Switches - Opinions Please

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sperera

sperera

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Hi all,

Just wanted to get your opinion on something. Up until now I have not been running a on/off switch in my FG MT. Had a couple of bad experiences with them in the past.

Anyway ive nearly completed painting my body and will be using it shortly. Its going to be a bit of a pain to removed it, connect the 2 wires then put it back on evertime I use it. I usually run it for 20, have a smoke or something, then run it again and continue this cycle.

Should I run a switch or is it ok to just keep the radio and receiver on for 5-10 mins inbetween runs with engine off? Or is there a really good heavy duty switch out there that is bulletproof?
 
Not much of a switch guy myself. I would recommend using a rubber cover and l mounting the switch on your RX box so the switch is protected in the back.
 
Leaving the radio turned on won't hurt it at all, your rx pack is plenty big enough to not worry about it, just turn your tx off.

I only turn my rx off coz my lights run off it,otherwize I leave it on between runs!
 
Rossco said:
Leaving the radio turned on won't hurt it at all, your rx pack is plenty big enough to not worry about it, just turn your tx off.

I only turn my rx off coz my lights run off it,otherwize I leave it on between runs!
Click to expand...

If i turn the tx off without turining off the rx the rx goes into failsafe mode which applies the brakes. if I leave it like that for extended periods it'll fry my throttle/brake servo.

if I leave it on, as far as I can tell, it wont do any harm because it will still receive the signal and everthing will be centrered therefore not putting any stress on servo's etc.
 
I run the standard switch but have a lexan cover over my radio tray. This has a finger sized hole cut in to operate the switch & I have not had any problems. I thought about changing to a tamiya or deans connector set-up but this would be more awkward with the cover in place. So long as the switch is still tight I cant see it being a problem.
 
sperera said:
If i turn the tx off without turining off the rx the rx goes into failsafe mode which applies the brakes. if I leave it like that for extended periods it'll fry my throttle/brake servo.

if I leave it on, as far as I can tell, it wont do any harm because it will still receive the signal and everthing will be centrered therefore not putting any stress on servo's etc.
Click to expand...

Ahh yes, I forgot about your Speccy failsafe, duh!:blush:

Just leave it turned on then.
 
I think thats what I will do. A switch is just something else that may cause a problem. Ill see how I go anyway. If it is getting too annoying ill just go out and buy a top quality JR switch or something and fit that.

Cant wait to see what it looks like with the painted body on. I should have it done by the end of this weekend.
 
I don't run brake on failsafe, just neutral. had a failsafe kick in while jumping and brakes applied and lawn darted. I'd rather it just coast myself
 
what caused it to dart?

these things are so heavy and can roll for ages, not sure neatral is going to stop you spending money should something go wrong.

I got mine set so it doesn't apply full brakes, just around 50% that way its not going to damage the servo if it looses signal.
 
all that is really important is the kill switch, IMO. failsafe is used to prevent runaways mostly... wide open throttle stuff. that's where problems occur. your kill switch will most likely kill the engine before you have a failsafe situation... I'd rather just the engine die and be able to steer
 
pipeous said:
all that is really important is the kill switch, IMO. failsafe is used to prevent runaways mostly... wide open throttle stuff. that's where problems occur. your kill switch will most likely kill the engine before you have a failsafe situation... I'd rather just the engine die and be able to steer
Click to expand...

I really need to get myself a kill switch. Been slack on that account.
 
yup a failsafe is only good for radio glitches. they don't help if the battery goes dead or becomes unplugged. nor do they help if the throttle linkage sticks, servo gears strip and leave throttle stuck... I won't run a gasser without one... we spend so much on options and forget the $40 item that protects our investments the most..

I had a carb stick open while tuning someone's baja. cost me hitting a neighbour's garage door ;) didn't break the baja, but damaged the door
 
most failsafe units will have a low voltage cutout, the ofna one does for sure, however that only helps when the battery gets low, not when it gets disconnected.

kill switch is the best
 
I hate to argue Steve but it doesn't really. the problem with the ofna failsafe is it has twitches on low battery and can actually cause harm... what happens is the failsafe reads a low voltage then goes to failsafe but the pack will gain power back and the throttle servo will blip as it turns back on... they had the voltage between off and on too short... we solved that problem ;)
http://ofna.com/failsafe-micro.html
I helped design the western robotics failsafe after 2 yrs of study. we disected just about every failsafe on the market....

I could go into a big pitch on them. We were partners before western robotics. it just got to the point we had to invest large money for auto pick and place machines and soldering ovens and such. way beyond my financial capability. I am still a tester and consultant though. Some failsafes work with some radios (a gws fs1 won't work with a jr xr3 radio for example)... I compiled data on these things for a year, bought and traded for every possible failsafe unit, radios, servos and tried so many combinations, ran polls etc. then we made 4 versions of the failsafe which we sent out for testing around the world with different racers and bashers. the 5th is what is sold today. it was sure a learning experience
 
ive had my ofnas save me from a low battery far to many times. the other day playing in the snow with my savage i noticed the steering was getting a bit sluggish, drove towards me and the failsafe kicked on, and stayed on. i cant say ive ever had my ofna's kick back on after going into failsafe from low battery. ive only used a few, 2 of which failed on me in a short time, the ofnas ive run for years and love.
 
I have just knocked up a failsafe killswitch today from an old servo board and a 5v mini relay,,,,,,total cost----$1.65.

Works exactly like my pico did,(pico just died for some reason) which cost me $40.

I think I'll be making them from now on!
 
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