Phoenix Edge 540 1.2 Radio Problems
06-16-2017, 01:30 AM
#1
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2016
Posts: 78
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Phoenix Edge 540 1.2 Radio Problems
Radio problems on edge 540
Hello,
I am having a very hard time getting an acceptable radio check from my new edge 540 1.2 .
What I call an acceptable radio check is giving my transmitter to a friend that lives up the street approx 200 yards give or take. Having him work the controls while I stand next to the plane at my house watching the control movements. If the controls all move properly and the servos are quiet when not getting input from the transmitter I am happy and feel confident to fly the plane..Of coarse this test is done with the antenna fully extended.
The best I am getting from my edge is good control movements with chattering from the elev and rudder servos in between. Just to make sure nothing is wrong with my transmitter I radio checked my edge .46 size right next to the 1.2 and got a rock solid radio check.
This is driving me nuts, this is stopping me from sending this bird on her maiden flight.
My radio gear is : Trans. Futaba T7CAP with battery's reading 11.1 volts Receiver : Futaba FP-R127DF 72mz . Receiver battery pack: Hydrimax 3600mah NIMH 4 sub C battery's reading 6.1 volts at full charge . Servos : 2 Futaba S3151 digital servos in the wings, 3 Futaba S3305 heavy duty metal geared servos for the elevator and rudder and 1 Futaba S148 for the throttle. I have tried 3 different receivers and they all yield the same results . I have my antenna coming out of the receiver and going in to an antenna tube that goes outside the fuselage and along the bottom edge of the fuselage where it makes the angle to go to the bottom of the fuselage.. The receiver is located just in front of the wing tube and the antenna tube exits and runs down the fuselage to the back end of the plane. there are no bends in the antenna except where it exits the fuselage and makes a 90 degree turn towards the back. Nothing radical at all. I did have the receiver pack close to the receiver so I actually moved the pack to the outside of the fuselage and just let it hang on the outside. Also I moved the antenna from the tube and tied a string on it and tied the other end of the string to a thumbtack on top of the rudder to see if this would make for a better radio check. It actually made it worse, a lot worse. The servos were chattering like mad. I would have thought the antenna suspended in the air would have helped. The antenna wire does not cross over any servos or wires either. What I am wondering is if the servo wires that run from the receiver to the rear servos along the inside of the fuselage but parallel the antenna wire running along the outside of the fuselage could cause cause this problem. The servo wires are very close to the same length as the antenna wire. Its got me baffled. I was hoping someone might have some good advise as to what might be the problem with my radio set up.
Thanks , Dave
Hello,
I am having a very hard time getting an acceptable radio check from my new edge 540 1.2 .
What I call an acceptable radio check is giving my transmitter to a friend that lives up the street approx 200 yards give or take. Having him work the controls while I stand next to the plane at my house watching the control movements. If the controls all move properly and the servos are quiet when not getting input from the transmitter I am happy and feel confident to fly the plane..Of coarse this test is done with the antenna fully extended.
The best I am getting from my edge is good control movements with chattering from the elev and rudder servos in between. Just to make sure nothing is wrong with my transmitter I radio checked my edge .46 size right next to the 1.2 and got a rock solid radio check.
This is driving me nuts, this is stopping me from sending this bird on her maiden flight.
My radio gear is : Trans. Futaba T7CAP with battery's reading 11.1 volts Receiver : Futaba FP-R127DF 72mz . Receiver battery pack: Hydrimax 3600mah NIMH 4 sub C battery's reading 6.1 volts at full charge . Servos : 2 Futaba S3151 digital servos in the wings, 3 Futaba S3305 heavy duty metal geared servos for the elevator and rudder and 1 Futaba S148 for the throttle. I have tried 3 different receivers and they all yield the same results . I have my antenna coming out of the receiver and going in to an antenna tube that goes outside the fuselage and along the bottom edge of the fuselage where it makes the angle to go to the bottom of the fuselage.. The receiver is located just in front of the wing tube and the antenna tube exits and runs down the fuselage to the back end of the plane. there are no bends in the antenna except where it exits the fuselage and makes a 90 degree turn towards the back. Nothing radical at all. I did have the receiver pack close to the receiver so I actually moved the pack to the outside of the fuselage and just let it hang on the outside. Also I moved the antenna from the tube and tied a string on it and tied the other end of the string to a thumbtack on top of the rudder to see if this would make for a better radio check. It actually made it worse, a lot worse. The servos were chattering like mad. I would have thought the antenna suspended in the air would have helped. The antenna wire does not cross over any servos or wires either. What I am wondering is if the servo wires that run from the receiver to the rear servos along the inside of the fuselage but parallel the antenna wire running along the outside of the fuselage could cause cause this problem. The servo wires are very close to the same length as the antenna wire. Its got me baffled. I was hoping someone might have some good advise as to what might be the problem with my radio set up.
Thanks , Dave
Last edited by 3357; 06-16-2017 at 01:33 AM. Reason: change info
06-16-2017, 05:42 AM
#2
You may have a bad on/off switch. Bypass it by plugging your battery pack directly in to the receiver. Did you measure your battery pack voltage with a current load? A four cell NiMH battery pack is a little unusual. Usually five cell packs are used because of the high internal resistance of that type of battery. Get a five cell pack and see what happens or put together a 4 cell dry pack for a temporary test. Cycle your battery pack and make sure it has a capacity near 3000mah. Dan.
06-16-2017, 11:19 AM
#3
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2016
Posts: 78
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Yea Dan I have tried other battery packs with the same results. The 3600 is a brand new pack and is charged on a peak charger. On and off switch ? I can try that but it seems to me an on and off switch would either turn off and on or not.
Tks, Dave
Tks, Dave
06-16-2017, 02:31 PM
#4
Dave, as switches age they can build up resistance at the contacts. This will result in a voltage drop to the receiver. Use your volt meter to measure the voltage at the connector going to the receiver. If you have a spare channel use the volt meter to measure the voltage coming out of the receiver going to the rest of the plane. If you do not have a spare channel use a "Y" connector to do it. You may have a bad servo that is pulling down the voltage. Did you try a five cell pack?
I see you are the same person with the engine offset problem. Post an image in the thread of the engine installed on the engine mount.
Dan
I see you are the same person with the engine offset problem. Post an image in the thread of the engine installed on the engine mount.
Dan
06-16-2017, 08:36 PM
#5
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2016
Posts: 78
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
ok , i will pull the cowling off tonite and post some pics. I will check the voltages on the plane also. All tho I am thinking maybe bad receive crystal. I used the same crystal in all 3 receivers I tried. Only had 1 channel 46 receive crystal. But I am going to do a radio check tonite with a channel 60 transmitter and receiver that I know is good.
Tks for your help Dan..... Dave
Tks for your help Dan..... Dave
