RE: New Hitec Aurora 9-Channel 2.4Ghz Radio System
Mike, Question for the Receiver Rebate: How long is this going on for? I just put on back order the Aurora with 9ch receiver from TowerHobbies. I’m hoping that when it arrives it will com with the coupon for the free 7 channel or two for $40 deal I’ve been reading about. Thanks for all the posts. Up until a few days ago, after months of pouring over Futaba, Airtronics and JR specs, I was considering a 10C. The deal is sealed - now what to dow with (6) 2.4 Futaba receivers and a used and abused 6EX... Oh, Please don’t send ANY radios to Canada until all of our US orders have been filled first! Thanks, Phil Green
Posted on: 11/20/2009 12:38 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "RC Radios, Transmitters, Receivers, Servos, gyros"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9267662

RE: Reciever Batteries - HELP
Stevenmax50, Sounds like your off to a good start. The Sanyo 2700's may be hard to find. But with what you’re doing, you'll be fine. You’re not running any 96oz servos or 1/4 scale, etc. The only thing about the mAh rating to understand is that it is the batteries gas tank. The more mAhs your batteries are rated at the longer you can fly and the larger the safety factor is when you don't have a proper charge. On a typical full day of flying at the field, i.e., up to ~6 flights I'll use anywhere from 600 - 1200 mAh's out of my receiver's 2700mAh Sanyo battery, as verified many times when I cycle them and top them off. So I still have 1500 mAhs left over, right? “Exactly” Safety and not running my batteries anywhere near the tail end of their discharge curve… Not all batteries are created the same, some lose up to %20 the next day after charging! (I don't like the Sanyo green wrapper 2500s for this fact.) Anyhow. Just make sure whatever you use that you top them off before going to the field. And at the end of the day, none of these comments will amount to anything compared to your experience moving forward. Have fun and enjoy your new set up. A.T. - It's a little off thread, but thanks for the introduction to the Aurora. I can't believe the features, telemetry, etc. I may have to rethink next year’s radio after all of this. I see that Tower is out of stock and the way that works is it will probably be out of stock for the next few months. That gives me plenty of time to do all the side by sides. The further I get into my next radio investigation, the further I get away from Futaba. This new Aurora looks incredible from first readings. Hope Santa delivers everyone’s wish list!
Posted on: 11/18/2009 6:57 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "RC Radios, Transmitters, Receivers, Servos, gyros"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9263760

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Nice Build Wing-Ding! Great job with the inverted Saito, Cline regulator and such; workmanship looks outstanding. The pictures look great, too… I am sure you will enjoy and love this plane like the rest of us. I did go back to the stock gear this year as the Dubro was too heavy and gnarly looking for this sexy of a plane. And with the Dubro you exaggerate the bouncy bounce thing. I did the aluminum plate reinforcement on the stock gear, I believe Cavandish gets credit for that, and that's held up good. I’m surprised no one has made carbon fiber identical replacement stock gear for this yet, made to be a one piece assembly, not two. “That would have been great.� I agree with a few others that the new color scheme looks putrid on the new larger sized Revolver. They might as well put a Care Bear sticker on it and painted rainbows on it. I think it would be a great plane to re-cover, own and fly. However I’m not sold right away. For the money I’m thinking to sink that kind of investment into a giant war bird next. Enjoy your new Revolver!
Posted on: 10/26/2009 5:25 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9202507

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
NP, Thanks BLW... Woo Hoo! Phil
Posted on: 9/3/2009 11:35 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9066856

RE: CMPro Piper J-3 Cub 120 91
Gents, So I had the Cub out for its maiden flight... It is a really fun plane to fly. Take off’s are snap and the only thing that is going to take a lot of practice are the greasy landings. I was more worried about the takeoffs after so many Cub owners talking about the squirrelly tail wheel action… I ended up throwing out the stock tail wheel and using a Sig pull-pull. With the Saito 125, balance is at 100mm with a battery mounted just below the throttle servo area. There is more than enough power swinging a 16x6 and the wing loading is just right so it’ll sit down on approach and not float past the runway… Question for you guys. Did I not interpret the Chinglish manual correctly? I now read 2 degree printing in the manual and must have overlooked it. I’m thinking that I was supposed to manually add in the 2 degs of down thrust to the engine mount? Obviously, as when I add power it likes to shoot up... Fun flying plane… Thanks for all the help… Phil
Posted on: 9/2/2009 11:59 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9064309

RE: CMPro Piper J-3 Cub 120 91
Mike, This info helps immensely! I absolutely love the Saito 115 and I am very glad to hear that your 115 pulls your Cub around with authority. I’ll put the 125 on it and owe you a report in a week or so for trials. I’ve been going thru the build manual and playing with parts in the basement, it all looks pretty straight forward. I’ve read a couple complaints with the gear, but the rubber band idea sounds perfect. Now I just have to find a buddy with a tig welder. By the way, what servos did you end up using? I’m thinking JR DS821’s… Why did you go inverted vs. side mount? Hmmm… Thanks again, Phil
Posted on: 9/2/2009 11:39 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9038853

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
All you have to do is ship a brand new Saito motor to Farmington Hills Michigan, pick your flavor. I don't know when you'll get it back and at that point I can (unofficially) add you to the club... I'm not a member either, but enjoy the thread. W8ye, anyone? Can I join, too? I have, love and cherish the following; Saito 125 Saito 115 Saito 100 Looking forward to the new motor, Phil
Posted on: 8/31/2009 5:38 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9059619

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
Pumps: Has anyone tried a small electrical pump to give a regulated supply of fuel to their Saitos? I have a miniature pump with more than adequate pressure and flow, no pulses and variable rate that I was thinking to test. Presently I use the VP-20 with good results, but it could be better? …Hence this inquiry. I suppose it’d be easy enough to set up on the test stand but if anyone has any experience with this stuff, your feedback would help. Flow Rate? Pressure, etc... Thanks, Phil
Posted on: 8/30/2009 5:56 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9057061

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
I'm with you Bob, I had to read up what crazed meant, i.e, cracking and your right, it can craze or gum over time, but works. It doesn't matter how many times I mount a motor, it's an art and I think I am getting better everytime. I also believe all the airplane crashing I've done over the years has made me better at it. [:D] Thanks, Phil
Posted on: 8/27/2009 10:06 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9050713

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
IMHO - I’ve had excellent results with the composite mounts with my Saitos. I drill, tap and use a lock washer and washer with no Loctite as I understand it may eat at the material. I’m always weight conscientious and of course an aluminum mount will offer a more ridged platform, better piece of mind and higher weight.
Posted on: 8/27/2009 11:33 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9049312

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
Have you adjusted your valves at all? I've found that after break in and a few gallons afterword that my valves could use some adjustment on my Saitos, understandably if the valves were out of adjustment it should still give consistent runs. Also, with the Perry VP20 pump you should only need to richen 100 - 150 RPM below from peak, with my experience. The pump can be a bit tricky to set up, too. And if you can bypass it, readust your needles and test, it my be worth it. My 2 cents... Phil
Posted on: 8/24/2009 1:02 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9039518

RE: CMPro Piper J-3 Cub 120 91
Sounds Great Mike... I was going to put it off, but I'll look into getting the gear fixed properly. I like the idea of the clean cowl. "Good one..." Back to building and I'll let you know how it all works out. Again, thanks for the help - these forums and people helping one another are just incredible... Peace out, Phil
Posted on: 8/23/2009 10:48 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9039220

RE: CMPro Piper J-3 Cub 120 91
JMCMike, How are you liking your Cub with the Saito 115 in it? I love that engine in my Revolver... Anyhow. I've had this CMPro Cub in my basement for almost a year and finally have the bug to build it. I have a Saito 100 and Saito 125 on the shelf. Do you recommend the 100 or 125? How did your balancing sittuation end up? Where should I preplan to put my battery? Did you add weight, etc. Best Regards, Phil
Posted on: 8/23/2009 7:06 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9038639

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
Priceless info Gents... Much appreciated! Agreed, the RPM bump is like going back to %30... And I'm using the Perry oscillator pump so no need for the pressure tap...
Posted on: 8/19/2009 10:55 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9029745

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
Thanks w8ye! You da-man...
Posted on: 8/19/2009 9:38 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9029533

RE: Welcome to Club SAITO !
RE: Saito Muffler RPM, Backpressure and such Gents, I’d like to jump in the mix here and ask a question about the muffler on my Saito 115 for performance gain. Intro: I’d been flying my Saitos pretty aggressively the past few years and this year I decided, for some reason or another, to buy cases of 20% vs. 30% Wildcat at the Toledo show this year. Well, obviously I noticed a performance drop. Anyhow, a well respected club member was telling me to run a straight pipe out of the Saito for RPM gain. It took a while to sink in but this evening I just concluded an experiment in the back yard. By removing the back end of the muffler I was able to gain 340 RPM. So my Saito 115 which just ran peak 9,300 with a 13x11 and Wildcat 20% is now turning the same prop at 9,640 max peak. With this pitch/prop it is a significant increase. The needles readjusted easily enough for smooth transitions. It just sounds a little funky but not too loud. I want to try this out at the field as there have been a few of us racing. I’m neck to neck with one guy and this should put me over the top – so long as I’m not jeopardizing the integrity of my motor. I’ve heard of people burning out valves by just letting it exhaust into the air, but I’ve still got the stock pipe and an empty can there. Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions.
Posted on: 8/19/2009 7:44 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9029226

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Thanks Ro347, Anytime!
Posted on: 8/10/2009 12:24 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9003829

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Any time Jet, happy flying....
Posted on: 8/9/2009 11:47 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9003729

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Jett 22b I, and several others in here, use a spoileron mix/setup I don’t know the degree deflection but it’d estimate it to be about 35 degrees up from neutral. I also replaced the SPST switch in my radio with a DPDT and added a buzzer inside my Futaba 6EX so that I know when this switch is in the on position. I can come in on some steep approaches and it slows the plane right down without any adverse characteristics except exaggerating the event horizon point of a tip stall – hence the buzzer for me. Most people are smart enough to control their speed and not fly the plane too low of a speed, except my depth and speed perception are not Top Gun quality. Search this thread and other places for Spoileron – if you haven’t already… I tried the Flapperon and didn’t like it. Try a little spoilerons at a time until you get the fear out of you and where you’ll like it. Best Regards,
Posted on: 8/9/2009 11:34 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9003692

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Mike Latch Pin Setup; I soldered on a washer to one side of a piece of brass tube. On the other side I drilled a hole for the hitch pin. On the side of the plane where I put the hitch pin in and out I used Epoxy to glue a washer onto the exit hole so the pin wouldn’t rub the covering. On the inside of the canopy I put a plastic tube to guide the brass tube. On the inside of the fuse I had to nothch the plywood so the tube could go thru. I filled the end with solder before drilling the hole for the hitch pin and also deburred it after it was done. I soldered it with a small hobby torch, but maybe an iron will work? Nothing special but it holds up and is very easy to remove the canopy! After losing several screws last year I went to this system. Also you don’t have to worry about the cheesy blind nuts with Chinese glue falling off or over tightening the screws and mashing the side of your plane. Hope this helps…
Posted on: 8/9/2009 10:58 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9003580

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
I've been using JR DS821, digital, ~$30 street price. Everywhere except the a cheepo for the throttle. I feed them with a 5 cell 2700mAh Sanyo pack thru a Castle Creations regulator, constant 5 Volts output. The regulator took care of the erratic output from a freshly charged pack and kept the limits of an electronic "servo switch" I use for onboard glow...
Posted on: 8/9/2009 10:03 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9003409

RE: Saito 115 cam lubrication
Ken 6ppc: Wow. That’s a good sign. I’m glad to hear they took care of you like that. That’s part of what kept you buying more Saitos, too! Craig: My engine is mounted straight up and I have had a weird noise since its origin. This noise started about 20 minutes into the break-in process and has been there since. It sounds like a whining/ticking coming from the cam box. I was surprised that after the repair it still made the noise. But the tech was pretty friendly and the service was good so I ran it anyway with the noise bothering me and felt “OK they said they fixed it.� Eventually the noise/ticking settled down and the engine runs good. I have no complaints. Only that when I dropped to the %20 nitro from %30 I lost 400 RPM. � On the other hand of all of this, if there is a continued cam issue I would really like to see them take some sort of responsibility or offer a new cam box cover with an oil access or something... I’m sure this was discussed before, but is it worth considering changing the rear bearing to a sealed bearing and packing the cam box with a good lube???
Posted on: 7/18/2009 9:36 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8944743

RE: Saito 115 cam lubrication
blw - thanks for the tip "Literally", I'll try that. You know Craigteffe, that's the only thing that's bothered me about HH's service... When my Saito 100 threw a cage and the pieces ate up the internals of the engine - after only a few flights, they replaced a bunch of stuff and left me with a new engine and an old scarred up piston, ring, liner, etc. I still love the engine, sleep with it under my pillow, but me and it have never felt the same now that I know it's been violated by sharp, grinding high speed metal fragments. When do they hit a point, especially early in the engine's lifecycle, where something horrible has gone wrong inside the engine to just give you a new engine. I'm not trying to jab ya, I've been down the same road with my engines and service... Hmmmm
Posted on: 7/16/2009 11:23 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8938946

RE: Saito 115 cam lubrication
Dar, I don't think you’re qualified to work at HH, Sorry. There's a thing called team work and keeping the "bar" at a certain level! And why would they want to hire you when it'd be cheaper just to save up a few months batch for you and have you fly in for a day or two… I don't want to turn this into a HH bash and like I say, "they've taken care of me� but everything could always be better. 42etus - I've never read of them rewarding a good customer with a new engine in regards to defective merchandise. I guess we’re just used to being treated like that, too? When my car blew a transmission at 20,000 miles they didn’t give me a new one. Instead I kept making $616 payments for a new car with a repaired transmission. Eventually the service was so good at the dealership and I liked the car so much that I eventually forgot about the repaired transmission. “I’d still by another Chrysler", (from that dealership.) I guess the only argument for an engine replacement is if that you were missing several hundred RPM and it just didn’t run right perhaps you could complain enough. We spend a lot of money on these engines and deserve the best care if they truly want their customer base to return time and time again like so many Saito loyalists already do… In reality I am sure there may be a few dishonest people who try to send in something under warrantee that they know they shouldn’t - which totally isn’t the case here, but it has to be factored in to the cost of HH to service these engines under a 3 year warrantee… But if Saito were to date stamped their castings and put a unique/pairing assembly punch between the jug and case, cam cover and case and add in a registration database - then they could do away with most of that. But that makes too much sense… “Sorry to ramble"
Posted on: 7/16/2009 11:21 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8939972

RE: Saito 115 cam lubrication
Sorry about the bad luck with the 115 cam. I have over 9 hour of runtime/56 flights on my repaired 115 after I initially sent it in and they replaced the cam. Perhaps it’s because I’m not using Coolpower anymore, but I’m not adjusting my valves like I had been. I check them on occasion, but they stay pretty tight. I’ve really learned a lot reading thru this thread about cam lubrication but I don’t see why the Saito 115 is really that much different than my 100 or 125. Neither of these engines has shown any premature cam wear. But a few of us have. Why? My gut tells me to concur with another gentleman’s thoughts in this thread about a batch of soft cams that may have missed the hardening process from the factory. My 115 was one of the first ones off the shelf – as soon as it hit the hobby store I was waiting with my checkbook open. I have no idea how to check a manufacturing date on my box. And who’s to say how long your engine was on the shelf before you picked it up? Were our engines from the same batch? There’s just no way to tell what the production date/runs of a Saito? Working primarily in engine plants in the automotive for the past 15 years I can totally understand if they missed a batch of cams in the hardening process or something happened out of tollerance. It’s not acceptable in my opinion, but it happens. It doesn’t matter how many checks you have in place, there’s always potential for error and even the error checking processes are susceptible to error. In the mean time hang in there, keep the faith and hopefully you’ll be up in the air again in no time. Please tell us all how it works out with the new cam and exactly what parts they replaced besides the gasket and cam gear. I wish they would have changed out my mushroomed tappets with the new cam. And, yes, I’d like to put a lube point in the cam box, too, but also don’t want to void the warrantee.
Posted on: 7/15/2009 11:28 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8937135

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Nice job Mike! Looks great…. I’ve thought about blocking off the side of the intake that is opposite the cylinder. I’ve hear that this will streamline and maximize air over the cylinder? It looks like you don’t have this problem. One of the guys in here (I think RCFan?) got really good results out of the 82 and I’m sure your 72 is just fine. The Saitos look and sound beautiful and can really give a 2 stroke a run for its money, but compared with a Webra Speed 55 GT engine with pipe or Jett .90 – we don’t have a chance. I’d really love to see a new YS 115 in a Revolver. “Maybe when the economy gets better I can give that a shot…� Recently I’ve had one of the more experienced jet guys to coach me on landing a high wing loading plane, i.e., the Revolver. Even though I’m over 150 flights with this plane I’ve got a lot to learn yet and am always trying to improve my ability to handle this little monster. A lot of guys in here say she’s easy to fly and have no problems. However I always find my hands full with this plane. I’m just getting to the point where I feel comfortable doing inverted flybys, etc... Hopefully many more flights of learning left….
Posted on: 7/13/2009 10:38 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8930919

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
You've got to love a good hardware store.... Ace is the place!
Posted on: 7/6/2009 12:44 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8909722

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Norm, I could never get the 2-56 wheel pant screws to stay in there. Next time your at the LHS you may want to consider replacing the 2-56 blind nuts with some 4-40 blind nuts. You'll have to open up the holes only a SCH... 4-40 hardware is easy to find too. You can spend a good 30 minutes going thru all the bins at your local Ace hardware store. Aco even has hardware bins, too. In my area I believe it's Ace who is more well stocked. Anyhow, pick your flavor, socket head, philips, stainless or mild steel. Good luck pg
Posted on: 6/17/2009 9:21 AM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8858890

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Norm, Thanks anyhow... I went this route before.. I bought the new revolver I'm flying now for spare parts. I ended up needing to build it and eventually replace all the parts so that I can be flying the 2nd Revolver after a fateful crash late last year.... Now, like a new car after 30,000 with no extended warrantee - I'm getting nickle and dimed to death! :-)
Posted on: 6/14/2009 8:06 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8851870

RE: New Great Planes Revolver
Sold.... I'll PM you so we can work out the details. Thanks!
Posted on: 6/14/2009 8:03 PM by Author "Chancho" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8851863