KaP2011

My Feedback: (17)

Has anyone noticed any problems with the made in china equipment futaba is now selling? I have been a futaba user since 1991 and in all that time I've never ever had one single futaba servo or reciever fail in flight, that is until today. I lost a Cap 580 to an elevator servo that had maybe a dozen flights on it. The Cap had all new 3010 servos on the control surfaces. When I was doing the after crash inspection I smelled the unmistakable odor of burned electronics. Turned out that the elevator servo had fried the circuit board. When I was removing the gears for spare parts I noticed "Made In China" on the bottom. All of my other Futaba servos were made in Tiawan. I'm hoping this is not a bad omen because I just aquired 4 new 617 recievers, all made in china.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not trashing "made in china", after all, nearly everything we buy now was made in china. Even Tiawan was once "Tiawan ROC". But I'm thinking, new production plant, new people, new quality control. Just sayin.

A.T.

Would not worry about the "China" label as Futaba maintain a very good quality control.
Perhaps more info required, what size model and motor? was the servo rated for the job?
Futaba Servo Selection Form
All manufacturers will have the odd item slip through and if have been into RC for many years
then your turn was due for the classic burn in failure:
. BURN IN - Aging of RC Transmitter, Receiver & Servo components
Any aftermarket leads which could have had an effect on current? refer to the middle section and attachment :
After Market Accessories - Caution re Opti-kill, Duralite, Powerbox, Switches, Leads etc.

Much more information available under sub sections
"Battery Care, Performance & DIY Battery Packs."
"ESC & BEC - Setup to prevent majority of all RF Problems, Brownouts & Crashes"
"Glitches & Jitter in Receiver, Servo & ESC - Causes and Cures"
"Servo - Alterations, Calculators, Databases, Leads, Repairs, Convert to an ESC or winch & FAQ."
below
"Radio Systems, Accessories, Alterations and FAQ" at
Alan's Hobby, Model & RC FAQ Web Links

Alan T.

chuckk2

There have been problems with counterfeit made in China Futaba servos.

thailazer

That's true. Here is a thread on 23 bucks of counterfeit stuff I have on the way.

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/club...eful-ebay.html

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

Sneaky. The seller never describes them as "Futaba" only that they are FOR Futaba yet they copied the logo on the servo. The USA has no trade laws preventing fakes such as this from entering the country.
As far as the OP. Was there any binding on the elevator or linkage that would have caused the servo to overload and burn?

KaP2011

My Feedback: (17)

Thanks for the responses guy's. The servo was well suited to the job, the plane was the Great Planes Matt Chapman "Paintball" Cap 580 .46 size. All components were genuine Futaba components. I think it was just my turn for a failure considering the number of years without a failure. I've seen and been taken by the ebay fake servos, I even contacted Futaba when it happened and was told that their were infact, factory direct sellers on ebay. They, at the time, didn't seem too concerned about the fake ones and told me that I had probably just gotten a really good deal. Hah! Mine looked exactly like the ones in the link A.T. posted above.

Well, none the less, I feel better by what I now feel was just the "roll of the dice". I've always been very comfortable with Futaba products and will remain so.

KaP2011

My Feedback: (17)

Yes' very sneaky. No, there was no bind, in fact, I had gone over the plane the night before and done a thorough inspection. It was my second flight of the day and I had just done 1/2 dozen split S's. I believe it was just my turn.

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

Shame, I always liked that paintball splat artwork too !

KaP2011

My Feedback: (17)

LOL, I really liked it too, I only had it for two days. The guy I got it from could not fly it due to excessive control throws so he only flew it 4 or 5 times. It was a great flying plane after the control throws were set to factory spec. The SPLAT it made on the ground was pretty cool too. I'm thinking of getting the 53" Eagle Cap 580 because I liked the splat (not the one it made on the ground) so well, I've got a nice 91FS in a box on my shelf looking for a home.

sidgates

My Feedback: (2)

What voltage were you running on the servos?

KaP2011

My Feedback: (17)

6v NiMH 2200Mah. I've heard many people tell me that 6v is not good on the servos, that they shorten the life of the servo. Maybe with servos in the 90's but I don't think that is true anymore. The Futaba 3010 servo is rated for 4.8 and 6.0 so I don't think that was the problem.

rcguy59

My Feedback: (8)

I ran 6V NiMh on everything for years and never had a DECENT servo crap-out. I've since switched to LiFe batteries (unregulated) and still no failures. I doubt voltage is your issue. Even Futaba and JR servos quit for no good reason, it just doesn't happen very often. Good luck with your new bird.

hairy46

My Feedback: (1)

Been a Futaba guy since day one, just bought 8 of the China recievers, fingers crossed"

dirtybird

My Feedback: (5)

Everyone praises Futaba. Truth is they are copycats that entered the US thru the back door(as MRC) and were absolute crap in the beginning.
Then they embarked on a strategy of undercutting the price of American manufacturers. They were quite successful at that.
Now they are having their equipment manufactured in China and charging you an arm and leg to put their name on it.
There are some manufacturers in China that are putting out quality equipment and charging a lot less.
I hope they drive them out of business.

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

If Futaba (or any other manufacturer of anything else made in china) wants their widget to be made very well by a chicom all they have to do is pay for it to be made at a higher quality/price-point. Better parts/materials, workmanship, strict quality control, and testing .
Only a few plants in china making this stuff and it can be made really cheap , really well, or somewhere in-between. I wouldn't doubt the cheap fakes are made in the same plant where the genuine ones are made

KaP2011

My Feedback: (17)

This is not a "lets all trash futaba" discussion. If you don't like Futaba you are free to purchase any radio equipment you choose. I personaly like Futaba and will continue to use Futaba. I'm sure there are other brands that are just as good and some that are better. If you don't like how Futaba came into the US then go to the polls and vote.

dirtybird

My Feedback: (5)

I did not say Futaba is not quality equipment. I have used it myself when other equipment was not available.
I just dont care that the entered the country under an assumed name and proceeded to drive out the american manufacturers.
And that they are currently placing outrageous mark ups on equipment and having them made in China.
I dont like Futaba for that and I will continue to express my opinion any chance I get. I dont intend to limit it to a simple vote in some obscure thread.
BTW did you notice that they dropped their price on receivers to $29.00. It seems there are others that the Chinese brands are just as good as theirs

KaP2011

My Feedback: (17)

Dear troll, excuse me I ment dirtybird - Do you have have anything usefull to add to this discussion? Do you have any recent experience with a Futaba product that failed?

dirtybird

My Feedback: (5)

You would like to know the problems I had with Futaba? OK I will tell you.
I was helping my club in 1970 with maintaining equipment. The Futaba stuff did not have an AGC or a regulator.It was thus wide open to interference and battery trouble. It was a very poor design.
After a spell where I did nothing in RC I returned to RC and purchased Futaba because that was the only available radio locally. It was a 9C. The programming in that radio was dismal. If you wanted to do something with a mix you had to use another mix to decouple whatever you wanted to use from its hardwired control. With trouble from interference I was forced to use PCM. Futaba PCM practably defined latency. You did not hear anything about latency until Futaba PCM appeared. It was so bad you could see a servo lag behind when you moved them.
Now I have a Chinese transmitter that is worlds ahead of a less than $1000 Futaba.

Tony Iannucelli

My Feedback: (193)

I switched to JR 15 years ago because Futaba servos let me down. I've had some JRs that had problems in high vibration environments, mostly helicopters, but the fail rate has been very small. Most standard quality servos are marginal over time, especially if the servo doesn't have at least one output bearing. Of course, if you fly a few flights once a month, you should never have too many issues. Hitecs have been great, and so have the 9 gram HKs that have been sold by the thousands. Just one guy's experience.

With luck servos fail on the bench, and checking your plane after your flying sessions can help avoid stuffing your aircraft.

rmh

I had one of the MRC Futabas - it had no rejection capability- sent it back insured and the US Mail lost it !! Got my money back
Tried the first Futaba PCM 512 setup - - it and the JR 512 were awful - couldn't decide which was the worst.
the later cheap Futabas were much better and Phil Kraft saw the handwriting on the wall and bailed out of the radio business.
Jim Fosgate -who did ProLine had the best equipment at the time - he lives up the road apiece-
most problems today are still user issues - as usual -just more of em and the equipment available is limitless.
incorrectly used combinations are common-
Personally I don't use Futaba stuf anymore - It is simply not compatible with the equipment I prefer .

falcon_56

I own a Futaba 8J. Both transmitter and receiver are made in China. Each runs on four 1.2v AA nimh cells. Flawless performance over the year and a half using them.

What is a brownout?

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

When the electrical supply power falls below the level required by the electrical components connected to the receiver. When that happens the receiver can stop functioning. A shorted servo can also contribute to a brownout. Spektrum 2.4 systems and brownout have had their share of discussions.

dirtybird

My Feedback: (5)

A more complete answer is the receiver has a small computer. This computer requires a voltage level to operate. If it does not get that voltage it quits working even its lost for only a few microseconds. Then when the voltage is reapplied it has to reboot just like your computer. For some microprocessors it wll take a few seconds during which you control.
2.4 receivers have this microprocessor. 72 mhz receivers do not so they will resume operation instantly once the power is restored.
Its not well known that digital servos have a microprocessor and will do the same.

rmh

I got a real surprise when I tried feeding 6.5 volts to some digital servos which came in a ARF equipped with a 5.5 volt BEC.
The servos were jerky and if I went to 6.7 volts they refused to operate ..
Being intrigued, I stuck in a 6 v reg - immediately the servos worked!
double checked - -the servos had no input voltage regulation.
next test - at 6 volts - did a full cyclic -rapid aileron deflection test - at 4 minutes one servo froze 30 sec later the other one also froze up .
Low voltage tests (using a load which depressed voltage) - also caused jerky or no motion.
I pulled all of em - put in HV digital servos and direct feed of A123 cells

problem cured.