From: Marc Kossover (zeke_kossover@yahoo.com)
Date: Sun Dec 05 2004 - 07:33:42 PST
Message-ID: <20041205153342.7523.qmail@web53404.mail.yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 5 Dec 2004 07:33:42 -0800 (PST) From: Marc Kossover <zeke_kossover@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: pinhole cpo science
--- Mark Lawton <markslawton@hotmail.com> wrote:
> Does anybody have first hand experience with these
> materials?
I have used their timers, tracks, carts, and ball
launcher. I have not used their texts or other
materials.
The timers are better than any out there. They take a
little effort to learn how to use them, but once you
understand them, they are amazingly flexible. They are
very precise, and the numbers are very repeatable. The
photogates themselves are pretty tough. That same
design, though, makes them less flexible than the
Vernier photogates which can be activated by a laser.
With a steady hand or a fitting for a laser, a Vernier
Photogate can be as wide as one likes -- even big
enough to measure the speed of a car.
The timers are expensive as well. Several companies
are selling scaled down photogate timers for 40 or 50
bucks that can do most of the same functions as the
CPO which cost a whole lot more.
The tracks and carts are very well made with laminated
wood nice finishes. The metals seem to be higher
quality stainless steel rather than cheaper steels are
pot metal. This is especially nice for me when I
worked in New Orleans where the the high humidity and
temperatures rusted everything that could be rusted.
The roller coaster marble track and the marble
launcher have an interesting feature where the
photogate attaches to the equipment. When the
photogate is clamped on, it is the right distance away
so that the official CPO marble will have its long
axis cross through the photogate, allowing you to find
the ball's velocity with only one photogate.
In conclusion, I like the CPO timers, tracks, and
carts as they are very well made. On the other hand, I
like the increased flexibility of the Vernier probes
and Pasco carts and tracks used with comnputers
better. I have not looked at their texts, though.
Marc "Zeke" Kossover
The Jewish Community High School of the Bay
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