Project 3 : The Radio

In the boxes of stuff I salvaged from Kelly's attic were 5 Radios!  So.. 5 Radios and 3 planes... hmm.. :-)  I'm sure the other 2 belong to past planes that are off flying "at the farm".

Figuring out which remote goes to which plane was the next challenge.  Thanks to the receiver  makers they put stickers on them that give it's frequency.  

And, my Dad and I had labeled the antenna's with large stickers.  We put these on so that other people would know what frequency we were using without even checking "the board".

Just to make sure tho, I found that on the radios they list the frequency too.  And what do you know.. the stickers match :-)  Good job Dad!

So.. I cracked open the battery comparments of the 2 radios I'm most interested in (Red (52) and Purple Planes (40))  and as I suspected, there was a lot of corrosion.  So, I pulled the batteries out of the radios, and headed over to Hidden Hangar Hobbies.

They had the exact right battery for both, but since the Red Plane will have to wait (due to money) anyway, I decided to only pick up a new battery for the Purple Planes remote.  The guy who helped me was really nice, despite being quite busy and my many questions :-)  Apparently they have changed how the internal electronics (with regards to power) work on some of these remotes, and so the plug that came on the battery wouldnt work.. but the size was right.

They are simple power wires, like speaker wire.. Red/Black.  So, his suggestion, was to just snip the end off that came with it (half at a time, of course.. Red.. then Black.. so I don't short it) and splice on the end from my old battery.

When I got home I was absolutely giddy!  I got the splice done, had charged the battery in the plane for a bit and then switched everything on... IT WORKS!

Elevator, Rudder, Thottle.. all still move; all of the servos are working!  So, I grabbed the wing (yes, I ran across my basement) and hooked it up to test the ailerons, and they are working too!  

So, I let everything charge up, and they seem to be tip top!  My only worry now is the battery life on the batt. in the plane.  I mean, it's an old battery.. so it may not hold charge nearly as well as the brand new battery in the remote.

I'll have to ask Dad, and Andy over at the field how to check the charge on the battery in the plane.  There isn't a handy meter on it like there is on the remote.

After I confirmed everything was working, I cleaned the remote with a Chlorox Disinfecting Wipe (or 3) and it looks like new!