June 30, 2019
It was finally time to add the electronics and see her in action. The heart of the system will be a Lemon 7-channel receiver with stabilization. Because of the stabilization, it needed to be mounted lined up with one end facing the front and the other facing the tail. Because I needed to have room for the battery out of the upper hatch, I mounted the receiver upside down on the underside of the battery compartment floor. Evidently, it’s okay to do that.
After binding the receiver to my transmitter (A Spektrum DX8), I plugged in all the servos in their usual places, as printed on the receiver. I left the Gear channel — channel 5 — open because the Lemon is hardwired to use that channel to turn on and off the stabilization.
I then tested all the control surfaces. The elevator worked fine.
The rudder worked, but was sluggish. It felt as if it was binding a little inside the tube. I was considering some sort of lubrication when it occurred to me that I just needed a slightly smaller diameter control rod. Sounded like a trip to Rob’s Hobby Shop in Ocala was in order.
The ailerons showed that they had plenty of play. My concern that the servo throws would not be enough was unfounded.
The prop worked wonderfully. She’ll have plenty of power. I assigned the throttle cutoff to switch F, which I usually do immediately. I try to always keep it switched off until just before I need power. Good safety habits are important.
