JohnnyB

Thank you Peter for another detailed explanation. I will be printing this one off too. It's really so interesting to read about your experiences regarding the charging of Nimh cells and it has helped me enormously. For me it was a case of having the confidence to 'give it a go' and so far since reading your accounts I have gained enough to 'flick the switch' on my charger and study what happens. This is what I've found with aeromodelling. As you progress through a build, you have to learn quite a few new disciplines - the actual building techniques, covering, the power train set-up - whether electric or i/c, and then you've still got to learn to fly it too!! This forum is the very evidence of what I'm trying to say here. So, to sum up Peter, you have really helped me to breach another 'obstacle' in my learning experience along this never ending road we call aeromodelling. Thank you for your very detailed and interesting experiences. John.

Was it not common to fly near the *speed of sound* at airshows ,particularly Farnborough, during the '60s? John.

What about the spectators ear drums though... John.

Thank you so much for such a detailed reply Peter. I will be printing it off to study more closely and for future reference. Really appreciate the time you dedicted to my question. John.

Thanks for your reply Tim. Now I've got to try and get to grips with *trigger voltages*. In the manual it says that this can range from 5 to 25mV per cell and that the trick is to establish what this should be. Too high and the battery will over charge - too low and there's a danger of premature termination of the charging. They recommend a series of *test charges* to establish the ideal trigger value for my particular pack and that starting at 5mV/cell is recommended. But, how will I actually know when the *ideal* trigger value is established? Is it possible to work out this value from knowing the voltage and capacity (ie 6v & 1600mAh) of the battery? John.

Well, I think I've just about mastered the charging & discharging of LiPo's.At least I feel confident with them. However, just recently I decided to buy a 6v Rx battery to hopefully prevent *brown outs*. The battery is a 6v 1600mAh Nimh. My charger is a Graupner Ultramat 16 which has some good Nimh charge/discharge programmes. But the problem is I don't really understand them well enough to feel confident using them. For starters, what is the lowest voltage per cell that I can dischage to? What is the voltage per cell when fully charged? Because its a new battery, I 've understand that I need to recycle several times. There is a programme to do this,but again I'm not sure what to discharge to or to even charge upto...... Would it be best to set up a *delta peak* programme on this charger - but what settings or parameters would I need to put into charger? Any comments would be greatly appreciated. A very confused - John.

Another awesome magazine as usual, so well done to all involved. But even more awesome,I thought ,was the small article and link to the 3D printing experiment, involving a team from Southampton University. Where will this lead to? Awesome! John.

Well, just lately I've ordered some items from several online retailers and they have all posted the items on the same day, first class postage,recorded delivery and trackable.However, it's the Post Office which lets me down every time. Firstly,the only time you can track the item was to confirm that the item was posted at the local office. No further tracking was possible until after item was delivered. Regarding delivery, all the items were delivered 48hrs later. Also, we do not get any delivery now until at least 2:30pm! I live in Northampton. Grrrrrrrrrrrr!!! John.

Excellent photo report Kevin. So great to see these iconic aircraft still flying and even better to be able to actually fly in them. Were you allowed to "you have control" for a few minutes? John.

Thanks Steve, I guess what I might have been getting at was - is there a shelf life of an engine before it needs re oiling etc?If you buy a new engine or indeed for that matter, say a new receiver battery, you have no idea just how long it's been "on the shelf" before you receive it and put it in your model. John.

Just going off on a bit of a tangent,so to speak, I bought a brand new OS55AX about 10 months ago,and it's been in its box and protective wrapping ever since. It has only been taken out to drool over but not run. Presumably, it would have been test run at the OS factory prior to despatch. So,my question is, should I periodically squirt in some after run or should it be OK until I fix it up with my Jitter Bug in about 3 months time. This problem with internal corrosion worries me quite a lot. I mean, you could over winter a model thinking that you've oiled it sufficiently only to go and start up for the first time in the new season and find out you've got some seriously damaged bearings with a variety of consequences. John.

Happy Birthday Kevin. Hope the weather holds and you have a great flight. Please post a few photo's to make us all VERY jealous.............. Kindest Regards, John.

Yakmad, not quite sure what you mean here about "a short across the signal and ground wires". How would that occur? John.

With the pitot tubes playing such a crucial role in feeding the computers with information, surely they should be heated just as carburettors are on piston engined aircraft? why is this not the case? John.

Just spotted this thread - please count me in - if I'm not too late......... Thanks, John.

Get well soon, Myron. My thoughts are with you and your family. You are definitely in good hands. John.

Cheers Olly - electric flying has so many positive advantages! John.

Do you base the C of G position with or without a full tank of fuel though? John.

Andy, great to hear that the S-Pou flew well Andy, Great to hear that the S-Pou flew well, especially as its quite an unorthodox design!! I'm fiddling with the servo/receiver (PKZ3351in mine) connections to control surfaces!! Not alot of room for fat fingers!! Found the kit a great build so far though - laser cutting so crisp and accurate and brilliantly thought out instructions too. John.

Hi Andy - did you manage to maiden the S- Pou at the Rochdale meeting?. Would love to hear how it went. John.

Mine's just arrived and a quick flick through reveals that it's another cracking issue. Well done Guy's. John.

Cheers for that Andy,have you flown it yet? John.

Andy - Looks really good. I've just started building the S - Pou and completed the fuselage. What covering did you use on the wings? John.

OH!! such sad news indeed. But Tim, you have been such an inspiration to me over the past few years while on this great forum and you have helped me and many, many others in more ways than you'll ever realize. You have expressed a certain knack when it comes to explaining to a beginner the dark mysteries known to many as 'electrickery' on this forum and in many articles in RCM & E. Tim, your help has been greatly appreciated and you will be greatly missed. John.

Yeah, I must admit that I was horrified when I realised almost everyone was using this method of securing control rods as I was brought up convinced that this was a big NO NO!! But,this now seems to be quite the normal way to go. I at least thought that you would have to file a "flat" on the rod where the screw makes contact to get positive grip. Again, this does not seem to be the case. Has ANYONE experienced any control failures using this method of connection?. John.