[ You know, you should trim out what I said, or respond to it line by line and trim out the parts you aren't responding to. ]
| I forgot to ask.. Charger wise.. the one I mentioned was a little slow | and DC powered.. | | I'm looking around now for say a 2amp max current version, I'm | assuming it should be rated at at least 15C if the battery is 15C or | 20 if 20?
No. The 15C or 20C is the maximum discharge rate of your battery.
20C on a 2000 mAh pack is 20 * 2000 mA or 40 amps. Has nothing to do with the charger,
| Also.. this charger was originally geared for hooking up to | the car while outside of the car at the flying site.. But from what | I've read, Lipos generally dont lose their charge? So I guess ideally | I would charge these overnight the night before?
Yes.
| Would I then need some AC charging solution?
It might be convenient. You could buy a power supply, or convert a PC power supply, or charge from a small 12v Pb cell.
You could also charge in/from your car, but put the battery outside.
| Also.. how safe is this.. I've read that you really need a metal box | or some other fireproof way to charge these batteries, especially if | indoors?
There is a small chance of fire -- well, small as long as you don't make mistakes anyways. A fireproof box or container of some sort is a good idea if your battery is somewhere it could cause damage if it caught fire. (Outside on your driveway might be safe enough, but in your car or house, probably not.)
| though I guess I could just cut the existing lead | and attach a deans plug?
Yes. That's pretty common to have to do that, or buy an appropriate adapter. | | I'm also still a little confused on prop terminology, I cant seem to | google it to find the exact definition... If a prop is 5x5.. is this | 5" by ? For instance.. the prop I have on my existing Zagi is 5" in | length, I'm not sure on the part that is after the "x", is this | pitch?
Yes, it's pitch. 6x3 means 6" diameter, 3" `pitch' -- one revolution of the prop will `push' the plane forward 3" (if it were running in jello, anyways.)
| My Zagi is actually a modified 400 (not 400x), which was converted | into a 400x by increasing the depth of the main channel where the | equipment sits, per Zagi official instructions/kit.. So I still have | the standard plastic prop that came with this kit.
400x has the same prop. The prop is OK for the stock motor, but it won't work with any motor upgrades. | So in terms of motors where the case doesnt spin.. do I simply look | for a motor that isnt labelled as "outrunner" and shoot for something | like you metnioned 2000-2500 KV? (I'm speaking in terms of just | upgrading to Lipo, no camera to be added, for now anyway).
Yes. They're also called `inrunners'.
| I think the base final rpms at max for the 400x is around 14,000 | RPMs.. so I would want a bit more oomph, though with lighter lipos, I | guess I dont need that much more (I'm guessing the 3s weight to be 3.5 | oz? Whereas the 1700nicads are around 9.5 oz).
Well, if you throw enough money at it, you'll have a plane that will go straight up and keep going straight up, or hit over 100 mph ...
You might need to stiffen up the wing with carbon fiber to keep it from flapping. The 400x has one rod, and the stock 400 has none.
| I have downloaded the motocalc program, checking it out as we speak.. | I'm not sure what my goal should be on rpms.. I guess 25k would be | nice and be able to do some cool 3d verticals and other manuevers?
Zagis don't really do 3D. But you certainly can have a rocket that will go straight up ...
A specific RPM rating really isn't a good goal. Instead, you want good static thrust, climb rate, climb angle, top speed ...
| If a motor is rated at a max amp of 15.. does this imply I should go | for an ESC of the same or higher (better yet) rating
Not a bad idea.
| or does this depend on the exact battery spec combined with the | motor (still unsure on this one, though I guess if i get my values | correct, motocalc should figure it out)?
Yes, it depends. A 15 amp max motor may be using 5 amps max if you have a small battery/prop on it, and if so, a 5 amp ESC would be adequate. But since ESCs are expensive (and motors relatively cheap), and don't weigh much more as the ratings go up, I like to get a few sizes bigger just so I can use it on my next, bigger plane, and to give myself some wiggle room in case something draws more current than I planned for.
| Is this the slow stick brand you mentioned:
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| Looks like it may not handle a breeze very well.. Would it really fly | ok with an extra 3.5 oz added to it.. Not much of a fuselage to attach | the equipment either, though I could see the camera being somewhere on | the middle-top of the wing.
Not really good for wind, you're right.
As for the camera, it usually dangles down under the wing. You might have to beef up the landing gear a bit.
I don't think 3.5 oz will be a problem, especially with a better than stock motor.
For a Slow Stick, this might be an appropriate motor --
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with no gearbox, and it's only $18. I know somebody makes an adapter that will make it fit on the Slow Stick ...
Heh, funny bit of trivia ... if you read the Ezone review on it, there's a Katana 30 picture in there. I own that plane now, complete with the 400XT. -- bought it at the Georgetown swap meet.