STICKY - Suppliers for RC sloping gear

[thevon]

Thought it might be a good idea to start this thread where we can share info on recommendations for places to get gear for slope gliders for us SEQ'ers.

[thevon]

Twice now I've been chasing servos and both times the best prices were from perthrc.com.au Today I chased down 2 HS85MG servos for my Drongo, looked at various options etc. The cheapest price on the net was at nitrodude.com.au (they're really worth looking at, and have a good price on the Bee) but they had none in stock. Perthrc were a few bucks more, but when I rang and asked a price, they quoted far less than their internet price!

Also I got a roll of solafilm - only $17. They reckon solafilm shrinks at a bit lower temp than profilm etc, so it should suit the foamies.

Their postage cost is just the cost of the express post bag - just under $7.

[sean]

Hey Andrew, great idea for a thread.

Here's a few of the things that I've bought recently, that took a bit of effort to track down:

Products available in Bunnings Stafford:
Strapping tape, 3M 25mm.
"Vise" Polyurethane glue (not the best, bubbles really badly, I'd be happy to learn of a better alternative to this brand).
Xylene, for thinning Shoe Goo.
Red Devil One Time spackle filler, works a treat to smooth the surface of an EPP wing and weighs next to nothing.
lead flashing, for ballast. I got a sheet that's about 1.5mm thick, you can cut it with scissors to whatever shape you need, and glue it together to make blocks for ballasting or balancing.

Amart Allsports, Mitchelton:
Shoe Goo, about $12. I think they carry Shoe Goo in most Amart Allsports branches. I reckon this is the best glue for use with EPP (eg gluing in spars, gling EPP to EPP etc). Thin it with Xylene and coat your EPP wing for added impact resistance.

I bought some 3mm and 5mm Coreflute from a sign writing supply shop somewhere over near Camp Hill, if anyone's interested I'll dig out the address. It took a bit of ringing around to find someone who stocks Coreflute.

I found a place that stocks Dow blue foam over near Pinkenba, if anyone's interested I can dig out the address of that one too. It took some time to track this place down.

I bought my transmitter from Modelflight.com.au, I recommend these guys. I've also bought a number of things from towerhobbies.com (they're in the US). If you buy a few things in one go it works out quite cheap and delivery times are around 7 days. For example, I bought some HS-81MG servos from these guys and it worked out to about $20 a servo.

Budget Hobbies in Capalaba are very reasonable, Profilm costs $23 for normal colours like white and red, up to about $40 for fancy colours, such as pearls. In comparison my local hobby shop, Hobbyrama, charge $40 and up for Profilm. Budget Hobbies also have a lot of carbon tubes, rods and ribbons in stock for reasonable prices.

I highly recommend the switch/charge jack that is sold by ncfm. It's such an elegant solution. I ordered 3 of these when I ordered my halfpipe. www.northcountyflyingmachines.com/blackjack.htm

I have a few requests: does anyone know where you can buy 3M 77 spray adhesive? I have bought it from Hobbyrama in the past but the price was a bit over the top. I'm also looking for bi-directional strapping tape (as opposed to the typical uni-directional stuff such as 3M).

[thevon]

Thanks Sean, that's great.

The tape is called bidirectional Filament tape and it's made by various manufacturers and sold by some packaging suppliers. There's a shop called Packaging Direct in the little street behind Hobbyrama at Stafford (comes off Shand St). They also sell party supplies. There's a website www.packagingdirect.com.au/ and they stock the tape. I bought some - from memory less than $10 per roll and it's really good stuff.

There's also a place called Dalton Packaging at Geebung where in the past I've got the filament tape and also rolls of coloured tape. However Gerard went there recently and they had no coloured tape so it would be worth ringing first.

Is Red Devil spackle any better or different to Polyfilla or any of the other lightweight fillers??

Coreflute should be easy to get since it's so widely used by signwriters, but mostly it's white.

[thevon]

Those blackjack charging jacks are excellent - I've looked at Sean's. You wire it up and mount it so the socket is flush with the wing. When the charging lead is plugged in, it switches the plane off and you can charge it if you want. When you pull the lead out, leaving the plughole flush with the wing, the plane is switched on. Really excellent. I'm going to order some in a week or so ... let me know if anyone else wants one and I'll add it to the order.

[thevon]

Also I have a "Lost Model Alarm" which I bought from Wowings for $25. I should get more of them and use them in all foamies! It does 3 things. 1) beeps if your battery is low, 2) If you leave the plane on by mistake with the radio off, it will beep for 30 sec after 5 mins. 3) after an hour it will start to beep continuously. Mine has helped us find a plane just last week! But mount it on the surface so the beep is loud. I buried mine in the foam with the wiring next to the receiver, and it was very muffled. It needs to have the beeper surface exposed so it's loud.
However this one is apparently lots better than mine www.skykingrcproducts.com/accessories/lostmodel/lost_rc_model_alarm.html
and there's a review here
www.slopeflyer.com/artman/publish/skyking_lost_model_alarm.shtml

[thevon]

Re: the 3M Super 77 spray adhesive, you can get it from office/ stationery suppliers. Officeworks price a year ago was about $15 I think and our local shop recently charged me $20.

Further to the LOST MODEL ALARMS, the SkyKing ones sound really good because they start beeping as soon as you switch off, and they're loud. I just got an email back from the Skyking guy and they cost $20US each, and he can send up to 10 for $9.50US. I'd be interested in ordering some so if anyone wants to go in on an order let me know.

[sean]

Hey Andrew,

Thanks for the help on the tape and 3M 77!

I haven't tried Polyfilla spackle but I'd imagine it's good too. If I remember rightly, if you pick up a tub of Red Devil and compare it to Polyfilla the Red Devil's much lighter. This may change as they gas off though, it might be that Polyfilla has a higher water content in the tub.

[thevon]

Sean etc, I got a tip today that for polyurethane glue, the one to get is the Selleys (I think) rather than the Vise. Guy I spoke to won't use Vise and reckons the Selleys one is good.

Check out this guy for radio gear. I reckon the servos look great (but he's out of stock just now). Is in Townsville I think.
pldaniels.com/rcshop/

[thevon]

I was at Bunnings and checked - there's a Selleys Aquadhere Durabond polyurethane glue - $20 for 500ml. That's the one Glenn recommended. Interestingly instructions say to dampen the surface as the glue needs water to cure, and at least one surface should be porous.

[Zipper]

The Aquadhere Durabond polyurethane glue just needs a light mist spray of water to set it off and it finds its way into the paws of the foam, if your not careful it will go all the way through and glue your plane to your table, it will stick to any thing.

Glenn

[sean]

Hey,

Bought some 3M spray adhesive from Office Works. It doesn't say Super 77 on the can, it's called "Multi Purpose Spray". I'm pretty sure it's the same stuff (I hope it is...).

I've seen the Selley's PU glue but was scared off by the price. Now that I know it works well I'll give it a try.

There are some really good instructions for using PU glue on the NCFM website. Go to this page: www.northcountyflyingmachines.com/FAQ.htm

And scroll down till you see "Our Method of Spar Installation using "Gorilla Glue".

[thevon]

Sean, yep I went to Officeworks today and found the same thing. Yes apparently it's called Super 77 Multipurpose ... but also known just as .. Multipurpose, in the green can. I read that they've changed the Super 77 to include acetone, so it's not safe any more for use on EPS foams, and they have a "Super 74" foam-fast version which is OK for EPS.

[thevon]

Can I also put in a plug for a small shop at Geebung called OZ--RC. It's run by Gerard Dulat, and mainly services the R/C car people and does a lot of Ebay sales I think. It's only open from 12 to 4 or so on weekdays. Ph 3265 4547 Mob [phone] at Unit 31/ 115 Robinson Rd East (its a big complex and you have to drive in to the far back right side of the area.). He's very helpful and can order stuff in.

I got a pack of 4 x 2400 maH NimH batteries "Venom" brand, for $12 per pack. But he also has quite a few options for shorter ( unusual length) battery packs which would be very useful in some models.
Got servo extension leads for around $3 per pack (much cheaper if you buy a few more).

He doesn't deal at all with Hitec but does a lot of Futaba and GWS stuff etc. Basic 2 channel Futaba AM radios $75. JR Max 66 computer radios $300 complete or $150 for radio and battery only.

Servos - he has quite a few in stock ranging from basic to quality digital MG BB ones for $100 in standard sizes. Also micro servos. But he can access GWS servos too, which are great quality and price. The prime candidates for foamies (mini size) would be the Naro P ball race for $26, or the Micro MG ball race for $40.

There's also a GWS Naro R6N receiver for $48.
Worth checking out.

[callun]

I thought OZ RC didn't exist anymore... interesting. I tried calling there on a number of occasions and could never get through - the number said it was disconnected.