Radio range check
 

Hello,

I’m walking away from my airplane when the Tx antenna is fully folded and both Tx and Rx are on.
I did it on the ground with engine running.

At the distance 200 feet mark the servos are jittering, they stop jittering at 170 feet.

The Rx antenna is running inside nyrod and fuselage with holes covered with monokote.
The Rx antenna is completely out about 4 inches long when its not inside a nyrod.

I flew it like this many times, there is no range issues or influences when the antenna is out, even when I hardly see the airplane.

The radio is tower hobbies 6XM similar to Futaba 6EXA that somebody has at the field, at least visually identical, except that on the tower 6XM the Tx antenna looks thiner.


Questions:
Is it passing range test?
Should I just continue to enjoy my radio?
Should I send it for inspection?

Thanks
Alex

RE: Radio range check
 

I'd say 200 feet is a pass. Your manual shoud tell you. I just looked in my 9CAP manual and they suggest a minimum of 100 ft. I get 3X that at our field.

RE: Radio range check
 

Charlie P is right. With my 9CAP, I can get to the fence on either end of our runway and it's 500' plus some brown zone on either end of the runway. The real test is to set the TX on the ground at 100 ot 200 ft out. That gives the worst possible signal out of the TX. If it works there, it will work in the sky.

I took off one day and was out, way out, so I can stay clear of the experienced guys, and I looked up to see my antenna all the way down. I about lost the plane, not because I lost signal, but the panic of trying to pull the antenna up let me loose track of the plane. I had to be close to 1/4 mile out if not further. That tells you that a ground check that is iffy may not let you land after takeoff.

One of our guys was range testing his plane after a repair and he was way out to the end of the runway, with his antenna fully extended. We called him in and explained what he was doing wrong. He had earned his wings a couple months before and this was the first day that he had been told how to propperly do a range check. It's something that sometimes gets lost in the training.

Don

RE: Radio range check
 

Speaking of range, which radios in general are supposed to have more of it between 2.4 GHz and 72 MgHz? I would think the shorter wavelengths of 2.4 GHz would make it travel a shorter distance but that's just a wild guess.

RE: Radio range check
 

Thanks guys,
yes maybe its demanding too much from a simple radio...
i'll do the on the ground check.

Alex

RE: Radio range check
 

At the 200 ft mark when the servos get jittery...it should stop when you raise your antenna..if so you are good to go

RE: Radio range check
 

Typically, 100 feet (35 paces) is the pass/fail marker for 72MHz and 90 feet (30 paces) for Spektrum. When in doubt, check the manual for detailed information. Running the engine during a range check is a good idea, but just make sure the airplane is restrained..... Not that I have experience with that or anything. :eek:

I don't know, but It really doesn't matter since the range with either radio type is well beyond being able to see your aircraft to fly it.

RE: Radio range check
 

Gee, I never thought of that! The point of a range check is to check for loss of signal.... or jittery servos. Including the throttle servo! Yikes!.... add that to my mental notes....

RE: Radio range check
 

A lot depends on the TX and RX. Both have park flyer verisions, meaning short range. With the 72mhz, the receiver/antenna plays a bigger role in the range.

One point I would like to point out. 2.4 is really line of site. We have several areas close in around our field that you can drop out of site and with luck not crash. More than one time, I've dipped below the hill and was lucky enough that I was able to pull it back up and in the air. With 2.4, that isn't going to happen. If you drop below a hill or the likes, it's a goner. If you can see it, the radio is off line.

Don

RE: Radio range check
 

ah, the perpetuation of misinformation. Gotta love it.
The wave properties of any radio signal will allow the signal to bend around objects. Sure, at such a high frequency and shorter wavelength, the bending of the wave will be substantially less than with 72 mhz, but it will, none the less, bend around objects. Any 2.4 ghz wireless telephone will work through and around walls in the house. And I guarantee you our transceivers are much stronger than the ones found in wireless household phones. I'm not arguing that the 2.4 ghz won't bend as well as the 72, but to call it absolutely line of sight is simply incorrect. Even as such, that would be a terrible reason to pick 72 mhz over 2.4 ghz. The odds of you actually flying a plane that you can't see successfully are low anyway. Again, not saying it can't happen, but not likely.
If it were truly "line of sight" then anytime someone inadvertantly walked in front of your radio while you were flying, you'd lose your airplane, since the radio would no longer have a line of sight to the model.

RE: Radio range check
 

Don't even get me started talking about attenuation. :D