Skytrak Armour

[DirtyGarry24]

Ok, I'm starting this thread to see if protecting the Skytrak box is still a must for some people.

I have read countless posts on this subject and generally feel that this is a need for users. I have owned the Skytrak for a couple of months and agree for the most part. Honestly, it doesn't seem an issue for myself, however I couldn't possibly let my kids, favorite friends, or even a touring pro use it without completely freaking out!!!

My question is this. Is this a need for users that still exists for a reasonable enough amount of people?

I am a manufacturing engineer and have all the available information and software to develop a legit protective case that can make the Skytrak bulletproof. I can integrate leveling devices, locating devices, and alignment aids into the case. Basically whatever a user wants.

I can have these produced at a reasonable cost and shipped to a user. This is what I can do.

I have a desire to this, have started on a prototype for myself, but am really looking for more interest than personal use. Time is a huge motivator for me as I'd rather be hacking away on the TGC. LOL!

If you are interested, please PM me or just reply to this thread so I can get an idea of the need.

Disclaimer: yes I have the Davray sketch and will use some of that information in whatever design I come up with. My plan would be to optimize and improve overall function of whatever case I come up with. I see location, leveling, protection, and consistency of setup being the utmost importance.

[DirtyGarry24]

Played two tourney rounds on TGC today. Real happy with the performance of the ST and Skytrak Armour. Can't say the same for my crummy game. Oh well, nobody wants to hear my struggles. 36 holes, zero no reads, 0 bad reads.

[CBDBOZ]

Played two tourney rounds on TGC today. Real happy with the performance of the ST and Skytrak Armour. Can't say the same for my crummy game. Oh well, nobody wants to hear my struggles. 36 holes, zero no reads, 0 bad reads.

Gary, how much is the Armour.... and is this a full replacement for the official plastic version (I have) or does it go over the plastic version?? I am interested, and am looking at this and another version that is currently on the forum. I live outside US, but in US from 13th - 17th Jan, so looking to order and pick up whilst there. Cheers


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[DirtyGarry24]

$149 plus shipping. Shipping charge would depend on where you ship to obviously. There is a post about shipping on this thread though. You may have to go back a bit.

Ordering a batch tomorrow so would be cutting it close on your time frame in the US. Maybe doable??? Not knowing where you reside, I couldn't speculate on ship cost elsewhere. Just want to say I've made it reasonable with some help from fellow forum members.

As far as other market options though, all I can say is there is nothing that compares with Skytrak Armour. Full protection with 8 lbs. of steel, an accurate alignment system, usb cable protection, full protection of the top of the ST for bounceback, coating that won't scratch or wear, and an overall sturdy and nice looking appearance.

8 lbs. of steel sits very nice on any surface. I haven't mentioned this before but being able to turn the ST on without it sliding around on your surface is important to me. I don't like having to hold it in its perfect placement just to be able to turn it on. Skytrak Armour won't budge.

I wish you luck on whatever option you choose. Thank you for your interest.

[DirtyGarry24]

New Shipping Charges via USPS

US - $13.45
Canada - $45.95
UK - $66.50
Netherlands - $66.50
Australia - $75.95

[93civiccpe]

Gary, that's awesome of you to add the hardware for mounting the skytrak down. I know most have known Gary for a while now and he was the first to step up and really look to provide a great solution for the community members who wanted more protection for their skytrak. I will not bash any other product made here or elsewhere but I personally wanted to find the best protection for the investment I made in the skytrak. I'm an engineer by trade so I tend to over-analyze everything but it has served me well. Gary has not rushed this product to the market but has been diligent in getting and incorporating feedback from this community and improved his design. He has been testing and giving honest feedback even when there have been problems he's worked through and the final result is evident of his hard work. I came here looking for a way to get the Japanese metal protective cover and then found this design. This is the only case I've seen which exceeds the protection and utilizes thicker metal than the Japanese case. This is a far superior case from everything I've seen. Gary has been willing to answer every question that has been asked and has my confidence. For me, it was a no-brainer to spend a little more on a case protecting a $2,000 skytrak. When I get my case in hand I'm going to thoroughly test it but from everything Gary has provided, this is the only case I will need.

[AndyF]

Before I look at ordering, can someone please post a video of the case taking a full driver hit and the Skytrak working perfectly afterwards.
I know Gary has said he didn't want to do it and that doesn't really fill me full of confidence when that is the primary design function of the case.

Andy

[wbond]

You really think someone's going to do this? So far we know the unit cannot take a direct hit since people had to send theirs in to be fixed. Pretty sure there was also an instance where the skytrak plastic case failed to protect the unit. This is clearly an upgrade to the both the skytrak plastic and skytrak japan case, as to getting someone to fire a direct shot at it, good luck.

Before I look at ordering, can someone please post a video of the case taking a full driver hit and the Skytrak working perfectly afterwards.
I know Gary has said he didn't want to do it and that doesn't really fill me full of confidence when that is the primary design function of the case.

Andy

[93civiccpe]

I would go one step further. If you are at risk of hitting a full force driver shot straight at the skytrak then you should not have a launch monitor. (The ball coming back at you should be a bigger concern than the status of the launch monitor). You should first go get lessons if that's an honest concern. The concern most of us have is a shank, which is more of a glancing blow and more often seen with irons. They can be plenty forceful but not nearly as powerful as a direct, straight on shot from a driver. How would you even propose testing that without subjecting the tester to injury from the ball flying back at them?

[Shardak]

Gary :

Does this case degrade wifi reception?

[Shardak]

One simple test would be to use a phone app like this:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.farproc.wifi.analyzer&hl=en

Load it up, with your phone outside the case and see your signal. Then put the phone inside the case and see how much it drops.

[DirtyGarry24]

Cool, I'll check it out. Thanks for the link.

[DirtyGarry24]

Shardak - I wasn't able to download the analyzer that you suggested for iPhone. The free one that I downloaded wasn't any good. I wasn't able to do any testing.

[AndyF]

You really think someone's going to do this? So far we know the unit cannot take a direct hit since people had to send theirs in to be fixed. Pretty sure there was also an instance where the skytrak plastic case failed to protect the unit. This is clearly an upgrade to the both the skytrak plastic and skytrak japan case, as to getting someone to fire a direct shot at it, good luck.

So if someone gave you a bulletproof vest and said, we haven't tested it with bullets but it's got to be better than wearing a shirt would you wear it and have someone shoot you?

Ok, perhaps my comment about a full on driver hit was a bit over the top but surely you would want to see some proof that the product did what it says it will do? What about someone deliberately shanking one into the case then and proving there are no issues afterwards?

As for the comment about not having a launch monitor if you can't hit a straight driver then trying telling that to people's children who want to play on it, or beginners that you could be coaching...

[jjkoolman]

I'm guessing no one is going to purposely put their $2k SkyTrak in harms way to check to see if a $150 case proves its worth. But if you were going into a battle and someone offered you an unproven bullet proof vest "just in case" I can about guarantee you are going to wear it. The Armour is going to be 100% more effect at protecting against a shank than no case and the sturdiness of the Armour is going to give you some pretty good piece of mind. Will it protect the Skytrak from complete and total no damage with a 160 mph ball speed shank, I'd lean towards yes, but don't know, but I will definitely take my chances with it, versus the shoddy case initially released for the SkyTrak. Just my 2 cents.

[93civiccpe]

Good evening,
I definitely did not mean to insult, so sorry if I came off that way. I wish I always hit my driver straight! The chance of me hitting a driver that far over with a full force shot is just low. I would hope that a beginner would not have as much speed and that their misses would also be glancing blows but you are correct that I did not consider those using these for teaching others. The challenge with that test is that the guy building this is doing it for the good of the community and would be without his skytrak if it was destroyed. These guys are barely making a profit or breaking even on these.. They are doing it to help us who cannot create our own. Sadly, the 'protective' case offered by the manufacturer of Skytrak is complete junk and does not protect at all. They also give no warranty with it. If there was a safe way to launch a golf ball then a reasonable test could be hitting a ball into the empty case to show how it withstands the force. I doubt anyone would intentionally do anything other than light chips with a live unit in there. The good news is that someone will certainly hit an accidental shank and we'll get to see the result then..lol! (Fingers crossed it isn't me)

[wbond]

If you can't tell whether or not this is going to be an improvement over nothing or the current skytrak cases, then don't buy it. Some people on here value others who are trying to offer something that provides more protection than what is currently available from ST and most can deduce whether or not it will provide that without asking them to fire a direct shot at their 2k investment. Good luck with your search.
BTW, i hope to never be in a situation you mention, but i sure as hell would take an untested bulletproof vest over a shirt, but that's just me.

So if someone gave you a bulletproof vest and said, we haven't tested it with bullets but it's got to be better than wearing a shirt would you wear it and have someone shoot you?

Ok, perhaps my comment about a full on driver hit was a bit over the top but surely you would want to see some proof that the product did what it says it will do? What about someone deliberately shanking one into the case then and proving there are no issues afterwards?

As for the comment about not having a launch monitor if you can't hit a straight driver then trying telling that to people's children who want to play on it, or beginners that you could be coaching...

[DirtyGarry24]

Bad news guys, I'm delaying the order of 20. I hate to do that, but I have to. I did some last minute testing yesterday afternoon and last night and proved that I am getting slight bad reads with my case. It's mostly with the driver and putter. I don't get the straight right driver anymore. They are small enough to make you think you are just hitting it bad, but large enough to really mess you up. Not having played any other than rushing through my tourney rounds, I just thought I was hitting it bad. However, after testing all prototypes and using the ST with no case at all I realize again how good the ST is with no case and the proper setup. Examples are: A driver that should be about 20 yards left is 40 yards left. A putt that should be zero to 1 degree right is 3 degrees right.

At this point I'm not sure that it's possible to create a window that fully protects the ST and doesn't mess with reads. I don't believe there are any out there right now either. With the exception of maybe having the ST pressed up against the inside of the case. I'm not giving up, just saying I'm not jumping in and having 20 crap cases on my hands. I also won't send you guys cases that don't work properly. My ego is not too big to admit that I don't have it figured out yet. I also won't let competition with this project ruin my reputation with my online golf group. I plan on being here a long time and in golf you have one chance to disprove your honesty. Something I've known for 20+ years of playing the game.

I don't get these issues in the range app. I could show videos of me hitting half 7 irons all day in the range app and everything will look great. That is pointless in my opinion. It's in TGC where it matters and that is where I have all the issues. I'm not sure why, but that is my experience.

I have no problem if someone wants a refund. I have no problem if someone wants to go buy another case. I am simply going to slow down on this project and see where things go. I don't believe there has been any proof of a guy playing good golf in TGC with a fully protective case. I'd love to hear about it if there is. Maybe Vincent_Vega has a working case and can chime in? He is notably the best golfer on the forum.

I'll be taking a good hard look at this thing all day today and will probably get another prototype made. At $375 apiece, that is a fairly big commitment. I want to thank the guys that have stayed around to see how this pans out.

[Vincent_Vega]

I don't have a case at the moment. Still just being selective of who gets to come over.

[93civiccpe]

Good morning Greg,
I appreciate the honesty. Thanks for being so transparent about this. I'm looking forward to hearing what you find. Just my own 2 cents but having the skytrak pushed straight against the metal case is still more protection than the plastic case or nothing at all. The big issue would still be shock transfer. With the heavy base the armour would better absorb that but you are right, it isn't perfect. I'm fine waiting to see what you find. I'd rather buy a solid case that takes more time than a rushed case which gives playing errors.

[Kevin_C]

Good morning Greg,
I appreciate the honesty. Thanks for being so transparent about this. I'm looking forward to hearing what you find. Just my own 2 cents but having the skytrak pushed straight against the metal case is still more protection than the plastic case or nothing at all. The big issue would still be shock transfer. With the heavy base the armour would better absorb that but you are right, it isn't perfect. I'm fine waiting to see what you find. I'd rather buy a solid case that takes more time than a rushed case which gives playing errors.

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[Kevin_C]

Not sure what is causing your read issues. Is it the size of the opening for the cameras. I know you limit the size so balls won't hit the cameras. Can it be opened up more and use a Lexan material to protect cameras. This way the opening could be larger and still provide protection for the cameras and eliminate your bad reads. Will this Lexan material affect the reads? I would rather wait as well to get the case and have it right rather than rush. Appreciate your honesty and what you are doing for us to create a great solution Gary.


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[DirtyGarry24]

Hey Kevin_C - I believe the issue to be the material in the middle of the window causing a disturbance with the flash. Problem is, by taking that out you open up a hole that a "perfect" ball could contact the ST lens. Next option is to scoot the ST back and then you start causing issues with the cameras being able to see everything. It's ridiculous how tight all of this is. Very telling as to why SkyTrak left their case window wiiide open. It's possible to integrate lexan into the case, but I'd rather not do that. It may be the only option though.

[wbond]

I have a lexan diy case based off the davray template and don't have any issues with reads. I wonder if it's not only size of the opening but also material type that plays in issue with the reads?

[DirtyGarry24]

The davray sketch allows you to cover the flash area in the middle. That's where I'm having the issues. That area can be covered, just needs to be transparent. I have modeled in the exact location and size of the flash area. It's tight, but at about .06 away from the inside of the case a ball won't touch. Question is, at that distance away will the cameras have issues. I'll have to test.

[gerem1]

Any reason why the hole couldn't be opened up and a piece of lean affixed in front of it to allow for total coverage but allow the cameras to work. Gives best of both worlds and very protective. I appreciate the hard work you have put in and the honasty. I know it wouldn't look as slick but would fix the issue I would think.

[DirtyGarry24]

Hey gerem1 - that is an option. I'd really like to not incorporate the lexan if at all possible. It really complicates the manufacturing. I'm working on getting a new quick proto window now. We will see how this one goes. Sorry, I can't post anymore photos at this point until I get a little closer to having something that actually works. I hope everyone can understand.

[CintiGolfer]

Thanks for the update Gary. I'd rather wait and get a good case than one that doesn't work properly. I'm not concerned about me hitting the Skytrak. The only way I could do it is to hit one off the toe of the club and I never do that (knock on wood). When I have people over who aren't as good, they either use foam balls or Qolf balls. I know these aren't as accurate as real balls, but if you hit a shot bad enough to hit the Skytrak, then I'm not too worried about the inaccuracies.

[DirtyGarry24]

Thanks for hanging around CintiGolfer. I hear ya on the relevancy of hitting the ST. It's definitely fluke occurrence. However, it's really hard for me to let anyone use the thing without being paranoid. My little brother (not a golfer) put 3 dents in my sheetrock last week and I had to pull him off the system. With that said, each of the balls was miles from hitting the ST.

I put in some work today on my case and am excited about the findings. Hard to be too confident with 3 failures to date. I'll give some info tomorrow. This last fiasco could end up being a blessing in disguise.