Beginner builder

[John B 2]

Building my first rc plane - a West Wings Slingsby Skylark 1.8mtr wing span 4 x 9 gram servo, 3 channel motorless glider. After hours of searching I'm unable to get any further than a 2 cell lipo with an esc linked to receiver is what is required. How do I make sense of all the numbers on each product in relation to each other?

(I'm new & not sure if I have chosen the right topic to place my question).

[John Tee]

Not a glider fan. If you have no motor you don't really need an esc just use an Rx pack to power the receiver and save a bit of space. I'll leave anything else to the experts.

John

[Andy Blackburn]

I assume you mean BEC (battery elimination circuit) rather than ESC (electronic speed controller)?

Even if that's the case, I'm still a bit confused about the question; I assume that you want to know what you need (electronics-wise) to get a working model? I think it really hinges on what you're going to power the receiver & servos with, which is really about what you have available to recharge the receiver battery. The options are:

1. 4-cell NiMh battery of (maybe) 1000-2000 mAh for a model that size (depends what will fit in the nose), and a fast NiMh charger. This has the advantage that it won't catch fire in a crash.
2. A 2-cell LiPo of similar capacity and a separate BEC to get the voltage back down to 5 volts, and a separate LiPo charger.
3. Some receivers and servos will run happily off a 2-cell LiPo, you'll still need a suitable LiPo charger though. This is probably the lightest set-up, but if you hit them hard enough LiPos will catch fire, so it's a question of balancing risk.

Edited By Andy Blackburn on 25/03/2018 18:07:15

[Piers Bowlan]

Personally I would use one of these. Just keep it simple, just plug it into your receiver, no need for a UBEC or voltage regulator as with a LiPo battery. Panasonic Eneloop batteries tend to keep their charge too.

Welcome to the forum, by the way. 

 

 

 

Edited By Piers Bowlan on 25/03/2018 18:33:00

[Cuban8]

Welcome John.

The model you're building is designed either for thermal soaring from a flat (ish) field from a bungee launch or from a slopeside in moderate to light conditions. First thing is............. do you have somewhere suitable to fly?

Secondly, what radio gear do you have or intend buying,

Have you ever flown R/C models before, are you starting right from scratch.?

Once we get a picture of your status, it'll be easier to post some suggestions.

Never fear...........we all had to start somewhere

[Old Geezer]

Best advice I could give is: find your local club(s) - easy enough using the BMFA club finder - visit their flying field(s) to get the feel of things - once you've broken the ice there will be lots of flyers keen to show you the "what, how & why" of their planes. Do this the sooner the better as you're going to need somewhere to fly anyway, and someone to teach/mentor you. Oh, and you're going to need insurance too - you get that automatically if you join the BMFA. Come on in - the water's lovely.

[John B 2]

Thank you all, I think I have my solution to what electronics I need, this post for me was all about the build, this has been a great help, the Eneloop 4.8v nimh to go with my 5v 8xr Taranis receiver (volt range 4+v) removing the need for an ESC & BEC looks good to me.

I'm no doubt an unusual rc newby as I'm simultaneously learning to fly with a foamy glider at a field with a club / insurance etc whilst building a balsa vintage. I'll also be off to appropriate slopes when I'm ready.

I did mean to put ESC but now understand why BEC would of been more appropriate.