Focus on Competition
Technically Speaking ...
Greg Hahn Technical Director [email protected]
If you haven’t been out for at least a quick stick fix or attended an indoor event in your area, then I’d imagine cabin fever is really working on your sanity. That particular disease works on all of us in unique ways, but one thing’s for sure: it does work on all of us.
I remember back in the day when my old club in Indiana used one of the AMA challenges to curb the dreaded fever. The AMA gives a patch and yearly add-on for being a “year-round flier.” That may not be a big deal to a Floridian or Texan, but in Indiana, with five months of ice and snow, flying all year can be very challenging.
If my memory serves me correctly, we had at least 12 or 15 members who made it to seven years straight and a few who went clear to 10 years—flying at least once a month. No cabin fever in that club, and it could be that way in yours.
Think about it for your club next year; put a poster board on the clubhouse wall and keep track. It’s amazing how peer pressure will get you to the flying field even on the worst winter days.
If you aren’t one of those year-round fliers, you’re just now thinking about getting ready. You’re probably getting out your airplanes, dusting them off, and checking the all-important radio system that’s been sitting idle for several months.
If you’re not one of those who cycles your batteries in the middle of winter, now is a great time to do it. Even the nickel-metal batteries need to be cycled just like the old nickel-cadmium.
Don’t just check for voltage; capacity (longevity) is actually more important. Use the cycling to track capacity, and you’ll know quickly how good your batteries really are. If ever in doubt, replace them unless you just absolutely love to build the airplane over and over.
Tech Stuff
A couple of important tech issues have surfaced this month. As most of you know, Futaba found a small hiccup in its two new dedicated 2.4 GHz systems. I will not go into detail about the situation because Hobbico/Futaba has issued two official statements, which I posted on the AMA website under “News.” If you haven’t already read them, feel free to do so.
It sounds to me like they have things well in hand and are quickly addressing the situation. Bear in mind there will always be issues with any new techno stuff. I can still remember the early days of 27 MHz and 72 MHz and then the first gold stickers. Give it time, and reliability will come.
The ability to ship Li-Poly batteries came into question last month, and after much research we still have the ability to ship them by ground service only. Hazmat status has not been attached to them either. I’m not saying it won’t happen sometime in the future, but as of right now they are still standard ground shippable.
Keep in mind that Li-Poly batteries are not inherently dangerous; the majority of problems are still centered around unattended and/or improper charging. You just have to be careful and pay attention.
Good luck with your spring flying.
See you at briefing! MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
