Hello,
Posted this in the kit building forum with no response, thought I might try it here. Pretty sure I have it figured out, but would like some other opinions.
I have been reading some of the other posts on this plane, but have a few questions. We are going to get my 12 year old son a Tiger 60 kit for Christmas and build it together. This will be my first kit in 30 some odd years, but I don't think I will have any problem with the build. I have 3 ARFs (Nexstar, H-9 Pulse and VQ warbird P-51D), and made a few mods to some of them. My son is pretty good with the Nexstar, and will be more than ready (by the time we get this built[X(]) for the Tiger. Will be using a Saito 82 and building the tail dragger version. I read on the Tower site that the Tiger requires 45-50 oz torque servos. Can I use Futaba S3004 (44.3 oz with 4.8v) servos? Or, should I use 6v battery (56.8 oz)? Or should I just use 3010 (72 oz) servos? I prefer to use the 4.8v batteries. Seems like 44.3 oz would be ok, but figured somebody out there would have the experience. Couldn't find any servo torque info in the (on-line) manual.
Thanks for your help,
Pete

Those servos will do fine. I suggest you use two on the ailerons,one on each aileron, then one each on throttle and rudder. Then for the elevator I would pick a regular servo of 60 Oz. or about such.

The 4 cell batt will work well, however I suggest you use one of at least 1000 mah. If you use less, then maybe an 800 mah at minimum but be ready to charge after 45 minutes air time. Way back when we all used 5-600 mah nicads, and I pushed the envelope, I had to do more building. Now I use big batteries with an engine that can carry the weight as you plan to do, so I get more flying time. If you feel the need for a digital servo, remember it idles at the current draw that most standards use for work.

Just a tip, when buying servos, don't overlook HiTech. Good things come in those packages.

Merry Christmas and good luck with your project.

My second plane was a Tiger 60 ARF. In fact, I just sold it to a fellow club member after having it for over 5 years and flying it often. Good second plane, or third, or whatever, for that matter.

Anyway, I used standard Airtronics servos, which I believe are the same torque rating as the Futaba's you mentioned. And it flew just fine. I also used the standard 4.8v 800 mah battery that came with the RD6000 radio, which I also believe is the same size as just about every other standard setup that comes with the radio.

Now, with that said, there is absolutely nothing wrong with adding a little torque to the elevator rudder and ailerons. The cost difference is not that great, and it gives you some assurance that it will work with authority, but I wouldn't worry about it for your son for now. If you want more authorty later on you can do one of two things: swap out to a 6 volt battery pack, or go to higher torque servos. Your call. Either way, it isn't that much of a job to swap. The battery, of course, is the easiest to do, the servos will take a little longer.

As a note, I have been pretty consistently using a Venim 1200 mah 6 volt (five cells) NiMH battery pack in my planes. The brand name is only mentinoed because that's what I can get at my Local Hobby Shop. He stocks the Venims, so that's what I get. If he had Eveready's, I get those, so brand name isn't all that big a deal. The reason I use the larger batteries is because I like the servo response of the 6 volt pack, and I want the higher capacity because I have been swapping out the Airtronics system with the new Spektrum DX7 2.4 GHz system. They tend to draw a tad bit more current (not much more, but slightly more) and I don't want to get into the threshold of reboot that the DX7 RX has (and I understand all the other 2.4 Gig receiver processors go through at low voltages) even though I never NEVER allow my RX batteries to even come close to those thresholds.

Best of luck with the build and keep us informed via this forum as to the progress of the build.

CGr.

Pete,
I fly an ARF Tiger60 with an OS75AX on it. Fly it all the time. And I'm retired, so "all the time" is A LOT of time.

The standard servos will do great. Don't worry about going with a 6V. If you've already got the servos, good deal, but if you don't................

I used Hitec HS-225 minis in the wing. They're about $20 each and save you over an ounce using two of them. Not only are they lighter, which helps even more when a servo is placed farther away from the CG, but they're actually stronger than most standard sized servos. They called "the Mighty Mini" and certainly are. Wish I could find something like them for the elevator or rudder. Something around $25 with more torque than a standard, but only the weight of the average. Which is between 1.5-2.0 ounces. I'd use the 225s but for the elevator and rudder, larger gears are a better choice than smaller ones, no matter what the weight or torque.

You actually don't need standards for ailerons when you've got one servo for each aileron for 60size or less. Unless the airplane has 3D sized ailerons, that is.

Good morning, Rock.

I used the standard Airtronics because that's what I had on hand. The battery pack, well, what was what was on hand too. There is no question that higher current capabilities is better than lower for all the standard reasons. The six volt conversion is only if really needed. That is, the 4.8 volt packs are totally adequate.

I saw a Tiger 60 at the field last year, had an OS 90 four stroke on board and was a real performer. He had a Hitec mini in the engine compartment, (throttle servo) forward of the firewall, which sort of caught my eye. His drain tube was routed so that any excess oil went down and away so it would not collect in the engine compartment. And, what do you need a higher torque servo on the throttle for anyway, so I thought this was a good idea for such a setup. Additionally, it put a few grams of weight forward for better CG control. I needed some weight on mine to get the right CG, and that was with a Super Tigre 75.

I had a problem with my Tiger in that I was using Sullivan Goldenrods for control to the elevator and rudder. As the plane gained speed, I lost elevator authority. I originally thought it was a weak servo, or the wrong choice as the elevator servo. I had the same problem with the rudder, but it was less evident because I was still learning to fly (beyond solo that is) and the rudder was not used as extensively as it is now. Anyway, I found that the sullivan tubes were not 'anchored' properly so they actually flexed when I added elevator at higher speeds. I ended up removing the covering from the bottom of the fuselage to roughen the tubes then add epoxy to fix the tubes to the formers all the way from the radio compartment under the wing to the elevator. As it was, I had it anchored in two spots which, as I learned, was totally inadequate. The plane flew just great after the fix and the servos were just fine.

One more thing about the Hitec servos, as you said, they are inexpensive (read not cheap, but inexpensive) and do work fine. So, that's a great suggestion.

CGr.

I built my Tiger 60 from a kit as a taildragger also. Power .76 GMS 2st. I am using Hitec 425BB all around except on the throttle-- 325BB. I have it set up with dual aileron servos also. I think the Futaba 3004's will be just fine. I flew mine quite a bit last year with no trouble whatsoever.

Hossfly, CGretired, da Rock, and Sourkraut,
Thanks for the replys. I don't have the servos yet, so it looks like I will be checking out the Hitec servos. I sometimes get stuck on a label, and most of my radio equipment is Futaba. I have read a lot of threads on how good this plane flys. I think my son is really going to enjoy it. I am going to start a build thread on this site in the beginners forum, because I am basically a beginner and will have a few questions. Unless of course, you guys think I should start it in the kit building forum? Knowing my son, the start date for the build will probably be 12-25-07 at 5:00am.
Thanks again,
Pete

P.S.
Would have responded earlier, but I just spent the last two days at an electrical conference, 3 hours from my house one way, and had to drive both days. I am just a littel zapped.[sm=crying.gif].

Hi Mesaflyer

you probalby have seen this but in case you havent there is an extensive thread on Tiger 60 builds in the Kit building forum.

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_49..._1/key_/tm.htm

I am building one myself and enjoyed the info on servos. Thanks for asking the question.
good luck with your build.

I also built a Tiger 60 this past summer. I used standard Airtronics HS-300 servos and 4.8v 600mah battery pack that came with my RD6000 radio. All work great. By the way, this was my first low wing plane after a trainer and it is easy to fly. Your son should have no problems.

Also, Tigers tend to be tail heavy. When you build the kit you'll see that there is a lot of room under the fuel tank. Instead of gluing in the fuel tank platform, I glued some rails to the fuselage side then screwed the platform down to the rails. It is easy to remove the whole assembly and place weight or battery pack underneath in order to balance.

SJNason,
Yea, I have been watching that thread. I/we are going to build ours pretty much per plan. I am not ready to start changing too many things yet. Need a little more experience building. But I like m_skaggs idea.
I probably would not of even asked about the servos, but that part in the Tower specs had me second guessing.

m_skaggs,
Thanks for the tip. I think I recall reading about them being tail heavy. One of the reasons I am putting in the Saito 82. I like your idea about the removable platform. Is there room for a 12-14 oz fuel tank?
Thanks again.
Pete

Pete,

As I recall, I have a 12oz fuel tank in mine (I get 10-12 minute flights easily). Honestly I don't know if you could get a larger tank in there. You might be able to fit a larger tank if it were taller and filled up the space that exists under my tank. But, it might be difficult/impossible to install it in the plane through the hatch after the fuselage is built. I think if the tank were longer, you risk having it extend into the wing saddle area.

I built mine pretty muck stock. The only mods I made were to strengthen the landing gear blocks, use nylon bolts on the wings, and I added extra ply in the tail and a hardwood block in front of the wing so I could convert it to a tail dragger at a later date (did that this weekend).

It's a good plane. Easy to fly.