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Post by cartercub on Jan 24, 2008 0:45:48 GMT 1
ok so I have watched,read and enjoyed everyones info on this sight so far...so much my wife was telling me to log out last night at 2am and come to bed..lol...
now where do I start with mods...do I up grade batteries, get a new engine etc....
I did just order the bigger wheels..can't wait..but I do want more power than the 8 cell battery offers...
any great advice and locations to get it would be appreciated...
I am getting good with the flight.....haven't had a terrible landing but want to play and never stop..lol..
Thanks to all with any info..
Brian
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jt01
Squadron leader
Posts: 166
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Post by jt01 on Jan 24, 2008 0:59:52 GMT 1
Hi Brian and welcome to the addiction. My first advice is to stick to going to bed with your wife as I'm sure she's prettier than any of us ;D It sounds like your ready to go brushless. Read some threads on them and ask around for opinions but it seems like the e-flite 450 is a great setup without going overboard. Others and myself included have simply added a lipo battery which will give more spunk but is not real good for the stock brushed motor. I realize that my motor probably won't last and at that time I plan to install a 450-bl
Jim
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Post by flydiver on Jan 24, 2008 2:24:42 GMT 1
You can piecemeal it. Realize if you go brushless you have to change EVERYTHING.
So, an easy mod is to get a nice lipo, and modify the battery box. Even to do this you will need to study up on lipos, chargers, and balancing; a lot of info to absorb. DO look at the FMA Cellpro for charging. I don't think there is anything in it's category. The PZ charger is pretty lame.
You motor will likely last awhile, they're pretty tough. While you are burning that up you can either study up on the next step or decide on the next plane.
The next step involves a new TX, RX, ESC, servos, (those lipos) and all the information that comes with them. Whew!
fly
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Post by cartercub on Jan 24, 2008 4:14:51 GMT 1
ok...so I guess. I need to leave a bit of the terminology..lol...I keep seeing this word LIPO..wondering if losing some weight is going to help my plane fly faster..lol.. ok..so first do some studying on those lipos and chargers...I like the new motor idea..but i want to burn the hell out of the one in there first.. does my local hobby store have these lipo's and chargers?  thanks for the welcome..I am very addicted and just want to do it all... my family up north just bought there first supercub..they will be on here soon too |
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theriaa
Flight lieutenant
Posts: 89
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Post by theriaa on Jan 24, 2008 5:22:22 GMT 1
3 cell Lipos make the super cub a completely different plane. as much altitude you want, way more speed, you can add all the weight you want to the cub, more trick ability (stalls, rolls, loops, inverted for a little bit) and it makes the cub easier to fly. lipos can be expensive. If you buy 2 lipos (11.1v 3s 1500+mah) and a charger at your hobby shop, or even most places online, you will get high quality products, but you'll be paying around $200. I have found some extremely cheap, but reliable lipos, only avaliable on ebay, and from overseas (the "mystery" brand only, mystery is a trusted brand among many random brands!). $40 for 2search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=11.1v+2x+2200mah&category0=cheap, but good balancing charger (I have 2) $9-17www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.8798these chargers charge at a standard .8A but only charge once cell at a time, cycling a cell each 60 seconds. This means slow charge times (3-4 hours... so get 2), but low battery abuse/wear if you need some more deans connectors for your old battery and future stuff (two come with your batteries, so you don't need these) www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.10788120v AC to 12v DC 1.5amp+ outlet transformer to run chargers off of... $10 at radioshack? IDK, one came with my heli. just an example: www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=16770+PDNOTE: running 2 of these chargers at once, in parallel draws at least 1.6A, probably more like 2A, but my cheap 1.5A works fine, I don't know of any possible side effects I may be experiencing) Total: less than $70! thats less than the price of a single lipo at your hobby shop! this is the cheapest way to get a good lipo setup, it's what I use, and I absolutely love it. Just slice your chargers' car battery hookups in parallel into the transformer, charge the lipos. Solder on your new T, deans style connectors, remove the low voltage cutoff jumper on the SC receiver (only jumper on it) mod your battery tray so the lipos fit (i just took the entire thing out, but i have new landing gear too), hook up and fly! just don't fly for more than 10ish mins each, first couple flights to help the batteries, you should be able to stay in the air until you get board... check the voltage with a multimeter after landing, under 11v is bad, but ive been down to 10v once on accident, 10v was where my reciver started to cut my engine out. also, don't fly on full power for more than a single climb, a minute or two of tricks, etc... the engine and receiver will burn out a faster (engines are only $10 though), I haven't had anything burn out on me though. I also run my transmitter off the other lipo when flying. just open the tx and splice into the battery compartment wires, and come out through that accessory plug on the side, and put a deans on it. velcro the battery to the tx, 3s lipos are the right voltage, NO MORE AAs!!!  I modded my old 7 cell ni-cad and charger with deans, but i have never used it since my lipos, it's just crap, the lipos make the plane safer, and easier to fly. I also fly with both my control horns (on the tail) on the 3rd hole from the tip, insane tricks and control. only reason I don't go 4th is iv'e heard of people that heard of some servo burnouts. also think about LED's for night flying this was my 1st time with LEDs, it was fun: supercubclub.proboards78.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=pics&thread=1200214241&page=1again, this is almost your only option for cheap lipos with a great setup, you could do something else, but I got results better and cheaper than anything else iv'e seen. any questions? |
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Post by cartercub on Jan 24, 2008 15:57:42 GMT 1
thanks everyone for your great advice...I am going to go with a lipo battery......and charger...I can't wait...
what size should I be getting....
I think I am going to go with the cheaper version that is on ebay.....
just started to do alittle paint details on the cub...will post some pics as soon as possible..
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theriaa
Flight lieutenant
Posts: 89
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Post by theriaa on Jan 24, 2008 17:24:33 GMT 1
you should get a 3 cell or "3s" lipo, that means there is 3, 3.7v cells (4.2v charged) that make up the 11.1v battery
you need to get at least a "15c", thats the discharge rate that the battery can handle
mah is battery life, but more mah = bigger heavier battery. 1000mah is the mah that came with your stock battery, . since lipos are way better, that 2200 mah on ebay has more than twice the mah, but weighs the same (and is faster)
you could use a 1000ish mah 3s and just have a lighter, faster (slightly) plane, but i went with longer battery life, and same weight
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Post by cartercub on Jan 24, 2008 20:40:02 GMT 1
ok..thanks again...you rock..so much to leave about this flying and extras.....
do you think that mystery battery online is a good buy...2 for the price of 30...seems good..
well just bought the 2x 2200mAh Li-Po 15C 11.1V LiPo Rechargeable Battery RC
now need the charger...cant wait...do they have chargers that take less time than 2-3 hours to charge???
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theriaa
Flight lieutenant
Posts: 89
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Post by theriaa on Jan 25, 2008 0:57:59 GMT 1
they most certainly do, but fast charging lipos is what leads to fires, and it decreases the lifetime of your battery. plus a nice lipo charger with adjustable charging amps is gonna run like $40 to $70...
if you get a charger that charged all cells at once, it would take about an hour per battery. BUT keep in mind you have TWO batteries, so thats 2 hours.
getting two of these dedicated chargers is cheaper, and safer.
if you want fast charging, then get some high quality ni-mhs or ni-cad or something. those can charge in like 15 minutes with a nice charger... but you'll spend the same for those, maybe more... but remember, ni-mhs are like twice as heavy per mah, so go with lipos.
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Post by cartercub on Jan 25, 2008 18:21:52 GMT 1
do you know of any other chargers besides the one you posted that comes with a wall outlet and excepts credit cards instead of paypal....
thanks again for all the info...
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theriaa
Flight lieutenant
Posts: 89
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Post by theriaa on Jan 25, 2008 23:52:51 GMT 1
paypal excepts credit cards now, you don't need bank info or anything
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Post by flydiver on Jan 26, 2008 4:03:11 GMT 1
ok...so I guess. I need to leave a bit of the terminology..lol...I keep seeing this word LIPO..wondering if losing some weight is going to help my plane fly faster..lol.. ok..so first do some studying on those lipos and chargers...I like the new motor idea..but i want to burn the hell out of the one in there first.. does my local hobby store have these lipo's and chargers? thanks for the welcome..I am very addicted and just want to do it all... my family up north just bought there first supercub..they will be on here soon too If those are serious questions and you are buying lipos and chargers off ebay can I know where you live? I want to come watch your house burn down. Please----read this!!!! www.maxamps.com/pdf/Lipo-Care.pdfI am not in the pay of or promoting maxamps. I simply did a quick search on lipo care and came up with it. You REALLY need to know about these things BEFORE you start playing with them. These are NOT your granny's rechargeable AA's. fly |
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theriaa
Flight lieutenant
Posts: 89
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Post by theriaa on Jan 26, 2008 4:16:27 GMT 1
ok...so I guess. I need to leave a bit of the terminology..lol...I keep seeing this word LIPO..wondering if losing some weight is going to help my plane fly faster..lol.. ok..so first do some studying on those lipos and chargers...I like the new motor idea..but i want to burn the hell out of the one in there first.. does my local hobby store have these lipo's and chargers? thanks for the welcome..I am very addicted and just want to do it all... my family up north just bought there first supercub..they will be on here soon too If those are serious questions and you are buying lipos and chargers off ebay can I know where you live? I want to come watch your house burn down. Please----read this!!!! www.maxamps.com/pdf/Lipo-Care.pdfI am not in the pay of or promoting maxamps. I simply did a quick search on lipo care and came up with it. You REALLY need to know about these things BEFORE you start playing with them. These are NOT your granny's rechargeable AA's. fly lipos are safe as long as you charge them correctly, and don't cut them open with a utility knife. get simple, dedicated chargers, and monitor them while charging, and NOTHING WILL EVER GO WRONG! |
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Post by flydiver on Jan 26, 2008 4:53:52 GMT 1
lipos are safe as long as you charge them correctly, and don't cut them open with a utility knife. get simple, dedicated chargers, and monitor them while charging, and NOTHING WILL EVER GO WRONG! Mmm Hmm. Ever read this? Lipo Fire Incidents and How they Occur www.wattflyer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1584It's not the lipo, per se, it's the lack of knowledge associated with them. I encouraged him to seek some info. I'm just a bit concerned he's jumping in without that info. You are just encouraging purchase and use without much support other than cheap purchases. You've never made a mistake with a lipo, at all, never? I can't say I have a perfect record (no fires, not even some puffing) even having studied the area for several months before purchasing my first one. fly |
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theriaa
Flight lieutenant
Posts: 89
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Post by theriaa on Jan 26, 2008 5:41:15 GMT 1
yes, I have read that. most of the fires happen while charging (improper charging on a non-dedicated charger at that) which is why i say to always monitor the packs while charging.
damaged packs are rare (do you also have a list of people that use lipos successfully?)
the worst thing that happened to me was my lipo was ripped out of my cub on a loop. it fell like 100 feet and was fine.
He should use caution with lipos, but I hate when people try and scare others away from lipos. I see to many guys saying "oh, i'm not ready for lipos, they're too dangerous" or "that guy has a 3s lipo in his plane, its a TICKING TIME BOMB!"
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