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Ok convert me!


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Hi John My "Wombaling" tends to take three different forms: 1. I turn up at the field with a plane, 4 LiPos and a Transmitter. Have a natter, 4 flights a natter and go home. 2. I turn up with a 6S A123 equipped 40 sized model, a leisure battery, charger and transmitter. Fly for 10 mins, and then charge for 10 mins while I have a natter and keep this up for the whole afternoon. 3. I turn up with a 6S A123 equipped 40 sized model & 1 spare battery, a leisure battery, charger and transmitter. Fly for 10 mins, swap batteries and fly while I charge for 10 mins and keep this up for the whole afternoon. Of course there can be any combination of the above with more than one plane too.. Well thats the theory, I often contrive to break something or "land" at an odd attitude, but I guess we all do that from time to time.
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Well up until recently, I've always "Wombled" down to the field with just the model, batteries and Tx - never had a problem, flown as much as I want to, haven't had to clean slime off the model and probably spent a few pence on each flight in the cost of charging the batteries again!  Since venturing into the world of I.C. my wombleing is more elaborate and consists of model, flight box with fuel, starter, cleaning spray, kitchen roll, spanners, spare fuel line etc, etc - oh and Tx of course!  I spend probably 80p per flight in fuel (it's a 1.00 4-stroke) and spend half an hour after the session cleaning off the goo.  Nonetheless, I still enjoy it!

It really is a case of you pays your money and you makes your choice.  I enjoy both sides of the hobby.  Chris, I like the sound of these A123's and I think that will be my next experiment.

Cheers,

Tim.

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Tim After a couple of years of using them, I find myself using LiPos for smaller models and A123's for 40 size and above. This is because they do weigh more, and are a bit bulkier. But there are so many advantages, its certainly worth having a go. Remember that for the quick charge times you need a charger with an A123 setting that has a high power rating. Best of luck, let us know how you get on. Chris
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Ive just looked at your included link Chris. These look pretty much like the 2300 nimh battery packs ive recently made myself. These i only use to power the onboard radio kit obviously, not a motor. I built them becase i just dont trust those AA battery holders which are standard kit with all radio makes.
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2 x LiFePO4s ( A123s or M1s as they are commonly known ) also make an excellent airborne radio pack for larger models.

At 6.6V nominal they will be fine for most Rx and servos without the extra complication of a regulator, and there are lower capacity versions of these LiFePO4 cells available which would suit.

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John, Futaba, JR, Multiplex, Sanwa and Spektrum radio all come with made up nicad/nimh packs, but as you say its not worth getting into a spin about  

In the summer I recommended an A123 electric setup for a lifelong IC flyer and he has been chuffed to bits with it ever since.
He had already bought a Multiplex Mentor model which is designed for 3S 3200 LiPo.
For it I recommended the following:-

From www.hobbycity.com 
TR 35-48-B 900kv Brushless Outrunner
TURNIGY Plush 60amp Speed Controller
TURNIGY BESC Programming Card (Not essential but makes ESC programming much easier)
Turnigy Accucel-6 Balance Charger & Discharger (only charges at up to 5A so not the fastest A123 charger available)
HXT UBEC 5/6v output, 5.5~23v Input (UBEC to supply receiver voltage from the flight battery)
Female Polyquest - Male JST 4S (adapter balance cable for balance charging)

and From http://www.puffinmodels.com/
4S A123 pack. x 2 (which fitted this models battery tray perfectly).

NOTE: John Emms at Puffin is always very helpful to recommend setups for any particular model.

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Hi John, Why convert?

Funny how many people complain about engine cuts and engine problems. I wonder why.  It is a sign of lack of knowledge or poor engine plumbing.

We never have that sort of problem in our club. When the odd one crops up it is an exception and we all wonder what on earth has gone wrong.

As for 20 minute flights, most of us are happy with 10 minutes. if we want more we could fit a bigger tank. Of course in our club we all have an allocated frequencies with no duplicates so we have ten minute flights as often as we want without having to go the back of the peg queue.

I wonder how those waiting for a peg like everyone in front of them staying up for 20 minutes.

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Waiting for a peg is so old hat...2.4ghz in the way to go

As for IC flight, that's for another (bygone) era, and another forum come to think of it.

And 10/20 minute flights will soon be a thing of the past too...we'll have Lithium-kryptonite cells, solar energy panels on the wings and Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems to ensure the batteries never fade - the plane could stay up all day (and night)...... 

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Think of it, Non stop flying!

How boring, no time to stop for a cup of tea and a natter to your fellow fliers, no time to think about that last flight. The pleasure of a really nice greaser landing only once a day.

No thanks, I will stick to my 10 minute flights. The growl and snarl of an engine, the chat between flights.

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Hang on fellas ... I fear we are getting seriously off track here. My original point was that i can easily get 20 mins, plenty of fuel left in reserve. This does not mean that a 20 minute flight is a must. I made that statement to illustrate how (in my view) ic is a better option because i dont need to change battery pack every few minutes. Many who have contributed to this thread have given technical information stating that 20 minutes on 1 pack is possible.This answers my first question. My second and more important question was does anyone have, or know someone who has the electric version of the Kyosho Calmato Sport? Sadly, no feed back on that yet. As always though, many thanks for all contributions.
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