Flashlights may well be the single most neglected item in your home. But yet when you desperately need one to see in the dark they become a life saver. Flashlights come in all types, sizes and colors that provide light in a variety of different ways. Some examples include:
Keychain Flashlights - These attach to your keychain and let you see better in getting into your car on a dark night or finding your key, etc.
Household Flashlights - Having a working flashlight around the home is a must. You never know when the power will go off or some other emergency situation.
You can find anything from cheap flashlights at the dollar store to more expensive long life LED flashlights. The biggest tip here is to be sure you have fresh batteries on hand.
How often have you found yourself needing a flashlight only to discover it doesn't work? Of course, the batteries are dead. There are few things more aggravating than that.
Another helpful tip is to keep several flashlights in your home. Have one in the garage as well. This is especially true when you have children. They tend to walk away at times.
Finally, you should also have at least one batteryless flashlight on hand. These flashlights work by either turning a crank or shaking them in order to charge them up. Once charged, a shake flashlight will last for 15-30 minutes before needing to be charged again.
So, while it's true that we never give much thought to flashlights, they sure can come in handy at unexpected times in our lives.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Help! Where is That Flashlight?
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
ElectriFly Yak 55 3D EP ARF Review
Specifications Wingspan 34.5 in (875 mm) Wing Area 52 sq in (22.7 dm2) Weight 14-16 oz (4397-454 g) Wing Loading 5.7-6.5 oz sq/ft (17-20 g/dm2) Length 38 in (965 mm) Electric Motor Requirements 370-size brushed motor w/5:1 gearbox(included); 25A brushed ESC; 11.1V 640-1250 mAh LiPo battery Radio Required 4-channel radio w/4 micro servos Street Price $70 USD The Great Planes Yak 55 3D is a unique foam plane which offers a fun alternative to balsa models. The Yak is made from FlightFlex, a flexible EPP (expanded polypropylene) material which makes the plane quite resilient. However, this does not make it a beginner model - you'll should already have mastered a trainer with ailerons.
The Yak 55 has a 34.5" wingspan, and comes as an ARF with an estimated 2-4 hour build time. This will vary based on your experience. Great Planes recommends building with a hot glue gun rather than CA or epoxy, which is pretty much required. If you haven't used a glue gun before, spend some time practicing on scraps. Also be aware that even momentary contact with the foam will melt it. Overall the build was easy. The fuselage comes complete with the rudder attached. The first steps are gluing the wing through the body and hinging the ailerons, gluing the stabilizer and hinging the elevator, and gluing the servos in place. The manual suggests two 6" servo extensions for the ailerons, but I found the y-harness was so long that these were unnecessary. It was a little tricky to pull the ends through the wing - make sure you don't lose the string inside the body! You'll need 12" extensions for the two tail servos, which are just barely long enough. I liked the short, direct linkages to the rudder and elevator.
The included brushed motor is already mounted in the gearbox, which is installed with one screw on a stick mount. I added some hot glue on the stick after some hard landings caused the motor mount to come loose. The cowl is glued on lightly so you can remove it later with a sharp pair of scissors. I chose four Futaba S3110 micro servos , a Futaba R114F micro receiver , and the ElectriFly C-35 brushed ESC for the Yak. A 25 amp ESC would have sufficed. For power, I used an ElectriFly 1500 mAh, 11.1 volt LiPo battery . For a plane this light, NiMH is not an option. You'll want a transmitter with either end point adjustment, dual rates, or exponential for this plane. The Yak's control surfaces are huge and have enormous throws, which is great for 3D stunts once you've learned to fly it, but you'll want to reel those in to start. The fuselage has a zipper along the top edge which gives you easy access to the electronics. The only drawback to construction was the hardware to connect the servos to the control surfaces. The main problem was sliding the carbon pushrods through the eight plastic z-bends, which are fairly fragile. Ultimately I used 500 grit sandpaper on the carbon rods, and twirled a Dremel bit between my fingers to open up the z-bends. I also used a Dremel tool to widen the holes on the four control horns and the four servo arms. A drop of foam-safe CA on each z-bend is used to prevent the rods from slipping (not likely) once you have the surfaces trimmed. I'm sure having a flying weight of only 16 ounces prevented the designers from using standard hardware, but this step was somewhat frustrating as a result. Flying the Yak is a lot of fun. The 370-size ball bearing motor has plenty of power at 11 volts, but not enough at 7.4, so stick with 3S batteries. The plane is very agile and can change direction quickly. Because there's no landing gear, it's important to cut the throttle before touching down, and let the prop saver take care of the rest. New owners will still want to pick up a six pack of replacement props - the orange GWS 11x4.7 work well. If you chew up the main plastic gear, a replacement for it and all other parts is available. And now the big question: is the Yak 55 indestructible? Well, no. It definitely survives crashes far better than balsa models, but it can be damaged. The foam has a tendency to tear along the edge of a glue seam. Also, the battery once broke the firewall after nosing in hard. I now use Velcro on the bottom and the side of the battery to make sure it doesn't move at all. And finally, the foam cowl is going to disintegrate pretty quickly, so buy a couple spares. The good news is all of these things can be quickly fixed with some hot glue. This plane can take a lot of abuse and still get back in the air. The Yak 55 is great park flyer for pilots looking to learn 3D. I fly at a local park with two adjacent baseball diamonds, which is plenty of room. The foam construction and small size also keep the joggers and other park visitors happy. Experienced flyers could also fly in a gym or other large indoor space. Light winds have been no problem, but I'd stay home when it's gusty. Overall, the Yak is as risk-free as you can get next to a simulator. To learn more and see videos of the Yak in action, visit the Great Planes product page . Updated October 9th, 2007 - Curious how the Yak 55 held up over time? Check out our ElectriFly Yak 55 Follow Up article.
The Yak 55 has a 34.5" wingspan, and comes as an ARF with an estimated 2-4 hour build time. This will vary based on your experience. Great Planes recommends building with a hot glue gun rather than CA or epoxy, which is pretty much required. If you haven't used a glue gun before, spend some time practicing on scraps. Also be aware that even momentary contact with the foam will melt it. Overall the build was easy. The fuselage comes complete with the rudder attached. The first steps are gluing the wing through the body and hinging the ailerons, gluing the stabilizer and hinging the elevator, and gluing the servos in place. The manual suggests two 6" servo extensions for the ailerons, but I found the y-harness was so long that these were unnecessary. It was a little tricky to pull the ends through the wing - make sure you don't lose the string inside the body! You'll need 12" extensions for the two tail servos, which are just barely long enough. I liked the short, direct linkages to the rudder and elevator.
The included brushed motor is already mounted in the gearbox, which is installed with one screw on a stick mount. I added some hot glue on the stick after some hard landings caused the motor mount to come loose. The cowl is glued on lightly so you can remove it later with a sharp pair of scissors. I chose four Futaba S3110 micro servos , a Futaba R114F micro receiver , and the ElectriFly C-35 brushed ESC for the Yak. A 25 amp ESC would have sufficed. For power, I used an ElectriFly 1500 mAh, 11.1 volt LiPo battery . For a plane this light, NiMH is not an option. You'll want a transmitter with either end point adjustment, dual rates, or exponential for this plane. The Yak's control surfaces are huge and have enormous throws, which is great for 3D stunts once you've learned to fly it, but you'll want to reel those in to start. The fuselage has a zipper along the top edge which gives you easy access to the electronics. The only drawback to construction was the hardware to connect the servos to the control surfaces. The main problem was sliding the carbon pushrods through the eight plastic z-bends, which are fairly fragile. Ultimately I used 500 grit sandpaper on the carbon rods, and twirled a Dremel bit between my fingers to open up the z-bends. I also used a Dremel tool to widen the holes on the four control horns and the four servo arms. A drop of foam-safe CA on each z-bend is used to prevent the rods from slipping (not likely) once you have the surfaces trimmed. I'm sure having a flying weight of only 16 ounces prevented the designers from using standard hardware, but this step was somewhat frustrating as a result. Flying the Yak is a lot of fun. The 370-size ball bearing motor has plenty of power at 11 volts, but not enough at 7.4, so stick with 3S batteries. The plane is very agile and can change direction quickly. Because there's no landing gear, it's important to cut the throttle before touching down, and let the prop saver take care of the rest. New owners will still want to pick up a six pack of replacement props - the orange GWS 11x4.7 work well. If you chew up the main plastic gear, a replacement for it and all other parts is available. And now the big question: is the Yak 55 indestructible? Well, no. It definitely survives crashes far better than balsa models, but it can be damaged. The foam has a tendency to tear along the edge of a glue seam. Also, the battery once broke the firewall after nosing in hard. I now use Velcro on the bottom and the side of the battery to make sure it doesn't move at all. And finally, the foam cowl is going to disintegrate pretty quickly, so buy a couple spares. The good news is all of these things can be quickly fixed with some hot glue. This plane can take a lot of abuse and still get back in the air. The Yak 55 is great park flyer for pilots looking to learn 3D. I fly at a local park with two adjacent baseball diamonds, which is plenty of room. The foam construction and small size also keep the joggers and other park visitors happy. Experienced flyers could also fly in a gym or other large indoor space. Light winds have been no problem, but I'd stay home when it's gusty. Overall, the Yak is as risk-free as you can get next to a simulator. To learn more and see videos of the Yak in action, visit the Great Planes product page . Updated October 9th, 2007 - Curious how the Yak 55 held up over time? Check out our ElectriFly Yak 55 Follow Up article.
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