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danny_galaga

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Everything posted by danny_galaga

  1. danny_galaga
    Well, my MGL seems to have come good! The only thing that has changed is that the starter battery was going downhill fast, so after the last flight (where it only just started, even after charging it for 30 minutes) I put a new one in. Could it be my radio is a bit sensitive to the extra, and constant current draw of my dicky battery? Thoughts Kyle? In any case, should I ever have to replace the radio, Trig is getting such a good rap I would be silly not to go in that direction. I'm thinking if I mount it under the seat, I could make the aerial coaxial cable about 1.5 metres shorter, which can't hurt 🙂
  2. danny_galaga
    Trig TY91 is about $2800 in Australia. From memory, my MGL was about $1200 USD
  3. danny_galaga
    If you are using a currently available model of radio, what is it, and are you happy with it? I have an MGL. It seems to have gone downhill fast. I have time off next two weeks so I can have a really good at the wiring, aerial etc. but the radio started off well, and the plane only has about 6 hours total flight time, so I feel it probably is the radio. When I told an avionics guy what brand, he asked how much I paid. When I told him it was free, he said that's about the right price 😄. My guy helping with the test flying and another guy at the hangar didn't think much of MGL either. The other guy actually threw his away 😲 They are very happy with Trig TY91, so that's on my radar. My only concern there is it's one of those 'head unit and base unit ' jobbies, which will make installation in my case a bit of a bother, depending on whether I can just join them.into one unit or not...
  4. danny_galaga
    A full 30 minutes 😲 Here's a post of mine on a different forum. 2004. Notice the link in the first post? https://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,20073.0.html#msg161529
  5. danny_galaga
    Many of us have asked this. Not going to happen. You've got 15 minutes and then all your mistakes are locked in forever 😄
  6. danny_galaga
    Well I haven't added an earth to mine. I guess it could be earthing through that foil covered fibreglass heat shield I guess 😊
  7. danny_galaga
    Yeah, I figure since the Carmo is made for aircraft it's fully above ground electrically. The Ducati one obviously is for motorbikes which use the frame for negative ground.
  8. danny_galaga
    My installation benefitted from being a clean install. Plenty of air movement around the device, but the air that's there isn't going to be very cool. That's the kit position and I didn't want to waste time doing something different. Anyway, my hope was that even it's a bit warm there, it's supposed to run cooler than the original anyway. So far the longest flight has been roughly 80 minutes
  9. danny_galaga
    You do have to be wary. Plugging in a new one into something that caused the old one to fail is an expensive diagnosis 😄
  10. danny_galaga
    You only need a ball park figure to get an idea if it's working or not. Battery at rest voltage is about 12.4V. If you see more than that when the engine is running, it's charging. It should if course be significantly more. We used to see so much variation when I was an auto electrician we drew a line at about 13.2v . Between that and about 14.4v is fine. I don't know that you'll easily test it off the plane. A dedicated workshop might have a suitable AC output to hook it up to. For you, your best source is the running engine 🙂
  11. danny_galaga
    If you do underwoods test, you'll know your charging system is working. If it's working, that is how you test your regulator 🙂
  12. danny_galaga
    Just for sh*ts and giggles, I'm going to temporarily install the capacitor on my set up. I have an MGL radio, which is not highly regarded around the hangar, and since it seems to be getting worse without anything else seemingly changing, I suspect it's a bit dodgy. But it can't hurt to put that capacitor in the circuit and see if the radio improves. Ill report back on the results. Could be a week or two.
  13. danny_galaga
    The battery is already doing that. If not, the capacitor would be internal otherwise your whole system is relying on the installer dong that correctly- for instance if people are leaving them off because the Carmo doesn't need it, then B & C would be getting a bad rap. I feel either they are playing it safe by recommending you use one (if it's not needed it won't make any difference) or else maybe their design makes the same amount of noise as the Ducati 🤷‍♂️
  14. danny_galaga
    I used to be an auto electrician 😉
  15. danny_galaga
    Right you are. I think we talked about this before. My point is I don't think there is a need for a switch mode system, particularly since we've had this type of 'alternator' from before there was such a thing. With these low current alternators, the output amperage isn't that great. 22 amps total output for instance compared to about 5 to 10 amps for a rotor field. Totally doable with the same hardware, whether that was relays or now with transistors
  16. danny_galaga
    I can't remember if I bought my Carmo from the Aussie distributor or not. I guess I did. Maybe different manager now? I didn't have any dramas, but that was several years ago Incidentally, my Carmo runs at a solid 14.3V
  17. danny_galaga
    Except maybe at the very lowest rpm, the alternator will be putting out more than 14V. Not sure of exact figures but I would guess easily over 20V if no load. I think on a 3 phase car alternator it's over 50V. In the olden days (say 40 or so years ago) the regulator consisted of a relay. Below a certain voltage it was closed and above a certain voltage it would open. In this way it would vary it's rate of vibration, depending on the load, which had the effect of varying the voltage. Of course now it's done with a transistor. Same principle though.
  18. danny_galaga
    Sorta. A switch mode power supply ramps up the frequency several thousand hertz before then converting that to the required voltage. There isn't a need here. You aren't converting a voltage, just regulating it.
  19. danny_galaga
    In any case, max 22 amps for a few minutes. Well below the 60 amp peak mentioned before 😇
  20. danny_galaga
    The battery will only be able to draw the maximum 22 amps I think. That's theoretically, as presumably there are other loads on. Radio, lights etc. it will only the draw heavily for a few minutes after starting, since it will be charging up. The current draw between the battery and alternator is governed purely by the difference in voltage between the two. If there's nothing wrong with the battery it will charge up and the batteries voltage increases. If you have an ammeter you should see the amps drop down pretty quickly after a start. Longer if the battery was flat
  21. danny_galaga
    I would think so, if you mean that were you to install the Carmo, you won't need it anymore. But it can't hurt to leave it, if that's easier for you. My plane only has about 3 hours flying time now, but all good so far. Radio did have some sort of problem, but that was occuring whether the engine was running or not.
  22. danny_galaga
    I'm very happy with my Carmo, although since it was a new build I wired accordingly. Some things that appealed to me- NOT Italian 😄 Less wiring No need for capacitor (either it runs much more quietly, or there's suppression built in) When the engine isn't running, nor is the regulator. It's a mystery to me why the Ducati one can flatten your battery. Perhaps the Ducati bike ignition switch is wired appropriately. I think it might be compatible with Li Fe batteries too.
  23. danny_galaga
    I saw a video a few weeks ago on FB of a (coincidentally golf related) golfer hitting a hole in one after skipping the ball off a water hazard. No way that's real, must be ai I thought. After a bit of a look around, I found it was posted on YouTube YEARS ago. Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction... ⛳
  24. danny_galaga
    🤷‍♂️ Whatever gets you through the night. I also don't debate moon landing deniers. Nothing to be gained from it...
  25. danny_galaga
    Having watched the video interview of the pilot, it's case closed. You may as well be telling me theres no stars in the background of moon lander footage.
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