John Muir

Old John B, As Mike Freeman pointed out a few posts back you can't make SAFE work with your DX6e as it doesn't have enough channels. If you are happy with things as they are, great, leave it all alone. If you want SAFE working buy a DX8 or 9. It actually says you need more than 6 channels in the retail description of the model. So stop worrying about it, it isn't you're age or lack of expertise, it just isn't possible. You should feel better now. John.

Hi Stuart, I have a Crack Laser 'Lite' which I fly on 2S 450 packs, mainly outdoors when the wind drops in the morning or evening, but I did try it indoors in a big hall once and it performed well, even if I didn't. It's a great performer, as is my slightly heavier Crack Yak, and I can do stuff with these that I simply can't do, or wouldn't dream of trying, with bigger models. Terrific designs the pair of them. Can't go wrong, but I think you'd need a decent size hall for indoor flying as even the 'lite' models are still a fair size and not the lightest things available. John.

I did the same as Robin, thinking I was being clever. Now it seems cheapskates seldom differ . Maybe I went one better though, I bought three pairs and produced a reading pair and a slightly weaker pair for computer use. Absolutely perfect but it all added up to £6 in total. I do get my eyes tested regularly though. Used to be a dispensing optician in my previous life and would feel like a terrible hypocrite if I didn't.

Hi Linda, 1400W equates to about 64 amps which is well within the limitations of both your esc and motor (max 90A according to the spec), so I'd have thought it should be fine. Looking at the reviews on HobbyKing somebody tested it with 20'' props on 6S and thought it might get hot on a 20x10 but a 20x8 would be ok, so 18x10 should be good. The smaller props are probably meant for 8S batteries, which the motor is specced to take. John.

Hi Tbone, Don't know if this is of interest but you don't need dark tints to block UV. UV isn't in the visible spectrum and is very effectively blocked by the vast majority of clear spectacle lenses used these days. Extra coatings can be added to block all UVA and UVB but they are clear too. Tinted lenses simply absorb visible light making things look darker. Different colours give different visual effects but wearing lenses that are too dark in inappropriate situations can be a nuisance or even dangerous such as when driving in poor light. HTH John.

When I was in optics I was told that any kind of tint was a bad thing for driving at night. Even the yellow tints cut the overall amount of light reaching the eye by at least 20% so making it harder to see things like pedestrians lurking in the shadows, which they are known to do. Better to get non reflective lenses which increase light transmission by up to 10% and cut down on glare problems caused by oncoming headlights and so on. The yellow tint should be good for flying though, it's certainly well liked in the shooting world. Personally I find it makes everything seem brighter and makes the glare feel worse, the opposite of what I'm after. I found a pair of wrap-around Bolle safety specs with a reflective reddish tint that tones things down nicely and, unusually, has a measure of protection against infra red as well as UV. Infra red is what makes your eyes feel sore and gritty after a day in the sun (we can but hope) and causes snow blindness (more likely) so maybe ski goggles would be the thing.

Not bad here in eastern Scotland today. Got to the field for the first time in a few weeks. I had thrown my Crack Yak foamy in the car as it wasn't windy and flew it first. Nobody around so I used one of the start up tables as an aircraft carrier. Take off was easy and I managed two out of three landings back on, so quite pleased. Then dug out the battered old i.c. Wot 4 for four flights. A bit rusty to start but got better as I went on and, having managed not to break anything, decided to pack up. Breezy by this time too. However the Crack Yak was still sitting there and I couldn't resist having another go. Brilliant fun. Multiple rolls left, multiple rolls right, a fast loop and into knife edge. All with absolutely zero forward progress. Pop up into a torque roll and watch it twirl off downwind. Completely silly but cheered me up a lot. Only one other person at the field and he could only stay for a couple flights. Good to get out. John.

I just typed the registration into Google and it came up with a Peyret Mauboussin XI. Sounds familiar. Did Peter Miller do one of these?

Well at least the cardboard boxes will biodegrade or recycle. Most padded envelopes won't as they're full of plastic bubble wrap. John.

It's an old advert for the Nissan Frontier. All done with CGI. Even the plane has been altered so it's 'not quite' a Boeing 727 so nobody gets sued. Quite a lot about it on the internet.

In Companion there's a little icon along the top that looks like a graph. With your transmitter connected in bootloader mode just click on that and find the file you want. They're listed under the model name and date. Then just pick the readings you want to see from the list on the left. You'll find that, as well as the current value, you'll also have RSSI, receiver voltage and all the control positions to choose from, plus any other sensors you have connected. They come up as a graph. HTH John.

Sorry about the duff info re V8 compatibility. Never needed it myself and my memory was playing tricks on me. As Andy says you need the channel order set before you set up a model, but changing it yourself in the inputs screen works fine. Re expo, all you need to do now is double click on the model in the list to open an edit window. Go to the inputs tab, double click the appropriate control to open up an edit box and go down to 'curve', click the drop-down and change it to expo. Put the value you want in the box just to the right and you're all set. On Futaba you would use negative expo but on Taranis it's positive, like JR/Spektrum. Edited By John Muir on 03/12/2017 12:56:03

Just to clarify, you can not change the RF firmware by flashing OpenTx. The RF firmware is a completely separate thing and as your radio is new, and to EU spec, you are fine on that front. You could, technically, change the RF to 'International' and you would then be able to use older V8 receivers too, but, it means you wouldn't be able to buy new D16 receivers without buying 'international' ones from abroad or re-flashing them yourself every time. It's also slightly illegal, probably. Just not worth the complication if you ask me. Sorry to be pedantic, but this techie stuff gets confusing, John.

Hi Steve, First of all, don't touch the FrSky rf firmware. It is up to date, EU LBT and has no effect on the problems you are having. EU LBT only has an effect on D16 X series receivers (possibly LR12 as well, don't know) anyway. You set up the default channel order in companion on the settings/settings page again, down at the bottom of the radio profile page. When you use the wizard in companion to set up a new model from now on, that's the order the channels will come up in. If you wish to check or change that go to the 'inputs' tab in the model setup editing screen. It is also here that you set up dual rates and expo (this tab should really be labelled as 'dual rates and expo' as 'inputs' is confusing, and, in the main, that's all it's used for anyway.) It is much easier to set up your model in companion and then copy it to the transmitter than working on the transmitter itself in my opinion. Your older V8 receivers simply will not work with the internal module. You would have to install an older style module in the back to use those. Newer receivers have to be bound in D8 mode, which often involves using a jumper as per the instructions. My Delta 8 receiver works fine with my Taranis QX7 but I had to take it to a room well away from my computer and router to bind as it has a very sensitive front end and wouldn't cooperate anywhere near an interference source. I'm afraid that you are not going to be able to avoid doing quite a bit of reading to get to grips with your Taranis. RC Groups forum has long threads which can throw up some helpful info but the manual linked in Companion's help menu is pretty good, although not always right up to date and 'OpenTx University' is worth a look as well. OpenTx is much more powerful than most of us need, but it is amazingly good and easy to use once you've got the idea. However, it was written as a hobby by a bunch of computer geeks so it doesn't always seem obvious or even logical to 'ordinary' folk at first. HTH, John.

Hi Stephen, All you need to do is download OpenTx Companion to your PC, start it and go to the 'settings' menu and then the 'settings' option there. Make sure none of the build option boxes are ticked (especially not the EU one) and make sure the correct radio is selected. You can also set your default channel order on this screen. Then download the latest version of OpenTx and flash it to the radio following the instructions from the on-line manual or one of the videos by Scott Page or Painless 360. This will give you D8 mode on your transmitter which will allow the use of D8 and newer V8 II receivers. As has already been said, if you have older V8 receivers you will need to set your external rf to PPM and use an old JR style module in the bay. HTH, John.

And the tail's completely different.

Hi Soren, It was published in RCM&E but before 1978, it's in the plan's handbook for that year. Plan number RC/1197, if that's of any help. The picture in the book is very small and unclear, so not any help. John.

I'm another who started in the pre-ARTF era and now do a bit of everything, so can't answer.

Posted by Rich too on 12/10/2017 11:10:38: I agree and I don't (can't) do 3D, but I use the min spec servo recommended by the manufacturer and don't want it reduced. I can't either but I'm having a lot of fun trying .

These planes are set up primarily for 3D and if you want 80 degrees of control surface movement from a servo that can only rotate 45 degrees then the servo arm has to be longer than the surface horn. That's why the servos have to have so much torque to allow for the reduction at the surface and the huge forces involved. All the arms and horns have to be heavy duty too to avoid flexing. If you never fly 3D and don't need those movements, then it would be more efficient to keep the servo arms the same length or less and you could also use lower torque servos and gain a little accuracy compared to running reduced travel in the transmitter setup.

A lot of sport models are set up with a 'safe', i.e. forward CG. If you need a lot of down elevator to keep the plane level when it's inverted, it is difficult to roll without loads of elevator input or it won't spin properly, then try moving the CG back by adding weight to the tail. There's a really good thread on this forum somewhere about trimming for aerobatics and is well worth finding. A well set up model makes it all so much easier. You might also need to set up high rates on your transmitter to give you as much elevator and rudder movement as you can get for spins and flicks as well. Some models just don't like to spin and need a bit of encouragement.

I doubt that it's tail heavy to be honest. My old Wot 4 Classic (essentially the same plane, aerodynamically speaking at least) flies really well with the CG at 106mm back. Also a rearward CG wouldn't affect the aileron response. I'd be tempted to simply cut the control movements down and add plenty expo, or check for something loose or out of kilter although I'm betting you've already done that.

Well I flicked the 'return to home' switch and it got into the car.

Compromise. Build a kit. Sussex Model Centre has the Seagull Boomerang in kit form. It would be perfect for your .46 and flies really well. It's an ideal trainer if you're going to get lessons. I had an ARTF version when I returned to the hobby some years back and liked it a lot. If you don't fancy that there's also the Great Planes PT-40 or the Goldberg Eagle on their site. The PT-40 can be built without ailerons if you want to keep it simple and gentle for starters, but, personally, I'd go with four channels from the off. Welcome to the forum.

I set mine up as per the instructions for starters which gave three rates, one for smooth aerobatics, one for 3D and a third with maximum elevator movement for tumbles and elevators. I've hardly used the third mode as the 3D mode with loads of expo works well most of the time. I seem to remember reducing the aileron throws and increasing elevator on low rates, but that's personal preference. The plane is capable of much more than I am currently but is still very easy to fly. Also worth mentioning that CoG placement changes the character of the plane. Keep it forward and you've got a nice smooth IMAC style aerobat, move the battery back and it gets livelier and more responsive. Not twitchy though. This all applies to the 60'' one I have and I don't know how directly comparable the 48'' version would be, but I'd imagine it would be similar. There's masses of information on the EF models over on RC Groups, including very complete build threads and information directly from the designers. They seem to be massively popular with the Americans. I do get the impression that the Laser is a good all rounder but I doubt if you'd go far wrong with any of their models, or a Sebart for that matter. It's as much down to what's available and what you like the look of as anything else.