Ice for Christmas
Greg Gimlick | [email protected]
This is one of those months in which the column space is going to be too short. But first, Merry Christmas to everyone and I hope you have a great New Year. Let's get to it!
Auto Li-Poly Detect
During my discussion of ESCs, many questions arose. You were great about waiting for my e-mail responses when I was delayed.
One of the most common questions had to do with the setting for the ESC to automatically detect the cell count and appropriate cutoff. The majority wanted to know when the ESC determines that voltage.
I wrote to several manufacturers and, unfortunately, only Castle Creations replied. For the Phoenix line of controllers, the voltage used to determine cell count and cutoff is detected when you plug the battery into the controller.
The one exception is on the company's HV line of controllers. That requires a signal from the receiver before anything happens. So for that particular line, it waits until the ESC and receiver are talking to each other, and then it decides.
I suspect that most ESCs from other manufacturers also determine that upon initially applying power to the ESC. I hope that clears things up a bit, and I thank Castle Creations for responding quickly and thoroughly.
E-Nats Recap From the Event Director
Mike McGowan served as the event director and provided the following information regarding the 2009 Electric Nats. It has changed since I reported on it a couple of years ago, and it sounds like the event is getting better each year.
Mike wrote:
"Electric soaring, from the Event Director viewpoint, was an exercise in transitioning the electric events into true Man on Man soaring events. With electric soaring, it is possible to actually launch a group simultaneously so that no flier gains advantage of being the last to launch.
"In winch launch with large groups, the last person to launch has a full minute and numerous airplanes in front of him to analyze the air so the 'luck' of the draw for launch position often affects the outcome. This year, the electric soaring groups were launched simultaneously which meant they were all on approach and landing simultaneously if they were on time.
"It worked well and lessons were learned to improve the field set-up next year. This year was the first introduction of the FAI style landing tape, which worked very well and will probably be incorporated for the following years.
"Electric soaring is all about new ideas. It is one of the newest events due to the dramatic evolution of batteries, motors, speed controllers, and radios. It is about innovation and there is the total innovation of designer/builder Ric Vaughn, who is constantly experimenting with airfoils, lighter composite construction, wing shapes, fuselage shapes, batteries, motors, controllers, and propellers!
"His 'A' plane spans 145 inches; RES, 1,240 square inches, with Kevlar D-tube, carbon-capped balsa ribs, and carbon trailing edge. It weighs 65 ounces using a Neu 1509 motor, RFM 18x19 prop, 2S 4,200 Hyperion G3 battery, and Hacker 125 amp controller. The Kevlar fuselage sports a full-flying stab.
"Ric is a wealth of knowledge and has teamed with Ernie Schlumberger to bring both great flying skills and true electric sailplane designs to the venue!"
Hangar 9 Electric Cub Update
I mentioned in the last column that I was building the electric-powered Hangar 9 Cub that comes with the E-flite 46 motor installed. I had flown one at the Southeast Electric Flight Festival (SEFF) and fell in love with it, so I had to add one to my fleet.
The good news is that the model is everything I knew it would be; the bad news is that it has been discontinued. Many retailers still have stock, but when they’re gone, they’re gone.
The .40-size glow version is the same kit, but without the battery hatch and motor. It looks to be an easy conversion, so all is not lost.
Ice for Christmas: It’s not what you think!
Castle Creations has finally gotten the long-awaited Ice line of Phoenix controllers to market, and it looks like it was worth the wait. Most notably, the new units integrate data logging into the ESC and use a switching battery eliminator circuit instead of a linear version.
The new switching BEC in the Ice allows up to 5 amps peak power on input voltages up to the 8S limit on the Ice line or the 6S limit on the Ice Lite versions. This is the first time we’ve been able to use the controllers’ BEC function on higher cell counts, and it should handle the requirements of most setups.
Be sure to check your setup’s current consumption and determine whether or not it falls within the 5-amp capability. If not, you can disconnect the BEC function and use a separate receiver battery or opt for something similar to the Castle Creations BEC Pro, which can handle up to 20 amps.
The Phoenix Ice switching BEC output is factory-set to 5.0 volts. You can use the Castle Link to select any desired voltage between 5.0 and 7.0 volts in 0.1-volt increments.
The new Ice brings extensive data-logging capabilities to measure and record many parameters. You can select rates between 10 samples per second and one sample per second. Data points include:
- Battery voltage
- Battery ripple
- Battery current
- Controller temperature
- Controller input (throttle)
- Controller motor power output
- Motor RPM
This data is stored directly in the controller and can be accessed, when the run is finished, using the Castle Link USB adapter. When the memory is full, it quits logging.
There is mention of the next firmware update, which will allow the user to decide whether the unit stops logging or overwrites the beginning of the data loop. These firmware updates continue to be free of charge and are done by the user via the Castle Link.
The Ice line comes in two versions: the standard, optimized for demanding RC helicopter and sport-aircraft applications, and the Lite, which is packaged in heat shrink for models with tight fuselages. The standard version allows up to 8S because of its integrated heat sink, while the Lite version is limited to 6S.
All Phoenix Ice controllers are ready to fly out of the box; no programming is necessary for most aircraft applications. The units are set at the factory for "Auto Li-Poly detect/cutoff" operation. One change from other Castle lines is that the Ice is tuned for optimum outrunner performance as the default.
I’ve been playing with the Ice Lite 50 on the bench and in my trusty test airplane, and I have been impressed. Check out the photos and you can see the logging capabilities. The graph might look busy, because I logged everything I could to show you. You can select which outputs you want to display for a less cluttered look.
Going Retro—RC, That Is
I’ve gotten more e-mail through the years about the lack of availability of a great old model called the Lazy Bee. I think many of us had one at some point, but it’s long gone now.
Retro RC has something that is reminiscent of that airplane, and it’s a great little flyer. I’m in the process of building one of the company’s beautiful laser-cut kits and hope to report on it soon. I’ve seen these eMoths fly, and the kits are nicely done.
In the meantime, check out the photo of one I saw and then check out Retro RC’s website. You’re in time for Christmas!
Tool Time at RJR Cool Tools
When I go to the Toledo R/C Expo every year, I have to stop by the RJR Cool Tools’ booth because it’s too good to pass up. The company has numerous things for the aeromodeler.
Have you noticed how some of your screwdrivers come out of the screw heads on certain products? That’s because many come with Japanese Industry Standard (JIS) heads, and we generally have standard Phillips in the US. Once you get a set of JIS drivers from RJR, you’ll quit stripping those heads.
RJR Cool Tools has more gadgets than I could cover in an entire column. Check out the great little glue-bottle bases that keep you from spilling that precious CA all over everything.
Are you a fan of cutting lightening holes in your model’s framework when you build? The company has special tools for that. Do you construct foamies? RJR has special tools to do miraculous things with foam. Do you need special soldering fixtures with magnifiers? This company has ’em!
Give Ross Wegryn-Jones a call at RJR Cool Tools. Tell him I kept going on about the cool stuff I bought at the Toledo Show and that you want some!
Final Approach
That’s it! Sleigh bells are ringing, and there are going to be toys to open real soon. I’m excited about the new products on the horizon and the continuing development of our electrics.
Keep the e-mail and suggestions coming, and I’ll see you at the Toledo Show, the WRAM Show, SEFF, or the Joe Nall Fly-In.
—GG
Sources
- Castle Creations
(785) 883-4519 www.castlecreations.com
- Retro RC LLC
(248) 212-9666 http://retrorc.us.com
- Horizon Hobby
(800) 338-4639 www.horizonhobby.com
- RJR Cool Tools
(877) 230-2085 www.rjrcooltools.com
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
