3dmike
640cc Uber Pimp
So anyone that has been flying for any length of time has seen smoke on a RC Plane and thought "I WANT THAT"! Well I was lucky enough to get one thanks to RedwingRC and Fortitude! They did supply the hardware for free and I can tell you this is a biased review.
YUP I LOVE IT!!!! What's not to like about smoke?!?!?!Products used:
RedwingRC Miracle Smoke Pump $65 - http://www.redwingrc.com/index.php?m...roducts_id=440
Fortitude 32oz Tank $25 - http://www.fourtituderc.com/rtu-smoke-tanks.html
Fortitude Twin Muffler Smoke Installation/Completion Kit $25 - http://www.fourtituderc.com/fuel-lin...cessories.html
Robart Liquid Sky Smoke Fluid 1 Gallon $22 - http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...P?I=LXZTY6&P=8
Ok let's get started on the installation!
First I removed my cowl and I'm thankful it's a two piece so I don't have to remove the prop! Then I removed my fuel from the tank and then removed the tank to make room for the second one. Sorry no boring pic of that.
Next I removed the RedwingRC Miracle Smoke pump from the box and read the instructions. The electric pump uses a esc/bec to control the motor.
I decided to mount the motor on the side on my motor box since it is completely fuel proofed already. Some will mount the pump in the canister tunnel if cans aren't used. This is done in case the pump starts to leak or a line gets worn and cut. Basically keep all electronics inside and all leaky things outside… LOL
Next I drilled a large enough hole for the esc lines to connect with the pump, connected and put some wire protector on to ward off fraying.
Now on to the Fortitude Smoke Pump plumbing kit!
The kit includes everything you need to setup the plumbing which is awesome! The black line is heat temperature rated since it will be next to the mufflers and the blue tygon is used for the rest.
I first took the black line and cut it in half as per instructions, connected to each muffler and put small zip ties on.
Tip: The rest of the blue tygon only needs to be heated up with a heat gun or hair dryer should work then connected.
Next I connected the ez connectors that connect to the blue tygon line.
I then took the lines and test fit everything before cutting and connecting to the T-Connector. Again using the tip above heat the tygon or else you will be cursing up a storm trying to get all of the connections made!
Next I cut enough line to make a connection to the T from the "OUT" side of the pump (which is clearly marked for you), cut a spot out for the one way valve, heated and connected. Notice I'm not using zip ties for the tygon as it will not come off!!!
Note: When connecting the one way valve make sure the cone shape is in the direction of the flow like an arrow or you will not get any smoke fluid to the mufflers. This could result in a complete mess and or possibly burn your pump up while trying to figure out the situation!
Next take the pre plumbed tank and install. You all know how to do that so I won't cover it. My fuel is on the left and smoke is on the right. You can choose how you want to fill and vent but I zip tied them together every 3 to 4 inches and have them going out the bottom of my plane. Smoke fluid is thick and messy so I choose to avoid that by filling from the bottom of the plane!
Now you can test fit some tygon from the front of the tank to the "IN" side of the pump, cut, and connect.
Now you can make your connections to your receiver and power! I made a Y lead to share power from my Dinogy Lipo ignition battery up the line between my optikill and ignition. I did this so I know for a fact that it will not inadvertently get powered on with out flipping the ignition switch on and flipping my ignition switch on my radio!
Note: if you connect your esc to a channel that is also a battery power channel you should remove the red wire (in my case red... regardless its the middle wire) as not to feed the receiver power when you don't want to!
Radio setup: I will attach notes from RedwingRC below on radio setup but here is what I did based on some advice from Supatim. I setup a mix in my Futaba 8FG Super with the primary being the throttle and slave as channel 8. I also set it up to not engage the slave until 25% throttle is applied. You can set up the switch here in the program mix screen (again if you are using Futaba 8FG and I believe the 14FG is the same). I would also suggest not setting up a switch that is close to your kill switch! Now reverse the servo for channel 8 as Futaba is always backwards for esc's (at least in my experience) but yours may not need to be reversed if you're running a different radio. Next setup your servo end point to 20% or less to start otherwise you will dump a full tank of smoke fluid in 30 seconds!
Now you can fill up the smoke tank and test! I would not suggest doing this in front of your house as this pump really produces a lot of smoke and I mean a lot! If you do and hear sirens, pack up and close the garage before the fire department arrives! LOL Testing on the ground at the field surprised me just how much smoke it produces and not to mention it will get on your shoes!
Here are some pictures of my very first flight with smoke and yes I had a cheesy grin that was from ear to ear!
Pro's:
Easy installation (took less than 2 hours total!)
Good instructions
Works as advertised
Everytime you switch that smoke on it makes you giggle inside like a little girl!
You look like a BadA$$ at the field!!
Con's:
Let's face it… the plane will never be the same after you install smoke but you can do things to keep the plane looking good for years as long as you make sure your covering is all ironed down, secure and you wipe your plane down really really well after each flight! I use simple green but this is my first rodeo with smoke so you may want to seek advice on that.
That's it and thanks for reading! Thank you RedwingRC and Fortitude for suppling the goods for this review!
SMOKE ON!!!
eace:Additional Info From RedwingRC's site:
Radio Set up:
3. Nonprogrammable Radios
Use a switched channel to switch the Smoke pump on and off. Since there is no trim control on a switched channel, the flow rate is consistent. When the switch is on, flow will be at maximum. We can set the END POINT/ATV of radio switch channel to control the maximum flow rate so as to control the smoke density.
4. Programmable Radios
Plug the smoke signal wire into a spare channel (such as the 8th channel). Set this channel program mixing the Throttle channel, then set a switch for programming mixing on/off to control smoke pump on/off. Adjust the END POINT/Travel of this channel to control smoke pump flow rate so as to control the smoke density. For more detailed information please see your radio manual.
Specifications:
Weight: 3.32 oz (94g)
1100KV Brushless Motor
10 Amp Brushless ESC
Input: 2-cell lipo or Li-FE (6-cell NiMH)
CNC processed 6061 anodized aluminum
Fuel resistant fiberglass filled nylon gears
DO NOT dry run pump! This may cause failure.
