Iterating the Water Bottle Payload Holder

One of the payload holders went through three full revisions before we were happy with it: the water-bottle holder, which carries and releases the delivery payload during the mission. The first version proved the idea worked but showed its problems quickly on the bench — the bottle didn't seat as cleanly as we wanted, and the part was heavier and bulkier than it needed to be.

Version 2 focused on the fit. We reworked the geometry so the payload aligns and seats consistently every time, and tightened it around the bottle we are actually flying rather than a generic shape. With alignment solved, Version 3 went after weight and structure: we trimmed material everywhere it wasn't doing structural work and reinforced the areas that carry load, so the holder ended up lighter than Version 1 while being stiffer where it counts.

That combination — reliable alignment, a proper fit to the payload, less weight, and a stronger load path — is exactly what we were after, and Version 3 has been approved for active testing. From here the design earns its place through flight testing rather than more bench revisions.