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[Looverlijn]

Hi there Mayhemers,
Have just come back to boating after a 3 year layoff (retired, moved house, rebuild bits of new house! you get the picture) and have just bought a new set of radio gear (Spektrum DX5e with AR600 Rx). Very pleased with it so far, has a nice feel to it but as it was a "Special" price it did not come with all the usual accessories such as switchgear and charger. I have searched t'internet but have not managed to find a reputable supplier for kosher Spectrum items. Plenty of "dodgy" Far East stuff and as I am at least aware of the fact that Spectrum equipment has some different polarity in its plugs I didn't want to risk it. I'm sure some of you guys have had experience with Spektrum kit so can you help me out here. I am planning to use an Mtronics ESC (with BEC) from a 12V Gel cell so I won't need an external Rx battery. Much appreciated if someone can set me on the right track here or tell me where I can get the proper leads etc.
cheers.... Paul

[barriew]

Paul


To the best of my knowledge Spektrum sets do not come with switch harnesses, servos and the like. All you get is a Tx and Rx. I have not found it worth while to use rechargeable batteries in the Tx - 4 AA alkaline cells last me a season at least. If you are using an Mtroniks ESC it comes with a switch which controls the Rx supply, so all you really need is a switch for the power unless you remove the battery after sailing. The Mtroniks switch doesn't switch off the ESC part.


As you will see from various posts on this Forum, Orange make compatible receivers for the Spektrum which are considerably cheaper than the originals, and work extremely well.


Barrie

[Looverlijn]

Thanks Barrie, After all my searching through t'internet I chanced to look in a little model shop in the town which looked as if it only sold toys and plastic kits and it was like an Aladdins cave when I got in. Sold everything I could possibly need including Spektrum gear and what's more the chap in the shop was very knowledable and helpful and re-stated what you had said about Tx batteries lasting long enough that a special charger wasn't needed. Bought a 12V Gel cell and forgot to ask if it was OK to charge using normal Car/Motorcycle charger or would it be safer to use a charger with the right charge current for a Gel cell.

Paul

[Tug-Kenny RIP]

Bought a 12V Gel cell and forgot to ask if it was OK to charge using normal Car/Motorcycle charger or would it be safer to use a charger with the right charge current for a Gel cell.

Hi there,

It would work Ok as long as you don't leave it running. I would tend tend to keep my eye on it, as it's charging, because it won't take too long.  Watch out for warmth in the battery and stop charging when voltage reaches 13 volts.

Cheers

ken

[malcolmfrary]

Bought a 12V Gel cell and forgot to ask if it was OK to charge using normal Car/Motorcycle charger or would it be safer to use a charger with the right charge current for a Gel cell.

No.  Its far too easy to destroy the battery.  The right charger costs less than the battery, certainly less than the right charger plus the replacement battery.  An automatic charger guards against the probability of forgetting it.

[Looverlijn]

Good advice from Malcolm so I went out this aft and bought a "proper" charger. One less thing to worry about.
Moving on... I'm now looking for help in navigating the world of 12V electric motors. Jeez there are so many variations - Do I want brushed or brushless, do I go for direct drive or via a gearbox and what's a good "under load" rev count?  I haven't actually chosen which boat I am going for yet but it's either going to be a tug boat or fishing boat, neither of which need to get up on the plane! Sooooo reasonable power needed for a large (wide beam, about 1 metre length) boat that will look realistic. Top of my wish list at the moment is the Model Slipway "Our Lass II" so any and all suggestions would be very helpful.

Paul

[malcolmfrary]

Have a look at http://www.modelslipway.com/ there is a side link to the motors page where suggestions for their various models appear.

[Looverlijn]

Thanks, missed those links when I was going through the site. Have decided to buy the Our Lass II (with decals) and the suggested motor package. Not sure about the Graupner bow thruster though - Graupner seem to be having real problems at the moment so if anybody has any info about an alternative bow thruster, it would be great to know. The internet is great for searching for stuff but if you believed everything on there, like "our kit is guaranteed for life" and "our returns policy is unbeatable", etc, etc, I prefer to trust a personal recommendation from somebody who has actually used this or that piece of kit. I guess that over the years I have developed an over-developed cynical view. 

cheers

Paul

[Tug-Kenny RIP]

Have you seen Cornwall model boats for boat stuff.

Here is their pages on Bow thrusters.

http://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/cgi-bin/sh000001.pl?REFPAGE=http%3a%2f%2fwww.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk%2findex.html&WD=thruster%20bow&PN=bow_thrusters.html%23aRAB108_2d20#aRAB108_2d20


Cheers

Ken