HPI receiver issue

[Gomesito]

I bought a used HPI brushed drift car. It has a stock RF-1 receiver. I just drove my car last weekend with no issues but yesterday when I turned my car on, I noticed that I did not hear the typical chim that the receiver made. What I did hear was the directional servo made a noise as it turned the wheel clockwise from about 12 o'clock to 1 o'clock. I did a little home work and turned the steering servo all the way to one side. The problem is that I still don't have any throttle or steering response. Batteries are fresh. I notice my ESC has a blinking green light. If I am not mistaken I thought when it was running, the green light was constantly on. The radio is old school stock AM and does not have a sink or connect button...unless I don't know where it is.

I know the easy solution is to replace all electronics but my I don't necessarily have the funds to do that if I can get it to run with what is on it now. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Certified Mike]

The thing is, with the gear you have, finding replacements is almost a waste of time. Because you have an AM radio, any gear you replace would be old school to be compatible. You will not gain any performance and spend similar money to replace as you would to upgrade to newer, 'fm and digital compatible' gear. You can buy a Flysky radio system for low cost. It is a basic system BUT it gets good reviews from a LOT of ppl on this forum! A replacement servo should be cheap enough to find. Replacing the esc COULD be cheap if you can find one.
As far as diagnosis... For starters, verify you have new batteries in your radio. If your radio uses chrystals, verify they are in good shape. If you have an extra pair, swap them out and test again.
If all that looks good, unplug the steering servo and see if your problem goes away. Next, unplug the motor from the esc and see if the issue stops. Verify that if there are caps on the motor, that the haven't blown up (check the tops of them as well as the leads to them making sure they haven't crossed or come loose from the component). Again, while unplugged, test the system.
Next, check and repair any and all wiring in the srvo and esc. Make sure the plugs to the receiver (and on the receiver itself) are in good shape, free of loose contacts and that there is no corrosion.
If you have a battery pack avail (if it's rechargeable, be 100% sure it is FULLY charged, if AA batteries, be sure they are new) Plug that in and unplug the esc. Again, power on, test the system and see if the problem goes away. This should at least narrow down what your issue is. However, irrelevant of the issue, replacing the the radio for instance, you would have to verify that the servo and the esc will be compatible with the replacement. A digital radio will not work with the old servo and esc unless the radio can be switched between digital and analog. (this is not an uncommon feature but one that is important in this case) the same thing goes for the servo or the esc. (Your equipment is analog)The only other thing that I can think of in this case is that the power switch on the receiver side of the system has somehow partially allowed SOME power to flow, but not enough to power correctly. This could be due to prior damage and/or corrosion. Some of those switches are easily replaceable but I would personally just eliminate it and get used to unplugging the battery. Hopefully this gets you to at least identify the issue. Repost with your results and we'll see what we can find to help get you moving again with the least expensive and most logical repair. Good luck!!!

 

[NinoS]

I can verify Mike's FlySky claim, I use them and they are perfectly good. $25 will get you a decent rechargeable radio/rx combo. In my experience, when the problems you report start showing up it often is the RX but troubleshooting as noted above should confirm it. Troubleshooting is made easier when you have other gear around to try out (from another vehicle perhaps) in place of suspected bad components

 

[Certified Mike]

Absolutely correct @NinoS. Perhaps I read too much into this by assuming there were little or no other radio systems available to swap out while troubleshooting. If you do have extra parts, verify their comparability and swap them out. You'll likely be able to find the issue(s) quicker that way.

 

[NinoS]

Perhaps I read too much into this by assuming there were little or no other radio systems available to swap out while troubleshooting.

Actually i got the exact same impression as you regarding not alot of spares laying around but i figured it was worth a shot at least! I think many would argue proper trouble shooting as you laid out is better than "throwing parts at it" especially in the 1:1 world, but with RC stuff it's so easy it does tend to make life easier. I also find swapping the servos around at the rx to be informative.

 

[Certified Mike]

Well, hopefully we'll get some answers AND the radio issue will have been identified if not totally fixed.

 

[Gomesito]

Gents, I appreciate all your help. You guys are correct, I don't have a lot of extra parts laying around especially electronics...I guess I will have to start getting some lol.

I did everything with fresh batteries. I disconnected the servo and motor individually to see if there was any response but got none. Since my wife and kids went out of town, I had a little time to listen and inspect a bit better. When I turn the power on in the car, the motor is what is actually making the squeak noise. I spun the rod going through the center of my E-10 to ensure there wasn't anything binding and there wasn't.

I have a couple other vehicles and since most of you recommended upgrading my radio, is there a fairly priced radio that will accept numerous cars or is that an option that is reserved for higher end remotes? Thanks again for all your help.

If anyone of you are in the Marine Corps, Happy Birthday.

 

[Certified Mike]

I would still recommend looking into Flysky radios. I don't own one but I do recall that they are multi car capable. I would recommend that you spend some time reading up on anything that you are considering to verify that it is able to handle all your other car's requirements and that you will be happy with your purchase. I recommend this brand based on other people's reviews and comments. These comments come from people I have come to trust on this site. As long as the system you choose meets your needs, I believe that this is the radio to go with based on what your budget (of as low cost as possible) will allow. Again, please post what you end up doing. Good luck!

 

[NinoS]

Flysky gt3c is $40 on ebay, bit more at LHS, and will accept up to 10 different car presets. I use mine for 6 currently. Its also taken alot of abuse and keeps on trucking, and extra receivers can be had cheap....plus alot of the redcat/exceed/generic rx gear will bind with it in my experience.