As stated in a previous post, I'm still new to this sport...so please excuse any dumb/basic questions.

I just got my receiver put into a plane I picked up used (Edge 300S). When I was testing everything out, I noticed that the servos (Futaba 3004) make a sound (as if under load) when I hold the sticks to the edges. I thought maybe I was getting too much throw, so I adjusted the travel in the radio to only 75%. But the sound was still there. If I let off the stick even a slight amount, then the sound goes away while the servo still holds the desired position.

Is this of any concern?

Could be. There could still be a bind and a bind could draw extra current which will drain your batteries faster.

You still have to much throw dialled in ,in the transmitter and the servo is moving the control surface too far and binding.

Cheers

Also check the charge of the battery. If it is only noise but the servos stay still (No movement at all) then could be a bind as Bruce stated but if the servos are producing noise and they also move (Slightly or in a good amount) then you have an interference, so you should like to check the receiver position and the antenna routing.

You have no idea of how much throw he actually has. While this MIGHT be the problem it is far from conclusive from what has been stated so far.

Hawes99 - how many degrees of defection does the surface have? If you disconnect the pushrod from the servo does the pushrod/elevator move freely through your desired range or does it tend to bind? Try to keep the pushrod at the same angle when testing as it is when connected.

Thanks to everyone for the replies. Bruce88123: I will test this out tonight when I'm back home with the plane. It seems to me like there should not be any binding issues becasuse once I move the stick away from the most extreme throw (even the smallest amount like 1/32 of an inch) then the noise goes away. Therefore, if there were a binding issue I would think that adjusting the travel down to 75% in the radio would certainly solve that problem.

I'm wondering if this is a weird function of the radio (DX6i) when the sticks are pushed to the extremes? Or maybe this is due to having cheaper type servos (Futaba 3004)?

Either way, I will disconnect the pushrods tonight and make sure they travel freely.

The Futaba 3004 is a good servo. I'm also assuming it's a NEW servo. If it's a used servo, you might have a dying peice of equipment.

I saw a problem like this last weekend. In this case, the servo was just rotating so far that it was getting near to binding the internals. A little "dial back" and it did fine w/ no more funky sounds.

The LONG SHOT chance is that you MIGHT have gotten a bad servo from the mfg. I'm an Industrial Manufacturing Engineer and I can tell you that SOMETIMES even in the best plants, with the best staff, that a sub-par item slips through the "quality net"..... If your throws aren't stretching it too far (or better yet, when it's COMPLETELY UNHOOKED) and it's still making these noises at the far ranges, I'd talk to the seller and get another new servo to replace it. Just as a "test" unhook another servo of the same type and put it in that postion to see if IT makes the same sounds (just a thought....)

WAY better to be safe than WAY sorry!!!!

If the servo is pushing it to a certain point but can't quite get to where it wants to (can happen anywhere in the travel because as you you get close the drive force is reduced) it is stalling. Then when you back off a touch you are telling it you are happy with where it is and it stops struggling. A digital servo applies FULL power until it gets to where it wants to be. This is one of the biggest advantages to them.

Just for grins remove your control rod from the servo horn, move your stick to full and there should be no humm, now just go ahead and touch the control horn, not A lot but just A little pressure, bet it humms again. Sometimes just the little weight of A control rod will make them do that. Digital servos are even worse. My high dollar JR digitals are worse then my digital HTs or Futabas, just look at them the wrong way and they humm at you. Always best to check but most the time it's just the nature of the beast. Nothing wrong with the standard servos, just A couple of years ago 48 inch pounds was A lot. I still use my old standards for A lot of things.

Gray Beard, you totally hit it on the head. I disconnected the pushrod from the servo and humming noise went away. Then when I applied a little bit of pressure with my finger the humm came back. So is this anything to be worried about? I manually moved the pushrods equal to or more than the servos are moving them and there is no binding happening.

I'm no pro or servo guru but I see this A lot with my own stuff, the digitals are the worse for the HUMMMMMMM. All it takes is that little bit of load on them, just the weight of the control rod. I just call it the nature of the beast and fly with them.
The person I trust to answer your question is Tony Stillman. Tony writes the Radio Ramblings for RC Report Magazine.[Only one worth getting] He also owns and operates Radio South. [email protected] or phone800-962-7802 With A question like this it is always better to get an answer from A pro and not off A net site. Just too many conflicting answers and too hard to read between the lines.