toto Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 I found these connections for XT60 type battery - ESC fittings. screwed to the external of your fuselage ..... The reverse side ....... external plug with which to form the connecting loop to complete the circuit ..... and plugged in place ....... You can now make an external isolating plug for your leccies ........ I think its handy as some of the hatches giving you access to your battery after a flight are these plastic screw down hatches which take ages to open. With this ..... pull out the loop and kill the power to the live battery - ESC connecting lead as soon as you land for that bit of additional safety. works for me ..... toto 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outrunner Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 Another point of failure... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaryW Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 (edited) 8 minutes ago, Outrunner said: Another point of failure... I agree.... & Personally I see it as a solution to an issue that don't exist so why create a potential issue by fitting such a thing also the potential/possibility to disconnect itself in flight resulting in a crash model and at worse hitting someone ,, safety risk issue waiting to happen to be honest Edited January 27 by GaryW 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted January 27 Author Share Posted January 27 (edited) Disconnect itself in flight. ....... not likely. These fittings are a very tight fit. You need to exert considerable effort to take them apart. However, if the soldered conn3ctions are not well mad3 ..... then I take Outrunners point. Toto Edited January 27 by toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaryW Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 (edited) 6 minutes ago, toto said: Disconnect itself in flight. ....... not likely. These fittings are a very tight fit. You need to exert considerable effort to take them apart. However, if the soldered conn3ctions are not well mad3 ..... then I take Outrunners point. Toto maybe not straight away but like any connector ,, they will loosen over time Edited January 27 by GaryW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted January 27 Author Share Posted January 27 Sorry, non starter ad far as I'm concerned. There may well be other issues that could be raised ..... but either accidental disconnection .... or ..... degradation of the fit through use is not one of them. All opinion though ... which I respect. Toto 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Chaddock Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 Yes It is a neat way to electrically isolate the ESC from the battery but there is still a risk that a hot hard worked LiPo can decide to "give up" as the heat soaks through. It all comes down to which of many risks you want to guard against. As far as a model is concerned it is only truly LiPo safe when there isn't one in it. 😉 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arthur Harris Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 Nothing wrong with an extra fail safe! Good find, toto! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyGnome Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 Not a new idea - external arming has been around for years. I remember seeing one disguised as one if the scale bulges on an FW190 nose. Personally, if it's tight enough to be secure, I'd be scared that the constant tugging would weaken the airframe. Even with one if these fitted, I'd be nervous of having a LiPo accessible only through a screwed down hatch. As I used to be nervous of having to remove a wing to change batteries. Just my opinions of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leccyflyer Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 Like GG said, such external arming plugs have been around for a good while, most often fabricated from various connectors. I have one made from a pair of Deans connectors on my Magnatilla, since that is one of a minority of models that needs the wing to be removed to change the battery and I find it useful to be able to isolate the battery until the model is on the field and ready to go. For larger, more powerful set ups they do have their uses and where there is a separate power supply to the radio control system they can provide an additional safety measure when taking the model to the flight line with no compromise on the radio system and no additional risk to flight control integrity. However, whenever you introduce an additional connector to the power train, you are introducing a further potential point of failure and those sort of connectors do get looser with use over time. Okay for sports models where appearance isn't an issue, but for scale models they would need disguising. Better alternatives include examining the hatch securing method to make something more easily removable "without the use of a special tool" - which also allows the OP ID to be contained within the battery compartment instead of spoiling the appearance of the model. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 (edited) I fitted one to my Multiplex Fun Cub many moons ago but having ‘lost’ the external plug on a couple of occasions now have it attached to the model on a tether which looks horrible! The plug has got looser with use and needs ‘adjusting’ every now and then. It is, and will remain, my only model with one of them fitted. Edited January 28 by Ron Gray 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlyinFlynn Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 I think if the plug is a tight enough fit in the socket to be considered electrically good and mechanically secure it is tight enough to rip the entire combo off the fuz while trying to remove the plug. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dickw Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 Battery isolating plugs can be useful in some circumstances and work OK if properly made. On my Sebart Pitts access to the 6s battery was basically through the arc of the 17x8 prop. I wasn't too keen on that from a personal safety perspective so made a battery isolator from 4mm bullet connectors that was operated by a pushrod from outside the nose. Pull out for ON and push in for OFF. Radio power came from a separate BEC that was not supplied through the isolator so no risk to the radio/servo supply. That worked reliably for the 8 years of regular flying operation before a spar breakage in flight led to the abrupt retirement of the Pitts 😀 Dick 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff S Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 I sometimes isolate one branch of the motor feed from the esc to prevent the motor running, rather than the whole system. If that fails (unlikely) then I still have control of what is now a glider. It also avoids extending the battery/esc leads, which should be kept as short as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 On a non-scale model, wouldn't the ideal solution be to route the battery/ESC cabling externally? No additional connections and absolute protection against inadvertent motor actuation until making the connection prior to flight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Carpenter Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 I use something similar from HK using XT 60s. On quite a few models. Balsa and foam. In use for probably a decade. No problems! Colin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 18 minutes ago, Martin Harris - Moderator said: On a non-scale model, wouldn't the ideal solution be to route the battery/ESC cabling externally? No additional connections and absolute protection against inadvertent motor actuation until making the connection prior to flight. That's what I used to use on my 2 m aerobatic aircraft. I just used a Jeti spark arrestor and a 4 mm plug on the positive lead that routed out through the fuselage. It was a requirement at the World Champs in Muncie in 2011 that the aircraft had to be disarmed when collected after landing. Never had a problem with a 4 mm plug and socket connector coming loose. I don't do that anymore as it's just as easy to remove the canopy (slide back 2 canopy latches and lift off) and disconnect the Lipo to ESC connection. Of course, you could splash out on a Jeti electronic battery switch. There are 2 versions. One up to 100 A current and one up to 200 A current flow. That will allow you to arm and disarm the aircraft via a Tx switch. They do cost a lot of money though! Then again, they are designed to work with high current. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted January 29 Author Share Posted January 29 (edited) Received my XT60 jumper wire connections today. I bought three which can be shared between various models that may be installed with the system. I'll probably wait until I'm flying regularly with the relevant e which I am sure my Domino will be one. Any models with easily removable magnetic hatches etc will not be installed with one ......just these tedious hatches with plastic screw and captive nuts. Toto Edited January 29 by toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arthur Harris Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 On 28/01/2024 at 07:25, GrumpyGnome said: Even with one if these fitted, I'd be nervous of having a LiPo accessible only through a screwed down hatch. As I used to be nervous of having to remove a wing to change batteries. The chore of it would deter me. When I go to the flying field, I want to do some flying, so easy battery change is a priority. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dickw Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 (edited) 9 hours ago, Arthur Harris said: The chore of it would deter me. When I go to the flying field, I want to do some flying, so easy battery change is a priority. In my electric glider a few years ago I was trying a battery loaned to me by my flying buddy. Just over 100m up and approaching 150mph a smoke trail appeared behind the glider. It took me at least 30 seconds to lose the height and speed before I could make a safe landing close to me (the plane has a separate Rx battery). The three wing bolts were removed rapidly, and as I disconnected and removed the wing my buddy picked up the fuselage and shook the battery out - its own weight unplugged it. It is amazing how fast/easily you can do a battery change when the adrenalin is flowing 😲 I had to replace some wiring and clean up the insides, but the plane is still flying years later. I let my "friend" have his battery back.😀 Dick Edited January 30 by Dickw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDB Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 11 hours ago, toto said: just these tedious hatches with plastic screw and captive nuts. Can you not replace the plastic screw/captive nut with a magnet? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy48 Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 I've been using arming plugs for years, indeed I published something on it years ago in RCME, so nothing new. Point of failure, true there is a possibility, but its never happened to me and almost all my models have them. However, as a safety feature is is very well worth it. I never fit the arming plug until the model is on the take off strip. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy48 Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 On 28/01/2024 at 15:24, Martin Harris - Moderator said: On a non-scale model, wouldn't the ideal solution be to route the battery/ESC cabling externally? No additional connections and absolute protection against inadvertent motor actuation until making the connection prior to flight. On my Pupetteer, the yoke is the arming plug. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leccyflyer Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 I'd managed to come to terms with not having a battery hatch on my Cambrian and Balsacraft fun fighters by convincing myself that the wing was just a big battery hatch, but it is far from ideal to have to unscrew a long nylon bolt to disconnect the battery, buried deep in the fuselage, so I'm getting away from that. One particular model is a large moulded electric glider Big Swift, which has a fibreglass fuselage, with no battery hatch and access to the 3s1p 3300mah lipo is by removing the wing. I only fly it once in a blue moon, but a better solution is going begging - not keen to compromise the structural integrity of the nose by cutting out a battery hatch big enough to get the battery in and out, but also don't want a monstrous carbuncle sitting sticking out of the side of the fuselage. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted January 30 Author Share Posted January 30 I get the unsightlyness of an external isolation plug, but , to be honest, I will only be using them on certain models where quick access is not possible due to these nylon bolt type affairs. No need where magnetis hatches or these little sprung latches are installed. So far I would be looking at two balsa type trainer models that both utilise the nylon bolt and captive nut system that both take ages to unscrew .... and usually remove a layer of skin from your fingers whilst you unscrew them. Everybody to their own. Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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