Flex cables are great as long as they have a straight run. <G>

Before the thin flex cables were available, I would periodically see someone's bent/crooked high friction installations of the old thick flex cable at the field or a club meeting. Sometimes it was all I could do to work the throttle (sometimes surfaces) with the friction being so high. Then they wondered why their batteries discharged earlier than they thought they should and why their servos were so slow.

It used to be that pushrods/actuation mechanisms were a macho thing with most modelers. Criticize someone's linkage and you were looking for a fight. This was when servos were very inaccurate, weak and super expensive, which forced many folks to drive multiple control surfaces and extraneous doohickeys with a single servo. Ah, the good old days. Many of these installations were disasters just looking for an empty smoking hole to fill.

It is wonderful to have inexpensive radios/servos/receivers available that work at least as well as the old equipment and most of the time, far better than the old equipment.

It isn't uncommon to see my models, both kit built and ARFs, with two or three guide shafts installed in the fuselage and visible on the firewall. I just build them in automatically these days because I know that eventually I will change out the engine from one type to another (two/four-stroke). I also install the Edson Universal Adjustable Engine Mount on these models for the same reason. These mounts last and last and last, plus new jaws and other parts are available from the manufacturer (RJL/MECOA) for a mere pittance. Believe me, these mounts will outlast a dozen models with ease. Contrary to popular belief, they are NOT heavy at all.

Throttle linkages require a bit of engineering creativity. They are something that I enjoy designing and installing. Always have. Good luck with yours.


Ed Cregger


*Corrected spelling