Hi All,

I originally posted this topic in the "Electric Airplane Talk" forum, but someone suggested I post it in this forum as well as there might be more interest in the subject here. However, if you are interested in reading the original thread, here is the link:

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=625183

I appears that others may have done similar work here, but I don't know if anyone has ever attempted to rate the various servos in the 9g size catagory. To this end I have put together a spreadsheet comparing all of the commonly available servos in the sub-micro size category, or as the title of this post suggests, the 9 gram (.3 oz) weight range.

It seems to me that this is one of the most common sizes currently used by electric flyers, so I thought a comparison and ratings might be a helpful reference. I have attached a screenshot of my spreadsheet so everyone can see where I am so far. However, I can use your help in several areas to make it more complete and useful.

One, are there any servos not on the list that you think I should include? Two, are the servos I do have on the list available for a better price somewhere other than the source I already have listed? And lastly, what type of ratings would you give these servos?

As you can see, I have the last two columns reserved for the ratings, and I have had some input from the other forum so I have entered a little data here already.

I know "rating" something like servos is somewhat subjective in the absence of using test equipment, etc, but what I am looking to do is establish an overall 1 through 10 rating for the servos in question in 2 areas; Quality and Value. The ratings follow the descriptions below.

Poor = 1 - 2
Fair = 3 - 4
Good = 5 - 6
Very Good = 7 - 8
Excellent = 9 - 10

What I am asking for is your input and votes on these servos. How do you feel about these servos? Would you buy them again? Are they any good, or are they junk? Are there any major flaws or gripes that you have, such as the servo will not return to center? What is the overall value of the servo? In other words, do you feel this servo gives good value for the money spent?

If you would like to vote for your favorite servo, and rate it in the two catagories of Quality and Value, please use the above ratings system. All I ask is that you have actual personal experience with any servos you rate. You can either send me a PM or vote in the forum, your choice. Your vote would look something like this:

Sample Vote
Servo Mfg. Quality / Value
HS-55 Hitec 10 / 10

Your participation is appreciated. The more people vote the more valuable the information will be to all of us. And if there is enough interest in this type of rating information for the 9g servos, I'll press on and do the 5g servos as well.

Regards,

Jay B.

Great effort Jay. I'm thinking you will find some experts here in the Radio forum.

Anyone care to share there experience on servos to help with this comparison?

I have to believe not everyone uses Hitec 55's, although that's all I have used, It would be great to see what else is available and how good they really are.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Frank

Bumpin for suggestions

Might want to add these, I'll be trying a few in a sloper later this spring so I can't give a review but their mini's seem to work fine in another plane:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Yeah-Racing-SV-0...QQcmdZViewItem

Originally Posted by cosmicpossum

Might want to add these, I'll be trying a few in a sloper later this spring so I can't give a review but their mini's seem to work fine in another plane:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Yeah-Racing-SV-0...QQcmdZViewItem

Yes, I can certainly add it to my list of 9g servos. However, I am trying to list internet retail sources other than e-bay so that if someone wants one, they will be able to locate them easily. I looked at the servo on Yeah Racing web site

http://www.yeahracing.com/catalog/pr...oducts_id=1329

but it appears that they do not sell at retail here, only wholesale to their dealers. Do you have an alternate internet retail source (or sources) for this servo?

Regards,

Jay B

One response?

Have we given up on using servos or just not wanting to help build a good reference tool for all?

I saw the same thing in the AP section. A fellow took the time to build a site dedicated to AP/AV cameras as a comparison guide when looking for an AP/AV specific camera and only a handful of folks replied/posted opinions and recommendations. Not sure I understand the reasoning behind it though. If we can assist in building a reference tool that has sound and informative data with easily accessible and updateable (is that a word?) data, why would we not want to assist in creating it?

This would save folks from asking in numerous posts "would this servo be OK for "X" application?"

I'd like to see Jay expand the list to include all servo under 9 grams, but he can't do that without the input from others. He also can't complete this list without your help.

I'm making a plea for him to you, if you have used any of these servos, or if there is some missing, please provide feedback. Let's help Jay help us and those coming into this wonderful hobby. We can certainly use a good reference tool.

Thanks to those in advance who decide to help out. It is greatly appreciated.

Frank

Well, other than whats on the list, I would only be able to speak on the HS65.

The HS65 is the same width and leingth as the HS55, but taller, with more speed, more torque, and a choice of karbonite gears or Metal gears. Its heavier, but much tougher alternitive to a HS55. I would give it an 9

I'd give a vote of a 7 on the HS 56BB. its faster than the HS55, roughly the same size and weight, and has screw tabs on the sides and bottom for mounting flat. that might make it easier to mount in a wing, and the faster speed is noticable, but it has less torque.

the HS55 I'd give a 9. Never had a problem with one. good power for the weight, centers very well, doesn't buzz, and is cheap.

the HS55's evil twin, the S75 I would give a 3. they center poorly, wear out fast, have a habbit of failing. on the positive side, they come with more servo arms than the HS55, and are lightened versions of thinner plastic with ribs on the under side.

Thanks for your input Drunkskunk. Very informative and well said.

Frank

Thanks for the input Drunkskunk. I'll get your votes tallied and included when I post the next updated version of my 9g Servo Comparison spreadsheet.

From the votes I have been getting, it appears that the Hitec HS-55's are by far the most used 9g servo out there, and they are generally pretty well thought of as well. I also appears that the E-Flite S75's are some of the most reviled. This is just the kind of information I was looking to discover when I started this project. We all want to get the most "bang for the buck" out of our hard earned hobby dollars, and none of us like to feel like we were ripped off.

Thanks again for your input.

Jay B.

Hi All,

Well, I went ahead and ordered 6 of the Hextronik HXT900 servos from unitedhobbies.com to see if they are any good. At $3.95 each I just had to give them a try. From what I have read in other threads they are pretty decent servos for the money, so we'll see. Ater I have used them for a bit I'll vote on them myself and add the results to the 9g servo comparison spreadsheet. I hope they live up to the good reports.

On another note, if anyone would care to cast a vote for the 9g servos that you either "love" or "love to hate", your input would be appreciated. Either way, the data will be helpful.

Regards,

Jay B.

I use a TON of the HS-65HBs...they are tought, and I only broke one once...but in fairness I snapped the servo totally in half...(cool crash).

Anyway...HS-65HB's rock give them a 9!!!

very nice comparison you've set up.
I hate to seem like I'm nitpicking, but I did notice that the width in mm for the HXT900 (cell G13) is wrong... it should be 10.668mm (at least thats what AskJeeves told me when i put "convert 0.42 inches to millimeters" )
I didn't check the others, but I just thought i'd point it out in case it was a formula error rather than a typo. Can't really comment on most of the servos - only one I see on there that I have is the GWS-Naro Standard, and it's fairly new, so I can't really comment on its long term performance... Right now I'd put its value at an 8, due to the cost and the fact that it seems to be fairly sturdy. As long as it handles the wear and tear of age/use, I'd bump that up to a 9. So for now:
Naro Standard GWS 8/8

interesting Idea but as yr chart stands it's little more than a listing of available servos.
ONLY way to make any kind of an intelligent comparo it to actually Test 'em all. Yup.. compare them directly... same tester,same day, same tests.
A smattering of widespread personal anecdotes is less than revealing or useful .
Perhaps IF you had hundreds of entries with a couple of dozen 'opinions' for EACH servo listed, Then some usable pattern might emerge.
Otherwise it doesn't take a Genius to believe that a $30 Jr is likely gonna be 'better' than a $9 one.. Geez.

Originally Posted by hawk426

very nice comparison you've set up.
I hate to seem like I'm nitpicking, but I did notice that the width in mm for the HXT900 (cell G13) is wrong... it should be 10.668mm (at least thats what AskJeeves told me when i put "convert 0.42 inches to millimeters" )
I didn't check the others, but I just thought i'd point it out in case it was a formula error rather than a typo.

<SNIP>

Hi hawk426,

Thanks for your comments. And yes, this does seem to be an error, but I can tell you where it came from. You guessed it, right from the distributors web site. Take a look...

https://www.unitedhobbies.com/UNITED...?idProduct=662

Since I don't have most of these servos in my hot little hands, I have no way to take the actual measurements. That being the case, I just used the figures that the manufacturer or distributor published. If they only published in metric or English units, then I converted it to get the other figure using a handy dandy little conversion program that a chemist friend gave me. However, since I just ordered some of these servos for myself and should have them in a few days, I'll take the actual measurement then and make any needed corrections to the spreadsheet at that time.

Again, thanks for your input.

Regards,

Jay B.

I agree with Bare on this one. Testing to confirm manufacturers specs is needed for one thing. Aside from that, what constitutes the "best" servo will depend on what the application is. Do you want high torgue, fast speed, small size and weight, low cost, or what?

It would be interesting to sort the existing list by these factors to see what servos float to the top in each sort. From what I can see, the Futaba S3114 would be near the top of the list in most of these categories. Gee... that just happens to be the one I use!

It's hard to rate reliability and quality... FWIW, I've had some really bad experience with GWS Naro Std. and Hitec HS-55 servos, which are very common and widely used.