Best radio for Subs

[Guest]

The one I had gave

The one I had gave me glitches no mater what I did or where or when it was in use and hence it went on the chopping block.
Any radio that has a sythesized transmitter must be very stable and that technology is very protected and pantened and I think this company has not got it quite right .

For a sub especialy you want a solid single frequency system that is not sythesised in any way.The best I have found is a Futabe PCM computer radio like the 9CAP on 75 mgz available from Vanteck or the JR 10X PCM.
Both makes are world class super solid radio systems and if you dont care if its on an aircraft rf than get it used on Ebay ,I got all of mine there and spent hudreds less than new!especialy now that most aircraft people are going to the sythesized radio which is good for them but we cant use that system for subs,does not work under water,bummer.
So for now I suggest go with the radios above and get rid of the one you ordered again on Ebay and that way your subs and your peace of mind will be satified.Also the radios above when in PCM mode will give you a host of built in prgramable failsafes just to mention a few of the great things these radios can do!

Dave Amur Ship Yard

[warpatroller]

aquadeep,

There were all theses posts

aquadeep,

There were all theses posts at the beginning of this thread talking about how wonderful the Polk radio is, and then you talk like it is a total piece of crap. How delightful to hear such encouraging remarks Perhaps your particular copy was a lemon..?

This Vantec Futaba 9CAP appears to be a 72Mhz radio that has been "re-tuned" to 75Mhz. Have any idea how big the receiver is that comes with this thing? I am going to guess that it will be WAY too big to fit within a 1.375" ID WTC tube. No price on the website either, like they are keeping it a secret. In addition the 9CAP radio has been discontinued by Futaba.

The online reseller that I orderd my "hull" from last week has seemed to ignore my order and not even began to process it. This was an item I was told was in stock via email one week before I ordered it. So if I seem a bit pissy, it is because I am starting to get bummed out about this whole thing. I'll give the place an additional day to respond to my email, before I name who they are and how splendid their service is.. It said, "expect to receive your ordered item within 2-5 business days" It's been 4 business days and they haven't even processed the order, let alone even shipped the item Just Awesome!

[JWLaRue]

..... and if you dont

..... and if you dont care if its on an aircraft rf than get it used on Ebay ....

I'm not inferring that Dave does this, but........

Just to be clear on this - the SubCommittee does not support or condone the illegal use of air frequencies for r/c sub use. If you show up to a sanctioned SubCommittee event, you will be politely told that you cannot use the radio with your sub. The organization doesn't want to get the FCC mad a them nor create a problem with the insurance for the event!

That said, if you find an air radio that you like, buy it and have it converted to 75MHz. That's what I have done for all my r/c sub radios!

As to the glitch problems referred to....I'll need to leave that to the many folks who have one of these radios.

-Jeff

[tmsmalley]

Roger what Jeff said -

Roger what Jeff said - no non-surface radios are allowed at a sanctioned SubCommittee run. I have never had a glitch problem with my Polks radio, even at the SubRegatta when a dozen or more radios were on at the time. The problems I have heard about are where several guys are standing very close together - though I have been in that situation, but I didn't have any issues.

[Guest]

I haven't had any problems

I haven't had any problems with interference with my Tracker II or Tracker III, but I have not run them indoors with multiple radios on, just outdoors.
Once, with a different manufacturer's radio on channel 69 I was getting interferece. When I checked around, I found someone who thought he was on channel 96, but was reading it upside down!

[petn7]

I haven't had any problems

I haven't had any problems with interference with my Tracker II or Tracker III, but I have not run them indoors with multiple radios on, just outdoors.
Once, with a different manufacturer's radio on channel 69 I was getting interferece. When I checked around, I found someone who thought he was on channel 96, but was reading it upside down!

I noticed that's a common mistake. Either when ordering radio equipment, or reading your own radio equipment. Maybe companies should put a line under the channel number so it's 19 and not 61.

[Guest]

I am sorry if I

I am sorry if I have scared you about the Polk radio but as you can see they have there problems ,with a Futaba you wont have any proximity rf glitches especialy in PCM mode its rock solid.
But ya thats a bummer about the clubs rules on radios but thats no problem for me I have the Vanteck 32 channel robotic unit on 75 of course.
The reciever is an 8 channel normal sized for futaba and will fit in your wtc.You dont need what I have just the regular Futaba computer radio because the 16 or 32 ch unit has an extra brain box that is large.

You must call Vanteck to get there current prices and they are good folks and will give you prompt profetional service.Futaba is always upgrading there fine radios but the changes are very minor hence the discontinued models,those engineers are very busy indeed!
I would consider it a blessing that the Polk order did not come through ,cancel it as soon as possible and get your self a world class radio that is the state of the art! Contact Mark Green he has one also and loves it.
Please dont give up your passion in subs due to a radio ,I know its a bit daughting some times but you wont go wrong with a good Futaba computer radio.
Dave Amur Ship Yard PS A few pics of the big one and of my little babby just launched.

[JWLaRue]

Once, with a different manufacturer's

Once, with a different manufacturer's radio on channel 69 I was getting interferece. When I checked around, I found someone who thought he was on channel 96, but was reading it upside down!

Ummm......isn't "69" read upside down still "69"?

-Jeff

[petn7]

Once, with a different manufacturer's

Once, with a different manufacturer's radio on channel 69 I was getting interferece. When I checked around, I found someone who thought he was on channel 96, but was reading it upside down!

Ummm......isn't "69" read upside down still "69"?

-Jeff

Upside down, or flipped, it's all the same.

[warpatroller]

Well... Interesting how there are

Well... Interesting how there are two guys that claim they have had NO problems with their Tracker radios. One of them being the President of this whole operation, who has run his radio in tandem with more radios than I will EVER encounter in my RC outings. The other, the Father of the RCABS ballast system... I dunno Aquadeep, this doesn't convince me that the Polk is as worthless as you make it out to be. Come to think of it, doesn't the Lord-God-King of RC Submarines, the Master Craftsman David Merriman currently use one of these Polk Trackers. I remember him stating he was using an old Futaba Attack-4 at one time, but that was a year ago, or so, I think.

Maybe you own stock in Futaba? My Polk order is not the one that appears to have been ignored, that was an order on a model kit that I planned to convert to RC. Though, I was told the Polk radio would ship in two weeks and that was two weeks ago So, who knows if I'll be contacted by them or not. I checked out the Vantec (not Vanteck as you've been spelling it) website and will give them a call to see what sort of price they have on those Futabas, I predict it will be much higher than I'd be paying for the Polk.

You said the standard Futaba receiver would fit in my WTC...are you sure about that?? It would need to fit within a 1.375" tube, that is a pretty darn SMALL tube. What scale is that U212, I bet it is a monster compared to what I want to make. You probably have a big 3" or 3.5" WTC in it. That propeller looks like I could mow my lawn with it (if i had a lawn to mow):wink:

Steve

[Guest]

Yes I am sure there

Yes I am sure there are alot of Captains running the Polk but I can assure you that the vast number of RC to profetional robotic and movie makers use either a Futaba or JR,nothing else is trusted with some of these robots that can run into the thausands $$.
The price of a top notch radio is nothing compared to that not to mention the danger if it got out of control,and they do battle inside and with an avredge of 10 robots at once,RF mayhem!!

Just to give you an example of the quality of Futaba.The face plate that the gimbls sit in is made from magniesium one solid machined casting.

The gimbls are set with double ball bearrings ,and every channel can be asighned a switch or knob thats flexability.Triple timers,reciever battery low failsafes ,servo speed adjustment thats awsome,never seen that one before,large fine pixel LCD screen and on some models it is a tuch screen with full color graficks,even interchangable switches.You can even send the data thats on the radio to your buddy via the internet directly to his Futaba.Also some have a digital built in prop rpm counter.Just a few things these radio can do.
Ya I have stock in Futaba I own 4 of them and wish I had the 12 channel beuty.
The first one I have owned and still use today is the Attack 4 some 20 years still going strong.
So I can intrust 15,000$ worth of subs to a 200 dallar radio that only gives you one servo ,thats an insult,or have real piece of mind and enjoy the best the industry has to offer.Just compare the front of each radio the Polk does not even have digital trim adjusters!And alot of plastic.

I am sure that the reciever will fit if you want it to.
And yes the U-32 will not only cut the grass but chop the wood ,and the WTC is 5 inches or so and some 35 inches long a big 35 lb beast that runs for hours,sorry for the spelling bee.
Dave Amur Ship Yard

[warpatroller]

I called Vantec today. That

I called Vantec today. That Futaba 9CAP rig is $475!! That is way over my budget and it is NOT going to happen, so I will continue to wait on the Tracker. Also, I got the guy to give me the dimensions of the receiver that comes with it and it will NOT fit in my tube, period. Neither will the 4 servos that come with it. They had a smaller receiver that is still larger than the Seeker 6, which was available for $75 extra (which might have worked). So that would bring the cost to $550 for an 8 channel set-up which would include 4 servos that I couldn't do anything with. The Tracker with both an 8 and 6 channel receiver will cost me $139. Not bad for a purely "experimental" project.

The guy suggested that maybe I should consider building a bigger boat You gotta love it! I told Chief Brody that a bigger boat was not going to happen on my budget. I'll live with some glitches if need be, and if the radio is a total dog, then I'll try to return it and just build my little boat as a static display model for my bookshelf. I'm not building a Das Boot sized model, so I don't need any super fancy radio with 50 bells and whistles on it. And used 75Mhz radios that aren't thrashed are not easy to find like the 72Mhz versions.

Steve

[Guest]

petn7 wrote:
Ummm......isn't "69" read upside

petn7 wrote:
Ummm......isn't "69" read upside down still "69"?

Yes, but this guy had placed the individual digits upside down on his antenna, and it read "96", and he mistakenly thought he was on 96 when I asked if anyone was on channel 69.

[petn7]

petn7 wrote]

I didn't say that,

[quote]petn7 wrote]

I didn't say that, JWLaRue did. Not that it's a big deal, but just thought I'd clarify.

[JWLaRue]

petn7 wrote]

Art,

I think you mean

[quote]petn7 wrote]

Art,

I think you mean he transposed the two numbers? As in put the "9" first, followed by the "6"?

-Jeff