Paul Sutherland Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hello all, and A Happy New Year to all. I have a Futaba FF6, I recently replaced the battery pack. I fed the spare wire into the hole on the lhs, unfortunately and unable to find an explanation the small black component on the pcb has been damaged. Now the controller won't power up unless you put a bridge in place to link the main solder point to the damaged part. The component is sited at the left hand side near the top, near to the battery connector. Does anyone know what the component is and what it does? The above link should show a photo of the pcb. The small black component is next to the battery connector. Thanks in advance. Edited By Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator on 02/01/2013 00:39:17 Edited By Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator on 02/01/2013 00:41:47 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hi Paul, welcome to the forum. I hope someone has an answer to your question. In the meantime have a look at the threads in this area - they will show you the correct way to insert links and pictures into threads. Cheers BEB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Bennett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 the little black component he has broken is a surface-mount resistor, and not to bridge across it or he can cause damage. you need to get it properly repaired. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Tony, perhaps you have an FF6 so know for sure it's a resistor - in which case ignore the following! But I'm not even certain which component Paul means, (probably the one immediately to the right of the red battery connector?) and even if I knew which one, from the supplied pic it's imossible to tell exactly what it is. For sure, it's surface-mounted, but might it not be a diode rather than a resistor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolstonFlyer Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Paul, it is hard to tell from the picture.If it is surface mounted I expect it could be a resistor or a diode. Is there any writing on the PCB next to the component?I really would not bridge it, components are there for a good reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sutherland Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hello, thank you for all the responses There is nothing written next to the component and its the op that damaged so I can't see any writing on it. Its the same size/dimensions as some others on the board. The component is just the right of the red battery connector. Do you have any idea what the component is, and where I could have it repaired or replaced? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sutherland Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hi, I have just had a better look at the area where the component sits. The black battery wire has shorted on the jaggy piece of solder to the left of the component and the component has exploded/broken apart. The area around it is marked where its shorted out. The component has broken ip and showing the insides ie a small piece of wire/metal is visible. When I place a pincer blade between this and the jaggy solder the rc powers up and works as should do. When I remove the pincer the power goes off. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 D'Oh... Slight "brain fade" moment! I read FF6 and thought of the current FF6. Meanwhile, on the shelf behind me is my old FF6, now relegated to flight sim and "spare" tx duties! So, whipping the back off it and poking the SLR lens in there, this is what I see. (Actually, looking in my photo album, I already have some pics of the FF6 PC board - don't remember why though!) Anyway, the two latest ones are hopefully better resolution of the area concerned. From that, it appears the component in question is marked with possibly a 5 or a D or similar and has 3 connections - so likely to be a transistor. But two connections are connected together. Hmm... And a final thought - it looks like the pic Paul used is one of the origian ones from my album too. And I was intrigued that "mine" and "Paul's" had exactly the same blue mark on the PC board! Edited By John Privett on 02/01/2013 22:08:04 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolstonFlyer Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 I think you should contact Ripmax, I understand that they deal with UK Futaba repairs.Ripmax website Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sutherland Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hi John, yes I used your picture as I'm on the iPad and it doesn't allow me to add a photo when posting on here. Sorry to have stolen your photo, made my life easier lolol have you any idea what the component is? And where I can get it fixed, oh I'm in sunny Scotland in Bathgate. Or maybe another rc controller that will fly my Kyosho Nexus 30 heli. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 WF, if this is the original FF6 (like mine) then it's at least 10, more likely 15 years old. I don't know what Ripmax would charge to do a repair, but I can't see it being anything other than way over the cost/value of the tx... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 No problem about "borrowing" the pic, Paul! It's there in the public domain for whatever anybody might want to do with it. I'm just amused that it took me so long to realise I was comparing a picture of my own board with one of the same board trying to see if they really were the same model! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sutherland Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hi John, please don't say that lol. I only bought the heli and rc the other day. It needed a new battery pack so I replaced it and it worked perfect until I removed the pack and reinserted it It's shorted and blown the component. Is there another suitable rc to use with my heli? thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolstonFlyer Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Ahh I didn't realise it might be a 10yr old TX, I doubt Rimpax can help in that case.Yes the component could be a transistor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolstonFlyer Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 How about contacting this guy?Model Radio WorkshopEdited By WolstonFlyer on 02/01/2013 22:24:08 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Most (well, a lot anyway) people have gone over to 2.4GHz these days, so there should be a lot of 35MHz gear around going cheap. I flew my first heli on a Futaba FF7 (35MHz) and that did the job just fine. For your immediate purposes pretty-much any 35MHz transmitter that has basic heli functionality should do the job. If your receiver is a PCM receiver then you'll need a Futaba transmitter, otherwise any make will do - though you may have to swap over some of the servo leads in the receiver as different makes have different channel numbers. If you do use a different make of transmitter then make sure the crystal brand matches the brand of what it's plugged in to. So if you get a JR transmitter it needs a JR crystal of the correct frequency number. And the Futaba receiver must have a Futaba crystal in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Paul, WF's suggestion is another good one. I've never used Mike Ridley's services, but I've heard a lot of good things about him. Can't hurt to ask him if he can help, and at what cost! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Regarding the age, the battery cover moulding on mine has a couple of tiny "dial" markings that must indicate the month and year the moulding was made. They point to '1' and '97' so that makes it 16 years old. Mine was one of the early ones, they produced them for a few years after, the latest ones as I recall being marked-up as "50th anniversary" (of Ripmax, I guess) models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sutherland Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hi John, Thanks for all your help. I'm new to all this rc stuff and wish I hadn't changed the bloomin battery pack now lLolita the thought of setting the rc up etc. I've not got a clue lol Thanks Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Paul, I'd strongly recommend you get some experienced assistance setting up your heli. Helis can be a bit of a handful to start with even when perfectly set up. If not correctly set up then to be honest the odds are not in your favour. And, out of control, even a 'little' 30-sized heli can do a lot of damage if it hits something or someone... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sutherland Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 Hello John, When are you passing Scotland lol. The clubs local to me don't have many heli members, or experienced heli trainers to teach 1st timers. Maybe they think m too old to learn new tricks lol Thanks Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaryG Posted January 2, 2013 Share Posted January 2, 2013 Paul, I know this is off topic but why not come visit Hamilton Model Flying Club we have some excellent Heli flyers who are always willing to help out anyone. They keep trying to get me over to the dark side,but so far I have managed to avoid their advances lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sutherland Posted January 3, 2013 Author Share Posted January 3, 2013 Hi John, when you have your rc open, are there any more of the same component you could take a clearer photo of? Thanks Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sutherland Posted January 3, 2013 Author Share Posted January 3, 2013 Hi Gary, thanks for your message. Do I have to be a member to come for the day? Where exactly are they located, I'm in Bathgate. Thanks Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted January 3, 2013 Share Posted January 3, 2013 One last go at a pic, but I'm as close as I can get whilst still being able to focus with the standard lens! This one is from a different angle and shows the one connection on this side. There are two connections on the other side. I still reckon Mike Ridley is probably your best bet. If you're thinking of DIYing it then I wouldn't fancy my chances and I reckon I'm reasonably good at soldering electronic components, though I've never tried surface mount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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