I have a plane and radio that sat for 8 years unused and I'm in the process of getting it airworthy. The plane is in decent shape. Everything works well, engine runs great, servos seem to be fine. Needs a new battery I'm assuming..

However the radio transmitter received some moisture damage and it appears some water/fluid leaked into the radio. It's a Futaba 6XA. I looked around inside the box and there's a bunch of corrosion around the sticks where the moisture entered. I fired it up and all the channels responded fine except the ailerons. They're really jittery and upon trying the other servos on that channel the results were the same.

I'm guessing it's better to get a new/different radio than trying to repair something with this much damage. I'm thinking something basic like a used 4 channel, since I don't need 6. And I don't plan on getting too much deeper into the hobby in the immediate to near future. Plus I can't spend too much $ at this point. If I upgrade planes or add one or two I'd consider a more advanced radio but something simple will suffice at this point.

My question is: If I got a basic radio like the Futaba Skysport 4VF (or similar), can I just pull the crystal from the old box (on channel 46) and put it in the new box? The receiver is a Futaba and is in fine shape..

Thanks in advance..

.

or you could get a new TX on channel 46- either way I don't see why it wouldn't work.

Sorta depends on which "box" you mean. Are you talking about the receiver "box" or the transmitter "box"? If you mean the receiver, it may be ok to switch the crystal. I say "may" because some manufacturers have different crystal models and you need to be sure the crystal you have is the proper model for the receiver. If you're talking about the transmitter "box", the answer is no, it's not ok to just swap crystals. The FCC regs require that transmitter crystals only be swapped by people with the equipment and knowledge to check the output and make any necessary adjustments.

As said, you can't switch crystals on the transmitter, but you can on the receiver.
There is another option. You can send your transmitter in to Futaba or Radio South for repair. It may cost less than buying a used radio which is always a gamble anyway and then you will have a better radio that is gauranteed to work.