Posted by mechmove |
Feb 24, 2024 @ 10:17 AM | 3,508 Views
After a fairly long absence from RC, I tried to fly my Alpha 2m electric yesterday. It never flew, issues from not being able to charge my 2s batteries, to plugging in the wing servos wrong at the field. One of guys at the field was able to charge one of my batteries, so I thought my charger went bad. When I came home, I was able to charge the other battery. I don’t know why the charger wasn't functional for that short time period. I had recently used the charger for other LiPo batteries, non RC use. I took some time to document the wing servo wiring harness with a small diagram for next time. I also reacquainted myself with my radio. You go through the entire sequence from assembly to startup with arming the motor, then disarm and power down and package it all up. Perhaps a form of pre flight after some time away.
I deployed a custom made aluminum RC flight box that I bought from a pilot in the early 2000s. It had been stashed away with my 72 MHz gear. I’d been using re-purposed and labeled Trade Joes fruit containers for most of my gear. They work, but I would always show up to the field with a stack of plastic green containers, perhaps a telltale sign of a non-professional weekend warrior.
After digging into my archived records, I realized I had the foresight to pay up my AMA membership for 3 years in advance, 2024 is the final year. I can say for certain, I’m now ready to fly.
Posted by mechmove |
Jul 04, 2022 @ 03:32 PM | 28,976 Views
Attached is a photo of frsky telemetry data that got logged in my radio during the competition. Of course, altitude information was not available to me while flying. As such, I never bothered to reset the altimeter. So the absolute logged altitude won't be correct, but the Vertical Speed (Blue) in relation to altitude (Green) and throttle (Red) paints a clear picture.
The wind was starting to kick up approaching mid-day. Looking at the green line, my altitude was increasing, then vertical speed (blue) drops like a rock. This is the start of wild pitch inputs and aircraft oscillations. I was unaware that I was inverted at one point, that's how far out the plane was. Fortunately, my timer told me when to fire the throttle, burst in RED, got some altitude, then brought the plane back. Although the altitude is reading 5 meters at the lowest point, I was probably closer to 1 to 1.5 meters off the ground.
That was close. I could easily have lost the plane. But my timer's input was invaluable in helping me make a recovery.
I was flying with my contact lens for the competition but thought about wearing my glasses which lets me resolve very long distances much better than my contacts. But wearing glasses would have meant having no sun protection for my eyes. This could have caused other problems that result from sun glare. I'll need to get an unpolarized clip-on with yellow tint. That advice comes from another pilot at the competition. Also add some reflective tape on my wings.
Posted by mechmove |
Jul 04, 2022 @ 10:48 AM | 29,269 Views
This year, I’m entering local handlaunch and F5J competitions for the first time. I’ve always kept away from a “competition“ mindset when doing radio control. But the experience gained can be invaluable.
Yesterday I flew my first F5J competition at a local field.
In preparation, I made a copy of my Explorer radio program, called it “F5J”. I removed all switches that control altitude callouts, including the 400 foot warning and variometer. This is because none of those things are allowed in competition. My radio is still logging a altitude profile, but none of it will be audible. I also removed the altitude display on the telemetry screen.
I also reviewed the rules on how F5J competitions are run. The tasks are the same, unlike hand launch competition where the tasks can vary. Scoring is pretty simple, 10 min flight time, and your score is your time in seconds, points deducted for altitude gained with motor, points gained for landing within the zone, and zero points if you have to run your motor a second time because you don’t want to walk. Those are the general rules, with lots of nuance in between. For example, everyone wants the highest score possible which means the lowest motor on altitude gain with the longest flight time, terminating in a spot landing for 50 additional points. Beginners can not do this the first time. Even though everyone launches right after the buzzer terminates, it is sometimes in the pilots interest to
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Posted by mechmove |
Jun 30, 2022 @ 10:37 PM | 30,544 Views
After some effort I got the Altis Nano to connect to my Windows 10 computer. The first mini USB connector did not work, but since the tiny screen on the nano fired up, I thought a driver was unable to load making the device inaccessible. After trying it on three different computers, I came to the conclusion I would not be able to access the Altis Nano configuration and log files.
Then today I tried a different mini USB connector and it worked! This time the tiny screen looked different, it showed a USB symbol meaning it was connected to my computer. I was surprised there’s this much difference in cables.
I was able to upgrade the firmware from 1.7 to 1.9, and see the settings which are logging at 0.1 second intervals, and for competition motor cut off after 30 seconds. The emergency throttle button was checked, so I wouldn’t have to land out, but this means zero points in competition.
The previous owners log file was there it was logging voltage temperature altitude and some other parameters. It will be interesting to compare this log to the telemetry log that is written back to my radio.
Posted by mechmove |
Jun 23, 2022 @ 12:42 AM | 33,156 Views
I will fly my models for a month or two with my unmodified Taranis x9d, then examine the logs to get an idea of signal strength. Then install the antenna upgrade. I should expect to see better RSSI numbers.
Posted by mechmove |
Jun 21, 2022 @ 09:19 PM | 33,662 Views
Today I managed to watch a short video explaining how to set up logging on your Taranis radio. I didn’t realize logging was already turned on for my handlaunch programs. One entry every second, lots of data was already stored on my SD card! Of course I disabled the logging for my hand launch programs.
What I love about open TX, it’s easy to figure out once you understand the nuts and bolts. I was able to add logging to all my electric gliders, one data point every five seconds since my planes are pretty slow, no need for faster logging. I assigned logging to start when I enable the motor, and stop when I disable the motor at end of flight.
I also deleted all the extra DLG logs that I didn’t know were running in the background.
I still can’t believe how much functionality you get that this price point, the tech is outstanding at any price!
Posted by mechmove |
Jun 20, 2022 @ 09:48 PM | 30,933 Views
Yesterday I accrued a lot more flight time on my Explorer. In the morning very powerful thermals, lots of tight turns dancing on a wing tip, but I also made sure to practice circling on either wing tip. And more shallow turns when the lift subsides. A few times I triggered the 400 foot ceiling alarm, and immediately executed steep turns to lose altitude to clear the alarm and stay in compliance with the altitude restriction at the park. I suppose I could be heads down and watch my altitude, but I would likely lose track of the plane.
It’s amazing how far the hobby has progressed, from gliders that weighed 65 ounces without motor, down to 40 ounces with a motor and a tiny 3 cell battery. I cannot fly my Supra electric this way.
I will likely enter my first F5J competition next month.
Posted by mechmove |
Jun 14, 2022 @ 07:24 AM | 33,075 Views
Yesterday I rewired my Archer m + sbus out to the sbus in of the GR8 receiver. This is the recommended wiring configuration to have fully redundant antennas.
All did not go as planned! When I tried to unplug the cable from the receiver, the entire pin assembly broke off at the solder joints! I immediately decided to remove the wires from the connector and solder them directly onto the receiver. See picture. Next up, soldering the SMA connector to my x9d radio.
Posted by mechmove |
Jun 12, 2022 @ 07:17 AM | 33,378 Views
My Explorer came with a option to mount an external satellite antenna facing rearward on the top side of the fuselage. There is what looks to be factory installed tubing that allows you to run a single antenna. The problem is the length of antenna required might exceed the length of the antenna on your receiver. In this case I’m trying to install the Archer M+ which has a relatively short 90 mm antenna. This will require you to shorten the tubing inside the fuselage, in other words destroy a perfectly well thought out factory design. Do this at your own risk!
Materials needed:
Very thin wire, 0.25mm thickness.
Very thin heat shrink,
Lithium or some other kind of grease.
Thin sharp scissors, hair cutting scissors will work.
In order to cut the tubing inside the fuselage, you will need to insert the wire in the tubing and apply tension so the scissors can grab a hold of it and snap it off. You might have to do this in several attempts, I managed to shorten the tubing by 100 mm. You’ll also end up cutting the wire, so you’ll have lots of scraps.
Wrap the tiny receiver in foam and tape, and securely attach the power lead to the receiver. Then insert a length of wire in the tube and heat shrink the wire and the tip of the antenna together. Apply lithium grease to facilitate sliding the antenna through the top. Since the receiver will be well inside the fuselage, it will be impossible to secure it there. Instead you will need to use Velcro to secure the
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Posted by mechmove |
Jun 08, 2022 @ 09:30 PM | 32,430 Views
Today I received my Archer m+ receiver to be used as a remote antenna protruding through the top most section of my Explorer. I knew I had to do some soldering, and I thought it would be easy. Was I wrong about that! I did manage to successfully solder the four pins to the receiver but it took quite an effort. Anyone with mediocre soldering skills will be able to accomplish this task, but you must be patient! I immediately upgraded the firmware from Access 2.1.0 to 2.1.9. You gotta love OTA!
Routing the aerial inside my Explorer requires a 190 mm length antenna for a comfortable installation. The single aerial is exactly 90mm Long, which means I need to chop off 100 mm of tubing inside the fuselage and route the antenna with a guide wire.
The plan next time, attempt a trial routing first. If this works then I’ll chop the tubing inside the fuse and finalize the mounting.
Posted by mechmove |
Jun 04, 2022 @ 11:01 AM | 33,037 Views
Last week I went to Home Depot and pick up two rolls of reflectix in different sizes. The entire bundle came to 33 USD, probably cheaper online.There are plenty of tutorials on how to make wing covers, I used velcro and old duct tape which is almost fraying and coming apart but it seems to be doing the job. I was using a dedicated cloth wing bag which is almost too big for my car, but it will be perfect for long-term storage in the garage .
There was enough material for 2 sets of glider wings, 2 tail covers, and some spare. The new covers are for my Supra classic and Pulsar 4 m. Attached is a picture of how I will be hauling around my Pulsar. While not a robust solution, it is perfect for quick deployment at the field but it takes a little effort to package the glider. What is not obvious, there are two layers of folded reflectix between each wing, nothing is touching and results in plenty of cushion.
Posted by mechmove |
Jun 04, 2022 @ 10:46 AM | 32,922 Views
Last week I did lots of flying, got plenty of stick time on my Pulsar 4m. On Sunday, the F5J pilots showed up, and a couple guys had the dual band frsky radio. This seems to be a perfectly reasonable and probably bulletproof radio solution for carbon aircraft. They were telling me all competition pilots were taking a hit on 2.4 GHz, it wasn’t just frsky.
With so much carbon in aircraft there are many chances to lose signal, especially when flying competition in unrestricted airspace where the sky is the limit.
Food for thought, right now I’m still on the x9d radio, will be installing a tiny sbus ACCESS redundant receiver in my Explorer. I also got an interesting tip from one of the F5J guys, heat shrink the exposed 2.4 GHz antenna otherwise it might short out on the carbon fuse. Granted the center wire antenna is shielded so the chance the very tip is exposed enough to contact carbon while inflight is probably small but the possibility needs to be completely eliminated. I can imagine people are flying in wet or humid conditions, this could be problematic. The effort to implement this solution is tiny, it can’t hurt!
So far my X9d radio is working perfectly with all my aircraft. I’ll see how it works with the Explorer which is mostly carbon. Since I am not in a competition environment, not flying particularly long distances or outside the boundaries.
Posted by mechmove |
May 18, 2022 @ 07:42 PM | 38,040 Views
I removed the receiver and confirmed the left and right aileron connections for ground, power and signal are providing a continuous and clean connection onto the four pins. I could not see any evidence of a fault. Kind of strange the only time I saw an intermittent connection caused by movement is when all other connectors are wired into the receiver. Does this indicate a mechanically faulty receiver? And what would be a proper test leaving connections in the receiver? My receiver that I used in yesterday‘s and today’s test is brand new, never flown.
I did manage to figure out the pin configuration that was implemented in my DLG:
PIN1 :ground
PIN2; power
PIN3: right aileron signal
PIN4: left aileron signal
Pin 4 is closest to the left wing if you were inside flying the airplane.
The fault I found when all other connectors were plugged into the receiver indicated an intermittent short circuit between the left aileron ground and the right aileron signal wires, presumably happening at the four pin connector. This resulted in the left aileron freezing in flight. The test conditions this time both connectors of the wiring harness are doubled back as opposed to the right connector being straight, when the fault was occurring. See picture.
If there were an easy way to just replace the wiring harness, a quick reboot. Need to think of something else after a good nights rest. If you haven’t guessed, I used to be one of the kids that had a chemistry set, and I would notate meticulous results, not knowing exactly what I was looking for but finding it curious anyway.
Posted by mechmove |
May 17, 2022 @ 08:41 PM | 39,251 Views
>>>>> UPDATE, this post has been edited to remove silly speculation and provide more context as to why I got the results that I did. <<<<<<
As usual, this will be a very long post. I think I ended up solving a problem, namely last years crash that I documented in the “I’m back” post. I hope this can help somebody who has had similar problems.
On Sunday, I was practicing my launches on my Flitz DLG in order to fine tune my radio program. Since I won’t be flying at all next weekend, I wanted to figure this out ASAP.
Then at low altitude, I lost directional control and the plane appeared to stall at low speed and landed in the soft grass, no damage, but the left aileron was jammed, no response to controls. The plane flew all morning the day prior. Never saw this problem.
I immediately opened up the canopy and realized the aileron had an intermittent connection related to receiver movement. I thought there was a loose wire in the wiring harness terminating at the 4 pin wing connector. I could replicate the problem by moving the receiver, or just the wire connecting the left aileron. I packed it up and came home.
Ok, I did document this behavior in a previous post during a post crash analysis. The fact it re surfaced means it is an intermittent problem which most likely caused the crash last year.
What I should’ve done at the time was examine the wiring harness, and much to my dismay, I found a fault. I guess it’s not bad news
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Posted by mechmove |
May 15, 2022 @ 12:07 AM | 38,168 Views
After reconfiguring my Flitz dlg and Alpha 2m electric, I drove out to Long Beach early morning, a 25 mile drive. Wish I lived closer. I successfully range checked both planes.
The regular DLG guys were out there killing it. I on the other hand being out of practice struggled a bit. While on the ground, I kept on dialing in trim settings not realizing I was in different flight mode. Every launch became worse and worse. I eventually figured it out. This is what happens when you don’t fly much. But I did manage to find a powerful thermal and stayed up awhile, everyone was below me, I’m not bragging. Usually it’s the other way around, last to launch, first to land.
Then noon was fast approaching, most everyone had left, and it was getting hot, I setup my Alpha electric. Took forever having to route the antenna outside the fuse after inserting all the servo connectors into the receiver.
By the time I launched, there were very powerful thermals, I reached a max altitude of 91 meters, with lots of motor assist, final flight was 15 minutes in duration with plenty of battery left. After all the setup changes, the plane flew really well. It was by all accounts an uneventful flight, even unmemorable by some standards, but since I hadn’t flown in a long time it was a lot of fun.
Tomorrow, more of the same, maybe add the Pulsar.
Posted by mechmove |
May 13, 2022 @ 10:18 PM | 39,088 Views
As I was reworking the wiring in my Alpha 2m electric, I found some interesting issues with the Frsky gr8 receiver.
Here is the summary:
1) the receiver case is so narrow, the servo connectors that came with the Alpha preinstalled would not all plug inline into the receiver due to the thickness of each connector. This might be related to the type of connector with a “notch”. I was previously using extensions, and those would all fit. The solution was to dremel down the notch on each connector with a hard polishing attachment, making them thinner. Aside, a couple servo plugs had bare exposed wire, like someone intentionally stripped off too much insulation before going into the connector. My solution was to insulate with hot glue.
2) both antenna outer braids connected to the receiver looked to be fraying, just like the Access r6! I was surprised as this receiver does not move much, and there would have been very little stress on the antennas. So as a precaution, I removed the hot glue, soldered and heat shrinked the wires at the base, and reattached with hot glue.
If you attempt this, remember the heat generated from solder can damage a 2.4 dipole receiver antenna. I do not recommend soldering a loose connection at the base, since hot solder could cause a short between the outer braid and the center connector if the insulation melts away. Same precaution for heat shrink. You can always replace the antenna, it might be safer and easier. Always do a range check after this kind of mod.
Also, if you want to put the cover back on, you won’t be able to close the case unless you dremel away some of the notch on the case that secures the antenna. The heat shrink makes the antenna a lot thicker.
Item 2 bothers me, I now need to check all my receivers for this outer braid “fraying” problem.
A great tool to have is a jewelers loupe, you cannot see the problems unless you have very good eyes, even then, spotting minute details is very difficult.
Posted by mechmove |
May 09, 2022 @ 07:56 PM | 53,253 Views
Yesterday, I was at a local park with my smaller electric. After I launched I realized there was too much pitch down, I immediately landed without incident.
Upon inspection, the elevator was trimmed to a slight down position. My radio program didn’t change. One of the other pilots with a keen eye noticed this more than me. I had experienced this before. The last time this happened, the detachable piano wire didn’t sit properly on the elevator control horn, making the problem as extreme as it could get, I managed to land but pitch control was very difficult.
But this time there was another issue. The wires and connectors attaching the wing servos to the receiver in the fuse were exerting pressure on the piano wire near the servo arm. This results in a different trim setting, and inflight behavior. I simulated this by placing my finger inside the fuse to apply pressure to the wire controlling the elevator. There was a tiny amount of down trim, not easily noticeable by visual inspection.
To remedy this, I moved the receiver higher up in the fuse, and used Velcro make it sit vertical along the fuse, allowing the battery in its normal position. This allows the bulk of the wiring to avoid pinching the rudder or elevator control wires.
The lessons we learn, sometimes it was fine, other times there was a slight downward pitch problem. All depended on how “bunched up” the wires were in the fuse. You can’t see this from the outside, but you definitely feel it at the controls.
Posted by mechmove |
May 07, 2022 @ 03:12 PM | 68,988 Views
Towards the end of last year, I acquired a Flitz DLG in good condition. As I was practicing, the plane was no more than 100ft in the air, in cruise with wings level, then all of a sudden, the plane started spiraling out of control, and buried into the dirt nose first. The 2/3 size detachable wing had apparently separated but remained loosely attached to the plane. I thought the detachment could have happened mid air, or upon impact with the ground. Had it been the latter, this means either pilot error or a radio problem. Had the detachment occurred mid air, this could very well account for the loss of control as 2/3 of the aileron is no longer controllable. I have to assume it was me or the radio signal.
The plane surprisingly did not suffer any major damage. I little thin ca to the nose to remedy a thin crease, caused by being dorked into the ground.
As part of the troubleshooting process, I tested and found one of the ailerons unresponsive at times. It seems to have been caused by an inconsistent servo connection at the receiver. Solved by reattaching all connections to the receiver. I do not know if this caused the crash, I doubt it. Could have been caused when I removed the receiver to get a better look.
UPDATE: the servo that controls the detachable wing seems to jam in the UP position when I gently move it without power. I popped open the servo cover to see what was happening. The control arm was rubbing against the housing, but I couldn’t determine why there
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Posted by mechmove |
Nov 15, 2021 @ 01:23 AM | 41,393 Views
Range check: I ranged checked both my Explorer and Pulsar to 186 ft. Fellow pilot held up and rotated the model. RSSI stayed at 35 for a long period of time as I walked away. I got “RSSI low” and “RSSI critical” before it went to 0. We confirmed main surfaces moving just before RSSI went to 0. Trying to move controls at RSSI 0 yields nothing. At some point there is “telemetry lost”. Then as I move closer, I will get “telemetry recovered”, control is reestablished. I find this an interesting series of events, I would be curious if there were any RSSI alerts prior to loss of control on my Explorer last week. I’ll have to ask the pilot flying next time.
Based on 186 ft, the assumed range would be from 1,900 to 5,600 ft, with attenuation factors of 10 and 30. This is more than enough for anyone. But today was a clear and sunny day. I’m wondering how much this would change in different sky conditions. Perhaps this is another range test. I was surprised my Garmin 96c couldn’t find enough satellites, so I used my smartphone to measure distance.
I am uncertain if I will install satellite antenna on my Explorer. Perhaps extending the antenna did the trick. It would be a simple install since the aerial mount is already provided. With so much carbon, this would be good insurance in a competition environment. But I don’t compete nor will I fly too far out due to limitations of the flying environment. I can certainly see flying in Visalia California there are virtually no
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Posted by mechmove |
Nov 13, 2021 @ 07:37 PM | 41,464 Views
Today I spent time with my hand-launch. I forgot my batteries for my electrics.
Even though I couldn’t range test and fly my Explorer, I was able to discuss the incident with my fellow pilots. Regarding my recent posts about the loss of control of my Explorer comes a plausible theory about what happened that fateful morning. The upshot, frSky is probably not to blame. The aural warnings provide so much great information, we can probably rule out a bad controlling signal. Another possibility: spatial disorientation by pilot flying caused by flying at a distance, resulting in loss of control.
I was some distance from the pilot flying (my new plane) when things didn't look right. I went over to the pilot but the plane was already out of control. I don't know what warnings he got, if any. Since all I ever heard was “telemetry” warnings, RSSI could have been intact the entire time. Only reason I was able to recover the plane was because I ran closer to it and got a better visual perspective. I was running thinking there was a problem with the controlling signal. So the telemetry warnings were purely coincidental, but not the cause. This is a reasonable explanation that makes perfect sense. I was advised in this situation, bring down the flaps. This will minimize damage by lowering speed.
If this is in fact what happened, I don’t blame the pilot flying at all, any one of us could make this same mistake, I’ve probably made it myself in my early days of flying RC.
I will still commence with a thorough range check tomorrow!