Introduction to Radio Control Systems

Now we dive into the heart of the R/C hobby: radio control systems. You will become familiar with the many different types available on the market and the brand names that you should know. We’ll discuss as well how these systems work to control your car, truck, plane, helicopter or boat. You’ll know the differences between radio bands, frequencies and channels and how to choose the right ones for your application. Finally we will go through some common problems that happen with these systems, and what you can do to make yours work safer and more reliably. So sit back, grab a coke, and let’s have some fun.



A radio control system includes all the components necessary to remotely control the actions of your vehicle through the use of radio waves. This system includes: a transmitter, a receiver and one or more servos depending upon the application. Your servos plug into your receiver to convert the radio signal into motion and thereby control actions on the vehicle, such as steering, throttle, ailerons, rudder, etc. Realize that this is the only measure of control that you have over your vehicle. The point to stress about this is the golden rule in R/C: you always turn your transmitter on first and turn it off last. I’ll say that again… always turn your transmitter on first and turn it off last. I can’t emphasize that enough. Electric vehicles may act a little funny when the vehicle is on...More

Intro to Hobby-Grade Electrics

In this article we are going to become familiar with the basics of the electric powered systems that drive R/C vehicles. Now, when we talk about hobby-grade electrics, forget everything you know about Toy-R-Us and Wal-Mart toys. Hobby-grade electric vehicles can be extremely fast and dependable. In fact, many pro R/C drivers/flyers are running electrics. Some of the advantages to electrics are they are quieter than nitro powered vehicles, less messy, and they can run indoors as well. First we’ll start off by looking at how the whole system is connected to provide power to your vehicle. We will then review the different qualities of motors, speed controls, batteries and chargers available. This will help you choose the right system or repair the system you already have in you car, truck, plane, helicopter or boat. Last we’ll look at how varying each individual component will affect the rest of the system.

Look under the hood of any R/C electric powered vehicle and you should see the same basic setup. You have one or more motors that power the drive train. The motor is connected to a speed control (manual or electric). Battery power is connected directly to the speed control as well, which is plugged into your radio receiver. Power from here is provided to the servo or servos that are also plugged into the other channels of the receiver. That’s about it. No big mysteries here.

The most expensive and complicated part of the system is the speed control. In the vast majority of all R/C vehicles today, this is an electronic speed control or ESC....More