Optimal Rudder and Throttle Servo Speeds

[Martin Law]

Hi guys,

Stepping up to a transmitter with the servo speed adjustment features. I run gas riggers and gas sport boats.

What are the optimal rudder and throttle servo speed settings you guys that rely on those features use?
What reaction should be expected with those settings?

Thanks,

Marty

 

[John Beardslee]

Each transmitter and servo combination are different. You will just have to experiment. Maybe drop the speed 10 points at a time until you can start seeing a difference. The other thing that helps is adding expo. Expo adds dead space at the center which softens the throw so if you flinch it doesn’t affect your turn. FYI, with Futaba radios you add negative numbers to increase Expo, not sure about others brands. You won’t believe how slow I run all my stuff 21 rigger through twin.
John

 

[Martin Law]

Hi John, hope you are doing well these days!

I think I'm trying to compensate my older 50 mph brain for these 75+ mph boats, lol...

The new transmitter is a Futaba T4PM and I have Savox servos in everything. Sounds like it's not a simple cut and dried setting situation thus requiring some serious trial and error time at the pond.

Thanks for the great advice as usual!

Marty

 

[John Beardslee]

Hi John, hope you are doing well these days!

I think I'm trying to compensate my older 50 mph brain for these 75+ mph boats, lol...

The new transmitter is a Futaba T4PM and I have Savox servos in everything. Sounds like it's not a simple cut and dried setting situation thus requiring some serious trial and error time at the pond.

Thanks for the great advice as usual!

Marty

I’m doing well. Just finished up cataract surgery, amazing difference. Getting the work shop and trailer organized to bugout for FL for season.
Once you make the first or second change you’ll feel the difference and will be able to judge what’s best for you. I’d been flying helicopters for years before returning to boats, with the newer, faster and more powerful servos I was all over the pond let alone trying to stay on the race course. I had a good 3pmx radio and treated the boat like my heli’s and adjusted the radio to suit me and my driving style. The Expo probably transfers and isn’t affected as much by servO speed. I start with negative ten (-10) and go from there, most of mine are -20 to -30.

 

[the german]

Hi Martin
I run the same combo you have (4TPM with Savox servos) in all of my nitro and gas boats. I start with 50% speed and go from there. On my Gas Sport Hydro I event went down to 40% servo speed.
Hope this helps
Alex

 

[Martin Law]

That helps alot by giving me a good starting point and then fine tune from there.

Thanks Alex and John!

Marty

 

[Danny King]

It’s unique for each person. Set the linkage at the closest hole to the servo horn screw that is max torque and slowest speed. Then drive it before slowing the radio speed down. But I’d tried to learn to drive it that way first. If you already have then you can slow it down.

 

[Grimracer]

 

[Barrie Lever]

Hi guys,

Stepping up to a transmitter with the servo speed adjustment features. I run gas riggers and gas sport boats.

What are the optimal rudder and throttle servo speed settings you guys that rely on those features use?
What reaction should be expected with those settings?

Thanks,

Marty

I cannot see any point in any RC model of having anything other than the fastest response possible, having said that having some expo can give a nice feeling around neutral but that does not reduce the response speed.

The slow part in this package is the human reactions which will be around 0.25 seconds for most of us, do you want to add any more time onto the 0.25 seconds unnecessarily?

 

[Wesleys Custom RC]

If you get nervous at race time on the driver stand YOU WILL get shakey. With the new high speed radios it will translate to the servo. I have pitted for alot of guys in my years and watched their shaky hand movements and heard them tell me how their was something wrong with their boat. I have been just as guilty myself. I have the rudder at 10 and 17 in 2 boats. You can't decrease the servo arm length or you will not have enough travel.

 

[Hydro Junkie]

Going back to what Wesley said about nerves, I had that issue when I started racing. When I got my 4PLS, I tried to drive with the rudder at full speed, just couldn't do it. I had nothing but problems cutting buoys with that quick response. At the suggestion of another person, I slowed the rudder down to 50%, left the throttle speed alone, made a world of difference. As said above, experiment with your speeds and see what you find works for you.

 

[Martin Law]

Some time ago in a previous post on this forum about this subject someone mention the advantages of slowing the throttle servo down some also.

Of course I can't find that post but does anyone do this also and for what benefit?

Thanks guys!

Marty

 

[Grimracer]

I cannot see any point in any RC model of having anything other than the fastest response possible, having said that having some expo can give a nice feeling around neutral but that does not reduce the response speed.

The slow part in this package is the human reactions which will be around 0.25 seconds for most of us, do you want to add any more time onto the 0.25 seconds unnecessarily?

This is not response.. this is speed... there is a difference.

 

[Don Ferrette]

This is not response.. this is speed... there is a difference.

Yup. And I cannot tell you how many ill handing boats I helped straighten out over the years by reducing end point adjustment (EPA). I have never seen a boat with proper linkage set up that needed anything even remotely close to 100% EPA. Also use the pushrod position closest to the servo output shaft that will yield sufficient throw to the rudder, this also helped slow the action down before we had servo speed adjustment. Now being able to slow the servos down thru the TX settings is an added bonus.