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stocking up , and building in redundancy.
#1

hey guys . just interested , in how you guys manage to stock up on hardware, tools , and spares . i've been going since oct last year . the rain part has helped me out a little with waiting times and building etc . i have 3 complete planes and some spare props , i was lucky enough to buy the DX6i 2nd hand with 3 included receivers etc , and being a friend of secentogive has come in very handy .
i was just wondering what you guys do . i have the basics and its taken 6 months .
is it years of buildup , or a big list and spendup ?
me i write down lists , then i go to the hobby shop spend hours in there and walk out with what i thought i needed , only to find i left a few things out , time and time again , i have a modest tool build up . but i'm finding i want so much more , like spare planes as backups for potential disaster . simulators on order , then i think i could dowith some extra receivers , and servos , a prop balancer , watt metre , tachometre , spare batteries and chargers , different pitch props , ,control arms , ESC'S , motor upgrades , etc etc etc . and thats probably only a small list , some of you guys turn up with your own mobile workshops , while others go plugn fly , enn masses .
just wondering how its done .
the reason i ask is , constantly remembering you need to order one of those , and then ordering it , from china us OR EUROPE , can get very time consuming , costly , and sloooooowww .

post your style here ?

patience !!Biggrin paaatience !!Paranoid paaaaaatience Tounge paaaaaaatieeence Lol dooooohhhh !!! Upset


DANGER WIFE CAN READ FORUMS . love you darling . sig changed .
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#2

I usually start off with a list of things I need to finish a particular
plane ie, servos, hinges,props,motor etc
I try to gather all the parts before I start the build. ( I hate only going so far then having to stop
and wait for other parts to arrive.) During the time I'm waiting for the parts to arrive
I usually research the real aircraft and get some ideas for a colour scheme. (I very rearly go with
the stock colours) I then decide how I'm going to finish it (Fibreglass, Brown Paper,Tissue etc)
While doing all that I decide what materials I need and when I place an order I usually fill up any spare weight I have left over in postage with some additional things like screws, linkages,tools whatever.
Of course there is also the gear that I salvage from any old model that I'm done with or have smashed beyond repair.
You would be surprised how quickly it all adds up.

Jet Teng L39(Breitling)
Scratchbuilt F14 Tomcat(Pukin Dogs)
Vector X
Eflite F86 Sabre(Taz Tiger)
Qantas Airbus A380(Nancy-Bird Walton)
Boeing 737-800
ProEDF F16
Falcon 120(Gas Turbine)
Fly Fly F100 Super Sabre
Pheonix Tiger 6
VQ Models P61 Night Fighter
CY Models FW190

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#3

I've only been flying for just over 3 years.
I have owned well over 30 aircraft, I have sold at least 8, crashed 6 (only 3 were my fault)and have 3 still in unopened boxes in my Hanger closet, I am in the middle of 2 major builds yet I find myself scanning the internet on a daily basis searching for my next project, which by the way turned up today ( see :New addition to hanger..... shortly)
I cant wait to get home from work each day to get into my build room.

I suppose I have a basics list that I have just stumbled upon through building lots of aircraft (which I love almost as much as flying them).
I have certain favorites that I make sure I always have (like Turnigy MG939 2.5 kg servos for small aircraft and Turnigy MG 958 12.5kg servos for the big ones) I always have at least 2 of each in my servos box).
I always have a few ESC's ready to go I keep a 60 amp Turnigy plush, 80 amp Turnigy plush and a 100 ampTurnigy dlux, thats just the tip of the Iceberg.........

Like Paul I have boxes of bits and pieces that you just aquire from builds, rebuilds and just buying shit cause it looks cool.
I have a propeller box that has to be seen to be believed. Every time I need a new prop I buy 3 or 4.

I'm a typical engineer so my Tools are only top shelf and I have got 2 or 3 sets of almost everthing.

So the short answer to your initial question if you actually asked one is.........

If you like it buy it, if you think you need it buy it, if you can't afford it buy it.

WELCOME TO RC FLIGHT !!!!

You poor bastard.

Gazz

Parkzone Stryker 27 Evolution
E flite Ultra Stick , T 28 Carbon Z
Skyartec Skyfun Scorpion,Skyfun 90 EDF
Hobbyking Voltigeur, Funfighter T28, Mirage 2000, Minimoa 2.4m Glider
Jet Teng L-39 HPAT Stumax 90
Pheonix Tiger 50
FliteWork Extra 300 LPX 2.6M
Spectrum DX9i , DX6

Don't ever let the fear of landing keep you from taking off!
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#4




Biggrin Thumbup.

patience !!Biggrin paaatience !!Paranoid paaaaaatience Tounge paaaaaaatieeence Lol dooooohhhh !!! Upset


DANGER WIFE CAN READ FORUMS . love you darling . sig changed .
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#5

Years of filling up HobbyKing group orders has given me a huge amount of crap that neither myself or anyone else would ever use. I don't want to work out how much money I've wasted on it Paranoid
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#6

(20-03-2012, 11:24 PM)kizza42 Wrote:  Years of filling up HobbyKing group orders has given me a huge amount of crap that neither myself or anyone else would ever use. I don't want to work out how much money I've wasted on it Paranoid
You don't want to think of it like that - at least you haven't been squirting it up against a wall, or feeding it to insatiable pokies, or throwing it after nags and hounds ... it's all good where we are mate! Miniature planes are justifiable in the big picture :-)


Steve Murray
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#7

Frank, I know exactly where you're at right now. All the thoughts you listed (what to get next, spare planes for disaster, etc) feel very recently familiar...

I remember asking around the field about this same question maybe 10 months ago, wanting the magic answer and (sorry guys!) not getting any. But... well... you won't get one from me either Biggrin

It just seems to happen.

If you're flying, then it's spare props (like Gary, if I'm ordering one then I'm ordering a few), batts, glues and bits for minor repairs to keep the planes in the air. Have found a wattmeter, prop balancer and cell voltage checker to be worthwhile investments.

If you're also building/assembling, then definitely servos, an ESC or two in the size appropriate for the planes you're hunting, a spare receiver or three, ESC<->motor connectors, battery<->ESC connectors, wire, heat-shrink tube, hinges, ...

Like a couple other responses here, I've also taken to keeping a list between orders, and doing the "postage filler" thing with smaller items.

And I've also come to just accept the frequency with which I realise I "need" something else right after my last order gets shipped Smile That said, having a couple projects on the go at once lessens the pain (since usually only one of them is stuck at any one time) and this also seems to be getting less frequent as I build up a stock of bits.

Hope this helps!

<table width="100%" border="0"><tr>
<td>
<span title="No longer arboreally challenged!">Parkzone Stinson SR-10 </span>
Extra-300S EPP
<del>F-18 Blue Angels 64mm EDF</del>
<span title="Why won't it die?!">HK Mini Cessna EPO</span>
Spektrum DX6i - Mode 1</td>
<td valign=top>
Parkzone T-28 Ultra Micro
E-Flite UMX BEAST
SRL Index
CloudsFly / AXN Floater
"2x6" basla/ply kit built glider
SBach 1000mm</td>
<td valign=top>
Skyartec Cessna 182 (small UAV)
UAV-168 (bigger UAV)
<span title="2nd-hand; rebuild on-hold">"BigBoy" Hugin (biggest UAV)</span>
<span title="For invading small countries">X-8 flying wing</span></td>
</tr></table>
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#8

(20-03-2012, 11:30 PM)yarrumevets Wrote:  
(20-03-2012, 11:24 PM)kizza42 Wrote:  Years of filling up HobbyKing group orders has given me a huge amount of crap that neither myself or anyone else would ever use. I don't want to work out how much money I've wasted on it Paranoid
You don't want to think of it like that - at least you haven't been squirting it up against a wall, or feeding it to insatiable pokies, or throwing it after nags and hounds ... it's all good where we are mate! Miniature planes are justifiable in the big picture :-)

I have to agree with Steve's sentiment here 100% I've sadly seen a few go down those other paths.

You could allways make a list of what you reckon no one wants and post it. I reckon you might be suprised what you could swap trade or sell. Perhaps we should start such a thread in the member section and post up surpluss stuff. I have a bit of a list as well Smile

********************************************************

As for spare parts I keep a few props and servos escs motors and I've got a bit of a bone yard as well.

I usually buy a 4L of west system epoxy every 3 of 4 years. It's handy for many other things as well and doesn't go off.

Hot melt glue is another stock item.
A couple of sheets of depron.
Fibre reinforced tape.
no 77 spray adheasive
thin and thick cyano and kicker
A couple of sheets of Balsa in varying thicknesses
I have almost a full sheet of 1mm ply (very handy stuff) last me for years
I buy carbon arrow shafts in packs of 12 from ebay every now and then. I get the stiffest ones I can find.
Glass cloth of varying thicknesses and types.
Epoxy filler
Kevlar thread is very handy stuff.
A couple of rolls of covering film
Wheels and wheel collets.
spare FPV cameras, they are easy to trash Smile
servo leads and plugs, Deans connectors, XT60 connectors adapters, and much much more




lists for new builds are essential!! organisation in any project is key.

I keep an eye on the bins at work as well things like foam, nice lite bits of cedar and things with small cap screws and nuts I can strip out of them.

As for tools just to mention a few:

You really need a good soldering Iron. Don't scimp on this.
I use knifing chisels for cutting ply I have a couple of different sizes

A Razor plane is handy
prop balancer is handy
watt meter
multi meter
A good knife........another good knife
A strop to sharpen knifes and blades
Hot wire cutter for foam.
If I could only have one power tool it would be a linisher
A dremmel is handy too
small clamps
the list goes on..............




“The knack of flying is learning how to throw your machine at the ground and miss.”

"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your thoughts turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return."  ~Leonardo Da Vinci
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#9

Gumboots




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#10

Thought this is the best spot to add my query since I'm talking about stocking up on stuff.
I've noticed that the apprentice has ES3 plugs. Going anything other that Eflite battery, I could end up with any connector. Is there a standard, or more common connector that I should stock up on, and then be ready to do lots of soldering, or adaptors? What is the best way to combat this? I'd rather have universal connections across all my aircraft as I get them, and want to do what is easiest. Pretty handy with a soldering iron, so that's no problem.

Eflite Apprentice 15A
HK450 pro
Spektrum DX8
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#11

Choosing a connector is a deeply personal and emotional thing, you can learn a great deal about the man by his connector choice Wink

XT60 - "I'm on the bleeding edge and carefree"
Deans - "I'm by the book, get off my lawn"
Bullets - "I don't give a damn what they look like, give me my current dammit"
Anderson - "I see you'd like to sell me that bridge..."
EC3/EC5 - "I can't solder"

Our club is mostly split between XT60, Deans & Bullets. Most of the batteries you get from Hobbyking will have XT60's unless you get into larger heavier stuff.

I personally use XT60's
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#12

i'll be honest here , i'm an XT60 FAN . however being heavily tied with secant ogive , who helped me out getting into the electrics hobby , he 's very deep emotional ties with DEANS connections insisted its that . so i have started off on the route between XT60-DEANS conversions / AND VICE VERSA.

patience !!Biggrin paaatience !!Paranoid paaaaaatience Tounge paaaaaaatieeence Lol dooooohhhh !!! Upset


DANGER WIFE CAN READ FORUMS . love you darling . sig changed .
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#13

Thanks Kieran,
I'm thinking the deans and XT 60 might be the way to go.
I've used deans on my old rc cars, so I might stick with them.
Will just need to change the plug in the apprentice to suit, shouldn't be too hard though.
Thanks Kieran,will make life easier for building up a collection of plugs to do some changing.

Eflite Apprentice 15A
HK450 pro
Spektrum DX8
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#14

WELL I GAVE myself a lesson about building in redundancy yesterday , on the buddy lead i was doing so well with the stinger , finally got the setup right and balance , trims expos etc . the thing was kicking ass , the park flyer receiver installed was recommended to be changed , being aware of this we'd beeen flying at close range , still though the glitch happened and the plane went down nose 1st quite close by also .
the stinger is repairable , without too much damage . the cowel is gone .
so back to REDUNDANCY .
I Went home , ordered a new stinger from the international warehouse . ( could of got arf kit $51) or PNF $79 u.s , I got the PNF , 3 x orange 710 receivers as reommended by KIZZA , + 3 satelite receivers, another charger , god it takes a long time with one - soon i'll have 2 . A watt meter , jason i will give yours back . some shrink wrap and servo end stops .
a few spare parts in that lot .
LESSON LEARNT . the 2 things recommended by members were the very 2 things that caught me out , even though evasive action and caution was applied , it didnt save my plane from having a glitch , or the cowel coming off .
the wife is onto me , she has set up PAYPAL to notify HER IPHONE when any transactions are done , this morning i was made to hand over the cash before breakfast , i'm down to 10 bucks in the wallet , OHHHH WELL technology eh !!!!

patience !!Biggrin paaatience !!Paranoid paaaaaatience Tounge paaaaaaatieeence Lol dooooohhhh !!! Upset


DANGER WIFE CAN READ FORUMS . love you darling . sig changed .
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#15

See Frank, this is why the Mrs and I have two different paypal accounts! Wink
Might work while we're engaged, but that could change once we're married later in the year....
She usually knows what I'm ordering and when though.
Notice I said usually Wink haha

Eflite Apprentice 15A
HK450 pro
Spektrum DX8
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#16

I've seen Deans plugs expose a terrible design flaw once in the past and decided to get them right out of my collection.

Junior went to put a Deans plug into a socket and the the leaf-spring on the underside of the top of the "T" plug hit against the side of the socket and instead of being pressed up against the conducting tab and sliding into the plug with it, it bent backwards and was sandwiched between plug and socket. Of course, it bent back so far that it touched the other conducting tab - so we had a f***ing "sound and light show" going on in the plane and we were lucky we didn't lose the model entirely. If the leaf-spring thingy was on the top side of the tab it couldn't happen - just a crappy design in the opinion of humble self (apart from the fact you often need two pairs of needle-nosed pliers to get 'em apart).

XT-60's (mainstream) and Bullets (for the bigger stuff) are the way to go - with JST's for the lightweight stuff!

Steve Murray
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#17

(26-03-2012, 11:35 AM)corsair_pilot Wrote:  See Frank, this is why the Mrs and I have two different paypal accounts! Wink
Might work while we're engaged, but that could change once we're married later in the year....
She usually knows what I'm ordering and when though.
Notice I said usually Wink haha

engagement is stage 1 , marraige stage 2 , stage 2 , means close observation , scrutiny, probably phone app tracker etc etc, places become out of bounds at stage 2 , any entrance of girly bars reverts to stage 3 , where instead of handing over cash for your planes , it costs you a house . LOL .

patience !!Biggrin paaatience !!Paranoid paaaaaatience Tounge paaaaaaatieeence Lol dooooohhhh !!! Upset


DANGER WIFE CAN READ FORUMS . love you darling . sig changed .
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#18

As Kieran said, your plugs are a personal choise thing.
And I personally think Deans are crap.
I use bullets on everything because they are so easy to solder and the design assures you will NEVER get a dry joint.
I have never had one fail, and they are just so simple to use.
Another thing to not is that almost all batteries you buy from HK either come with XT60 or Bullets, the Deans are slowly going the way of the Dodo.

Parkzone Stryker 27 Evolution
E flite Ultra Stick , T 28 Carbon Z
Skyartec Skyfun Scorpion,Skyfun 90 EDF
Hobbyking Voltigeur, Funfighter T28, Mirage 2000, Minimoa 2.4m Glider
Jet Teng L-39 HPAT Stumax 90
Pheonix Tiger 50
FliteWork Extra 300 LPX 2.6M
Spectrum DX9i , DX6

Don't ever let the fear of landing keep you from taking off!
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#19

Thanks for that Steve. I have had issues with my Dean's in the RC car in trying to plug and unplug them. Been a bit of a pain at times!
Frank, I'll be doing my redundancy ordering very soon as well.
A few spares, and extras to have laying around for when the inevitable happens

Eflite Apprentice 15A
HK450 pro
Spektrum DX8
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#20

See the Club group order system, its soo much less suss sending a gob of money off to a stranger every weekend, (Then some non descript ziplock bags appear the week after) Wink
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#21

Gotta sit down and work out what I need first.
Batteries and charger/s are on the list.
Also need to sit down and work out a list of things I want to build/make/assemble and what will be needed for each of these. From there I can place the order.
I did have a look at that Kieran. It may just get used!
Quick question, what's the meteor like to fly?

Eflite Apprentice 15A
HK450 pro
Spektrum DX8
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#22

Whats your budget like? If your keen on flying alot you can't beat one of these:
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store...arger.html

One thing I've learned over the years is that if you have a few planes, You probably don't need more than 2 batteries per plane. I used to buy 5 or 6 but found them not being used and wasted.
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#23

i agree , wish i bought one of them 4 x6s chargers 1st up . once you have one or 2 singl chargers , you dont require the multi charger then , but regret you didnt get it 1st .

patience !!Biggrin paaatience !!Paranoid paaaaaatience Tounge paaaaaaatieeence Lol dooooohhhh !!! Upset


DANGER WIFE CAN READ FORUMS . love you darling . sig changed .
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#24

I had been looking at the Imax b6ac. Can pick one up for about $40 at my door. Was thinking two of those could work.
I do like that one on HK though, one multi charger could be worth the extra money.
I will also have a few lipo batteries to power some lighting kits I have for my mountain biking. So to have one charger to do a few batteries at once would be very helpful!

Eflite Apprentice 15A
HK450 pro
Spektrum DX8
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#25

+1 for the quad charger
(26-03-2012, 11:43 AM)gbanger Wrote:  As Kieran said, your plugs are a personal choise thing.
And I personally think Deans are crap.
I use bullets on everything because they are so easy to solder and the design assures you will NEVER get a dry joint.
I have never had one fail, and they are just so simple to use.
Another thing to not is that almost all batteries you buy from HK either come with XT60 or Bullets, the Deans are slowly going the way of the Dodo.

I like bullets too for the heavy loads but I gotta say there is one problem in that they are not fool proof in that you can connect two batteries to each other. If you think that cant happen, ask Samste who almost fried my FMS Trojan doing power tests where he short circuited two lipos to each other - none of which were my batteries Smile and the plane didn't burn. He thought he was connecting another battery to my ESC. Nope, that was another lipo. Big blue flash and brass ionisation.

Up to 60A peaks, I'd use XT60s.
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#26


I happily use deans plugs and havn't had a problem. I do have some models running with XT60s as well. One thing I do is when I scrap my lipo packs I scrap the plugs as well.
Bullets are great but they are bulky and heavy.

“The knack of flying is learning how to throw your machine at the ground and miss.”

"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your thoughts turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return."  ~Leonardo Da Vinci
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#27

WELL today , i added a block of balsa , some foam , a hotmelt glue gun , with spare sticks , and a packet of magnets to the list . still much much more stuff required .

patience !!Biggrin paaatience !!Paranoid paaaaaatience Tounge paaaaaaatieeence Lol dooooohhhh !!! Upset


DANGER WIFE CAN READ FORUMS . love you darling . sig changed .
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#28

just thought id re visit this thread . today i bought a digital scale from 2g -10kg , and a mini travel iron . IT never ends . although quite a few planes are in heaven now , i have ammassed quite a few spares . LOL .

patience !!Biggrin paaatience !!Paranoid paaaaaatience Tounge paaaaaaatieeence Lol dooooohhhh !!! Upset


DANGER WIFE CAN READ FORUMS . love you darling . sig changed .
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#29

(22-01-2013, 03:34 PM)wingtipper Wrote:  just thought id re visit this thread . today i bought a digital scale from 2g -10kg , and a mini travel iron . IT never ends . although quite a few planes are in heaven now , i have ammassed quite a few spares . LOL .

You are not alone... I have a room/s full of bits... I need to re-organise everthing.sell off what I don't need.... what a mess of stuff...but I love it.Leet

George

"Crash and Cry! Don't fly"


RadioBiggrinX9 & DX8
HK Cri Cri ugly,Super Cub 1870mm balsa, Sbach 1000mm balsa, Vampire, Katana E50 balsa, BA Hawke 90mm (on hold for large runway), Durafly BF110, Corsair,
EScale Zero
Freewing Eurofighter Typhoon & SU-34
Starmax F5e Tiger & 70mm F-18
FMS T-28 Trojan, P-38 Silver, 50mm F-86, C-17 Globmaster

Fly fly F-100
B-25 2.0m LX and A10 1.5m Langxiang (being glassed and re-built)
Seagull Super Tucano
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#30

Where did you get the scale?
That sounds like its just in the right range.

Parkzone Stryker 27 Evolution
E flite Ultra Stick , T 28 Carbon Z
Skyartec Skyfun Scorpion,Skyfun 90 EDF
Hobbyking Voltigeur, Funfighter T28, Mirage 2000, Minimoa 2.4m Glider
Jet Teng L-39 HPAT Stumax 90
Pheonix Tiger 50
FliteWork Extra 300 LPX 2.6M
Spectrum DX9i , DX6

Don't ever let the fear of landing keep you from taking off!
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