Servo - November 2012

earlier this year.

They ran nonstop for three days, and still work perfectly. I might also add that it ran three days on the same set of batteries.

I also had a chance to use the Tactic TTX600. This is the six-channel version of the radio, and would be recommended if you want a low radio with a little expansion capability.

The only downside to these radios is that the throttle has detents — not good for helis or quads where precise throttle control is needed. I did open up my radio and file down the detents, so it works a lot better.

Futaba 8FG Super

I can't say enough about this radio. It's a standard eight-channel radio, however, if you use the S-bus function you get 12 proportional channels and two switched. Every single knob, switch, or trim is assignable.

There are eight switches — six of which are three-position switches. There are two knobs on the front and two sliders on the back. You have your two main joysticks that control four axes. There are four digital trims that can be assigned as you see fit.

The radio will store 20 models and has a slot for an SD card so that you can store more.

All of these features are nice, but the main reason I purchased the 8FG was that many of the new flight controllers coming out support the S-bus.

This means just a single wire from the receiver to the flight controller, not eight. (More on this when I talk about the flight controllers in the next section.)

FIGURE 11.

FIGURE 12.

Radio Cross-Compatibility

There is no cross-compatibility. A receiver designed for the Tactic will not work on the Futaba. They all have their own proprietary systems for managing the 2. 4 GHz frequency spectrum.