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Old 04-29-2013 | 05:41 PM
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Default Servo wiring question

I have a question. Is the signal wire all that is needed for the servos from the rx? Or another question, I have some electric retracts that I want to power with their own battery and their own switch. What is the easiest way to separate the power?

Thanks

Jon
Old 04-29-2013 | 06:25 PM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

No, you need the ground wire as well.

To use separate batteries you common the ground wires and connect the +ve and signal separately. Doubtless someone will come up with a neat diagram before long

Terry
Old 04-29-2013 | 08:07 PM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

This is very easy to do and you need nothing special.

First you start with a common standard Y cord. Next you plug the leads from the electric retracts into one of the female legs of the Y cord and the next step will be to plug the lead from your second or retract battery or the second batterys switch/charge harness into the second leg of the Y harness.

Hold on now for the last step before everyone starts chanting this cannot work! it does. The last step is to take the male plug of this Y cord that you have the gear and second battery plugged into and carefully snip the center wire (the red one) then remove a quarter inch or so contact cannot be made. Do this only on the plug from the Y cord that is plugged into the rx,s retract channel.

Your retracts will now be powered by only the second battery, they cannont dump the flight battery or affect it in any way and the sense lead of the plug now has the ground plane for the sensing circuit to function. You mearly plug this into whichever channel you desire for retract selection.

John

This is a photo of one of my ships that is a hard working airplane and is intended to serve its whole life just shooting arrested landings and I used a glow driver to help assure smooth throttle ups circuit after circuit. I powered the glow driver in exactly the same way simply to avoid the danger of draining the flight battery excessively from this repetitive use so it has its own isolated pack as you can see. You can also see the second batterys charge/switch on the side of the fuselage in tandem with the flight battery charge/switch.
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Old 04-30-2013 | 05:47 AM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

Thanks John and Terry, that is exactly what I was looking for.

Jon
Old 04-30-2013 | 06:50 AM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

You are welcome

John
Old 04-30-2013 | 07:21 AM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question


ORIGINAL: Minnreefer

I have a question. Is the signal wire all that is needed for the servos from the rx? Or another question, I have some electric retracts that I want to power with their own battery and their own switch. What is the easiest way to separate the power?

Thanks

Jon
With either electric retracts or mechanical retracts this is a REALLY good thing to do.
Old 05-01-2013 | 12:47 PM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

Hey, John... I'm not AS good with Photoshop as my Brother was... :-/
let me see if I understand this correctly, (then I will at least attempt to work up a decent diagram for this....) first I want to make SURE I understand correctly.
assume a standard tricycle gear setup, 3 servoless retracts, all being powered by a 5 cell NiCad, (6V) which is SEPARATE from the battery used to power the receiver and all other servos.

1) 'Y' together all 3 retracts. (one single plug would now control all 3 gear.. it wouldn't really be a 'Y' cord, but you know what I mean... call this one 'Y1')
2) using a separate 'Y' cord (this one really IS a 'Y'..) call it 'Y2'. plug the male end of Y1 into one female leg of Y2.
3) plug the 5 cell nicad (used ONLY to power the gear) into the OTHER female leg of Y2.
4) snip the MIDDLE (RED) WIRE from the MALE leg of Y2 (insulating it completely) and plug the male end of Y2 into the gear channel of the receiver.
5) make all other receiver and flight battery connections as normal.

did I get that right?


ORIGINAL: JohnBuckner

This is very easy to do and you need nothing special.

First you start with a common standard Y cord. Next you plug the leads from the electric retracts into one of the female legs of the Y cord and the next step will be to plug the lead from your second or retract battery or the second batterys switch/charge harness into the second leg of the Y harness.

Hold on now for the last step before everyone starts chanting this cannot work! it does. The last step is to take the male plug of this Y cord that you have the gear and second battery plugged into and carefully snip the center wire (the red one) then remove a quarter inch or so contact cannot be made. Do this only on the plug from the Y cord that is plugged into the rx,s retract channel.

Your retracts will now be powered by only the second battery, they cannont dump the flight battery or affect it in any way and the sense lead of the plug now has the ground plane for the sensing circuit to function. You mearly plug this into whichever channel you desire for retract selection.

John

This is a photo of one of my ships that is a hard working airplane and is intended to serve its whole life just shooting arrested landings and I used a glow driver to help assure smooth throttle ups circuit after circuit. I powered the glow driver in exactly the same way simply to avoid the danger of draining the flight battery excessively from this repetitive use so it has its own isolated pack as you can see. You can also see the second batterys charge/switch on the side of the fuselage in tandem with the flight battery charge/switch.
Old 05-01-2013 | 01:09 PM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

OK Jim when using the gear in the ordinary fashion two or three gears would be ganged in some fashion so that only one plug is inserted into your channel of choice in the Rx to control the up and down movement and all the power used down stream is provided through this port in the rx from the main Rx buss.

To separate from this power in the rx we use a Y cord that the plug from the gear or ganged gear two or three is plugged to the other side of that Y is where you plug the extra battery for the gear, Now the Red lead of the plug from that last Y chord is cut so all the current for the gear has to come from extra battery but your one plug that goes into the retract channel on your Rx still has a sense and ground lead so the switching function will still operate.

Very simple and increditably hard to explain without diagrams which are beyond me but here is how I figured it out just use a common Y cord and go ahead and cut the red lead next to the male plug now rig up your gear and battery and give it a go.

John
Old 05-01-2013 | 01:16 PM
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From: Spicer, MN
Default RE: Servo wiring question

Understood, John

I'll do my best to work up a diagram... but I get the basic idea.
(I'm working on a twin 70MM Mig 29 with 12 servos .. flaps, slats, thrust vectoring ... (PLUS servoless retracts) )
it's time for me to get on the stick
I'll post a graphic / image etc.
Thanks again!
Old 05-01-2013 | 03:38 PM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

Like this.

If you need to power addtional devices you can "Y" from the device lead some more. There are also three leg "Y" cords available.

Typically there would be a switch/charge harness on the battery leg as well.

Good job on the written explanation John. Picture Helps it all come to life

*NOTE* I depicted a brown signal wire IE> Spektrum...Typically this wire may be white, orange, yellow or brown depending on the Mfg.

Cheers!
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Old 05-01-2013 | 05:00 PM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

Excellent Frets and that illustration is exactly what I was talking about
Old 05-01-2013 | 05:27 PM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

You don't know it, but you have helped me on numerous occassions over the years. I'm just happy to have been able to give a little back!

Thanks!
Old 05-01-2013 | 07:34 PM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

A guy with some decent soldering skills can make up a "Y" with as many legs as needed- one for each retract and one for the battery for a total of 4 in this application. There's the added benefit that each leg can be the right length to make the wiring a little neater.
Old 05-05-2013 | 04:22 AM
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Default RE: Servo wiring question

Thanks for the kind words Frets.

Just found some photos I had made showing the Y cord with the disabled positive lead. Also a photo of a normal Y cord that Jester is talking about that is in this case set up for three legs. This one is used on one side of my six engined airplane for throttle.

John
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