Martin McIntosh Posted March 18, 2007 Share Posted March 18, 2007 Since we seem to have a revolutionary new form of radio gear in the form of 2.4gHz, would this not be the time to start anew and ditch the abominable servo/battery plugs and sockets that have been inflicted upon us in the last 10 years or so? These are all of very poor quality and a source of many failures, being non-locking, loose, and not all compatible with each other. Perhaps the Multiplex type should become the standard, since these are moulded and at 90 degrees to the connector and thus do not pull out inadvertently. JR, Futaba, Hitec etc. please take note. This is currently the weakest link in any system. Martin McIntosh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dead-stick Posted March 19, 2007 Share Posted March 19, 2007 I have not had any issues with the Futaba/JR style connectors over the last 20+ years of using them, and have never had one come loose. Also, in the event of a bad landing (crash!), the connectors can pull apart without destroying the wires/plugs, unlike if they were locked together. If I have extention leads, I wrap the plug/socket joint with a small piece of masking tape which is enough to hold it all together under normal use, but will still yield under severe situations, ie. a crash! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin McIntosh Posted March 19, 2007 Author Share Posted March 19, 2007 You must just be lucky. When I bought a new JR set with some extra GWS servos after a lay off of 9 years, I was dismayed to find that several of the leads became detatched from the plug pins when removing from the Rx - and no, I am very experienced and not heavy handed. I have found many instances of high usage connectors such as aileron plugs becoming a loose fit over time. This issue needs addressing. How many times have you had to carve bits off a Futaba plug to make it fit something else? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dead-stick Posted March 19, 2007 Share Posted March 19, 2007 I have in the distant past carved Futaba plugs to enable fitment into JR sockets, but I quickly learned my lesson and now I don't buy anything with a Futaba plug fitted; Problem solved!Without intending to upset anyone, might I suggest that it is false economy to buy 'bargain' radio accessories, after all if you go to the trouble of buying a quality transmitter (as you have Martin), then why not pay the few shillings extra and buy matching equipment, or that of known quality at least. That way you should have less chance of incurring any problems. I speak from embarrassing experience as I lost my lovely Top Gun 'Fellowship' due to buying 'cheap servos. Out of four purchased, one would not center properly (this was promptly binned), and I subsequently lost my plane when the elevator servo arm sheared off at the most inappropriate moment!(post mortem findings). When I checked all of the other servo arms supplied, I found those to be brittle too.Ah well, another lesson learned, the expensive, painful way.Sorry to stray off the path of your original thread, but I think there are more issues than dodgey plugs to be concerned over with todays 'bargain' goods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin McIntosh Posted March 20, 2007 Author Share Posted March 20, 2007 Dead stick, I quite agree with you, but at the time I did not know what was good or bad. I even bought a MDS motor! With a little tweaking this is actually quite good! So are the JR radios that I have subsequently acquired. Martin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bandit Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Martin,I've been using Futaba since the year dot. If I remember correctly the old M series used right angled plugs, and they were rubbish by today's standard. Since the end of the M series everyone seems to have standardized on similar plugs and I've had no problems. What I would hate is going back to the days when every manufacturer used a different standard, a bit like balance plugs on lipo's.Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lima Hotel Foxtrot Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Martin, I'm curious about your reasoning behind Multiplex as a standard, as opposed to Futaba, JR or HiTec. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vecchio Austriaco Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 About frequent connections as for ailerons: use aways an extension, keeps the socket on the receiver in good conditions. About standards: Go abroad and try to connect your electric gear. Different plugs/sockets in every European country! why should we have it better? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Webster Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I've never had an issue with plugs/sockets - either JR or Futaba or Hitec. I tend to buy servos to suit the aircraft or heli they're going into. I've not had a crash caused by a faulty plug or socket and so maybe I've been lucky over my 30 years of radio flying. I settled on Futaba radio about 12 years ago after having been a British supporter of Fleet radios! Now that was a non standard connector, but it didn't fail either. As for their servos, that was another matter - they went through feedback pots on a regular basis until they switched to more standard servos. I'm not going to tempt fate but a failed pot is something in my distant memory. . . . And that's where I want it to remain. Standardising on Multiplex? Come on, how many of these radios do we see at the flying field? No, with a world market, we're doing fine with the 3 big players and we can leave Multiplex to itself. I also agree about crash damage being minimised by a straight pull out. It's only very occasionally that I have had a torn lead and usually these mishaps have had the normal cause - Pilot error! Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Skilbeck Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Bob The Multiplex pin layout is the same as JR, it's only the plugs on some servo's that are moulded on and at right angles, but then again I think this is some of the earlier designs. The multiplex servos I've got have the same plug as JR servos. On the Multiplex 35 mhx IPD Rx's (and new 2.4 Rx's) take futaba and JR servo plugs as standard. The servo plugs on Multiplex are the same as the industry standard the main differences with Multiplex are ppm rx's with failsafe on 35 mhz, dual reciever circuits and telemetry on 2.4, more flexible programming and less chrome, but the servo plugs are industry standard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I tend to agree (hope I'm not tempting fate) with Dead-stick. Perhaps I've been very lucky but I can't recall any incidents attributable to faulty plugs or sockets at my club either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy watson Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Never been an issue.........but........... I always use the little locking clips on extensions. Just in case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erfolg Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 The only problem with servo plugs was in the past. That is when the polarity made it possible to damage servos or the Rx. The plugs as described with the lead coming out at 90 degrees to the pin axis is not new. I had a number of servos with this arrangement in the past, fleet mini servos being amongst the undoubted others. In my opinion if there is no problem do not fix it. If separation of say extension leads is a concern, do as suggested by a contributor to this site. That is simply use a tie as used on sandwich bags or buy the propriety tags. I also think that the contributor who mentioned the potential for limiting damage with std. Futaba in line typesin a crash, has a valid point. Any other separation issues must raise questions about what is going on.Edited By Erfolg on 21/01/2011 15:46:13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ultymate Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Never had any issues, that said I always tape or clip critical joints like aileron connections on my bigger models that are made and unmade every time the models rigged Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Butler Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Having discovered them I now use Ashlok connectors for all extensions and such. I especially like their multiway plugs and sockets so all the wing servos go into one 6 or 12 way connector if you're using flaps too. OK it cost me for the crimpling tool but now I can make extensions any length I need. I would thoroughly recommend them. Andy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ultymate Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Not quite Bluetooth but Futaba have the "S"bus system out Eric see HERE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bandit Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Brian, Very clever, but at what cost !. I'm impressed though. Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ultymate Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Chris I don't think it's available this side of the pond yet so I've no idea on price as yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ultymate Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 White man speak with forked tongue, I've just googled it and Fast Lad have some components in stock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ultymate Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 Aye that's known as the CAN bus system Eric the CAN standing for controller area network Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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