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[Martin (Admin)]

Anyone still use 27MHz radio?


 ( It's missing a Rx crystal,  but I will buy a set of ebay if anyone is interested buying it..... ) - if not, a trip down memory lane.... 

[GG]

To answer Martins question in the first post, yes!
My 27 MHz gear (and come to think of it also the 40 MHz stuff) still works perfectly.  I never felt the need to check other transmitters frequency flags was enough of an odious chore to make me abandon them for 2.4 GHz outfits.
Now rather glad as I can comfortably design, build and operate RC submarines without a loss of signal. Plus, the frequency flag makes a neat wind indicator when sailing yachts.
Hopefully someone will take up Martins offer.
Glynn Guest

[Seacommander]

Yep still using 27,
Don't boat often these days, but when I do it's on a small lake with slowish boats and in a controlled manner
No problem at all to be honest, still using some Futaba M series stuff, still all good,
I have an amount of it as well, collected it in latter years as working cheap and robust
Also, still using some 1950's Bassett Lowke electric motors, have used Taycol as well
Now, if I was going to have a weewizz lipo special,  I may get a bit more up to date but until then or until it lets me down
 
I'm all good
Cheers
Mark   

[SteamboatPhil]

Come on Martin I have just learned what this new fangled radio control is all about....
Maybe there is more out there than just straight running.....


(well I do really still have my 27 meg from the 70's....see modern am I...)

[chas]

Me too, my 40 + year old acoms and 30 + year Futuba old still work fine, and are used regularly. The old Fleet 40 meg gear is used all the time, and never misses a beat. I also have cheapo Hobbyking 2.4 gig that works all the time.
  I've also scrapped a spektrum outfit, fault after fault, and I'm at my wits end with my remaining spektrum outfit, and these are supposed to be popular because of great build quality.
  I suppose this means I've been lucky with the old and cheap stuff, and very unlucky with Spectrum,  but it doesn't feel like that.

[roycv]

Hi all, I am still using my 27Mhz equipment and have lots of crystals including the end ones white and black.  Back in the days if you found someone else on black you could reverse the Tx and Rx crystals and that worked happily, not sure at what frequency that would be but it definitely worked OK.

I have just brought into use a 4Ch Acoms AM tx (AP-427) and I have 3 Futaba AM rx's (R124H) to go with it.  All works nicely.  I have not seen any other 4Ch AM sets although I have several 6 ch 27Mhz FM sets and enough crystals to last me out.  For 27 Mhz FM I favour the long gone Micron rx's.  I built my ones from kits, since adapted to accept modern servo connectors.  I have a Micron 7Ch Tx. 27Mhz FM set built from a kit it is really nice to use.  Has a fault at the moment so favour the Futaba M series.

Another plea not to chuck out old 35Mhtz sets as they work just as well with a 40Mhtz cryatal in them.  Contraversial I know but there is so little difference in the RF circuits that the 40Mhz crystal can take the circuits to the higher frequency without problem.

Chas, have a look underneath your Fleet 40Mhz transmitter and see what frequency is mentioned on the label.  I think you will find it is 35Mhz just like my 2 Fleet 40 Mhz Tx's.
Micron have most 40Mhz crystals for sale if you visit the web site.  As you are buying within UK, postal time should be at a minimum.

My one annoyance with Futaba is that there was a period when the 2 Ch 27 mhz AM Tx's looked just like the 40 Mhz AM Tx's I could not find any markings to distinguish them.  Anyone know better?
regards
Roy

[regiment]

wot no price

[Martin (Admin)]

 .... well now there's a story about that!   

[roycv]

Martin this reminds me of a song from Grease,
Roy


Tell me more, tell me more
Was it love at first sight?
Tell me more, tell me more
Did she put up a fight?

[Martin (Admin)]

I originally bought this radio set so |I could convert a Stick radio top one stick, one wheel!

 Why, I read it in an article many years ago, that when you use a wheel, you don't have to work out which way is
 left or right when your boat is going away from you or coming back - it's just turn left or turn right!

 Can I somehow get this wheel off the Futaba and nail it to the FreSky?
 

[Martin (Admin)]

Ha!   Found it!

 Glynn, it's one of yours!

 

[roycv]

Hi Martin I did this job to a Tx and you need to buy a multi turn pot of the about the same resistance value.  They are available.  I found I had to put my wheel on the side of the Tx. 

If you only have the same movement as the pot with the lever and it is at right angles to what you want, it is so twitchy as to be unuseable.  With the multiturn pot you had a good 1 1/2 turns much easier to deal with and more like the wheel on a boat.  The pot connection wires will need unsoldering and extended to reach the new potentiometer. 

Unless someone on the forum has the exact details it is a try it out and see.
I never tried to find a Tx with a wheel, not sure there were any then, so never tried to do a swap.  You should make sure the values are the same and orient the wheel/ pot so that you know where neutral is.
If you want some fun then putting a big capacitor a few 100 micro farads a small polarised one will do, across the outer terminals of the pot and this will introduce a slow response to the TX stick / wheel. 

This has the effect of giving the model boat some inertia so that you have to think ahead for steering etc, as per the real thing.  I also tried this and it works. A bit dodgy on emergency stops unless you fit a switch to go back to the old pot as well.

Good luck
Roy

[roycv]

Hi seacomander what B-L electric motors do you have?  I use a couple of Marines (square magnet) I look at occasionally and play with an old vertical magnet one with a built in gear reduction.  Don't think it would be adequate for a model boat anymore, but trundles round in its way with a 6 volt battery.

 I have a Taycol Comet (permanent magnet) I bought on ebay but it had only a very modest output.  I have loads of the field magnet types.  Otherwise I favour the Marx Luder motors.

regards

Roy

[Martin (Admin)]

 
I've had them both apart now.... eventually!
The Futaba  put up a real fight but worked it out in the end.
The good news is, both have pots of about 4.7KΩ so that should make things easier!
The bad news, do I want to, potentially, wreck a brand new, perfectly good Transmitter?!   

[Seacommander]

Hi Roy,
I have an original Wavemaster with the rear  square Magnet B/L motor, that you describe  - it's a nice little motor to be honest, bit clattery but Ok
As said, give it 6v and it pushes a largish 3 blade brass prop quite well, it's not exciting but it's OK fastened to a resistor type speed control
Lasts about 3/4 -1 an hour on a 6v 4amp sealed lead acid, great for the kids to have a go with. I think they did two sizes of them?
Don't have any Taycol at the moment, passed my last one on, but again OK, apart form the reverse issue.   
I have a an original Maycraft Mercury as well with a small geared MFA motor, and please don't laugh I have an original Sea commander with a large Mabuchi motor, with large magnet cans either side the motor, again , goes OK.
Time for bed
Thanks

[BrianB6]

I have converted an old 27 meg Futaba to have a mechanical wheel linkage and a Spektrum 5 to an electronic wheel.   So much easier to use especially for a 'southpaw'

[Martin (Admin)]

Not seen one like that before!   

[BrianB6]

Go back to 2010

• Left handed, model boat transmitter

[Martin (Admin)]

 
Reduced for quick sale - £100   ( slightly used )

 



                               

[unbuiltnautilus]

No going back now!