JustErik

OK, I have it on good authority that the Hobbico CS170 is a rebranded 5995TG. The specs are identical and from all the pics I can find, they are exactly the same, right down to the servo wire. Here is my tale of woe. I bought a CS170 in February of 2008 for a plane that didn't actually get put into service until last week, on the rudder of an 8-pound profile ship. I maidened the plane on 5/7/09. During the third flight, I got some glitches and landed immediately. Inspection revealed that the rudder servo was no longer working AND that it had gotten hot enough nearly melt through the bottom of the case.



It actually did melt a hole in the covering.



At this point, I'm very happy to have a plane. It could have easily caught the thing on fire or caused total radio failure. My discussion with Hobbico has not been very promising. They are maintaining that my unregulated, 2-cell A123 receiver pack is the problem. We all know that there are countless numbers of these and similar servos being used on such packs without causing servos to routinely melt down.

I know Hitec has no responsibility here because it's not technically a Hitec servo, and I'm not looking to drag you guys into my dispute with Hobbico. I just want to make sure I'm not missing anything. Am I wrong to expect this servo to last more than three flights? And am I wrong in assuming that 2-cell A123 packs are commonly used without a regulator?

MikeMayberry

My Feedback: (1)

The 5955's should work fine on a 2S A123. It's possible there were other factors that caused the failure.

Mike.

JustErik

Hello Mike, thanks for your help. The pack is new and cycles well. I double checked all the extensions. Actually, extension might be the wrong term. I soldered in 20 gauge wire instead of using conventional extensions. At first I thought Imay have gotten the polarity wrong, but after double and triple checking, the servo was definitely connected right. The switch used is a brand new Electrodynamics Ultra Switch. They are kind of spendy, but I love them and have several in service. Can you suggest something else that I might check? If I did something wrong or something else is at play, I'd love to figure it out before putting the plane back up.

Erik

JustErik

To Mike and anyone else interested, Hobbico has agreed to replace the servo at no charge.  I'm pleasantly surprised and thankful for being treated so well. 

Tip of the hat to Hobbico.