"Sliding Servo" Old-School Control Mixer

Yup --- truly old school, but it was a very common approach for the V-tails that Kim mentioned and for deltas. There were also a couple of commercial mechanical devices.

And who could forget that timeless classic: Old School Dual Rates !!! Cherish that modern radio, boys !!!!

I actually prefer to do Control Throws this way. I do not like having to fight these new computer radios.

[quote="Kim"]The "sliding servo" is an Old School method of mixing two controls, many times used in V-tailed sailplanes. It involves an anchored elevator servo, hooked by pushrod to a rudder servo, mounted on sliding rails.

I use Sullivan or similar pushrods and their sleeves to build up a "sled" for the rudder servo to slide on. The pushrods are bonded to the frame of the airplane, while the rudder servo and it's mount are attached to their sleeves. This also allows you to run a flex cable to steer a nose or tail wheel without adding another servo.

Hope this helps:



Kim: my mentor in the 1980's helped me use this sliding servo setup with my 1st and 2nd V-tail airplanes. I still have the 1meter mini-wanderer i self-scaled from 2 meter plans and it still flew great until last week when the 27+ year old balsa, (not basswood like it should have been) V-tail support snapped in flight. minimal damage.

happydad

Talking of mechanical mixers,does anyone remember the Dodgeson mixer? he used it in his Maestro sailplane. I can remember it vaguely, I think it did flapperons and coupled rudder, and maybe coupled elevator as well. All throws adjustable mechanicaly, and all from just two servos, it was very brilliant.

happydad wrote:

Kim: my mentor in the 1980's helped me use this sliding servo setup with my 1st and 2nd V-tail airplanes. I still have the 1meter mini-wanderer i self-scaled from 2 meter plans and it still flew great until last week when the 27+ year old balsa, (not basswood like it should have been) V-tail support snapped in flight. minimal damage.

happydad

Re: "Sliding Servo" Old-School Control Mixer

New post ebeneezer Today at 3:22 am
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Talking of mechanical mixers,does anyone remember the Dodgeson mixer? he used it in his Maestro sailplane. I can remember it vaguely, I think it did flapperons and coupled rudder, and maybe coupled elevator as well. All throws adjustable mechanically, and all from just two servos, it was very brilliant.

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My first experience with it followed the rather violent death of my flying bud's Sig Kadet ("Heck no! I ain't gonna CIRCLE up and out of the ballpark...I'm climbing straight out and OVER those wires!).

Since the wing was the only part of the Kadet that resembled it's former glory, Kevin Eugene decided to build a "Bonanza-ish" fuselage with the wing moved to the bottom. We came upon the idea in a all-night building session, and thought we were really smart until discovering that we hadn't been the only ones to use this method of blending controls!



I haven't heard of the Dodgeson mixer, but do know the feeling of pride in work like this. We loved to show off the mixed controls, even to licensed pilots, who couldn't imagine HOW we'd done it. We'd then pull the wing off and get the congratulatory "Ahhh...THAT'S cool!" as we showed off our handi-work !

I later used it in my hard-flown "Allure" sailplane.

Kim wrote:

happydad wrote:

Kim: my mentor in the 1980's helped me use this sliding servo setup with my 1st and 2nd V-tail airplanes. I still have the 1meter mini-wanderer i self-scaled from 2 meter plans and it still flew great until last week when the 27+ year old balsa, (not basswood like it should have been) V-tail support snapped in flight. minimal damage.

happydad

Re: "Sliding Servo" Old-School Control Mixer

New post ebeneezer Today at 3:22 am
+
----
-
Talking of mechanical mixers,does anyone remember the Dodgeson mixer? he used it in his Maestro sailplane. I can remember it vaguely, I think it did flapperons and coupled rudder, and maybe coupled elevator as well. All throws adjustable mechanically, and all from just two servos, it was very brilliant.

=========================================================================================

My first experience with it followed the rather violent death of my flying bud's Sig Kadet ("Heck no! I ain't gonna CIRCLE up and out of the ballpark...I'm climbing straight out and OVER those wires!).



Since the wing was the only part of the Kadet that resembled it's former glory, Kevin Eugene decided to build a "Bonanza-ish" fuselage with the wing moved to the bottom. We came upon the idea in a all-night building session, and thought we were really smart until discovering that we hadn't been the only ones to use this method of blending controls!



I haven't heard of the Dodgeson mixer, but do know the feeling of pride in work like this. We loved to show off the mixed controls, even to licensed pilots, who couldn't imagine HOW we'd done it. We'd then pull the wing off and get the congratulatory "Ahhh...THAT'S cool!" as we showed off our handi-work !

I later used it in my hard-flown "Allure" sailplane.

Kim: that looks an awful lot like an old EK Logiktrol radio. one of my first and still best radios. Do you remember the brand of the red transmitter?

happydad

Yes, they were both EK Champion 5 Channel radio's. Kevin's was a couple years earlier than mine. It was my first "Real" radio after several misadventures with a Citizenship Escapement I'd flown/chased for a few years prior.

I still have it...though it's receiver was damaged in a crash.

Kim wrote:Yes, they were both EK Champion 5 Channel radio's. Kevin's was a couple years earlier than mine. It was my first "Real" radio after several misadventures with a Citizenship Escapement I'd flown/chased for a few years prior.

I still have it...though it's receiver was damaged in a crash.

i have no idea where my receivers went. when the FCC decided we had to use narrow band receivers on AM i think i put them in a box somewhere. I still use a 3 channel EK AM transmitter that was narrow-banded by a certified guy in fallbrook, CA about 26 years ago, and i also have a 4 channel sport series or something like that i am thinking of converting both to 2.4GHz with the anylink system by Tactic. they make cables for all the popular brands like Futaba, Hitec, Spectrum, etc, but i am not sure if the data format of the EK is positive or negative. if it is similar to Futaba i can make my own cable. the EK transmitters have such smooth joysticks i hate to sell them and it would look so cool with a 2.4GHz antenna on the back. i'll keep you informed. (i was an electronic engineer in a past life for 31 years.)
cox engines forever.

p.s. i still have a futaba 2 channel escapement system i sent my dad when i was in the USAF in Japan in 1967-1968.

happydad

If you haven't already, you might check out this bunch: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/VRCS/

They restore everything from Escapement systems to reed outfits and old propo units...

I have a 3 channel kraft set on 27megs, with it a receiver/servo brick, that could be switched from red to brown , the first proportianal system I had, it never let me down. My dad a six channel Kraft, that had open stick gimbles the smoothest sticks I've ever felt. again on 27megs it may have been called a Series 76.

ebeneezer wrote:I have a 3 channel kraft set on 27megs, with it a receiver/servo brick, that could be switched from red to brown , the first proportianal system I had, it never let me down. My dad a six channel Kraft, that had open stick gimbles the smoothest sticks I've ever felt. again on 27megs it may have been called a Series 76.

Yeah, Kraft was definitely THE radio to have back in the day. The prices of the complete sets are almost breath-taking when you consider that they were in 1960's 1970's dollars!

My EK Logitrol set REALLY put a dent in my finances, but it worked...and worked...and worked !

i aslo have used the slideing rail set up many times aslo for aleron/flaps (flapperons) and even once in reverse as a aleron/spoiler combo on a large glider