I want to start flying electronics in some rockets, but I've got no great burning desire. I do electronics for a living, so I get plenty of it now.
I have plans for building a timer to use in an airstart application. I'll probably use an Atmel AVR or maybe a Motorola HC05 or HC08 (I have a good stash of defunct 05's). I might also try an ST7. I've been told these 680x look-alikes now have ISP, so code development should be fairly easy. The timer will sequentially fire three pairs of outboards beginning 1 sec after liftoff.
I've thought about getting some of Robert DeHate's boards and using them in a rocketry application. Seems like a good way to get customized functionality without the hassle of wiring the circuits. Just write the code. May be a good way to roll my timer.
The timer's not hugely challenging, but there are some tricky tech issues. Power-up requires some engineering to ensure the outboards don't try to fire before the processor stabilizes. And driving a FET with a micro is not trivial - the highest output voltage from the micro is about the lowest tolerable input level for a FET, so there's not much margin there.
Once I master that, I'd like to try multi-staging with AP using electronics to fire the upper. I figure I'll take it in two steps, first flying AP to BP, then take on the added challenge of lighting an AP sustainer (knowing that BP's a lot easier to light than AP).
Somewhere in the mix, I want to do a dual stage recovery. I think I can do it in an E-F-G class 2" rocket. Once I'm comfortable with that, then I can try it in a higher power rocket.
I've got lots of rocket stuff to talk about, and like Douglas, I'd like to see more real rocketry content here.
Doug