RC in "The Great Land"
I SPENT THE SUMMER touring the Great Northwest (Alaska, British Columbia, and the Yukon Territory, Canada). I found many opportunities to indulge in our favorite hobby of RC flying, and this story tells you how to find them. The people I met were warm and friendly, the scenery was spectacular, and the weather was remarkably good, according to the people who live there. Actually, the normally rainy regions of southeast Alaska were experiencing a drought that hadn't been equaled since 1917. Most of the time was spent in sunshine (even at night), with daytime temperatures usually in the seventies (sometimes lower in rain) and nighttime lows dropping into the forties. Having only three or four hours of darkness in the 24-hour cycle, I found that I was active at least 18 hours a day. You can get a lot done in 18 hours.
Radio Technique
Correction: In the October 1990 issue of MA we ran a schematic illustrating how to boost power to your servos by plugging in a second battery to the receiver. The pix of the PC board was okay, but our callout wasn't. It's the positive land that should be cut.-Ed. Narrow band in '93?: The long-awaited NPRM (FCC Notice of Proposed Rule Making regarding narrow-band transmitters for RC systems) has finally been published. So how does that affect you? I have greatly simplified the language to illustrate the changes.
Radio Technique
Abstract: Reader letters; intimate Ni-Cd details; capacity formulas; Caring for Ni-Cd batteries: Part 6 - Ni-Cd peculiarities. FIRST, the letters: 1) Walter H. Rady (Newport, NH) writes: "Dear George - I am just getting started in electric flight...Charging the batteries properly was the single most important thing I was confused about, but your articles have spelled out the requirements in a very understandable way. "My charger only had a timer cutoff, so the batteries were overcharged many times. The resultant decrease in capacity was evident over the months that I flew the model. I already know what happens when the charger fails and sends AC through the batteries all night. You are left with seven stainless steel tubes and a fuselage full of white stuff. "The class I want to compete in doesn't allow battery charging during the contest, so I will only be charging overnight at the C/10 rate. My question is, 'Can I put a pot in the leads of the Polk's Multi-Charge-A-Matic, so that the charging current can be cut to 90 mA, and will the voltage drop detector still function if I do?'"
Radio Technique
I SAID in my February 1989 column that I would take a Lanier Seabird with me on my trip to Alaska. But it turned out to be too bulky, so I made a last-minute decision to take a Lanier Laser instead. The Laser stored neatly out of the way on the ceiling of the van, on bungees. (Bungees are long, cloth-covered rubberbands, about 5/16 in. in diameter and fitted with hooks on the ends.) I'm back in New York again, after a wonderful summer in Alaska. One of the smarter things I did in preparing for this trip was to remove the screws holding the interior moldings on the van's windows, one at a time, and slip on a swivel hanger meant for hanging pictures before putting each screw back.
Radio Technique
FLIGHT PACKS: What are all of the manufacturers up to now? They have their engineers concentrating on top-of-the-line crystal-controlled transmitters (Tx) which feature computer memories that store the settings, servo directions, mixing, throws, etc. for a bunch of airplanes. But: WHAT GOOD ARE THEY, IF YOU CAN'T BUY FLIGHT PACKS FOR THE OTHER PLANES? (Editor's note: A flight pack is the part of your RC system which goes in your plane. RMcM) Many modelers have complained to me about the high cost and general unavailability of flight packs. They say that although you can buy servos, battery packs, and switch harnesses over the counter, it's the receivers (Rx's) which are hard to find. I gave some of my money to the phone companies to learn if that's true.
