Who STILL flys 72 mhz?

[Turbojoe]

Many years ago we formed a club and approached our city (Mesa,AZ) for an approved flying site (it's illegal to fly in Mesa city limits). In their infinite wisdumb they allowed us to fly in a water retention bowl next to SRCHHA helicopters in the next bowl over. We had to work our way through barbed wire for access! While in talks with the total dickhead president of SRCHA he determined that WE should change from 72 mhz to 2.4 ghz to avoid frequency conflicts with them. I begrudgingly updated my much beloved Futaba 9C to 2.4 GHz with the module from Horizon hobby. It turned out that the area we fought so hard for just't wasn't worth the fight after all and I only flew there twice. In over 40 years of flying 72 mhz I've had VERY FEW glitches and zero that resulted in a crash. My 72 mhz scanner now NEVER shows a frequency conflict regardless where I fly. Let the "sheeple" continue to spend the big bucks on 2.4 GHZ TX and RX and I'll continue to buy 72mhz RX's for pennies on the dollar......

Joe

 

[speedbirdted]

I have a few airplanes rigged up for 72mhz, simply because that's what they came with and I couldn't be bothered to change them out. Personally, I find nothing wrong with it. My field is so sparsely attended (when the flying club has never had more than 20 members such things are commonplace) I never run into frequency conflicts. I'm actually working on restoring an airplane from the 1980s right now and I'm tempted to throw 72mhz gear into it just for the retro value.

 

[Turbojoe]

I'm right in the middle of packing for moving. My house has been sold and I'm doing everything I can to buy another place but as soon as something hits the market it's gone! I will definitely be moving out of Mesa and into ANY AZ city that isn't so backwards as to ban R/C flight. This could take a while. I'll likely stay with my daughter in Florence , AZ until I can close on a house. In the mean time I probably have 20-25 72mhz RX's. I may drop 2.4 completely and continue to buy 72 RX's for pennies on the dollar when they come available. Too bad they don't make a 72mhz conversion for my DX6 and DX6e TX's.

Joe

 

[mdcerdan]

I still fly with a Futaba T6EXAP in 72Mhz! I have a Turnigy 9X 2.4Ghz also but I like the Futaba more. I fly alone in my own field so no risk of interference with other transmitters.
I recently had my first crash due to radio interference. I mounted a FPV TX in one of my planes and started to experience a few intermitent glitches in flight, the last one resulted in a complete lost of control and a crash. Was in that moment I realized I did not replace the cheap park flyer RX in that plane with a full range one. Luckly I just stripped a servo gear and a broken a prop.

 

[Turbojoe]

The only time I was able to actually verify an interference issue was way, way, way, way back when I still flew slimers in the 70's I had used a metal Kwik link on a metal carb throttle arm. The vibration caused all sorts of havoc with 72mhz. I changed to a nylon Kwik link and all problems disappeared. Today I fly electric exclusively so interference hasn't been any issue at all.

I still love my old and much trusted Futaba 9C and plan to put her back into service as soon as I find a new house and a new (legal) place to fly.

Joe

 

[Bricks]

Not me I like going to the field with only one 2.4 transmitter and a truck load of planes and quads, nobody at my feild flies 72 any more.

 

[Piotrsko]

Not me I like going to the field with only one 2.4 transmitter and a truck load of planes and quads, nobody at my feild flies 72 any more.

Funny that's how I fly 72 mhz ( actually 75) never had good experiences with 2.4. Too picky even using good equipment and have only one or two verifiable shootdown glitches

 

[Turbojoe]

I won't lie. I do like my Spektrum DX6 but I still have so much 72 MHz stuff that it's a shame not to use it. I have a Hitec Spectra module as well as the Futaba multi frequency module and the Futaba multi frequency RX. I also have a boat load of crystals so frequencies are never an issue for me. A 9 channel 2.4 TX is ridiculously overpriced so my old 9C will definitely come in handy for a few planes that I plan to finish soon.

Joe

 

[sprzout]

I've got ONE 72 mhz radio, and it's for an Eco Piccolo heli that I never managed to get off the ground (something with the control board/esc never worked, so it never flew).

When I went to the quad, I bought a DX6 and never looked back. I gotta be honest, I've never really had a signal problem with 2.4, with the exception of a broken receiver wire from a crash (didn't realize it was broken until I turned the quad to a certain angle and there was no response), and a cheap, old DSM2 OrangeRX receiver model that others had issues with. Swapped the receiver out to a newer DSMX version, and had no problems after.

I've thought about the old 72 mhz systems, but none of the hobby shops near me sell crystals for them and the radio I have is only 4 channel anyway, and I can't program it for elevons. Trying to use it for our combat wings would be a friggin' nightmare (especially since we have had issues with wings getting killed in 1 round out of 3, and we want to be able to switch to another combat wing within the 5 minutes we have between rounds).

It's not for everyone, I know that...But if you're using 72 mhz and it works for you, keep using it.

 

[Turbojoe]

Yep, as far as trying to find anything 72 in hobby shops all you'll find are TX's. They don't support it anymore. It's pretty much for the diehards that still have all of their old equipment. I haven't counted but I probably still have ten 72 MHz TX's. At least 30 or so 72 MHz RX's. Bags of crystals.

The problem I see with the R/C hobby is that when something new comes out Sheeple are convinced that whatever preceded it no longer works. That's when the R/C manufacturers know it, bend us over and ram it home with no lubricant. Someone please explain to me why a DX9 (TX ONLY!) costs within $20 of a 70" smart TV!

Joe

 

[TooJung2Die]

Good for you. If it works don't fix it. I would still be using 72 MHz if I had any. 2.4 GHz was the standard when I got back into the hobby and it was cheap. I bought a FlySky FS-i6 radio thinking I'd upgrade later if the hobby stuck. Five years later and I'm still using the same radio. It does everything I need for the airplanes I fly. I don't switch to something just because it's new. There has to be a compelling reason.

 

[Turbojoe]

I bought a Taranis TX when they were first released. Open TX wasn't for me. It was akin to being forced from Windows to Linux with NO training! I hated it and sold it in less than two weeks! Having to learn a new operating system just to fly my airplanes isn't for me. Open TX couldn't possibly be further than intuitive for me.

Joe

 

[danskis]

I've got a JR Pro PO if anyone wants it. Comes with 4 receivers. Buyer pays shipping from Albuquerque. Pics on request. Former owner is a club member who says its works fine and I have no reason to doubt him.

 

[Bricks]

I trashed 16 old 72`s transmitters and everything that went with them receivers, crystals the only thing I held back was a Futaba stabilizing receiver, don`t know why but could not trash it.

Using that old stuff with no way to set up expo, differential, servo travel, flight modes or reverse servos sucks as far as I was concerned. I do know couple of the newer transmitters I trashed you could reverse servos but that was it.

 

[Turbojoe]

As I'm packing for a move I found I have 9 72 mhz TX's. One being my beloved Futaba 9C that I'll NEVER let go of. Granted the other TX's are frequency specific and are only 4-6 channel BUT they are still useful now more than ever because all the sheeple have migrated to 2.4 ghz. That leaves the 72 mhz spectrum wide open for me. I have at least a dozen planes that when I move to a more R/C friendly area I'd love to train kids to fly on and when they are ready to solo I can give then give a few of them a ready to fly package with a plane/TX. Heck I may even start looking for more cheap 72mhz TX's to have on hand to give away. Social Security income doesn't leave much "extra" money but what the heck. What I have if it can go to furthering the hobby will be for a good cause in my book.

Joe

 

[mdcerdan]

I just bought a Futaba T7CAP with 4 receivers in 72MHz for next to nothing! 😆

 

[Piotrsko]

Using that old stuff with no way to set up expo, differential, servo travel, flight modes or reverse servos sucks as far as I was concerned. I do know couple of the newer transmitters I trashed you could reverse servos but that was it.

Inmho all that is showing someone cant set up their system correctly. The only thing I have used on my 2.4 tx is the elevon mixer, but I know how to do THAT mechanical too.

 

[mdcerdan]

This is my collection of 72MHz Futabas. The T4EXA was modded to 5 Channels, the T6EXAP is my main Tx and the new T7CAP.

 

[JennyC6]

I don't. I do, however, have one car still on analog control for a few more days at least.


I just simply don't trust it. My RC10GT still has its original XP2 radio system and when I connect my glow driver I can watch the servos freak out for a moment. It unnerves me enough that I would never fly anything on it.

 

[Bricks]

Inmho all that is showing someone cant set up their system correctly. The only thing I have used on my 2.4 tx is the elevon mixer, but I know how to do THAT mechanical too.

Sure you can do some things mechanically but it can create failure points I am of the KISS type and 72 cannot creat flight modes, servo mapping, speedup or slow down servos, create mixes to anything the heart or plane desires, elevons to flaps. flaps to elevator, full length split ailerons for crow, inside ailerons for flaps, or outside if you wish, use only outboard ailerons only, inboard if you choose. When a plane needs coupling for certain maneuvers none of this can be done on the old 72 radios. There is so much more the new radios can do it is amazing.