PowerFilm solar panel vs hunting rifle

August 1, 2023 Julian OH8STN battery power, Disaster, Emergency Communications, Field Comms, Field Radio, Grid Down Communications, Ham Radio, Off Grid Grid Down, Portable Power, powerfilm solar, Preparedness, Solar Power, Solar Power for Ham Radio 0

Hello Operators.
This demonstration helps answer one of the “Why PowerFilm?” questions, so often seen in the comments. In my experience, PowerFilm Solar provides portable solar panels that are both man-portable and robust. They are capable of taking considerable damage, without an immediate failure.

In this video, we clearly see this folding solar panel taking multiple hits from a .25 caliber rifle. What is astonishing, is the panel continuing to perform, despite multiple points of damage. This is important in the field where we have little or no resources to repair a damaged solar panel.

In the above the images, we can see are two distinct damage groups. There were also a couple of random shots fired, just to spread the damage out.

Before the test, peak solar panel current measured at 0.73 amps. After the test, peak current was measured at 0.47 amps. The current remained stable despite the multiple punctures.

It would be interesting to see any of the other youtubers or bloggers in te ham radio community, replicating the experiment with the GigaParts or Bioenno solar panels, both of which manufactured in China. Ultimately influencers reviewers whatever you want to call them, Can say anything they want. Until we do an actual test versus subjective opinions, We can never really get the truth.

Final thoughts

Not everyone “needs” such a robust solar panel. However, It’s nice to see these sorts of tests done. So that we may distinguish the quality differences from one brand to the next. So, for those having mission-critical requirements, it’s nice to know the PowerFilm option exists.

PowerFilm Solar is an American company. Its panels are designed and manufactured in the Midwest town of Ames Iowa.

Direct Video URL: https://youtu.be/I6KGLD5mkDI

Useful links

How to solar power your portable ham radio: https://blog.powerfilmsolar.com/education/the-horizon-blog/2020/10/06/how-to-solar-power-your-ham-radio
Everything you need to know about PowerFilm solar panels: https://oh8stn.org/blog/2021/06/24/powerfilm-solar-foldable-vs-rollable-solar-panels-and-others/

73
Julian oh8stn
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@oh8stn
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Blog: https://www.oh8stn.org

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