Hello to all,
First of all, thank you for your advice and replying to my thread.
I'll try to answer as much as I can.
bunnyThief: I am not sure how to check for a closed circuit. All I know is that when I push the big red button, this allows me to push the 2nd button (trigger button on bottom of controller) and this lights up the LED. If I were to press the big red button again and then push the trigger button on the bottom, the LED will not light up. Is that what it means when the circuit is opened and closed?
What are the igniter specifications? Two puny 9V batteries might not be able to supply the required current.
The igniters are estes model rocket igniters. not the most quality built things in the world but its what I had. I am trying to use two 9v but I guess that isn't cutting it.
Estes-style igniters are notoriously high current - I've seen all-fire figures of around 2A, it often takes several seconds for them to ignite with disposable battery powered launch systems, and typical club systems use car batteries. Thin gauge wires can also be a problem.
Connect the clips to a light bulb and make sure its working at all.
Pretty much every other manufacturer uses e-matches that fire at much lower currents, there have been issues with the continuity check function of launch systems built for estes igniters accidentally setting e-matches off.
How do I connect to a light bulb? Just touch the wires on the base? sorry if that's a dumb question.
What are the igniter specifications? Two puny 9V batteries might not be able to supply the required current.
Absolutely this. I used to use a 12v car battery and even that wouldn't have enough power to ignite them if I used a long run of wire. I would use something like three 18650 Lithium batteries in series. They can put out a tremendous amount of current for a short time. Also I found that if I dropped two or three grains (pieces not weight) of 2F or 3F Black powder into the nozzle before installing the igniter that that gave me much better ignition. I used a small tuft of cotton loosely pressed into the nozzle to hold the powder and igniter in place.
PS also you need to make sure that you're using GOOD switches. The junk sold by Radio Shack and the cheapo switches that just push a copper plate against a wire aren't good enough. Go get a couple of real military surplus switches or some good industrial switches.
Are those lithium batteries readily available and not too expensive? Thanks for the info. I am using good switches...they seem to work and my LED light turns on.
MarkF: Thanks for the diagram...to be honest I am not totally sure how to read it but I will try to figure it out. I am a newbie with electronics.