Okay, so I'm still looking around at radios. The finalists are the JR6102 and the new Futaba 7CAF. Anyway, I was just wondering what the 5th, 6th, and 7th channels are typically used for - flaps, landing gear, etc?. What is a typical setup with 6, 7, 8, or 9 channels?


Thanks,
Patrick

I have a Futaba 6 channel and use five servos for my four channel plane. The fifth servo plugs into the #6 slot. This allows me to use one servo for each aileron, and the ailerons can be used as flaperons or coupled with the elevator in advanced mixing.

Otherwise, the other channels can be used for bomb drops, flaps, retractable landing gear,etc as you mentioned.

I think the Futaba 7 channel you mentioned looks like a good radio and is priced well.

Most often... they either go unused, or are used for computer mixing

You can make use of everything....

1 Aileron
2 Elevato
3 Throttle
4 rudder
5 landing gear
6 flaps
7 bomb drop
8 landing lights
9 smoke system
10 multiengine 2nd throttle
11 on-board starter
12 glider tow release
13 spoilers

There's more...

You note I have gone more channels than any TX has? Some of the large scale 4-engine bombers will have 2 different frequency radios inside.. and will have a pilot an a "flight engineeer" the flight engineer's job is to manage the throttle balance between engines and to operate auxiliary functons at the instruction of the pilot. (some will have a 4 or 5 man team to coordinate the model's operation)

I use #6 a lot for 2 aileron servo's. i have also used #5 for gear on one plane. I will eventually use #7 for dual elevator servo's. Right at this moment I do not need any more than 7 servo's. But you never know In the future I may need more.

Mark Shuman

I have an 8 channel and am putting 7 servos in my latest project. The 4 flaperons will eat up every available mix in the tx.

A new 7CAF?

I haven't heard anything but if there is I'll probably be interested.

Generally you have to work pretty hard to use more than 6 channels

I was just looking at the new Futaba 7CAF, and it looks real good. Of course I just bought a new 6XAS this spring....
Dennis-

Just had a look at the 7CAF on tower

Looks real sweet, time to start preparing my christmas wish list or get a job

If you're taking suggestions, I think the Christmas list is the way to go.

I fly a JR XP 8103 and love it. Has 8 model memory and is very easy to program, you don't need more for sport flying.

My P-51 has retracts, flaps and bomb drop so thats 7 channels.
If it had a sliding canopy, there would be 8.

Sliding canopy?

Man, why not automate the pilot and have him slide back the canopy, hop out and walk over to the club house.

Now that would be fun

On my ultra stick I'm using 7 channels. The plane looks like it has a wiring harness in it.

Some people do automate the pilot to turn his head with the rudder...[8D] Not hard and it looks cool.[8D]

The only limit to what functions you can do is your imagination. There have been guys with rotating turrets where the guns ould also elevato...and had LED's in the barrels to flash, and noisemakers to simulate the sound of the guns.... functioning brakes (well those are commo9n on turbine powered models...)