Jolly_roger_uk

Please feel free to send back the switchblade to me. I would like to test it for you. Any issues, it will get replaced. PM me for address. Lee

If you are getting pre-arm mode, then the Switchblade is resetting. This is 100% due to an excessive drop in battery voltage. Various things can cause this, but I’ll list the most likely.... 1. Power switch (yes the switch itself). Sometimes these switches go bad. All it takes is a slight ‘bounce’ in the contact or a bad contact to start with and you’ll have running problems. If you have a bad contact, they can often be bad enough to drop a voltage across them, making the voltage at the receiver artificially low. 2. Bad / weak battery (the obvious one) 3. High power servos. Sometimes when running high power (high current) servos, the high current causes a large voltage drop across the power switch and wire to the receiver, especially in dual servo steering setups. This can in most cases be resolved with an anti-brownout capacitor, but a direct power harness is the better option. 4. Faulty servos. A faulty servo a draw very high current, again causing a large voltage drop. First, I would suggest ruling out the power switch. Try bypassing it by connecting the battery directly into the receiver. Then replace the battery. 4 x C cells ain’t gonna cut it. Go with a 2S LiPo. I don’t know where you read that the Switchblade has issues with Lipo, they are 100% compatible and I recommend them. feel free to contact me via PM. Rest assured, we WILL get to the bottom of this issue. If I thought the Switchblade was faulty, I would replace it for you, but from your description of the problem I honestly think that it’s just doing its job. Most important!! ....... Don’t lose heart, sometime these things are sent to try us

Hi Cecil, I have replied to your PM.

Send it back to me and I’ll get it fixed up for you.

Replied to your PM buddy. Try connecting the Switchblade to your steering channel and move steering full left full right and see what happens.

Stick radios have always been an issue when it comes to full kill switch compatibility. I belive that some of the Futaba stick radios have the ability to set failsafe on the aux channel which will work, but you'll need a big budget. See how you get on with a Flysky FS-GT3. They are great for the money!

Brownout occurs when the battery voltage at the receiver takes a large dip. I say 'at the receiver' because it doesn't necessarily mean that the voltage at the battery is dipping. As we 'instantaneously' pull large currents from the battery through the power switch and cables to the receiver a voltage drop occurs across the cable. The larger the current the bigger the drop. Under normal conditions this is fine, but throw a faulty servo in the mix that pulls excessive current, or a worn power switch with touch of black wire corrosion we can expect the drop to be excessive and 'should' active the kill switch. I have known some setups with Dual high current steering servos cause this problem, an anti brownout capacitor will help but if the power switch and cables are in good condition and capable of handling the current it should never be an issue. I hope his helps

Replied to your PM, but thought I'd also answer it here. The led status when the engine cuts will give you a good clue as to what's causing the problem. Pre-arm mode (double flash) would indicate that the battery voltage has instantaneously dropped too low. This can happen for a number of reasons, bad battery, bad power switch, bad battery / switch connection, brown out. All of the above will be amplified as you pull current i.e. When working throttle / brake hard. kill mode (on with short off pulse) would indicate that the receiver has gone into failsafe (if set), interference, radio signal loss etc. Bare in mind that this could also happen if you have accidentally set a mix in your radio between throttle and the kill switch channel.

If the Switchblade is going into 'pre arm' (double flash on the status led), the battery voltage has dropped below the safe threshold. If it only happens when you move the steering / throttle servo (assuming the servos are ok) you are most likely getting a 'brownout' try changing the power switch or temporarily bypass it. If the cable degrades you can get an excessive volt drop especially when you start pulling current. Failing that, a capacitor will most likely resolve the issue. Contact me and ill get one sent out to you.

Think I have a new fuel cap somewhere, Maybe I'd better dig it out

Hi Dan, The SRS4201 is an AVC receiver. Unfortunately AVC and kill switches don't play nicely together. Id suggest replacing it with a non AVC type like the SR410.

Make sure that the Switchblade is in 'run mode' i.e. The LED should be on with a very short off pulse. In 'kill mode' the LED status will be the exact opposite (off with a very short on pulse). If you are not in run mode the engine will not start. Take a quick video if possible To check for a spark you will need to ground the plug. remove the plug, reconnect it to the cap and rest the threaded section on the engines cylinder head. Then pull it over.

Looking good there buddy!

Hi, if you disconnect the Switchblade from the receiver but leave it connected at the coil the engine definitely won't start, however if you completely disconnected the push button and Switchblade from the coil you should have a spark. Obviously if the engine runs like this you'll have no way of stopping it without pulling the plug cap or restricting fuel running the risk of it running lean. I would suggest that you concentrate on the spark. To test the spark remove plug and reconnect the cap. Hold the threaded section of the cap against the engines head to create a ground connection and pull the engine over. It helps to be in a dark room for this. Still no spark? As suggested try gapping the coil, loosen the coil, take a business card and place it between the coil and flywheel as a spacer and tighten everything up. Remove card and try again. If you still get no spark and you have already changed the plug it can only be a bad connection in the plug cap or a duff coil. I had a coil fail on me around 2 years ago, but it isn't very common on these. I hope this helps Lee

You need to have a series current limit resistor with any standard LED buddy. There is generally a lot of confusion about this and I get asked a lot about why they are needed and what value they should be etc. For the benefit of the forum I'll try to explain it here. An LED in electronic terms is a Diode that emits light when conducting a forward current. A diode only allows current to flow in one direction (think of it like the electronic equivalent of a non return valve / check valve. Now consider what would happen if you connected a diode directly across a battery. In one direction (reverse bias) nothing would happen because no current would flow. However the other way around (forward bias) would be like connecting a wire link across the battery, extremely high current a failed diode and possible shafted battery are all you'll have to show for it. Now, an LED is exactly the same, connect one directly across a supply without some sort of current limit and it WILL pop. To calculate the correct series resistor for an LED you need to know the following Typical operating voltage of LED Typical forward current of the LED The above will be available from the LED supplier. The only other thing we need to know is the supply voltage that you plan to run the LED on. Heres a typical spec for an ultra bright LED (the sort that I use on the Switchblade) Typical forward operating voltage = 3V Typical forward operating current = 20mA (0.02Amps) Now assuming that I want to power this LED from 2S 7.4V....... I need my resistor to drop 4.4V and limit the current to 20mA OHMs law says that R (resistance) = V (Voltage) / I (Current) so in my case 4.4 / 0.02 = 220 ohm Now we have to consider the wattage of the resistor that we are using. Usually you will find resistors available in 1/8 1/4 1/2 and 1watt etc. Power = V (voltage) X I (current) so in my case 4.4 X .02 = 0.088 so a 1/4 watt is plenty adequate.

I certainly can, drop me a PM Arron and we'll get you sorted.

Keep me posted

Hi Mike, The switchblade won't be making the whole radio system go 'dead'. It will be killing the engine as a result of the problem. From your description I'd have to suggest that interference is the cause. It may sound a little strange, but try changing the spark plug, and be sure to use an NGK CMR7h. Edit. Thinking about this a little more, and after reading your symptoms again I'd also be tempted to look at your power switch. It can be ruled out quite easily by plugging the battery directly into the receiver. I hope this helps Lee

Yes, this is quite normal if you switch on with ch3 active. You can reverse the channel to prevent this from happening from power on. on with short off pulse (******.******.******.******) = RUN MODE Off with short on pulse (......*......*......*......*...) = KILL MODE Double pulse (*.*.....*.*.....*.*......*.*) = Pre arm mode (Cycle ch3 to enter run mode) Even pulse (on off on off) = No valid radio signal (You may not see this one if you have the receivers on board failsafe set) I hope this helps

When it cuts, what are you getting at the LED status of the Switchblade? A double pulse would indicate that the receiver battery dropped below the safe threshold, an even pulse rate (on off on off) would indicate loss of radio signal / interference.

I did warn you that they were bright lol. Looking good.

Hi Babylon, I'm sorry that you feel this way. I carefully selected this cable because of its high quality conductor and thick pvc wall. The conductor is capable of carrying a continuous 14A (which for the application is a complete overkill) and the thick wall makes it highly flexible minimising the risk of damage to an inner core as a result of trapping, sharp bending and exposure to vibration and heat. Providing you make a good solid connection at the kill button you should have no problems at all. To my knowledge this is the first time that anyone has suggested that the cable isn't up to the job. If I agreed with you, I can assure you that I wouldn't use it. I'm glad you are otherwise happy, and if you have any further problems or would like to discuss this further please feel free to contact me.

Good stuff, now go tear up some turf!

The overlander 4400 pack is a perfect fit.

I have replied to your PM. AJ is right, from the switch menu set button E to aux 2p. Also make sure that you have no (zero) subtrim on aux, and travel adjust 100% in each direction. Thats about it. Let me know how it goes.