i'm a little confused
 

Hi, I'm a little confused and not sure which is the best way forward.

I usually use Powerbox's but have decided to try Smart fly on my new Yak. 88"

I will be running all digi servo's 5 x 5985 and 1 x 5955. I also need 5.1v for ignition.

Which is the best way to go?

SuperReg + Power Expander + Ign cut off

Or

Powersystem

My concern with the powersystem, is that i will not have a redundant reg if it fails, is this correct?

Also, can i have (do you do) a single failsafe switch for both batteries?

Many thanks

W

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi,
The best way to go for that size plane is the PowerSystem Sport Plus. Even if you went with the SuperReg it is not redundant. If you insist on regulator redundancy the only thing I could suggest is the PowerExpander Pro with two of our RegulatorHDs. If you go with the PowerSystem then you can use our failsafe switch (Failsafe Switch & Charge Package) which will turn off both batteries. If you go with the redundant regulator setup you will not be able to use a failsafe switch.
Please let me know if you have any other questions.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Thanks for the very quick reply Robert, I will go for the setup you suggested, fail safe switch +powersystem.

Regards

W

PS: I guess your talking about the superswitch here?

RE: i'm a little confused
 

In your website (http://www.smart-fly.com/Products/Regulator/3.htm) it says the SuperReg has battery redundancy and here you say it is not !
I'm also very confused with a solution to choose, as i found the price is not cheap i hésitate to order one. So what i want is a redudancy system with power expander that i can use now in my 50cc planes and in some months to my 100cc aerobatic plane (with hitec 5955TG servos everywhere it use a lot of Amp.). What's system do you suggest ?

Regards
jean-claude

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi Jean-claude,
The SuperReg does have battery redundancy but it does not have regulator redundancy. It supports two batteries and will isolate a bad battery. It does not have two regulators built into it. A regulator that is designed well should be as reliable as your receiver. We have had extraordinary reliability from our SuperReg and TurboReg. As far as I know, none have failed.

If you want a system you can migrate from 50cc to 100cc I would recommend the Flight Pack 1, SuperReg, PowerExpander Sport and jumpers.

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Thank you for fast reply.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi Robert,
Are all superswitches for two batteries / two outputs? Which one do i need? I dont want to get it wrong as i'm ordering from the US and i'm in the UK.

Cheers

W

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi,
The SuperSwitches support a single battery each. Are you going to run this into a receiver or PowerExpander?

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi,
I will be using the PowerSystem Sport Plus, from 2 x Fromeco Li-polys, I want one failsafe siwtch to control them both.

I also read somewhere that std JR plugs are rated 3A max, will this cause problems with 5 digi servo's one of them a 5955. Am i better going power expander with deans plugs, 2 batts, 2 switches, 2 regs?

I also need a engine kill switch, which the powersytem has, I'd rather keep it simple, but if power draw is an issue I will go power expander and buy a separate optical kill switch.

I'm also confused that you said the failsafe switch and charge package could control 2 batteries, and above you said it couldnt...unless i could not find that switch on your website.

Sorry for being so slow......I'm a mechanical engineer, not an electrical one...

Regards

Wavy

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi Wavy,
What you want to get for the failsafe switch is the "Failsafe Switch & Charge Package". The SuperSwitch is for putting between the battery and the unit so you don't want that.
You are right about the "continuous" current capability of the standard R/C plug but you will be using 2 batteries so you get 6A into the unit, continuous. You can burst to about
12A which is plenty for this application. The big concern is voltage drop across the plug but since the lithium batteries are so much higher that the regulated output voltage
you have headroom to drop voltage across the plug. We outfitted a 100cc Aerowerks 260 with eight 8711s and put the PowerSystem Sport Plus in it to test its limits. It did
really well and has been flying for about 5 weeks in the plane. I still recommend that the unit be used up to 85cc though since when the batteries are low the voltage drop
across the battery connectors could cause the voltage regulator to droop on high loads on a plane with eight 8711s.
Please let me know if you have any other questions.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

wow! quick reply! you were righting the reply before i had finished editing it! thats service.....!

OK i'm clear now.....but one last question (sigh....so sorry! lol). with the failsafe switch and charging package, will i need to disconnect the lipo's to stop them discharging through the switch? I dont mind two superswitches if they would remedy the problem.

Cheers

A more educated Wavy777

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi Wavy,
Any failsafe switch draws a very small amount of power when its off. On our systems its about 5mAH/Day so if you had a 1600mA pack on each side and they were fully charged it would take about 320 days to discharge them completely. Mechanical switches will solve this problem. If you want to use two mechanical switches use the JR heavy duty or our Cermark heavy duty switches (on the Ignition Cutoff page).
Please let me know if you have any more questions.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Mr. Ritchey:

You say that your fail-safe switch shuts off both batteries. I have just purchased one of your Power Expander Sport Plus models, but didn't realise that I needed the fail safe switch as well. Can I use a regular Cermark switch plugged in to the Expander socket to do the same job? Or does it have to be the fail safe switch?

Thanks,

Dennis

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi Dennis,
A regular Cermark switch will not work, it is not wired correctly. To turn the unit OFF the white wire must be shorted to the back wire. Normal switches work by breaking contact. You will need a failsafe switch.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Thanks for the quick reply, Robert.

Actually, I got lucky. A friend of mine has the same setup, and was using 2 Cermark switches plugged into the battery slots on the expander, so he wasn't using his fail safe switch, and gave it to me. So I'm OK now. Thanks again.

Dennis

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Another Question, if I may?

On the Power Expander Sport Plus, is there any significance to the designations A to G on the receiver pigtails?

Does it matter which slot they go into in the reciever? ie(Does A relate to the throttle, B to ailerons, etc...? or can you put them anywhere?

Regards,

Dennis

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi Dennis,
The receiver connections have no relationship to receiver functions.
They are labeled so you know where to plug the servos in. All are
the same, they can plug into any channel you want.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Thanks Robert, That's what I thought, but it doesn't hurt to make sure.

Thanks again for your assistance.

Great product, by the way!!

Regards,

Dennis DuBois
MAAC 9412

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi Robert:

I'm a little confused again.

I have a Power System Sport Plus in my 50cc Aeroworks Extra 260 and it is working just fine.

I have just recently purchased a used Power Expander Pro for another 50cc airplane I have and am not sure about a few things.

1. I am planning to power the receiver and servos with A123 batteries. What type of switch will I need for this setup? and where do I plug the switch in to the PE Pro?
2. How many switches will I need?
3. I also want to have an optical kill switch. Does the PE Pro support this? And if so, Where do I plug it in to the PE Pro?

Thanks for your help?

Regards,

Dennis

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi Dennis,
See below:

You can either use two SuperSwitchHDs or one failsafe switch. The SuperSwitchHDs are like any other mechanical switch except they have 18ga wire and Deans plugs on both ends. They go between the batteries and the Pro. You can also use our failsafe switch, one switch will control both batteries. The batteries plug into the unit directly and the failsafe switch plugs into the special port on the Pro. The only small drawback of the failsafe switch is that any failsafe switch (even the switch Powerbox uses on their units) draws a small amount of power when off. This is typically about 5mA per day out of each battery. We recommend unplugging your batteries if you are going to store you plane for an extended length of time.
See above.
You can use a standalone Ignition Cutoff with the Pro. You can either plug the Cutoff directly into the receiver or you can plug it into the servo output of the channel on your receiver you wish to control the Cutoff.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Is it normal for the Rx power LED's to stay illuminated with the pin in my fail safe... I just installed a Sport Plus and thats what it is doing... I am running dual Li-ion's and an Airtronics 92824 FHSS Rx... When I power up the Tx the "bind" light on the RX comes on, no power to the servos, but the lights stay on with the pin inserted in the failsafe.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Hi,
No that is not normal. I will send you another unit. Can you give me your address (e-mail at [email protected]) or tell me if I already have you in my system. I will get a new unit right out. Sorry for the inconvenience.

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Email sent... Thanks for the quick reply!!!

RE: i'm a little confused
 

I got the new unit, and it work as advertised... Thanks Robert!!!!!!!!!

RE: i'm a little confused
 

Robert, I too am a newby and need to be set on the right path. I want the Batshare feature and optical igniton cut-off so I am considering this set of goodies for my first 50cc Yak.

PowerSystem Sport Plus
2 Iron Core Extreme 2300 w/JR connectors.
2 Cermark switches w/JR connectors

I plan on powering my ignition with a NiMH batter and the optical cut-off from the PowerSystem Plus.

This set-up may be a little heavier than needed, but is it a proper way to go?


Corrected ignition control line......