Mike T

@ModelMonster - that is truly a work of art. There's nothing more satisfying than the sight of a completed airframe 'in the wood'. It's almost a pity all that skill has to be covered up. And the fit of that Laser is just perfect - by the time the finish is on it'll hardly be noticed.

Percy, In my minds eye, I was sure I'd seen an ad. by Magnum for a 5-cyl. version using the .91 pots - definitely not a Laser derivative. I'd heard of the Robinson (skew-gear driven rotary valve?) and a friend had a Vega .91 (sleeve valve?) but before I knew him. Apparently, rice puddings feared not for their skins...

Posted by MattyB on 21/01/2017 16:38:59: Don't have one myself, but during the recent parallel/series charging thread one poster reported his RC8 from Overlander was rather pernickety and took a very long time on the balancing/CV phase of the charge, a bit uncommon complaint with cheaper chargers. For this reason I would personally look elsewhere. That would be me . Mine was a bargain (closing down stock) but I wouldn't get another.

I don't quite follow. I'm building a Ph 6 as well and the front fus is open from the front former to the point where the top and bottom fillets converge. Access is a bit confined, but it's not 'boxed in'. I'd just put any ballast required in the extreme nose and hold it there with epoxy dribbled over. The flight pack goes behind this (but with some firm foam in between to stop the pack getting 'bruised'. When putting your servo mounts in, you need to ensure you have enough wriggle room to fish the pack out of the front compartment. Several 4 and 5 cell pack configurations will fit through the hole in the former.  Packs can be held in place with foam, cut to size so that it firmly fills the gap between the back of the pack and the front servo bearer. Edited By Mike T on 21/01/2017 19:18:41

I'm aware of the etymology, but I'll stand by my modern OED use of the word: "a person who makes or repairs something badly or clumsily". Surrounded by bodgers I may be, but I'm not one of them!

Are we the bodgers? What about the people who supply the badly drawn plans, the poorly cut parts, the inadequate accessories, the wrong, missing or strange bits - surely they are the bodgers! We overcome the problems they sell us by using our wit, ingenuity and skill, so let's not write ourselves off with such a disparaging epithet!

It may be my fevered imagination, but didn't these guys (or somebody) use those pots in a 5-cylinder radial?

Posted by Martin Harris on 20/01/2017 11:07:24: There's a massive flaw in the representation system anyway which doesn't seem to have been mentioned much, if at all. While it is true that the ordinary club member carries a vote, these are block votes cast by a representative of the club in proportion to the number of affiliated members. .... In the case of a close divide of opinion within a 100 member club - say 51/49 in favour of a viewpoint, 100 votes would be cast for (in theory) for the motion (although as per above those 100 votes could go the other way) - is this in any way truly and reliably representative of the views of the membership? This is pretty much the way the Electoral College system works when the US selects it's President. You can witness the outcome of that on most major media outlets at 5pm GMT today...

Interesting! I have a Rivers 3.2 and a ETA Elite which I need to sell, so it will be useful to see what those Olivers fetch, for comparison.

An advert for these popped up on my facebook page. They looked interesting, but for the price, you could buy several 'ready readers' of varying strengths (as I have) and still have change... I've never got used to 'managing' reading specs, so the ideal solution for me is several pairs, dotted around the house, workshop, car, etc., which is do-able with pound shop specs!

I think he's already got the message that a more 'bespoke' solution is what he should be looking for! Thanks for the input guys!

If you keep the indent in the slow-running disc in line with the casting seam on the carb body, you won't be far out...

The u/c is to make it a more manageable sportster - he wants to do his A. My gut instinct said look elsewhere, but I wanted to see if anybody had had any success with u/c before suggesting an alternative approach!

Hi all, A Clubmate has one of these and wants to fit u/c. I have one too and can't see an easy way to do it. Anybody done such a conversion or have any useful suggestions? (apart from "don't" ) TIA

Watching with interest. I have recently written to Andy S asking for his assistance in dealing with our LA as we have asked them to assist us find a new field.

The Overlander is my latest charger and I still have/use the others that preceded it. I'm inclined to think that multiple chargers is the way to go ( I could buy at least 5 for the money you laid out!), as long as I don't go over the 47A rating of my power supply (and I have more than one of those!)

It's a fantastic resource and I'm grateful to the owner/administrator for making it available and to all those who contribute as well. I agree with kc re downloading - spreading them far and wide is the best way to ensure future availability. Some of the plans are surprisingly 'up to date' and I wonder if the original publishers will eventually make an issue of it!

Posted by MattyB on 28/12/2016 15:46:18: Ok - if you have set to 1C and you are effectively getting around 1/3C there is something wrong with your charger or paraboard, pure and simple. I have seen a faulty paraboard that have similar results so borrowing a friends to see if that fixes it is probably the best troubleshooting step; if that doesn't fix it it must be a charger or battery issue. Possibly, Matty, but they do seem to charge OK when only a single pack is charged (i.e. that suggests the paraboard). The Overlander is a fussy charger. On a balance charge it'll faff around for 15mins with all cells on 4.2v before ending. On a 'fast' (but still balancing) charge, it will end in about 70 mins. I won't be buying a charger like yours any time soon, but taking others views in to account, perhaps a modest upgrade is due.

Hi Bryan. Like all reformed Scrooges, I enjoyed Christmas very well, thank you! It's not easy to cut/paste/quote on this forum without losing anything previously typed, so my responses have to be composed from memory! In the first posts in this thread, you yourself state that serial charging is a bad idea and the immediate respondent at refers to "rubbishing" it and moving on or words to that effect. Your warnings were appropriate, but could equally well apply to a //el charging 'lash-up'. The need for such lash-ups is reduced by the wide availability of paraboards and this is now the case with series charging leads. Exercising the same level of care when using either type will mitigate any risks to the same degree. I don't think I'm being blase, as my more recent posts here will attest. As for qualification, well that's a lose/lose on any forum, isn't it? If you qualify your comments, e.g. to admit that different circumstances may produce different effects/results, then you may be accused of undermining your own argument. If you don't qualify your comments, may be accused of being dogmatic, e.g. asserting that serial charging is a bad idea...

Posted by MattyB on 27/12/2016 18:30:45: So can I ask one question - when you are charging your 2x 3S 2200s and they were taking over 2-2.5 hrs to reach a full charge state, what max current were you selecting on the charger? Edited By MattyB on 27/12/2016 18:32:39 4.4A - parallel 2.2A (6S) - series

I dunno. The 'garden store' I bought a few months ago is defo single walled with latticed reinforcement. Flimy with the doors open and the lid up, but quite 'stiff' when all closed up. Seems to keep the water out,but a tealeaf could get in there easy enough!

* Cyril Northcote Parkinson I'm liking the plastic shed idea. It has the feel of impermanence. The sort of thing that one might get away with on the grounds that it's just a temporary measure. "It's just a stop-gap, love, until I have a chance to get things organised. I'll stick it round the side of the house. It's only plastic - you won't know it's there". Might work...

Picky, I know, but BA = British Association for the Advancement of Science, but since 2009 known as "British Science Association". Best of luck running it up, Jeremy! I assume the con-rod little end was OK?

@MattyB: Thanks for your input. Yes, I'm aware of the current/voltage requirements involved with //el and/or series charging. I'm using the appropriate settings for the packs being charged (whichever way) and I as I tend to fully discharge all packs in use, they are all pretty much at the same level when they go back on charge. I even make sure I'm only charging the same brand/c-rating packs at the same time. Although I prefer to stick to a 1C charge rate, I suppose I could try increasing it to 2C - I could probably go as far as the charger will allow without damage. However, I want to reiterate that the main reason for my initial responses here was to question the rather blase dismissal of series charging as dangerous and/or crap. It can be, if you use a DIY lash-up based on an imperfect understanding of the principles - but this also applies to //el charging. The hazards can be mitigated by using a properly constructed connector (//el or series), with the caveat that you still have to understand what it is you are doing as the charger will only protect you, itself and your packs, up to a point!

Yeah, I'm aware of the limitations of the charger, but //el charging doesn't work for me even within that limitation. I usually (or used to) charge 2 x 3S 2200 packs at 1C. I'd expect a balance charge at that rate to take an hour 20 mins tops, but its usually well over 2, sometimes 2 1/2 hours. That's why I tried serial charging and found it much better - yes I'm limited to 2 x 3s or 3 x 2s, but it suits me at the moment. My charger cost me about 35 quid. If I was into models requiring large capacity 6s batteries, I could probably justify a Rolls-Royce charger. My electric powered operation is centred on the ubiquitous 3s 2200 (or multiples thereof). If I need more power than that, well I have strayed into 4s occasionally, otherwise, if I want more power, I go glow/petrol! However, the main point in posting was to challenge the notion that series charging was 'rubbish'! Edited By Mike T on 23/12/2016 19:53:05