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Introduction
Glossary
1) Beginner issues
| A101 |
Why fly electric? |
| A102 |
How do I get started? |
| A103 |
What kind of planes can I fly with electric
power? |
| A104 |
How do I sign up for the AMA/MAAC? |
| A105 |
What Kind of equipment do I need? |
| A106 |
What special tools would I need? |
| A107 |
Can you suggest a few beginner setups? |
| A108 |
Are soldered or crimp joints better? |
| A109 |
What goes on which stick? |
2) Safety
| A201 |
What safety procedures should I follow when flying? |
| A202 |
What is an arming switch? |
| A203 |
When should I use an arming switch? |
| A204 |
How much power will I lose? How much weight will I gain? |
| A205 |
What is a fuse? Why use one? |
| A206 |
What type of fuse should I use? |
| A207 |
How do I choose the fuse rating? |
| A208 |
How and where do I install the fuse? |
| A209 |
Are there any safety precautions for the motor battery? |
| A210 |
How do I fuse a brushless motor? |
3) Batteries
| A300 |
Battery Basics |
| A301 |
What's Volt, Amps, "C" rating,
etc....? |
| A302 |
What are milli-amp hours? |
|
A303 |
How fast can I charge my batteries? |
|
A304 |
What is Nicad memory? |
|
A305 |
What is Cell reversal? |
|
A306 |
Should I cycle my packs? |
|
A307 |
Can I deep discharge an individual cell safely? |
|
A308 |
What is the discharge of a Nicad like? |
|
A309 |
Black Wire Syndrome |
|
A310 |
Low Tech Cell Matching |
|
A311 |
What are the effects of series and parallel? |
|
A312 |
What are NiMH batteries like? |
|
A313 |
Can I use Lithium batteries for electric flight? |
|
A314 |
What do the battery codes like SCR, AE mean? |
|
A315 |
Is it safe to solder directly to batteries? |
4) Electric motors
| A401 |
What does "breaking-in" a motor actually do? |
|
A402 |
How do I break-in a motor? |
|
A403 |
What does gearing do? |
|
A404 |
How do I compare an electric motor to an IC engine? |
|
A405 |
What are motor constants? |
|
A406 |
What's the difference between Delta and Wye Brushless Motors? |
|
A407 |
What is "timing"? |
|
A408 |
How much should I advance a speed 400? |
|
A409 |
How do I use the "speed 400 timing tool?" |
|
A410 |
How much heat can our motors dissipate? |
|
A411 |
How can I keep my motors clean? |
|
A412 |
What is a sensorless motor/controller? |
|
A413 |
How does a sensorless motor work? |
|
A414 |
What do the motor names (Speed 400,600, 05, 25) mean? |
|
A415 |
How do I do a "Water break-in" ? |
|
A416 |
How do I measure motor constants ? |
|
A417 |
Will this cheap Mabuchi 540/380 etc. be good for E-Flight ? |
|
A418 |
How many capacitors do I need on my motor and what values ? |
|
A419 |
Should I wire two motors in series or parallel? |
| A420 |
Where can I find some information on common
brushed motor constants? |
5) Speed controllers (ESC's)
| A501 |
How does a speed control work? |
|
A502 |
What is the advantage of a High Rate Control? |
|
A503 |
What is the best switching rate for a hi rate ESC? |
|
A504 |
How does a motor brake work? |
|
A505 |
What is a BEC and how does it relate to the speed control? |
|
A506 |
What are the disadvantages of a BEC? |
|
A507 |
What is a Cutoff? |
|
A508 |
How long can I fly once the cutoff takes place? |
|
A509 |
What is opto-isolation and what does it do? |
|
A510 |
How do I disable the BEC on my speed control? |
|
A511 |
Where does my BEC speed control plug in ? |
|
A512 |
Can I control 2 brushless motors with one controller ? |
6) Propellers
| A601 |
Why doesn't my Graupner folding prop extend all the way out? |
7) Chargers
| A701 |
How does charging current relate to capacity? |
|
A702 |
How can I make certain my packs are fully charged? |
|
A703 |
How does a peak (or delta peak) charger work? |
|
A704 |
Will my charger work with Ni-MH batteries? |
|
A705 |
Will a NiCad peak charger work with Lithium batteries? |
8) Model info
| A801 |
What are the differences between Indoor, Slow and Park flyers? |
|
A802 |
What are EDF models? |
|
A803 |
What exactly are EPS/EPP/Depron and other construction foams ? |
|
A804 |
What is the watts/pound rule? |
|
A805 |
What does the Watt-hours/pound rule tell me? |
|
A806 |
How do I match an electric power system to a given airframe? |
|
A807 |
How do I convert a gas powered plane to electric? |
| A808 |
Are there any proven electric setups listed
anywhere? |
9) Electrical formulas
| A901 |
How do I calculate duration? |
|
A902 |
How do I calculate Watts? |
|
A903 |
How do I convert units of measure? |
|
A904 |
What is Orme's Law? |
Reference resources
Mailing lists
FTP sites
Web pages
Newsgroups
Non-electronic Resources
Magazines
Books
Contributor Credits
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Can you suggest a few beginner setups?
Q. Can you suggest a few beginner setups?
A. (Jim Bourke)
This should give you an idea of what it takes to get started.
Configuration #1
2 meter wingspan electric glider kit $65
try the Electra, Skimmer, etc.
building materials $40
6-cell battery pack $20
AC/DC fast charger $30
2 channel radio $65
----
total $220
If you intend to continue with the hobby, then buy an inexpensive 4 channel radio
instead of the two channel shown above. That would add about $65 to the cost. Notice that
the above configuration also does not include a speed control. One can be added for around
$60, but you may want to consider an on/off switch instead for $30.
Configuration #2
High wing electric trainer $65
try the Electri-Cub, Mirage, PT-E, etc.
building materials $40
battery packs (2 7-cell 1400 mah SCR packs) $50
Speed control $70
(Ace Smart Throttle, Astro Flight model 210, etc)
Peak charger $110
4 channel radio $130
----
total $465
This configuration will give you a nice flying airplane with plenty of room to grow.
You could do with somewhat less expensive components, but this way you will be able to use
the same radio, charger, speed control, and batteries on your next plane. You do not need
two battery packs, but having two packs is nice because one can charge while you are
flying with the other.
Configuration #3:
High wing .15 to .25 sized electric trainer $65
(Sig Seniorita, Astro Flight Porterfield)
Cobalt geared motor $125
building materials $40
battery packs (2 packs) $120
Speed control $70
(Ace Smart Throttle, Astro Flight model 210, etc)
Peak charger $110
6 channel radio $220
----
total $750
This is the way to go if you can afford the equipment.
The E-Zone is another
source of good information on electric R/C planes and equipment. The
E-Zone FAQ has recently been upgraded and is being updated all the time.
Both are worth a look!
Have question about building? A real nice website to look at is Airfield
Models. This website is loaded with information about tools, building
materials, design theory and contains formulas, resources and references, which
may give you some great ideas for your next project.
Another great website for research and learning is the Glenn
Learning Technologies project. This is a great website hosted by NASA where
you cna learn about aerodynamics, propulsion and a lot of other stuff, with free
simulators. Check it out!
Is it going to be flying weather tomorrow? You
can find out by going here. Just punch in your location.
Instructional Video Links
If you have a video which teaches something in relation to electric RC Flight,
send a link or the video itself to the editor of this FAQ.
VIDEO
- How to solder on a Dean's Ultra Connector, by: Andrew Willets
Listed below are some very informative links to threads in the beginners
forum.
What
plane would YOU get for your first?
ARTICLE
on What Plane to recommend as a 1st plane
What
were your first 3 planes, in order.......??
The
best beginner radios.
Six
Keys to Success for New Pilots
New
to R/C flight?
First
flight tips - Do that preflight!
Teach
yourself to fly
Learn
the Basics of flight first with free paper and balsa plane plans
Thinking
of buying this .....
I'm
confused?? (brushless)
Got
plane, now what?
How
to go about that dreaded maiden flight!
What
do you think is the biggest mistake that a first-timer makes?
Please
teach me to use a soldering gun
Learn
how to build battery packs
How
do you "series connect" battery packs?
AA
and AAA battery packs - whats the difference?
Which
Charger to Buy?
Tool
for bending landing gear piano wire?
If you know of other links which may be good Beginner reading. Send a PM to the
Moderators of this Forum.
The links below are specific to particular beginner aircraft.
The
Best trainers List
Easy
Star Building Tips & Tricks
Newbies
Guide to the Slowstick
Pics
of my geared 400 SlowStick
The
Ultimate Slow Stick Help Thread
Still
Confused...........SS vs Slow V
Lakedude's
unauthorized Slow-V review.
I
think I'm going with a WINGO?
Aerobird
vs. Slowstick vs. Moth
New
to RC Plane; Hobbyzone Challenger good choice??
Magpie
Build Thread and Review from a Beginner's Angle
T-Hawk
vs Predator
Push-E
Cat V4
SuperStar
EP Maiden Flight - First time Pilot
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