Big Purchases

Today was a big (translate: expensive) day for ROV purchases. We ordered our camera and tether. We ended up spending over $300 on the camera (about three times what we originally budgeted), but we decided that the camera wasn't something to cut costs on. Hopefully it pays off and we'll have some decent video to post online later this spring.

The tether purchase is also very exciting. We were going to purchase individual cables rated for underwater use, bundle them together, and attach flotation devices to make the tether neutrally buoyant. However, last Friday I stumbled onto a manufacturer that sells neutrally bouyant ROV tether for a reasonable price. We ordered 100 feet, which is a lot more than we need for the MATE competition but it will give us greater ability to explore the local lakes.