I posted this in the radio forum without much help. I'm thinking about getting the Airtronics RDS8000 and the Rx that comes with it.. It doesn't come with Servos for $189.99 ( est. this is just one I have Google'd) What else should I buy for my Kadet MK II trainer? 4 Servos and what else?<br type="_moz" />

A reciever battery and a switch and atleast one 6" extension

For the reciever battery, a 1500mah NiMH would be fine

OK..Stupid question , but I haven't looked this up yet. That battery is different from the battery used in RC cars right? I have the long 7.2 volt for my EZ-starter on my nitro Traxxas T-Maxx truck and another that runs my electric Traxxas Rustler

Yes its different, most reciever packs are either 4 cell or 5 cell Nickel batteries, or 2 cell A123 (LiFe)

should I be looking for a better deal that includes the Servos?
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Actually you'll do better if you buy things separately.

"Flight packs" often include servos and receivers, but you tend to get low end stuff with them.

Often inexpensive ( or cheap ) servos are better than those included in the flight packs.

Thanks for the tip.. Is 190 a decent price for that Tx +Rx combo? Even without the Servos?

In this day and age most radio systems beyond entry level radios are are sold just the Tx and tx battery - or - Tx and tx battery as well one or two or three rx's.

Servos are now more normally sold separately simply because with the mid range and up systems their is a hugh choice now in servos that we formerly did not have. The same goes for the hugh variety in aircraft flight packs or lack of because of BEC's in use with many electric airplanes.

It would be impossible for manufacturers to package complete upper level systems in the hugh variety of options.

Also consider for your Mark 11 a switch holder charge jack. about four bucks and most all my airplanes get them. Tower has the Great Planes brand and the Dubro brand. I much prefer the Dubro by far.

John

What is this for? Charging Rx battery ?


Is this what you're talking about?
www.rcuniverse.com/magazine/article_display.cfm
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The RDS 8000 is a fantastic radio and I've been using one for many years now. The only downside that I really have to say about it is that when you go to name a saved model you only have 3 letters to name it with. But other than that it's a great radio.<div>
</div><div>"Back in the day" radios always came with the radio, receiver, transmitter battery, receiver battery, switch, and servos. But then there were usually very few options when it came to servos. These days there are so many different aspects of flying that require so many different types of servos most manufacturers are packaging just the radio and receiver and they let the modeler decide on what servos to use. IMHO one the most unsung heros when it comes to servos is the Airtronics 94102 standard servo. I've used these servos on more planes than I can count and they just work great. I know on my Slow Poke alone I have these servos in it and that plane had over 700 flights on it when I retired the plane. The servos never gave me a bit of trouble.</div><div>
</div><div>You can find there here directly from Hobby People:</div><div>http://www.hobbypeople.net/index.php...connector.html</div><div>
</div><div>If you have other things to order then you can get them from Tower Hobbies, so if you can get your order up to a level one of their discounts might kick in. You can find them from Tower here:</div><div>http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...LX0929&amp;P=7</div><div>
</div><div>I know a lot of people will try to scrimp on servos, but I like to stick to what I know works, and these servos are a little work horse. They are only $12.99 each so they're not overly expensive.</div><div>
</div><div>Hope this helps</div><div>
</div><div>Ken</div><div>
</div>

Thanks for the links.. So I don't need any of those extensions or any kind of wiring? Do the servos come with some?

Yup that is what I am talking about and make sure you get this one: the combined switch mount and charging jack

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXD665&P=7


John
I use them on just about everything with some minor exceptions for racing airplanes where the drag is an additional concern.

Whether you will need an extension or not depends on the installation on each plane. Many planes will tell you if you need extensions in the "Additional items needed" list. If not, you can look at the plans (if you are building a kit) and measure if you are going to need an extension. Most servos will have approximately 3"-6" of cable on them already. You will need to work from there.

Additionally, if you are building a plane with 2 aileron servos may need a Y-harness if you plan on running both servos from a single channel on your radio. If your radio can support 2 aileron servos (most do these days) you won't need a Y-harness. Most people simply run both servos from a single channel at this level. Later on down the road as you advance you may want to run 2 servos from 2 different channels. The biggest reason for doing this is so that you can program aileron differential into your ailerons.

Hope this helps

Ken
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Yes, I've read some on the Servo per Aileron set-up.. That is a little too advance, flying-wise for me right now. I'm going to keep it simple for starters

A two servo setup isn't complicated by any means, but for a trainer it's totally unnecessary. I'm a fan of my RDS8000 also. My only complaint is that it doesn't have dual rates or exponential for the rudder. That's an issue when flying aerobatics and will cost you a few points if you do so competitively, but Airtronics has the SD10 to upgrade to for that.

You can also visit your local hobby shop and get a lot of suggestions on what you need. You will also have the products on hand so you can see what you are getting and don't be afraid of asking questions.

The local hobby shop will appreciate the business.

Frank

You could also check into the Turnigy T-9x from Hobbyking. It is a 9ch tx, with an 8 ch rx, for about $60.00. It is also sold by Hobbypartz as the Fly Sky 9x. It's a very nice, full range 2.4 ghz radio, full functions, 8 model memories, and all the mixes and expo, dual rates you would ever want at a great low price. I haves well over 100 flights, and haven't experienced a problem yet. Extra rx's cost about 8 bucks for the 6 channel, 12 for the 8 channel. The extra money you save could go for servos. Don't get suckered into the old line "it's name brand, it must be good" or, "I get good service because I bought it from xyz hobby company". (If it was so good, why the need for service?). I use lipo batteries in my tx,and charge about once per month. I use lipo in my plane for rx, I get about 5 or 6 flights from them, and recharge just to be safe. I don't use nimh. or nicad for anything, they don't hold charge for long, take forever to charge, and are lighter than the others. I use Hobbyking 5v,5a ubec's in my nitro-powered airplanes, and have had no problems. <div> Good flying, and good luck....</div>

Think about the next few years when you buy a radio. Or get a cheap one and buy another later, then you always have a spare.
For a 2.4 Ghz system, it should be the same brand and type, so you can use the same receivers.
Regarding to the mentioned switch - most tx/rx combos come with a switch.
You will probably need a servo extension for the aileron servo. Leave it plugged in the rx, so you don't have to plug it into the rx every time you put the wings on.
Also - the servos come with a wire, in your trainer they should be long enough to reach the rx, exc. the aileron.
The most important thing you will need is an instructor. He can look over the plane, help you build it and teach you to fly.
I am sure you have a club nearby - becoming a member will save you a lot of time and money

Batteries are a can of worms!

Traditionally most of us started out with Nicads which generally worked well and are still acceptable but getting hard to find. They can be fast charged, last for years and are very robust and tolerant of abuse. Nimh batteries are newer, have more capacity for a given size and weight of battery but they have their own problems, mainly lower voltage per cell, unreliable fast charge capability and not as robust as Nicads. Lipo batteries are newer and have their advantages but probably not suited for beginners because they are dangerous if not handled properly and will require the use of a regulator. Life batteries are the current rage because they can usually be used without a regulator and are safer than Lipo batteries but like lipo batteries will require a special charger and handling. Best to leave the lithium batteries alone until you gain some battery experience.

If using Nicads get a 4 cell pack of at least 600 mah capacity. If Nimh batteries get a 5 cell pack of at least 800 mah capacity. Either of these packs will give you at least enough power for about 2 hours of "ON" time or about 6 flights with reserve and without charging in between flights. Either of these batteries should cost under $20.00.

I would suggest serching out a club local to you. Make friends and ask questions. Im sure you will find, like all clubs, that they are more than willing to help with your initial setup/choices and intoduction to flight. Also dont rule out the used market for equipment, often times you can find an older setup in the classifieds for an excellent price. When it comes to a transmitter make a choices based on the type of flying you plan on doing in the future not what your doing now. If you plan to get more complicated setups than invest in a good computer radio with model memory and mixing fuctions. If you only plan on doing light sport flying than a cheaper radio with fewer options will suffice and the money saved can be spent elswhere.
When it comes to servos, buy the ones most suitable to the application. Your model should have suggestions as to what servos best fit the needs, make your choice around those requirements. As far as batteries go again dont over buy, choose those that fit thr requirements of the application, again your model should have suggestions. Remember money not wasted is money to spend elswhere.

In the case of a Sig Kadet Mark II I would suggest four basic servos, nothing special is required, 35 to 40 in/oz is sufficiant. The JR 517 comes to mind. You should only need one servo extension for the ailerons all the others should plug directly into the receiver.

For a battery I would suggest at least a 700mah pack. I would also suggest starting with a nicd pack as these are more forgiving and lend themselves to some one who is learning the hobby in that they are harder to ruin through charging practices.

I disagree that the lithium technologies should be reserved for those with some experience. The charging process takes plugging in one extra lead and learning how to push a couple of buttons to select the right voltage and charging current. Otherwise, the charger does all the work so the experience level of the user doesn't matter. The only two negatives I see for beginning pilots to go the LiFe route is that they have to buy the right charger immediately which costs some money, and if they forget to turn off the power switch one overnight discharge can ruin the battery while a NiCd will charge right back up no problem. A lost plane finder installed in the plane will keep the latter from happening though, since it freaks out whenever the power is on and there's no transmitter signal.

I only read down to Kens last post so if this was said before never mind. The radio you are looking at comes up on sale at Hobby People every couple of months. From what people say IT is a good one. Airtronics isn't one of the brands seen at my fields very often so I don't know. I did study up on there new 10 ch. and was impressed with the programming, for myself, not for a beginner. The 8 is great for someone new. Check with Hobby Peoples web site and sign up for there sale's flier. It's nice to know what is on sale in advance.
Buy a couple of 6 inch extensions to keep on hand, money well spent! I leave two short extensions plugged in my RXs at all times, my wing/ail. servos plug into them. Other then that I never use extensions.
What John and Ken said about how we used to get our radio gear is true, they came in a complete package but not so much today. All you need are standard servos so if you find them in a deal when on sale with the radio then cool. I had to shop around to buy just my radio, back then they were all a complete system.
Go to Servo City and look for a sale. You can often get some great deals on batteries, extensions and servos plus switches.
My choice in switches is the JR heavy duty switch with the charge jack but it's another one of those choice things.
Don't forget your Local Hobby Shop, they usually have everything on hand. I sometimes pay more for an item at my LHS but I try to support them, if you don't then they may not be there when you really need them. In my case I have three of them in about 4 blocks of each other. I visit all of them on the same day when I'm on that side of the strip.

BillinIndiana

You shouldn't have any problems with your choice.

As far as the other suggestions, e.g. the Hobby King radios, bare in mind that there can be issues with buddy boxing. So if you are training with someone else I'd stay away from them... though I saw a hardware hack that enables buddy boxing with the HK radios.

I posted this comment in your other thread but it was buried at the bottom. The only real issue with rds8k is the stunning silence you get if you ask if anyone has a compatible buddy box. This is easily remedied with a used rd8000 or other older model. If you don't have need for buddy boxing, no problem. It is a very fine radio and as Ken pointed out, it is hard to beat the 94102 servo.

Yeah, that would kinda stink.. I might be meeting a guy out at an airfield Sunday.. I'll probably wait and ask him what the normal is around here.. Thanks for the info..!