skylark_man

i just orderd a skylark off of ebay and will get within the next week and since ive heard that the parts for the piccolo work with the skylark i want to know what mods are a must for it.

skylark_man

oh and i almost forgot this is the auction with some pics.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...&category=2563

Thrustline

No mods really needed but, you need to make sure the blades are balanced, I have the Skylark and a feda, once the blades are balanced properly and the gyro is set, they are a lot of fun, and fly very well, they do hover nicely once they are trimmed properly, that is what took the most time for me. Take your time and make sure the servos don't move around too easily, I took small tie straps and secured them to stop them from moving when the heli is in flight. I have spent a great deal of time on these, especially the skylark...another thing you must do is mod the transmitter, it is easy too, you just have to flip the tensioner on the throttle over, when it clicks you miss areas that make the lettle helis fly smoother while flying, then it doesn't jump up and down as you move the throttle..Have fun, I'm between charges on my skylark right now and ready to buzz it around the shop some more..

skylark_man

hey thrustline is the remote you got with your skylark was it in asian mode where the throttle, rudder, yaw, and pitch are all moved around because if it is did you have to switch around the sticks and mess with the circuits or was it in american mode.

Thrustline

I suppose it was what you are calling Asian Mode, however, it is mode 1 to me the way I fly my airplanes (old timer formula one racer) Throttle on the left with the rudder.

skylark_man

oh well mode 2 or (asian mode) is where the throttle is on the right and rudder on the left which is weird and since this is what i orderd i am going to switch them around so its in mode 1.

oosel

My Feedback: (4)

i just got mine 2 weeks ago. it is very simple to swap the controlls around the way you want, just to let you know.

bkasdan

just got my skylark - i undertand that I need to swithc # 2&4 wires to get to american mode ? on the plane is the order 1-4 from top to bottom ?

cebrey

Bah, it's not American mode and Asian mode. It's mode 1 and mode 2. There are more countries/nations in the world than America and Asia you know :P

Humbug,

Carl

Thrustline

Yes, Mode 1 Mode 2, you do not switch any wires, it is a simple 4 channel radio, to change it you have to move the small solid spring that rides on the back of the stick to the other side and move the small arm and spring to the side the spring was on, not hard to do, tweezers work best for me on putting the spring, look at it and the others when putting it back together and it will work fine.

cebrey

Erm, doesn't that just put the ratchett on the other stick? How does it change the mode?

Forgive me if I'm getting a little confused here

Carl

Thrustline

That's right, that is the only difference on the basic radios, abit more complicated on a computer set or a basic with mixing/DR but these radios are not. Just move it and it will work fine.

cebrey

There's more to the different modes than what stick the ratchet is on. Look at http://www.bmfa.org/faq/radio_primary.htm to see what I mean. Basically, if you just move the ratchet, then you're left with a radio that has the ratchet on the pitch, which is a bad thing. You'd need to move the throttle channel over to the left stick too, which is where swapping leads etc comes into play.

Carl

Thrustline

That's not the case on these radios, I know I have done several, but for the more =advanced radios, like the ones we buy from Futaba, Airtronics, JR etc..what you say is true. This unit hwever, is a simple 4 channel , with no difference what action does what.

cebrey

So you're trying to tell me that by changing a spring in the Tx you can move the throttle from the right stick to the left stick?

Carl

Thrustline

Yes, and obviously you switch where you plug the servo and throttle speed into the receiver and you are set.

cebrey

*That's* what I was getting at There's more to it than *just* swapping the spring over on the Tx. Sure, if you have a computer radio then it's more important, because the Tx needs to "know" which stick is which channel, but for simpler models you just swap the spring _and_ the corresponding servo leads on the Rx

Glad we got that one sorted out

Carl

Thrustline

You got it, so any non computer type this is all you have to do and you're off and having fun...

I only wish it was that easy for the computer types, most all come Mode 2 and I fly Mode 1 and prefer it from my formulae 1 racing days, Airtronics converts it at no charge if you send it to them, they like to keep us older guys happy.

cebrey

I fly mode 2 (throttle on the left), it just makes sense My radio can swap between modes 1 and 2 at the touch of a (few) button(s) though. I just hold in a couple of buttons, switch it on and then select which mode I want. It's a JR XP652, if you're interested.

Carl

Thrustline

Yes, that is nice, I have a few radios that do that now too. A nice enhancement.

hot4teach

My Feedback: (1)

It seems that some people in this thread are confused about mode 1/mode 2.
Mode 2 is the most common: Throttle and rudder/tail rotor on left stick. Aileron and elevator/cyclic on right stick.
If you were to just order any multi-channel transmitter in the US without requesting mode 1, it will come mode 2.