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FanFacts H


ello again! Well, the Miller moths and swallows are swooping through the intersections, so I guess flying weather will be in full force by the time you read this. Several jet rallies have been flown (I wish I could have been at a couple of them!), and soon we will all be sporting variations on a farmer’s tan! First up, I reported on the mods Mike Warren was doing on his Airworld Me-262 last time. Well, I can now report that it flew and flew well at the EDF Jet Jam in Muncie. If you can drive over 1000 miles each way, fly, and bring the airplane home without needing anything resembling repairs, then it was a fantastic weekend!


Second up was the Mississippi Afterburn- er event. This is a fundraiser for the local Community College. And while the model flying is always a big part of the event, Mis- sissippi seems to have full scale guys begging to bring their airplanes in for the event as well. Several years ago an L-29 Delfin, the predecessor of the better known L-39, flew in. This year a MiG-15 two-seater arrived, and even raffled a flight to major crowd ap- proval. It was also neat for me to see the pho- tos of Bob Price’s L-1011, since I can remem- ber him flying one at the Greater Southwest event in Waco, Texas back in 2002! With the improvements in battery tech- nology being preceded by improvements in speed controls (i.e., one that will continue working for more than three minutes before melting at 9S, or back in the NiCd and NiMH days that would translate as 30 cells) and greater efficiencies in brushless motors, it is not uncommon to see someone bring a van filled with EDFs of all sizes with batter- ies to match and fly all day without a hiccup. Well, many of us are less than enamored with the “truth-in-selling” claims that all manufacturers use to attempt to sway us in our purchasing. Who are we supposed to be- lieve? Are the manufacturers of our airplanes being honest in their battery manufacturer recommendations; i.e., have they flight tested the life of and number of cycles of the battery? Or, are they just using a brand based upon: (a) a good deal on the cells, (b) the brand they have always used, (c) these cells fit into the space available or (d) all the above?


by greg moore You can reach Greg Moore via e-mail at jetflyr@comcast.net


PHOTO: JAMES SMITH


Bob Price flew his 11-year-old PCM L-1011. Greg remembers watching Bob and his L-1011 fly way back in 2002. Talk about longevity!


Most of us are aware of various testing done on engines, but when has/where have batteries been tested outside of the manufac- turers’ factories? Enter Joe Giamona, known as MCSGUY on the RCGroups forums. In a previous life (he is now retired) he was the owner of Motion Control Systems, Inc. (www.motioncontrolsys.com) which designed and built Robotics Manufacturing Systems, so I think he knows just a tiny bit about cur- rent, wiring, servo needs and so on. Well, Joe was miffed when a brand new pack from a very big brand name manufac- turer gave up the ghost, costing Joe a large and expensive jet. In spite of careful break- in, the pack failed within several cycles and the manufacturer (where have we heard this before) said it was Joe’s set-up and improper handling.


Being of a scientific-method mindset, Joe decided to spend a large chunk of change to develop a standardized procedure to test the claimed “C” ratings of cells as well as their actual outputs, cell matching and whether their wiring and connectors would melt dur- ing testing. Suffice it to say, the results have been interesting, and some of the industry insiders who have joined in the discussion concerning cell manufacturing, internal re- sistance and cell chemistry have really brought a lot to the table.


Alright then, what are the abridged re- sults? Well, some of the less expensive 25C cells outperformed the “gorilla in the room” 65C cells by miles, and at a fraction of the price. Add in that one brand has consistent- ly (as in not a single pack was “off” during


testing) outperformed the others, and that you can trust what you get.


As I stated, some of us have had issues, and some of them are addressed in the thread which has become quite lengthy. My peeve with LiPo cells began with a pair of Hyperion 4S packs which were supposed to be the king-of-the-hill for my E-flite F-15 (reviewed inside these pages in March 2009). After just five flights one of them lost a cell. Fortunately it happened between its last flight and time to charge for its next. So, there was no flying that weekend! Then I lost a beta-build F-18 when cell number 3 of a 6S Zippy pack went south just as I turned outbound from the gear pass (hello Mr. Barbed Wire Fence!). This hap- pened on charge cycle #7, flight #5. Since this is a print magazine, dependent upon ads and subscriptions for revenue (did I mention ads?) I think that I will pass the buck on the poor results that our name brand packs had and leave it to ye-new editor whether he feels it wise to name them. Re- gardless, this thread has generated a life of its own with one highly rated brand (Dinogy) throwing barbs at other manufacturers. Joyfully, Joe has told them to grow up! The entire thread can be found at: http:// tinyurl.com/n2lea48. Be warned though, that as of May 22, the thread is 109 pages long! As a teaser (and because this month has had a family medical crisis that has my mind on other things so I am less orderly in my thought processes) I mentioned that some of the battery brands have taken inter- est in this thread. Giant Power (which


PHOTOS: MIKE WARREN


Mike Warren poses with his “White 3” rendition of an Air World Me-262 (at left) just after a successful maiden flight. Just after takeoff (above), this screen grab from a YouTube video shows “White 3” climbing strongly on its twin Schubeler setup.


52 JUNE 2014


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