I just purchased a copy of AFP. It seemed to install fine but I am having a problem with glitches - like I am getting shot down by someone else's Tx at the field. With the plane in take off position, all of a sudden the throttle will accelerate, the ailerons will flap about - the elevator and rudder too. Then it will go back to normal then back to crazy. The program does this with the two different radios I tried.

When I go to "calibrate" the inputs will look fine then all of a sudden they will drastically change like the radio isn't connected. Then it will change back. At one point the program said it couldn't find the interface device when in "calibrate". I have a Futuba 9c and an older Futaba Conquest. The 9c is the one that the inputs change sporadically when in calibration mode. The Conquest doesn't do this but still is just as glitchy when flying.

I checked all the connections to the serial port - still had the problem. What should I do? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
Bill

Have you installed the update patch?

Yes, I installed the update that was on the AFP website but it didn't make any difference. I did notice that the 9c glitchiness in "calibrate" would change as if the radio isn't connected then would change back when I touched the metal face of the Tx. Unfortunatly, even with touching the metal face, the flying would be very unpredictable with control surfaces flapping everywhere. This was true when I switched from my 9c to my Futaba Conquest radio.

I did calibrate everything on the high rates. Thanks
Bill

This seems to be a hardware problem. The lead which plugs into your buddy socket is not earthing itself properly to the Tx and so when there is good contact between the lead and the radio, it works fine, but when there is bad contact its as if you turned the radio off !!.

With a screwdriver, gently lower the metallic notch in the buddy socket so that it makes better contact to the lead. What i did was i folded a piece of aluminium foil and pressed it in between the lead and the socket, making a better contact.

And we keep telling you guys the sim is real! Check out the peg board!

No I agree that somewhere you're not getting a good contact.

The 9c buddy lead doesn't have a metal housing so I can't adjust the notch or add aluminum. If the Tx is grounded (if I touch the metal face), the calibration remains constant but when in fly mode the control surfaces still behave erratically on their own. This happens with two different radios; one with the older and one with the newer Futaba buddy box connections.
Bill

Bill,

If the problem occurs when using both radios, look at what is common between the two setups. The serial dongle, serial interface card, etc.

Did you push the male and female stereo connectors (between the Tx adapter and serial dongle) fully in ? Sometimes they can be quite tight and need a little extra push

Rajul,
Yes, I tried pushing them in several times. They do fit tight but are fully seated. I also plugged and unplugged the serial connection to the computer. Thanks
Bill

Please check out a thread I did , [link]http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/I_must_touch_Tx_arial_for_my_AFP_to_work_%21%21_he lp/m_1998510/tm.htm[/link] cause you are having exactly the same problem that i had, but instead of touching the front panel as you are doing, i had to touch the arial.

What I finally did, which is what probably solved my problem, (and not the notch or aluminum foil) was I changed the shielded wire to a thicker and much better shielded one. If you do not have any experience with soldering, give the job to someone who does, not that its a difficult but better avoid frying your interface. Beleive me there is nothing to worry about, the interface is fine, its just the piece of wire.

Halogen,
I have a 9c which doesn't have the 5 pin socket but rather a small all plastic square 6 pin socket. My old Futaba Conquest radio has the old socket (which I made trainer cords and a fms connector for), and worked (when checking "properties" in the Control section), but when in Fly mode I still had a very glitchy aircraft.

With the 9c the connector is fine (again, judging from "properties" in the Control section) when I hold the face but again in Fly the aircraft will be very glitchy with me still holding the face. If I don't touch the metal face then the plane really goes crazy and is completely out of control. So it seems I have two seperate problems. Any one else experienced this? Thanks
Bill

After completely uninstalling (uninstall wizard doesn't delete the IPACS directory) and reinstalling AFP, vol. 1 expansion, and the update, the overall glitchiness problem is solved. Now it's just glitchy when I don't touch the faceplate on my 9c - otherwise the program runs fine.

It may be that I have a faulty adapter for the 9c mini plug.

Can you try using a friends 9c? Each cable is tested before it ships and we have sold hundreds of these cables for the new Futaba style radio with no problems.

I don't have access to another 9c but the person I purchased the AFP from reported the same problem with his 9c but not with Airtronics. I did try my old Futaba Conquest with the regular five pin connection with no glitch problems.
Bill