Getting in a FlySky 9x on Friday and wondering if I need to worry about upgrading it to Telemetry for my trainer and a smaller low wing sport plane or just leave it? I mean for aircraft this size I don't want to be adding any more weight as it is with the telemetry hub and all the sensors (no room either). All my batteries are converted to LiFe so I'm not too worried about it dying in flight and I'm going to run the new Evolution 10GX gas engine in the trainer and bigger gassers in everything else so the fuel level won't work either. Anyone see a reason to worry about it? I'm planning on picking up the new FrSky 12D when it comes out this spring/summer anyway so I'm leaning towards no but if I'm missing something please let me know.

Thanks

They don't have fuel telemetry for gas?

The gas doesn't show up properly like glow/meth does. Something about the conductivity of the fluid or some such.

rx voltage telemetry is very useful. other than that, not really.

I usually don't see a need for telemetry in a RC airplane. But some people think it is great. So I guess it depends. The RC helicopter people seem to really get into the details of using telemetry for everything on their heli's though. I have bought some telemetry gear, but I haven't done anything with it yet I guess I ought to, as I have had the stuff for quite a while now though.

I found that a simple free iPhone Doppler Speed Shiuft speedometer works fairly well for airspeed. I setup my phone to record and do some flybys with the plane. Then later I can average the results and use the speed to determine the RPMs that the engine would need to turn with the propeller on it to see how it is doing. It isn't super accurate but it works for me.

Of course I have thought that the engine RPMs in the air and maybe the GPS device or airspeed device might be nice to have as one could determine what the engine RPMs are in the air as well as maybe the airspeed too. The battery voltage monitor is of mixed value as with NMH or LiFe battery packs, the cell voltage stays at 1.1v until the battery runs down and then very quickly goes towards Zero then. So you don't have time to react to the voltage dropoff. But maybe something that tried to measure the current being drawn and calculate the milli-amp hours being used up could be useful. There are some telemetry fuel tank sensors, but honestly with a airplane going all over the place at all kinds of different attitudes I don't see how it could be accurate enough to be useful.

I don't know if the engine temperature sensor would be useful in a airplane or not. But it might give one a heads up if something odd is happening. I think that logging all the flights and seeing the results over time might be useful, but it is hard to say as to how useful with a airplane. With RC heli's it is different as if the current draw increases over time or the rotor blade RPMs change, then you know something is happening you need to probably take care of.

Well, honestly cost is the same, I just have to wait like another week for it to come in... well cost is not the same after shipping, I missed the boat on a few thing on HobbyKing, also want to go all FrSky since I am going to be getting the 12D when/if it comes out this year so I'm going to return the FlySky 9x when it comes in on Friday and I placed an order on HK today for a Turnigy 9x without any transmitter and a FrSky 2.4ghz ACCST module/8 channel receiver with telemetry. Might not use it much with the trainer but I will when I move up to bigger/more expensive aircraft. The GPS feature alone would be worth it if a $1k+ model goes down out of sight somewhere. I just honestly didn't want to wait another week/week and a half and then have to eat the shipping costs but oh well, got a few other things I needed from HK and shipping back to HobbyPartz will be around $10.

I fly giant scale I don't have telemetery anything nor, I am pretty sure, do I want it

I like the battery voltage and antenna fades and losses

Originally Posted by jetmech05

I fly giant scale I don't have telemetery anything nor, I am pretty sure, do I want it

We do fly big (expensive at that) scale as well and do not really see the need for it. I noticed that there is GPS in my latest camera, do'nt need that either. Now, maeby if I could obtain some device metering my footsteps, is there some shoe make producing this already ? I am really impatient to have a set of those.

We haven't needed telemetry for the last 50-60 years so it doesn't seem likely that it's suddenly become vitally necessary .

Another nice toy to have but that's about it really. And if you're still in the relatively early phases of learning to fly I'd say that's quite enough to concentrate on without having to cope with any additional distractions.

Steve

Originally Posted by Reginald

We do fly big (expensive at that) scale as well and do not really see the need for it. I noticed that there is GPS in my latest camera, do'nt need that either. Now, maeby if I could obtain some device metering my footsteps, is there some shoe make producing this already ? I am really impatient to have a set of those.

They have those, I think they are called pedometers.

Originally Posted by slipstick

We haven't needed telemetry for the last 50-60 years so it doesn't seem likely that it's suddenly become vitally necessary .

Another nice toy to have but that's about it really. And if you're still in the relatively early phases of learning to fly I'd say that's quite enough to concentrate on without having to cope with any additional distractions.

Steve

And they invented color TV in the last 50-60 years and we all have one of them

Lol I was just thinking that. Just because its new doesn't mean its bad. Signal strength alone is a good thing to have. Those running glow/meth get a friggin gas gauge. I can't tell you how many times I wished I knew how much fuel I had left as a kid learning to fly. Of course now I'm switching to gasoline and the gauges won't read that either haha.

Originally Posted by scottydsntknow

Lol I was just thinking that. Just because its new doesn't mean its bad. Signal strength alone is a good thing to have. Those running glow/meth get a friggin gas gauge. I can't tell you how many times I wished I knew how much fuel I had left as a kid learning to fly. Of course now I'm switching to gasoline and the gauges won't read that either haha.

Scotty, I read you have a lot of questions and less to "show", so be carefull when writing about "glow"!
An example, look at that landing light! Why is it switched "on"?
Indeed, during winterdays it can be dark in a very short time so my landing light is automatically switched on when the low level limit of fuel is reached during the flight. Engine was still "on" when I made the first photograph after the last flight. Second photograph is made short after the first one!
Telemetry in optima forma!!



Cees

Oh I understand it is a luxury, but when the cost is about the same I'll go for the luxury. $50 for a FrSky module and receiver, $50 for a Turnigy 9x or XR... vs $500+ for an Aurora or jeebus knows how much for a Futaba/JR.

I do like the idea of a LED or light for a low fuel indication though. Is there some sort of sensor system you can buy or is that something you just DIY?