For the Turnigy or Pololu switches, have you tried using a Turnigy Servo Signal reverser http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/...o%20reverse to change the throw for the second switch? Should also work for the Dimension Engineering switches (if i could dig mine out). BTW, Dimension Engineering indicated tha they could produce some negative throw custom ones, if you wanted enough (I think it was an order of 10 or more, but that may not be right - I have slept since then). Even so, it seems the best bang for the buck is two of the the Pololus with a $2 server reverrser on one. Makes parts stocking pretty easy - keep a bunch of the Pololu's (which can be bought at a discount for 10+) and a bunch of the servo reversers in the tool box, all pre-tested and waterproofed. Then just plug in the parts you need (and you also have a servo reverser for when you get a wierd servo that has the opposite throw to what you wanted and don't have servo reverse handy on the radio, or using someone else's because yours ids down and you don't want to reprogram it in the heat of battle). I have some of the reversers in stock and will try them out with my Pololu boards when they come in. Cheers,
What I did to use a Basic Micro switch for my forward and aft guns was to plug one into Ch 3 and one into Ch 4, and programmed a mix in my transmitter that makes Ch 4 do the opposite of whatever Ch 3 does. Pushing the stick up makes Ch 3 positive, firing the forward gun. So when I pull the stick back, Ch 4 senses a positive movement, and fires. If I didn't have a radio that could do mixes, or was short of channels, a cheap reverser might be the trick.
Yep, Tug, that would do it. I am thinking that the $2 servo reverser would work to save you a channel of for those without radios that have that kind of mixing capability. I will pass on what I learn when the Pololu boards come in. Luckily (and one of the reasons I ordered a batch), besides the fact that they are not as RC power voltage sensitive as some others, and the fact that the flyback diode is built in, is that it has a condition indicator LED, so I will be able to tell if the setup is working pretty quickly. Since it triggers at 1.6ms, it should give me a 2ms deadband (I hope). Cheers,
At $2 apiece, it'd be real hard to go wrong with them! I did not mean to sound all forward-thinking or anything, far from it. I was more shocked that I didn't check before buying them to see if they went both ways, and the mix was more a 'make it work' kind of thing. I was just happy to have the option.
Tug, I am with you 100%. Almost always makes the best sense to use what you have available, if you can make it work. That is one of the reasons I bought the Pololu boards in bulk. I need 5, minimum, as the firing indicators on the ship turret simulator (up to 5 turrrets) I am setting up to test the new Turnigy 9XR radio with its stock firmware to see how far I can take it before doing any upgrades. So, since they have so many other uses, and I had gotten the servo reversers to fill up shipping space as tool-box spares for those odd emergency situations... all of a sudden the light came on to use them for reversing one of the Pololu boards. Whether it is a bright light or simply ordinary brain flatulence remains to be seen of course... As to the simulator - I have the 5" "turret' pulleys, the 5" top plates for the gun depression mounts, lots of barrels with a bend joint (flex straws), and I think I now have the axles (haven't test fit them yet) and enough sail-winch servos and drive belts. I just feel it will be good to see what is physically happening in real life as I try out the various curves, mixes, conditional switches, etc. Now to start putting them all together when the Pololu boards arrive. For what it is worth.... Doing it "in my head" only gets me so far. I need to actually see the bits work to confirm. Theory and actuality are often divergent, if related at all.:blush: Also, it is easier to show someone else what is going on if you have a functioning physical mode. This is going further off-topic, but did you know that you may be able to get 16-32 control channels out of these 9X series radios? Haven't done so yet, but planning on going 16 with my 9XR if it does so the way I think. Again, when I get to it, I will let it be known. Cheers,
