Programming Airplane Flight Modes (Three Idle Settings) iX12

My Hangar 9 Pulse XT60 is overpowered a bit with its RCGF 26cc gas engine. This makes it fast and powerful, especially with the thrust produced by its 3 blade prop. Even at idle she produces thrust. At low idle she can be unreliable, bog down, and die. Endpoints above that run well, but produce too much thrust. I need a way to have a reliable but slow flight idle, and a stable even if briefly, landing idle. After asking on the Facebook iX12 Users Group, I decided the best option was using throttle curves with different idle settings, set to a switch. This has so far turned out to be a great option. 

I set up the iX12 three position Switch B (traditionally the heli Flight Mode Switch) with a Flight Idle 6% above true idle, an Approach Idle set at 3% of true idle, and a Landing Idle set at actual idle. The Landing Idle is low enough to produce little to no thrust, tries to bog down, but usually will not stop despite threatening to. I chose 6% as this was a reliable slow RPM position that allowed an acceptable in-flight idle speed. 3% is simply 50% of the Flight Idle and is there to allow a step-down transition, and the Landing Idle that is slow, boggy, but will usually keep running. Using the Flight Mode Setup panel I was able to change the Call-Outs to reflect these new settings. 

The video walks you through how to do this!

Volts (Pressure), Amps (Gas), and Resistence (Loads)

Volts is the pressure in the tank, Amps is the actual gas (also volume), and Ohm (resistance) is loads, including the diameter and length of the "tubing" (wire), and resisters along the way (loads, like lights, motors, radios, etc).

Ohm's Law.   Voltage = Amps x Resistence (V = I x R)

FFF Workwear Workshop Apron

For Christmas my wife bought this lovely shop apron from a company a friend of hers owns, FFFWorkwear. I LOVE THIS APRON!  Fit, Form and Function, as promised. I like the X-back straps so nothing hangs off my neck during the hours I spend gnashing my teeth, I mean, enjoying fixing airplanes and helicopters I crash. Plenty of pockets for me to forget where I put a tool only to find it right where I left it, and sturdy enough not to let me get burned, melted or burst into flames when I run into my coting iron or Dremel Tool.  It is built to work and take a beating. Best apron ever!

They are also on Facebook!

Highly recommended!

Taking Batteries Down to Storage Voltage

Every so often I will have batteries I haven't flown and need to put them in storage voltage using the Storage protocol on my 208B charger.  You really don't want to leave charged batteries for more than a few days as this causes chemical changes that increase the internal resistance, which decreases their function. (It's important to check the internal resistance using your multi program charger from time to time. A battery is best around 10 micro ohms per cell, above 20 it's time to get rid of it). If I have the time I use a parallel setup to take up to six unused batteries down to storage, but it takes a lot of time. It's faster to discharge them by running them down to around 3.87V per cell off load. I attach them to the voltmeter (battery checker) while doing this.  On load they look lower, so I stop every so often and see what the voltmeter reads. On my 500 heli without the resistance of the blades it can take 10-15 minutes, where in flight I get 5-7 min depending in the mAh of the battery. I use a plane if I have one that fits the battery. If I can be outside I just practice hovering. If I am indoors I will take main and tail blades off for safety, or just secure a plane.

Blue canopy kinda day.

Disposing of Lipos

A couple of pointers on how I dispose of batteries, since zinc had several I haven't used in years whose IRs had surpassed the limit of 20 mohms per cell. I first discharge them down to at least storage, 3.8V per cell. I like to save the wire leads as then may come in handy, I also like to safe them from shorting, so I cut them.

Cut each lead ONE AT A TIME or the short will make you piss yourself.  Or so I have been told, I, um, wouldn't know.

Wind electrical tape first around one, then both.

The balance leads carry a charge and will also short if you don't also cut them one at a time. I cut them each slightly longer than the next reducing the chance of a contact short.

I keep them spread put on tape, then fold the tape without bunching them.

Close them all up.

NEVER THROW THEM IN THE TRASH! Compression in the truck can cause an explosion injuring the garbage guys, and can set their truck on fire. Best to take them to Lowes or Home Depot, and drop them in their LIPO  disposal box. If your recycle center takes them, you can take them there, of course.

iX12 Throttle Mixing Question...

My Pulse XT60 26cc gasser that has a tad high idle, and gets variably unstable if we try to end point it down. Gary Hoffman, a Horizon Hobby Rep and poweruser (iX20) noted he has a THR<THR mix set on Swith A that when he flips it on final it decreases his throttle 5%. His plane, like mine, will tolerate that at idle, for a minute or so. This allows a slower touchdown. If he needs power, it's there, just 5% less, until he returns the switch to flight position.

We looked at my iX12 and were able to assign a THR<THR to Switch A in Mix1, but nothing we set on either of the available end points (or TRIM, for that matter), resulted in a drop in RPM.

Any ideas?

Field Trip: RC Aces, North Hampton, NH

Went out to RC Aces field in North Hampton, NH, home field for my flying friend, Gary Hoffman. This would be my first real flights (I don't count thr UMX Debacle) on the iX12.  I was going put to SNHRCC at Hudson, but when Gary told me he was going out, I invited myself.

Baby's First Trip in her carrier!

The Stik flew well! The RCGF 10cc ran fine, lots of power. The twitch in the left aileron came back. In flight she did an un-commanded aileron roll at about 720 degrees a second! Snap, over as quick as it started, level to level. That quickly ended that flight. Inspection revealed that with the engine running the LA twitch was back, subtle. 

The very old AR610 that was in there died during preflight before I left, but I had the new antenna-less AR620, still in it's box. Like all of us, I was a bit worried about how this would behave, but I have faith in Spektrum. At the field we range tested it, and as hard as I tried, never more than -70 db loss, no holds, and in flight only 1 fade. Love the telemetry on the iX12! The snap roll was not a radio issue. The new radio and new reciever worked fine!

Is this gap in the webbing the cause of the twitch?? The wire covering is gapped and frayed,  not just here, so the ignition does need to be replaced. Ordering one tonight from RCGF-USA. I checked the servo and wires, and they are fine. Hope this is it.

I had set up the Pulse XT60 in the iX12, and set the throttle end points the same as they were on the DX8. A small adjustment to the low end and she was set! The idle is still high a touch. Gary suggested a THR<THR Mix set at 5% to a switch. He has it set up on one of his. This would allow me to hit the switch a foot above ground, dropping the idle 5%, which she can sustain for almost a minute before stopping, if she does, allowing power up if needed, or a slower touchdown. We couldn't figure out why it wouldn't work, so I'll be seeing what the folks at Spektrum come up with. Hit about 40 min over three flights!

This 26cc engine is LOUD. The twin exhausts produce a lot of noise. On my RCGF 30cc on the MX-Bach, I have a DLE Muffler Silencer from Mile High RC. It really softens the sound. I measured the external diameter of the pipes at 14.4 mm, and these fit an internal diameter of 14.4 mm, so, we'll see. It really needs some silencing.

I did get to watch Gary fly the crap out of the 6S Edge made with a carbon laminate frame that was so thin a sneeze should break it. I think it was far less than a pound. Man got skillz. It was beautifully built, expertly flown.

I forgot how wet the field can be, as it is on the edge of a wetland. Wet, cold feet... Called it a day. 45 deg, breezy, wet... bad combo. 

Another good day! I really love this sport!