Radio Technique
MORE on the RF Wand. John Lange's RF Wand made a big hit with the LIDS and Merokes at Cedar Creek, today. I walked over to the impound table where about 10 transmitters were stored, saying, "You use this thing to find transmitters that have been left ON." No sooner said than done. I found one! That made some converts right away. So did the price ($20). If you don't know what I'm talking about, take a look at this column in the August 1984 issue. If you haven't built your RF Wand, yet, take note of the following. Radio Shack stores are always interesting to visit, because their buyers order in all sorts of electrical and electronic gadgets. However, they also seem to work on a batch process, so as soon as I mention something in this column, like the Radio Shack Part Numbers needed to build the RF Wand, they buy something else. It happened again. The lead photo shows Radio Shack Part No. 277-1008B, which replaces, Part No. 277-1008A. Same parts, different box. Please don't write me about it.
Radio Technique
I WANT to report a new, top-of-the-line transmitter. I'm going to kill two birds with one stone, too, because I'll also comment on its features as a Helicopter radio while looking at its tuneable-frequency feature. The Kraft Mk IV Helicopter radio. What we have here is essentially a custom-built transmitter. (I've heard that only 50 were built, and that some of them haven't been sold yet.) The Helicopter-oriented control layout was designed by Mike Byrd from a consensus of expert fliers' opinions about what was wanted most. Then, this transmitter was built in America by Americans to accept the unique Kraft "Channel Max" 49-channel FM module. You should be able to understand why I wanted it. (Maybe not, if you don't place a value on going to the field, then selecting a channel that no one else is using.)
Radio Technique
ELECTRIC THINGS. It's probably no secret that I haven't shown much interest in electric-powered RC models. Everything I'd seen prior to the Keystone RC Club Electric Fly-In, September 22-33, 1984, Hatfield, PA gave me the idea that electric-motored RC models are like rubber-powered Free Flight models with the initial power burst left out. Now I know better. It all started when my good friend Larry Sribnick (the SR Batteries man) convinced me to take a break from a seemingly endless weekend grind of proposal-writing at Grumman Aerospace Corp. in favor of getting up at 5:00 a.m. to take a four-hour drive to Pennsylvania. (I should mention that Larry lives further out on Long Island, NY, than I do, so he had to get up at 4:00 a.m.)
Radio Technique
USEFUL TOOLS. For as long as I have been playing with things electronic, the VOM (AC/DC Volt-Ohm Meter) has reigned as king of the electronic tools . . . the one essential tool. Occasionally, one needs specialized tools like an oscilloscope, bench power supply, servo cycler, battery tester, digital pulse meter, etc.; but you can do without all of them, and still accomplish useful things, if you have a VOM and the skill to use it. Now, I am about to describe a VAT (Volt/Amp/Tachometer), which is the first tool offered for RC use that presents a serious challenge to the supremacy of the VOM. My subject is the Accu-Tach 2 from Nor Cal Avionics, Inc., P.O. Box 70956, Sunnyvale, CA 94088. Accu-Tach 2 combines a digital DC centivoltmeter, a DC milliammeter, and an optical tachometer into one handy package that will fit neatly into anybody's field box.
Radio Technique
TWO FOR TWELVE. I didn't do much flying in 1984, due either to the press of business or because I had "something else" to do. When I finally took a look at the 12 VDC motorcycle battery which I use for my field box power panel, starter, etc., I found that it had boiled itself dry, having been left unattended for two months on a constant-voltage charger that was supposed to drop down to a "safe trickle charge," automatically. I know the battery was left on charge for two months, because I know that the previous time I looked at it was the day that the tail rotor unscrewed itself (in flight) from the shaft on my last serviceable Helicopter. That made an impression on my mind!
