Article 1.001 - How do I know how bright one system is compared to another?

We carry several lighting systems and each is slightly different in terms of it's brightness. The two types that we carry are LED and Luxeon LED. The Luxeon LEDs are significantly brighter than the regular LED bulbs and likely due to differences in the characteristics of the actual bulbs, the Cine-Scale system is brighter than the SLS system. To summarize them, top item is bright, and each additional system is brighter.

Bright to Brightest:

The key consideration is the power source for the Luxeon LED lighting kits. Modelers considering the Luxeon LED systems should install a separate and dedicated battery for their lighting and any other scale effects on their model. The power draw from these systems is high and additional effort is needed to properly install the heatsinks for the lamps.

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Article 1.002 - How do I install a lighting system in electric models?

For the purpose of our discussion, we will assume that your electric model helicopter does not use a receiver battery and gets all of its power from the flight battery. Your electronic speed control (ESC) which is either a separate component or is a combined into your receiver contains circuitry to reduce your flight battery voltage down to the 4.8 - 6.0 volt range suitabe for the receiver and the servos connected to it. This circuit is commonly refered to as BEC (battery eliminated circuit). The simple solution is to purchase the SLS100 Scale Lighting System and connect it through your receiver.

Be warned! If your electric model has a combined ESC and receiver, which is integrated into a single electronic unit, you can overload it and potentially damage it. Please check with the manufacturer before connecting any external devices to these types of combination receivers. In our experience many of these combined units are designed for operation using 2-3 servos, a gyro and a tail servo. Simply adding one extra servo sometimes is enough of a load to allow a low voltage condition which almost always happens in flight.

Modelers who prefer the Luxeon LED lighting system have a choice. Either prepare an adapter for your main flight battery or use a separate battery for your lighting system. In both situations, there is no risk to your receiver or ESC as you are actually bypassing them altogether and your ESC will function normally. Modelers not comfortable with adding an additional connector for their lighting system should seek assistance with the soldering.

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Article 1.003 - How does the BEC affect my lighting system in my electric model?

We touched on this issue in Article 1.002, but it is such an important issue that many beginners do not understand and can accidentally destroy receivers and speed controllers when adding any type of external accessory to their models. We feel with the correct information and a little precaution before experimenting, that this can be completely avoided. The battery eliminator circuit (BEC) was first used in RC cars when the first electronic speed controllers were introduced in the late 1980's. Prior to the ESC, all models required 4 'AA' batteries to operate the receiver and servos on the model and used a simple linear or rotary mechanical speed controller. Car, boat, airplane and helicopter alike all used this system. Fuel powered models still use this system today, however many modelers are using newer battery technologies which have significantly improved performance as compared to the 4 cell Nicad battery pack.

Number one rule. Never connect both a receiver battery pack and an ESC with BEC to the receiver at the same time. You will see a puff of smoke and either your receiver or your speed controller will have just burned out. Our electronics have no intelligence to determine what is connected to your receiver. It is your responsibility to know your equipment and how to make the correct connections between components. We can comfortably say that nearly all electronics destroyed on the work bench are a result of trying to trouble-shoot a problem. This kind of trouble-shooting is extremely difficult even for the RC manufacturers and should be done with extreme caution. How can it happen? Most beginners do not own servo testers and the very first items to verify are the servos. So, we disconnect all of the components from the receiver, connect the servos and a handy 4 cell receiver battery. Ok, servos are working correctly, now connect the speed control and 'poof', the speed control is still connected to the flight battery! Its that easy to destroy equipment. Our only recommendation here is for your to take your time if you experience a problem. Do not get 'too smart' and test components that normally are not used together and seek assistance before you become frustrated.

Another less common problem related to burning out components is the polarity used on servo connectors. We have seen this happen when mixing electronic components from different manufacturers. While it is far less common today, always verify that your ESC, receiver and servos use the same polarity. What we are talking about is that each servo connector uses the same (negative - positive - signal) order of the wires. It is not enough to assume that the color coding on the individual wires is accurate or that similar colors from different manufacturers use the same polarity coding system. In recent years there has been an explosion in new manufacturers offering electronics and once in a while you come across a manufacturer who does not follow the RC industry 3-wire servo connector polarity used by Futaba and JR. This is most common when the receiver connector used on an ESC or servo chose a different signal, positive and negative ordering on the connector. If you own old Airtronics equipment before the 'Z' connectors were introduced, you likely know exactly what we are talking about. To be sure, always check the polarity of the connectors when mixing equipment from different manufacturers.

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Article 1.004 - Should I use an external battery for my lighting?

It depends, if you are installing the SLS Scale Lighting System then it is not required as the current load on your receiver is very low. If you are installing the Cine-Scale Luxeon LED system, then we recommend it. As long as your scale model can lift the additional weight of the battery, this is by far the best method to add lighting or other scale effects to your model. It has been our experience that using a completely separate wiring harness, switches, charge connector and battery is the most reliable and will not put your flight electronics at risk. This solution is not for everyone and requires good soldering skills, but the result is well worth the effort to install it. Model helicopters have far too many areas that require attention to keep them flying. The last thing you want is to add more liability to your model. Specifically, integrating any electronic system to flight electronics can lead to problems in the future.

We know a few pilots who have successfully integrated lighting and other scale effects to their scale model's flight electronics and have years of flying time on their models. It can be done successfully, however there are common and unique traits in the character of these modelers. Patience, years of experience and attention to detail. These are the modelers who will stop flying for the day, when a problem occurs, be it a glitch in the model or the model just doesn't feel right in the air. They know from experience that trouble-shooting problems at the field is haphazard and normally lacks the proper tools to come to the correct source of the problem. While, back at home, on the work bench, even complicated problems can be solved quickly and efficiently. There are always quick fixes that can get a model back flying, but experienced modelers just know better than to risk their model, expecially over an electronic problem.

Take your time and plan out your lighting system. Make an access panel on your scale model. This could be in the fuselage itself like a cargo door or maintenance panel. It can also be a panel in the floor of the interior cabin that can be accessed through an open window or openable door. Be creative and disguise it to appear as a normal panel or detail but is actually completely functional. If you plan to use a Lithium Polymer battery for your lighting, also remember to make the battery compartment easy to remove. as it should only be charged in a fire proof container, away from models, fuels, paints or any other flamable materials. We have found that the low price of Nicad and Nimh batteries are excellent choices because they can be safely and semi-permanently installed in the fuselage until they eventually go bad and need to be replaced.

From a safety point of view, separate batteries for model control and model effects reduces the chances of damaging your main receiver battery by accidentally leaving the lighting system turned on. The amperage draw from the lighting will drain any attached battery to zero that is left turned on which will irreversibly damage most batteries. This can still happen with a separate battery, but you eliminate the risk to your main flight battery. It is far better to arrive at the field with a fully charged flight battery and a dead lighting battery any day.

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Article 1.005 - How should the lamps be installed into the fuselage?

The answer depends on the type of bulb and its cooling requirements. Let's start with the simplest LED bulbs, these are low power consumption and dissipate the lowest amount of heat through the bulb itself. Depending on your model, there are different methods to install the lighting system. Foam airplanes can simply attach each light in place with reinforced tape, balsa helicopter and aircraft fuselages can drill holes at various locations in your fuselage and bond the lamps in place using a two part Epoxy. Fiberglass and carbon fuselages generally will drill mounting holes also. While drilling is the simplest, it is always worthwhile to visit your local electronics store and pickup a set of LED mounts and matching lenses, commonly available in the standard LED colors. This takes a little more work, but each lamp now will be easily removeable and its external appearance is greatly improved by the shape and color of the lens.

For Luxeon LED types of bulbs, there is normally a heatsink already attached to the bulb or there is a required heatsink mount to be built and then the bulb needs to be in direct contact to avoid burning out the bulb. Installation into balsa, fiberglass and carbon fuselages is recommended. Foam aircraft should be avoided due to the fire hazard these bulbs can create when improperly installed. These bulbs are extremely bright and generate a lot of heat. Using proper heatsinks, modelers can install these systems with confidence that their fuselage will not be damaged from the heat generated. We also advise full testing of any external lens for Luxeon LEDs, these bulbs get so hot that a plastic lens too close will melt and can be a fire hazard.

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Article 1.006 - Can I extend a light or switch lead safely?

This should be straight forward for most modelers. But for those new to the hobby, you should spend some time and learn about soldering. Remember, making any changes to the original product will void any waranty. This becomes a judgement call on expensive equipment and you need to accept responsibility (read, purchase a new one) if you make a mistake and damage it. Even with the right tools and supplies, we have seen experienced modelers mess this up. Lighting and scale effects many times are not configured for your fuselage and changes like these go hand in hand in scale models.

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Article 1.007 - What is the best way to install switches in the fuselage?

It is strongly recommended to mount the switches to an internal hatch or area in the fuselage that can be accessed from an open window or openable panel. Mounting the switches directly through the fuselage is not only ugly but can lead to electrical problems if the model is fuel powered. The exhaust residue will quickly destroy switches in addition to any vibration that is transmitted along the fuselage. This can be reduced, but it is far better to plan ahead and install them on light plywood or plastic and have them inside the fuselage. Again, a custom installation may require that switches are extended in order to group them together along with any other switches used on the scale model.

As the investment in the scale model increases, modelers will pay additional attention to the quality of all electrical components on their models. Components like switches can be problematic to trouble shoot, especially months or years later when their contacts start to become intermittent. The end result for most mechanical switches is to freeze open or closed. No matter what position the switch is at, it remains electrically frozen in one position.

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