Tim Day 2

I had a bit of a disaster whilst finishing the wiring on my glow supply; whilst wiring in the glow outlet I managed to slip and short something on the board so sadly it is now in the bin. I decided to build a flight box and buy a power panel, which I’m happy with. My wife less so as we move house in a week and it really shouldn’t be a priority!

Thanks Brian, the reading is actually 3.18 amps - the camera just didn’t pick up the 3 as I don’t think the viewing angle on the display is quite up to iPhone OLED standards!

Thanks for all the suggestions on this topic. I’ve followed the instructions and build a glow driver. I set it to 4v then shorted the leads and then set it to 1 amp. I connected the glowplug and gradually increased the amps until the plug glowed and the voltage came up to 1.4v, with the amps rising to 3.1 - does this sound okay. The pug is glowing, but not brightly - can I increase it a bit? Thanks in advance.

Thanks Steve, I’m just returning to the hobby so don’t have any older batteries.

I am looking to purchase a 3s LiPo for both a 12v starter and to power the aforementioned step down set up for my glow plug so I can reduce weight in my flight box. What sort of size (smaller the better) should I be looking at to get me through a days flying? Thanks.

It’s initially going in a Flair Puppeteer so maybe a 13 x 6 would be better?

I am going to have a go at using this for the glow supply - thanks again for the suggestions. £2.70 delivered!

Thanks for all the advice, and I have to say that I found glow engines being referred to as “nitro” confusing as back in the day it was a term solely confined to a small percentage of what went in fuel! I’ve ordered a prop; this is only a personal preference but when I was originally in the hobby I always used Graupner Super Nylon props and we sold a lot of them in the shop (if I recall they were considered a little bit premium). I never got on with Master Airscrew (very sharp) and APC were the new kid on the block. Even further back I remember yellow props (Kavan?), which if I recall were quite flexible.

Many thanks to you both for the replies. I take it Saito are erring on the side of caution with the 20% and 15% synthetic is fine. Will order some now.

Hi there I’ve recently bought a new Saito 62b and would be grateful for some fuel recommendations - according to the literature Saito state 20% lubricant and 10-20% nitro; I’m slightly lost as when I was last in the hobby (35 years ago!) all we sold in the model shop I worked in was Flair fuel (either straight or 5%) although sometimes we would order in some “special” 10% nitro for those interested in pattern/aerobatics. How things have changed! I will need to get it delivered (Edinburgh) so recommendations for retailer/fuel would be especially welcome. Thanks

Really interesting thread and the mention of MDS reminds me of when I worked in a model shop in the late 80’s/early 90s. We started selling MDS and our local club really didn’t like them and we did get more returns than any other brand; they were obviously cheaper than the equivalent OS 40 FP so were bought by price conscious beginners but we usually tried to steer beginners towards OS then Irvine/Enya. The BD Mascot with an OS 40FP and Futaba Challenger was always our recommendation for beginners. We sold Super Tiger but they were more niche (I liked them though….I remember the model shop owner said that Mick Wiltshire took a unique approach to customer support….

Many thanks for all the helpful replies!

Hi This may be a daft question but I have an old MFA flight panel (my brother in law bought it from ebay and had it sent to my house as he is currently abroad). I placed a multimeter over the glow plug outlet terminals and I am getting 12v - should this be closer to 1.5/2v or does it drop down when it is under load? I just want to check before I fry a glow plug. Thanks

Hi there I’m just getting back into the hobby after many years and recently purchased a T6K combo and I am now looking for suggestions on rechargeable packs for the RX/TX and a charger. The last time I was involved in the hobby I was working in a model shop and we used to take delivery of a case of dry Futaba Challanger sets and then fit them with aftermarket nicads and them sell them…I suspect things have changed since then! I have looked at Overlander for NIMH packs, and chargers online; is this the best way to go, or do LiPO get used for radio equipment now? Also, the first model I will be using the set in is a small vintage Kyosho electric model which calls for mini servos; would these micro servos be okay as there will be very little load on them - https://shop.4tronix.co.uk/products/mg90s Thanks in advance.

Thanks KC. The Maricardo was named after Carlo’s two children, Marcello and Riccardo. Sadly, Marcello died in a plane crash whilst hour building for his commercial licence.