Smoke pump help

[Rockoflyer]

I have a qq 102 yak that I will be putting smoke on .I have the Showtime pro pump.My problem is that (I can do the progaming to put the pump on a switch then I have slaved that switch to my throttle works great you can hear the motor pump harder as I advance the throttle.But if I un plug the pump from the reciver all my progaming is gone.Its stillin the transmitter (jr 9303) but the pump does nothing.If I go in and mess with the travel adjust in the transmitter it starts to work again but when it is un plugged it wont work .What am I doing wrong any help woul be great .

[Billa]

I have no experience with this particular brand but I would expect that any device that needs to be mixed with any other channel ( in this case the throttle) would have to be plugged into the receiver. Just leave it plugged in. The motor has the necessary shielding to take care of interference problems (do check range though). If it runs off a separate battery, just plug that in before you start flying if you do not want to use a switch.

I hope you have mixed the pump channel to come on after about 35 to 40% throttle - any lower and you might kill the engine with smoke fluid.

[macanaw]

I have have the same problem with my Sullivan.....kinda pisses me off. What i ended up doing was using one of my AUX trim (above the right stick) to adjust the flow and leaving the travel at 100+ 100-.

Not the best solution but it works for the time being. I'm still trying to figure out a better fix.

David Fox

[Rockoflyer]

JUst not sure what my problem is even if I do the aux wih 100 100 it does the same thing.ANd I am having problems getting someone at Slimline that knows what to do.

[crhammond]

Yea - I have had similar problems. In the end I set up Aux4 switch (JR9303) to put the pump on +150 / -150 travel and that works. I find once the pump is primed the mix always works but if prime is lost you need to blast it hard (+150 travel) to get it to wake up and re-prime itself.

I have read on another thread that using 2x 1-way valves, one on either side of the pump, you can force the pump to keep a prime (unless you run it dry that is.)

I have to say these off the shelf pumps SUCK. I have gone through 3 Sullivan Skywriters this year (all warrantee but it's a pain to install/uninstall.) They just stop working.

I'm sure one of the mighty XFC / TAS pilots using smoke could tell us what systems they use to make smoke really work and be reliable? Pretty Please

Maybe it's just a matter of using a really good (but heavy) fuel pump?

[Vic3D]

TME ppumps work really good. They're sold on at Tower Hobbies.

[macanaw]

I had a TME, there mount sux arse. Weak plastic mounts that breaks easily, it also broke off at the nipple. But other than that, it always pumped.

[steven]

i am using a model mechanix pump. its the same pump they use on the jets

[crhammond]

Awesome - thanks guys. I ordered the new TME smart system - looks like a lot of pros use that one. I couldn't find the model mechanix one on line... but the TME was priced right and seems tested and true so I ordered it.

[juliod]

Hi, I have a Super Smoke Programmable Pump (Sonic Tronics) and I couldn't programmable it, I've mixed with the throttle channel but or the pump turned on, or turned off completely, Somebody knows how to programable this pump can help me ???

[Billa]

Hello Juliod,

I wrote this in reply to some one else's querry but am posting it here too - hope you find it helpful. Radio used is a Futaba 9C.

I recently installed a Sullivan pump on my new bird. I am assuming it would be pretty similar in set up, as I also have the old TME which was similar in set up but without the speed controller.

Nonetheless, just plug in the pump servo lead into channel 5 (gear channel) and connect the battery. Now your pump should work full bore at a flick of the gear switch. You can play around with the speed using the End Point settings for the gear channel but leave that alone for the time being. Next, in the advanced menu page, pick one of the 5 point mixes ( mix 6 or 7) - set the throttle channel as the master and the gear channel as the slave. For the first point set the value at -100. Now gradually increase the value on the subsequent points finishing up point 5 at the highest value depending on how fast you want the pump to work at the top end. (My highest value on the current setup is a lowly -11 but this was arrived at after some experimentation and points 3 and 4 are only slightly lower in value so that the curve becomes pretty shallow after about half throttle.) Now flick the gear switch to the on position. As you advance the throttle, the pump will come on and its speed will be proportional to the throttle stick. You can adjust the point at which the pump comes on by playing around with either the value of the 2nd point on the curve or the End point settings of the gear channel.

When I talk about experimentation, you need to set the flow rate. Too little oil and you will not get much smoke. Too much oil and you will get a blast of smoke initially and then it will die down because you have cooled down the muffler too much and you will get raw smoke fluid all over your plane. Use a good filter in the plumbing before the pump and also use the non return valve after it. The last few inches need to be black neoprene tubing as the tygon can not stand the heat.

A couple of things I found helpful. Install the pump lower than your tank and make sure that the line to the muffler goes over the firewall otherwise smoke fluid will get siphoned off even if you turn the pump off. Secondly, I installed the smoke tank aft of the CG so that the plane is a little tail heavy when the tank is full at the beginning of the flight but is restored for landing as the smoke fluid gets used up - good for 3D stuff.

Good Luck,
Aamer