RE: TOWER HOBBIES SUCKS
I've ordered from Tower for years, and I agree their packing is their Achilles heel. At least they've stopped using a single layer of that brown tape, the thinnest packing tape you can buy. I once had an order where the tape gave and I assume all the small parts fell out the bottom since they weren't in the box. I had another where a small box was in a big box without any cushioning at all. I sent them pictures and everything, and they promptly replaced all the missing items, but I honestly don't think there is any communication between the customer service folks and the warehouses. It wasn't like I expected someone to be fired, but if I'm going to take all the time and energy to take pictures and give them a gift of some really useful feedback, I thought I might hear something, or maybe things might get better, but I don't think it has (except maybe for the tape). Plus, their "shipping and handling" fees are out of line. I find that smaller companies do a much better job of packing, and I use them when I can.
Posted on: 9/10/2012 2:39 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "The Clubhouse"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11224140

RE: NEW SPAD GLUES?
It's not new, but I've always use the Loctite CA primer for coroplast: http://www.amazon.com/Loctite-LOC-18396-Bottle-Cyanoacrylate-Adhesive/dp/B001OBQ8VO But I also clamp for 24 hours. In my last test, the joints are stronger than the coroplast.
Posted on: 5/22/2012 10:10 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "S.P.A.D. Aircraft - Coroplast design"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11090482

family memberships
I renewed my own membership, then added my son as a family member. AMA web site happily took my money. My card came in the mail immediately, nothing for my son. How does the family membership work? Do we get separate membership numbers? Do we get separate cards? I understand we only get one copy of the magazine.
Posted on: 10/31/2011 8:54 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "AMA Discussions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10790595

RE: Kombat Armadillo
Don't change the CG from the manufacturer's recommendation. My one thought is maybe you don't have enough elevator deflection. I am teaching some folks with a similar plane (as far as weight), the Aircore and I really need a lot more elevator than the manufacturer recommended.
Posted on: 9/12/2011 1:12 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "S.P.A.D. Aircraft - Coroplast design"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10713154

RE: Hobby King Shipping Is Broken
[quote]ORIGINAL: topspin I don't really want cheap anymore, I want good and I want service and I am willing to pay a few dollars more for it. [/quote] The problem is that it's not just "a few dollars". If it were, nobody would be buying from the Chinese sellers. Heck, I'd even pay double for locally available stuff, but a lot of the Chinese stuff is like 1/10 the price and getting pretty good reviews. Since almost all the stuff we use in electric planes is manufactured in China anyway, I'm not all that sure that I'd help the American economy all that much by paying 10 times the cost for stuff in the U.S.
Posted on: 9/1/2011 10:32 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "The Clubhouse"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10696887

RE: Hobby King Shipping Is Broken
[quote]ORIGINAL: allamericanflyer I only order the things that are in stock in their USA warehouse.  [/quote] How can you tell?
Posted on: 8/25/2011 10:21 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "The Clubhouse"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10686758

RE: Local hobby shop want to teach at our field
I don't see a mystery. It sounds like the AMA agreed that the Introductory Pilot description fit this situation better than the "commercial instruction" description. Since the guy wasn't charging for instruction, it sounds like despite the litigious society, common sense prevailed. Personally, I think they should just require the student to get the three month introductory AMA membership. If you can't risk $29 this hobby/sport is not right for you anyway. $29 is about what it costs for a couple to go to the movies, and they might not like the movie.
Posted on: 7/14/2011 11:54 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "AMA Discussions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10621110

RE: Local hobby shop want to teach at our field
[quote]ORIGINAL: Airplanes400 Personally, I would not rely on the skills of a 'good beginner' to teach someone to fly. [/quote] If we were talking about a traditional 5 pound .46 engine glow-fuel trainer, I'd agree absolutely. But I think a "good beginner" might be OK (safe) for the plane we're talking about. Given the shop owner's motivation, I think he would not be asking if he didn't think he was qualified to teach on that particular plane.
Posted on: 7/7/2011 1:15 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "AMA Discussions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10610473

RE: Local hobby shop want to teach at our field
I think the official line is that the trainees have to be AMA members. If they join the AMA, then it would be up to your club rules as to whether the trainees have to be club members. If you get past those, then, assuming the hobby shop owner is not charging for the training, then I don't see how that's any different then any other club member training somebody on the buddy box. Unfortunately, a lot of the rules are based in the past, on the idea of a .40 size gas trainer. The Cub could injure somebody in a freak accident, but the chances are tiny compared to the traditional trainer. If he wants to charge for training, that's a different story, and you'd have to make sure his business liability insurance would be the primary insurance. In that case, I think it would be to the clubs benefit to allow it (with no charge), since it could bring in future members.
Posted on: 7/6/2011 11:33 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "AMA Discussions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10608686

RE: Futaba 2.4 Rx antenna positioning
Bax, I understand the concept, it's just that I don't think any Futaba documentation that I've seen insists on it, and as I mentioned, the manual for the 7C transmitter shows an installation in which the antennas are out of the geometric plane by about 1/2 an inch. My question is whether there is any science behind your "same geometric plane" recommendation.
Posted on: 7/6/2011 8:42 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "Futaba Radios Direct support forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10608516

RE: Futaba 2.4 Rx antenna positioning
[quote]ORIGINAL: Bax The two antennas need to be in the same (geometric) plane at 90-degrees to each other. [/quote] This is the first I've heard of the "same (geometric) plane" requirement. In fact, page 17 of the 7C manual shows an installation where the antennas are not in the same plane.
Posted on: 7/5/2011 8:29 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "Futaba Radios Direct support forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10606863

RE: Are small electric foamies becoming a problem at your field ?
Interesting problem, Ed. I also belong to a quite large club (200+ members), but I've never seen this kind of problem. I don't think I've ever seen 10 people wanting to fly at the same time ever. NM is a big place, no? It seems to me you could create a separate area for the foamies, just like my club does for helicopters. It sounds like the foamies don't need all that much space. I'm thinking that's what we'd do at our club, if it ever became a problem. At our club, I doubt it would ever become "us against them" though, because most of the really active members seem to fly a variety of planes.
Posted on: 6/24/2011 9:27 AM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "The Clubhouse"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10590228

RE: MY RCU Pet Peeve
[quote]ORIGINAL: jester_s1 It's not jerkish behavior to tell a lazy newbie to use the search feature or to read the stickys. ... Case in point: there is a thread there now asking what the best trainer is. That thread comes up at least once a week, so much so that there is a sticky at the top of the page to list appropriate starter planes. [/quote] Yes it is! Non-jerkish behavior is to ignore the threads you don't want to contribute to, and let other non-burned-out people answer. In my experience, it's extremely rare for two people to ask the exact same question. "What is the best trainer" is a perfect example. It's not really the same question. Asked just like that, 100 people will give you 100 different answers. To answer the question usefully, you really have to listen very carefully to the poster. What are his resources? Where does he live? Where will he fly? What is his background? Where does he want to go in the sport/hobby? How good is his eyesight? Even if the question is really narrowly defined (rare), the passage of time makes a huge difference. The model of trainer suggested in a previous thread probably don't even exist any more. I believe it is totally jerkish behavior to in any way criticize someone for asking a question. Asking questions is the point of the forum. I don't think anybody should regret having asked a question. If you don't want to answer it, then move on. There will be someone else who enjoys answering questions. By the way, a nice comment like this is always welcome: "Hi ____, there's a lot of good information on this thread" and give the URL. That's not the same as telling someone to "go search".
Posted on: 6/1/2011 12:12 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "The Clubhouse"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10551920

RE: Tufflight still around?
Looks like the web site was just down. Whew!
Posted on: 3/26/2011 2:11 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "The Clubhouse"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10424333

Tufflight still around?
Their web site seems to have disappeared.
Posted on: 3/25/2011 2:17 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "The Clubhouse"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10422424

RE: AirCore 40 Trainer Instructions
[quote]ORIGINAL: MrGreenSpeed All in all a great coro plane. Jeff [;)] [/quote] Yes indeed. This thread has been wonderfully nostalgic for me. When I first learned to fly, I built a balsa plane. The first hard landing, not even close to a crash, the tail broke off. I decided the punishment did not fit the crime and built my Aircore. It was a slow, lumbering, clumsy thing, perfect for a trainer. One time on training day, it got shot down. The guy who did it came over with his wallet out to apologize. I said forget it, there was no damage at all. I got some gentle ribbing at the field, but most guys were more curious than hostile. They loved it when the landing gear folded up. "Look, retracts!" I did love that plane, but eventually I was ready for a DPS. Now I have two of them, and they just fly and fly. The Aircore wasn't perfect, but it was the original inspiration for SPAD.
Posted on: 10/21/2010 7:11 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "S.P.A.D. Aircraft - Coroplast design"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10084736

RE: Shooting at r/c planes? ATS Gnat.
I think a PBF with a .25 would work exactly as well as the model shown, no?
Posted on: 10/8/2010 2:47 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "S.P.A.D. Aircraft - Coroplast design"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10056060

RE: Please help me do the unthinkable ...
[quote]Finally, as the battery discharged I found it would not turn the prop at all. But if I cut power entirely, than added full power, the prop would rev up for about 1/2 second and then die. Fortunately, I could do this about 10-12 times to retrieve the plane from the pond.[/quote] This is how the ESC is supposed to work. When the battery discharges to a certain point, the ESC cuts power to the motor. The reason for this is to make sure there is always enough power to the receiver and servos so you don't lose control of the plane. With the motor turned off, the voltage of the battery will rise a little, and the ESC will again send power to the motor. I doubt this is damaging anything, it's just the ESC protecting both the battery and the plane.
Posted on: 10/7/2010 5:06 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "Seaplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10054208

RE: Shooting at r/c planes? ATS Gnat.
Very cool! There's a bit of information at their web site: http://www.gnatshoot.co.uk/ They describe the explosive pods you can see in the video. They claim the plane can fly up to 120 mph, which is not bad for a spad!
Posted on: 10/6/2010 4:40 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "S.P.A.D. Aircraft - Coroplast design"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10052081

RE: Balancer for my Super Brain 977
MRC makes one: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXZCS6&P=ML Fits the .1" post separation charging connectors (Electrifly, etc.) I've also tried using the 977 to charge through the Equinox balancer (http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXMGS7&P=ML), didn't work too well (cut off charging early).
Posted on: 7/27/2010 2:18 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "Batteries & Chargers"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9891937

throttle cut switch with ESC
Bear with me, I'm relatively new to electric. I've got my transmitter set up, and everything works. Then, for no good reason, I touched the Throttle Cut button on my transmitter. What happened was that the motor powered up, and I couldn't turn it off. This happened with both a Hitec Flash 5 and a Futaba 6EX. Is this normal? Is this something electric flyers all know about? I'm afraid I might accidently touch the throttle cut-off, and not be able to land the plane. This was a Castle Creations Thunderbird ESC. I have another electric plane with a different ESC, and it doesn't do this. So, is the problem the ESC? I feel like I'm missing something here. Never really thought about it, actually.
Posted on: 7/22/2010 8:23 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "RC Radios, Transmitters, Receivers, Servos, gyros"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9881970

RE: OMNIMODELS - WHERE ARE YOU???!!!???
[quote]ORIGINAL: CottcoRC OmniModels - where are you????!!!??? [/quote] I agree with the others that you must be thinking of a different company. If you look at the "tech notes" on a particular item on both sites you'll see that Omni Models is just a different "skin" for the Tower Hobbies web site and has been for many many years. Omni offers free shipping on orders over $100, but Tower always has a dollars-off offer, so they come out about the same. I think it's probably in the gray area ethics-wise, but it's pretty common on the Internet for one physical company to pose as several different web "companies".
Posted on: 7/20/2010 1:13 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "The Clubhouse"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9876731

RE: Only charge Lipo through balance plug?
The issue is not whether to balance or not, it's whether there's a great advantage of charging through the balancing connector as opposed to charging through the ESC connector, with a balancer connected to the balancing connector.
Posted on: 7/16/2010 7:01 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "Batteries & Chargers"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9869587

Only charge Lipo through balance plug?
New to Lipo, so bear with me... I have a LiPo battery (from GreatPlanes) here, and among the warnings they state "NEVER charge thought the discharge (to ESC) plug". Why is this? Some chargers (including my own) don't have the ability to charge through the balancing connector. Any wisdom would be appreciated.
Posted on: 7/16/2010 2:07 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "Batteries & Chargers"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9869107

How do chargers work?
Forgive me if this is one of those questions that after hearing the answer you hit yourself in the forehead, Duh! I've always been curious how chargers measure the voltage of the batteries they are charging. For example, in a previous answer, it was stated that the 977 charges LiPos using constant current up to 4.3 volts. So how does it know when it's reached 4.3 volts? Obviously, in order to push current into a battery, you've got to apply a voltage higher than what the battery would normally show if there was no charger attached. In other words, if I measured the voltage when the charger was charging, it would have to be something higher than 4.3 volts or there wouldn't be any current going backwards into the battery. So, how does the charger know what the voltage of the battery would be if it weren't charging? Does it calculate it somehow? Turn off charging periodically? Or doesn't it need to know? Does the question even make sense or have I completely humiliated myself in front of millions of battery geniuses? Mike
Posted on: 7/8/2010 8:48 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "MRC Charger Product Support (i.e. Super Brain, etc)"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9853048

977 and LiPos charge method
I've read that the best ways to charge lipo is constant current up to 3.7v then constant voltage to "top it off". The MRC manual is silent on the method it uses. Anybody know? Should I care?
Posted on: 6/25/2010 5:27 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "MRC Charger Product Support (i.e. Super Brain, etc)"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9826748

RE: Weller WES51 or Hakko 936 soldering stations
I bought a no-brand soldering station a while back, and had to trash it because I couldn't buy parts (tips, etc.). I finally settled on Xytronic as a inexpensive brand that might be around a while. I got the 379 and absolutely love it but the replacement model (which seems to have more features) is: http://www.howardelectronics.com/xytronic/lf369D.html . You might want to look at the LF-1600 for a few more bucks. Keep in mind that I'm a very occasional solderer, maybe once a month or so. If I used the thing every day, I might pick a different brand/model. My advice is to buy all the tips and accessories you think you'll ever need with the station. That way you won't worry about not being able to buy tips in the future. For those that aren't up on soldering tools, I highly recommend a soldering station over a garden-variety pencil-style soldering iron. The difference is that the soldering station has circuitry to keep the tip at an exact temperature you set. With the pencil-style soldering iron, it heats up to whatever temperature it wants to, but as soon as you touch it to the wire you're soldering, it cools down considerably. Then it heats up again. Put some solder on, it cools down. This can make soldering very frustrating. There's really no comparison, and you'll wonder why you put up with the soldering iron for so long, given the availability of reasonably inexpensive soldering stations like the Xytronics.
Posted on: 6/22/2010 7:20 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "Batteries & Chargers"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9820395

RE: Two 2.4MH transmitters, same planes
[quote]ORIGINAL: aussiesteve Out of pure curiosity - would you want to (do you have 2 fliers on different modes). [/quote] No, not different modes, just two fliers. When I go flying with my buddy, I usually supply all the planes. I'm not saying it's a big deal, because it's not, but it would be convenient sometimes if both transmitters could be used with any of the planes
Posted on: 6/15/2010 12:26 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "RC Radios, Transmitters, Receivers, Servos, gyros"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9804673

Two 2.4MH transmitters, same planes
I was wondering how much of a hassle it would be to have two transmitters (probably Futaba) that could fly all my planes. I understand that a receiver can only bind to one transmitter at a time, but I'm thinking I could still create a model for each plane, trim out the plane, then do the same for the other transmitter. Then, to switch a plane between transmitters, it would only take rebinding, which only takes seconds. This assumes the transmitter remembers all the settings for a plane even if the receiver is not bound to it. Is this feasible, or am I missing something? If it's a hassle with Futaba equipment, would it be any easier with a different brand? Any body actually do this?
Posted on: 6/14/2010 7:54 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "RC Radios, Transmitters, Receivers, Servos, gyros"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9803181

RE: TAXES, TAXES, TAXES
[quote]ORIGINAL: Hossfly Leave it to Uncle Same to reach in our pocket one way or another.'' [/quote] "Uncle Sam" is not like some greedy crook taking your money and piling it up and enjoying it. "Uncle Sam" is, in fact, us, and by the way, he's broke. Just vote yourself a cut in benefits, or fewer roads, or fewer wars, or less medical and science research. Vote to shut down the base in Antarctica, or stop policing, or whatever you want Uncle Sam to stop spending on you, and I'm sure he'll be happy to reach into your pocket less often. I find this anti-tax attitude a little ironic, given that many clubs are given exclusive use of public land at no cost. Most are probably County and State, not Federal, but seriously, if you wan to pay less taxes, lobby your politicians to stop giving away public land for the benefits of very small groups of people.
Posted on: 6/11/2010 1:27 PM by Author "Mike in DC" in the forum "AMA Discussions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9796342