As I reach the grand old age of 65, I'm finally taking up a hobby I began when I was 11 or 12 years old. Good grief, that was a long time ago. I've been reluctant to get back into radio control as I already have my plate full of other things to do. But hey, I'm running out of time and I need a way to relax when I'm not riding. Model building is a great source of relaxation for me. The second floor of our home has been vacant for the last 10 years and the view from up there is inspiring. Inspiring enough to set up a hobby shop just for airplanes. Being away from the hobby for so long I have come to discover that many "things" have changed. For example, electronic systems are tiny compared to the giant Futaba and Kraft bricks I used. Heck, one of the ancient Futaba servos is the same size as three of these new digital servos. Stronger, faster, lighter (more expensive), reliable (I hope). Let's just say I been learning a bunch of stuff about these new gadgets and I'm impressed. Now, I'm not ready to go full board and buy a new 20 channel system or anything. I found that with a little research and ingenuity I could use an old Spektrum DX6i transmitter and make some programming changes to get an updated receiver to work along with some tiny servos and an ESC: YGE 65LVT and a hot-to-go Powerline Micro 1015/17 motor. I won't get into why I chose these components right now. I'll just say it should work on this project without breaking the bank.
Okay, what am I trying to accomplish in my old age? I would like to get my Airtronics Sagitta 900 up in the air again. It's been hanging from the garage ceiling since March of 2013. I didn't like the idea of using a high start or slope to get it flying again. So, why not electrify it? I wanted to keep the original lines as close as possible. To do that, I purchased the narrowest motor I could find. It came from Germany. It's designed for 20 second bursts with a 14 x 8 prop. I figure if I program the timer on the radio it should keep me from burning anything up. The smaller prop should keep the Sagitta from zooming up like a rocket and give me a gentle climb. That's about all this old (my) ticker can handle. After 20 seconds, the plane should be at a safe height for thermal hunting. This is what the Sagitta excels at. Unfortunately, I haven't flown in awhile. I'm not so worried about the flying. It's the landing that's the problem. After a few terrifying flights, I should have the hang of things. Kinda like riding a bicycle, eh?
