning too much for a good video on the way down. | | 2006-12-23 | Michael Jenkins's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | A little too windy for this rocket. It weather cocked into the wind and then drifted past the... | | 2007-01-10 | Ash Cooper's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Good launch and height, but rocket descent v.fast. Tube bent on landing. Not enough wadding... | | 2007-01-10 | Ash Cooper's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Beautiful flight, rod slightly into wind, deployed at apogee and floated to earth w/out damage.... | | 2007-06-26 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Took off into the wind, got a good video of the mass launch of ~280 rockets. One fin popped off.... | | 2007-07-07 | Wayne Day's Estes Oracle | C11-3 | - | Maiden flight on C 11-3 due to limited space. RockSim says 154ft. That's a pretty good guess. The... | | 2008-07-12 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | E28-5 | - | Oracle recovered with a solid tone, no video. Tested, still works. Nice flight, nearly out of... | | 2008-09-13 | Jeff Lane's Estes Oracle | E18-7 | - | Straightest flight I've ever gotten with an Oracle. Great motor for this rocket. Video at... | | 2009-10-18 | John Heinrichs's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Weathercocking produced arc about 250 feet high and 700 feet long requiring long walk to recover. ... | | 2009-10-20 | John Heinrichs's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Nice vertical flight, drifted about 800 feet on chute. No damage to rocket or chute (used more... | 2009-10-20  | John Heinrichs's Estes Oracle | D12-3 | - | Nice vertical flight, drifted about 500 feet on chute. Small burn hole in chute. Video lost when... | | 2009-10-20 | John Heinrichs's Estes Oracle | D12-3 | - | Nice vertical flight, drifted about 500 feet on chute. Landed on building roof, retrieved by kind... | | 2009-10-31 | John Heinrichs's Estes Oracle | E9-6 | - | Switched chute attachment to tip of nose cone. Very fast launch. Severe weathercocking. Flew... | | 2009-11-18 | John Heinrichs's Estes Oracle | D12-5 | - | Used spare body, same nose cone. Beautiful vertical flight to about 450 feet. Perfect chute... | | 2010-06-12 | Tom Rankin's Estes Oracle | D12-3 | - | Too windy. Wrong launch rod. Too eager. Shock cord ripped but otherwise recovered and repairable.... |
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J.L. (September 5, 2005)