Ace Commander/ World Engines- calling Peter Christy

[stuart mackay]

I acquired this marine radio today on 40 MHz I believe. It was custom built for the 9 ft long Virgin Challenger 2 boat model which now resides in the Muckleburgh collection in Weybourne, Norfolk.
The owner was thinking about having me put a Lemon module in it, but I suggested it would be better keeping it original as I had never seen one before!

So here is the transmitter, that I think has a certain Christy influence on it perhaps?

[Pchristy]

Heh! Heh! Talk about your past catching up with you!

That's definitely one of my early combined encoder/RF boards in there. Looks like one of the 5044 encoders which Phil mentioned recently.

Mick Wilshere was always prepared to build a transmitter to any customer specification, and this was one example. I didn't have much of a hand in it, as most of the work was mechanical - Mick's province! I do remember him showing it to me, though.

Looks like the battery pack has been removed. An 8-cell NiMH is required to power it (or a 3-cell LiFe).

The only time I got involved in a special was when we were asked to build a couple of special sets for animatronics on a SciFi film! They wanted several receivers, two transmitter "modules", into which could be plugged a number of different control boxes, depending on what they were trying to control.

Typical film industry, they wanted everything "yesterday"! We quoted them a price (worked out what it would cost us and doubled it!) and they said "yes" so fast we realised we had seriously under-quoted!

I took two weeks off work and bought an Epson FX-80 printer with the advance in order to make the artwork for the PC boards. The PCBs were designed on a BBC "B" computer.

We got it all done, delivered and accepted with a week to spare, but it was a fairly frantic couple of weeks.

Happy days!

If you need any help or advice with it, I'm happy to oblige.

--
Pete

[stuart mackay]

Thanks Pete, fascinating stuff and insight into the commercial side of our hobby that many would not be aware of.
As pary of my selling Moki engines, I did some Filmwork for a UK film called Riverbank where we flew two fantasy aircraft with animatronic animals as pilots using our big petrol engines down at the former tank testing grounds at Chobham...but as they say that is another story!

Had another look at the Christy Commander(!) This morning and took some photos of the receivers etc.
There is black box between one rx and the servos (see pic) which I am not sure what it is doing as I havent powered the receiver up as yet. The Tx meter moved into the green when I fed it with 12v from.my power supply.

[Phil_G]

There is black box between one rx and the servos (see pic) which I am not sure what it is doing

A Crispy Mixture ?

[Pchristy]

Not a mixer! I suspect its a failsafe, and the four pots govern the position the servos will fail to.

Not one of mine, that one!



Stuart, 12V is a little bit much for the Tx. 10V is nearer the mark. Don't run it on 12V with the aerial retracted for any length of time! The output transistor won't like it! They are fine on 10V, but do get very hot with the aerial down.

--
Pete

[stuart mackay]

Thanks Pete, have got a 3S 1500mAh LiFe on the way to power the Tx!

[Pchristy]

Good choice!

BTW, the meter is usually a RF meter, not a battery voltmeter. The reading will vary as the aerial is extended, and can be seen to vary if you grab the aerial with your hand.

Since its an RF Voltmeter, the reading will vary with SWR. I always used to tune the transmitters up using a Field Strength meter, and once I was happy with it, adjust the Tx meter to read in the green with the aerial fully extended. What reading you got with the aerial collapsed depended on the length of the aerial feed wire from the board. Sometimes it was higher, sometimes lower. The important reading was with the aerial fully extended.

--
Pete

[stuart mackay]

Thanks for that info , Pete!
Another one has surfaced, if you pardon the submarine pun!

[Pchristy]

Good Grief! Where are you finding these things?!?



--
Pete

[Tobe]

...I have a feeling he doesn't find them ...they find him!