Spektrum radio doesn't bind
 

Hi!
After flying for 32 years with ordinary 35Mhz radios I got a Spektrum 2,4ghz radio some weeks ago.
And it works flawlessly using the ON-OFF switch harnes that comes with the radio.

The problem is that I have several older switch harnesses, both JR, Futaba and Hitech and these don't work as supposed with the Spektrum radio. The problem is that they don't let the spektrum radio bind to the reciever. They work OK when I have already bound the reciver to the transmitter using the Spektrum switch harnes or use a newer JR or Hitech switch harnes, both with thicker wire. But it impossible to bind the model to the reciever using one of these old (15-20 year old) switches with thinner wire.

When trying one of these older switches and put the switch to ON ..the leds on both Spektrum receivers don't shine at all...but as soon as I use the Spektrum ...or newer JR or Hitech switch harnes, everything works OK!

Anyone experienced this????

RE: Spektrum radio doesn't bind
 

Try this. Place the binding plug in the bat port of the receiver. Plug the bat into any port of the reciever. Hold the button down on the radio and turn it on. This should work. Dennis

RE: Spektrum radio doesn't bind
 

I purchased the DX7 along with 6 Rx's to go totally 2.4. Only one plane has the switch that came with the DX7....the other 6 have MPI Super switches. I'm not sure you have to have any special switches for 2.4..........[8D]

RE: Spektrum radio doesn't bind
 

Special switch in the sense of having a charging plug on the switch I believe :)
True, the binding plug for the Spectrum only works at the battery port of the receiver, but you can actually power the receiver from any other remaining port.

So, you can connect the battery to any port that you are not using for example aux1 or aux2 using the normal setup of battery-switch-receiver. And then, you attach a short extension on the battery port, which extends beyond the foam protection and allows easy reach for you to install the binding plug.
You can leave it this way, and easily bind your receiver at will. Or, just binding it the first time, and restore the battery connection to go on the proper battery port.

RE: Spektrum radio doesn't bind
 

Hi Jan,
I think your problem is that your other harnesses are only 2 wire. The Spektrum battery harness is 3 wire, any of the newer heavy duty switch harnesses, like the ones from Maxx products that have the third wire (signal wire) that is also needed for radios that support DSC should work.
Good luck,
Pete

RE: Spektrum radio doesn't bind
 

Pete's got it! :D

It has to be a three wire switch since the bind plug connects the signal and negative pins together. Two wire switches only have connections for the negative and positive pins.

Having just gone through this, the HD switches from most of the manufacturers are three wire, but those switches are substantially larger than what is used for the smaller models. The two wire thing is also something I'm going to have to deal with when the new X9303 tx and R921 rx's get here for my gassers as those models run Li-Ion batteries and there are only two wires coming out of the battery voltage regulators.

So other than modifying your wiring stuff in one of several ways I can think of, or actually gaining access to the rx for binding each time, I think the best solution is to just get yourself some more of the three wire switches from Spektrum. That's what I did for my smaller models which I'm converting to 2.4 stuff with a DX-7 setup...[8D]

RE: Spektrum radio doesn't bind
 

Thanks Zeeb!
Question is, what is it?:)

Seriously though, if some of those old harnesses are of questionable age, better to retire them before you get burned by a flaky switch.
Just last Thursday one of our club members almost stuffed a Funtana 90 with a 26cc. gas engine, turned out the radio would spazz out when you tapped the receiver switch. He was flying a JR PPM receiver, he was also very lucky.
Pete