Engel Akula II Build Questions

[Oldus Fartus]

Engel X505 MG BB Servo Equivalent?

All was good but only a few dives until the dive planes servo failed!

Anyone know the equivalent to the Engel P/N 9375?

They are out of stock...

[Oldus Fartus]

Discontinued - Engel X505 MG BB Servo Equivalent?

Heard back from Engel and unfortunately these servos have been discontinued.

Anyone running an Engel Akula II or 212A know of a suitable replacement servo?

Thanks,
Pete

[JWLaRue]

Since their kits assume the use of that specific sized servo, did Engel indicate what they will be replacing them with?

-Jeff

[Oldus Fartus]

HS-82MG Servo

No, but it looks like a HiTec HS-82MG is the exact same servo w/o the BB feature...should work.

[JWLaRue]

Should be a drop-in replacement. Even though the specs look slightly different. We're talking like 0.1mm differences, which essentially is not worth mentioning.

Excellent find. I need to get a couple of these as spares for our SubComEast Type 212 fleet.

-Jeff

[Oldus Fartus]

Engel emailed and said replacement would be HS-5085; only problem is that servo has been discontinued?

[JWLaRue]

In that case, I would give the HS-85MG servo a try as it's the same size.

-Jeff

[Oldus Fartus]

HS-85MG Servo

In that case, I would give the HS-85MG servo a try as it's the same size.

-Jeff

Yep...fits like a glove and works fine...

[JWLaRue]

Yep...fits like a glove and works fine...

Thanks, Pete. I appreciate the confirmation.

-Jeff

[Oldus Fartus]

A couple of things come to mind:

• does the battery have a reasonable charge level? The CTS board has a low voltage cut off that forces the boat to surface if the battery voltage drops too far,
• are all the CTS board connections still in place and tight? (I've found that those connectors that slide onto the microswitch contacts need to be slightly tightened up by squeezing them with pliers before putting them on)
• since you mentioned an "aux" channel, what happens if you temporarily use a different channel?
• can you turn the large, final drive gear by hand or is it jammed?

Let us know what you find!

-Jeff

Traced the ballast tank controller not working after 3-4 dives...the pressure switch is tripping and causing the ballast tank to empty.

It seems to take a few minutes to recover (open up) and then the ballast tank can again be cycled.

Since I am only in about 2 feet of water for testing I will disable the pressure switch for now and possibly order a new (preset?) one.

Unless anyone knows how to set the depth accurately w/o having to take a dip in the pond!

[Ralph --- SSBN 598]

Pressure switch is tripping.
==================
When peparing your boat, with the hull open, cycle the ballast tank from empty to half way flooded and then empty again.
At this point join the hull halves.
Once in the water test all controls then the ballast tank.
Full flood to full empty.
Do this while near the shore.
This will get all the air out of the ballast tank.

See if this makes a difference.

[Oldus Fartus]

I'll give that a try...thanks!

[JWLaRue]

Traced the ballast tank controller not working after 3-4 dives...the pressure switch is tripping and causing the ballast tank to empty.

I thought you had traced the problem to the CTS low voltage cutoff?

The pressure switch override is supposed to kick in around 1.8 meters of depth. About 6 feet. How deep is the sub when you see the problem? Also, once you surface, the piston should then work normally.

-Jeff

[Oldus Fartus]

OK, I tried disconnecting the pressure switch and that was not the problem.

I think it has something to do with the Ballast Tank Controller (with the Hall Sensor for proportional control).

When the tank cycles 3 or 4 times the piston stops in the Empty position.

If I turn the transmitter off for about 20 seconds and then back on the problem goes away for 3 or 4 dives and then it stops in the Empty position again.

I can get it to work again by turning the transmitter off and on again.

Any ideas as to what's going on?

[JWLaRue]

This still sounds like could be a battery voltage level related issue. Can you check the voltage level of the battery before trying to cycle the piston and then immediately when it stops working?

When the problem occurs, which LEDs on the CTS are on?

If you have a power supply that can deliver a constant 12-volts, you could try temporarily replacing the battery and see if you still get the same problem.

-Jeff