Broken antenna on RC car

RadioShack has a replacement antenna, though it's not clear whether it will fit.

You might also search local hobby shops.

And I must ask the obvious... HAVE YOU CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER?

Antennas are tuned. Go to where you bought your remote car and see if they can supply an original part.

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JANA _____

I tried attaching wire to the remote and the car barely worked. Is there a specific kind of wire I need?

I could probably buy a better car than this one but I don't like throwing things away if they can be fixed, unless it costs too much to fix it.

Forgive me, but I find a lot of your postings misleading or non-factual.

Antennas are not, generally, "tuned". If tuning is required, it's usually performed with a loading coil in the body of the transmitter. The only consumer product I've ever seen with a loading coil in the antenna itself was a Concord CB transceiver of 40 years ago. (The intent was to improve radiation by moving the coild to the middle of the antenna.)

If the antenna is the correct length, it will radiate efficiently. You don't need an OEM antenna.

You both are 'sort of' right, it would seem to me. Of course there are inductors in consumer electronics. Whether you call them loading coils or something else, in every transmitter I've encountered, there was an inductor in the signal output path which tuned the original length of antenna to approximate the expected load of the antenna.

That said, getting the correct length antenna (or a longer telescoping one, but not fully extending it) is a pretty trivial matter...as long as that length can be determined.

jak

Ah, Just cut up a hanger and stick it in there! :)))

Well if it is in the 44mhz range like most cheap rc stuff is pretty much anything attached to it will recieve a signal sufficient to make it work. Sure length will make a difference in how well it works, but you may be able to get close enough by guessing.

And inasmuch as the OP has the original antenna, there's no guessing about the "correct" length.

In short, you don't need the "original" antenna.

Why don't you 'Stick it', Jamie? You aren't the least bit funny, and a cut off hanger stuck into the remote could cause a severe injury, or death.

Piano wire, with a closed loop on the end makes a nice antenna, becasue it won't catch on anything, and is springy enough to resist damage.

Though a Hanger "could" work in a pinch, I agree with Michael. Most of those RC type antennas are a thin metal which has some play to it. The regular RC antennas are thinner and thus "lighter" than a "Hanger". It would not drag the RC down - where a "Hanger" might. Depending on the size of the RC unit, the "hanger" could make it top heavy! If the RC goes under an item, the hanger - if not budging "could" cause internal damage when the shock hits the base. The "RC type" would tend to give and perhaps - "no" damage. I don't deal with RC stuff enough to get into all "suppliers" but it seems someone should sell the antennas - maybe a hobby shop. OR get some wire like Michael suggested and use it - some of the "home remodeling" type stores seem to sell a variety of wire gauges. Surely there is some out there somewhere for you to find. Go to a flea market or Hamfest - you may find some "junk" stuff there from which to pull an antenna from. I see that kind of stuff all the time.

Uh...okay. I'd agree with all the above, except the OP said "remote" which I took to mean the transmitter. I'm still convinced that's what he meant. If so little of the above actually applies.

That said, 'kids do the darndest things...' so having anything sharp sticking out 'anywhere' could be a hazard; but I think when Jamie recommended a coathanger he had tongue firmly in cheek (note the double smileys).

As a kid, I *always* broke off the antennas on the cheap three-transistor walkie-talkies I got...and used a chunk of 12 gauge solid copper wire stuck down the stub as a replacement...worked passably well, despite not being 'tuned' properly.

This thread got contentious when JANA apparently advised against trying a substitute, based on some vague information about tuning. Then William jumped in with a bunch of stuff not in the OP--or the response--about loading coils, and went OT from there.

One final note: in the OP, it was mentioned that he stuck a piece of wire in there, and it 'didn't work'. I think he might look into the possibility that some connection was broken inside the unit. Wire 'should' have worked, as long as it was connected solidly, nearly the correct length--and solid, not stranded.

This is a 14 year old TOY, in all probability...nothing to get worked up over.

jak

I've lost track of the OPs intent. Still - a "hanger" though possible - would make the thing a bit eh - heavy. "I" am not getting all bent over it - just adding an extra opinion to the thread. What the OP ends up doing - is their thing. If I ask a question, I take in all advice then go from there. Thats how it works. AND yes - some suggestions "may" seem a tad safer or unsafe than others. Not every suggestion will work for every one. But it is nice to see - the OP IS getting some replies.

I was trying to _explain_ why what JANA said was (generally) incorrect, rather than simply gainsaying him. JANA got "off-topic" by providing incorrect/invalid information.

Absolutely!

Seconding this, most high-end RC transmitters will transmit on a variety of frequencies within a specific range, changed by crystal. Each frequency comes with a recommended antenna length for best performance (again this is specific to the manufacturer). Those of us who run R/C submarines with FM transmitters are acutely sensitive to this. The proper antenna length can make a difference of several feet of depth, although it has less of a perceptable effect on distance. I cannot write to the effects of antenna length on an AM transmitter. I do have a couple of AM R/C units, but they are "just toys" and so are never run at any great distance from the transmitter.

Peter Wieck Wyncote, PA

The difference in frequency is less than 5% -- probably less than 2%. That is not a major difference in antenna length.

Inches, anyway. I do notice that when I trim the antenna "correctly", I will get about another foot of depth before the "No-Signal" blow- ballast (Sub-Saver) relay kicks in. There are several of us on our bit of creek, so we are acutely sensitive to frequency and try to be several steps apart, at least.

I had to change out the factory motor in the latest sub for one with more torque and speed, which, in turn required a different propellor (but same diameter) to reduce cavitation at the higher RPM. Going downstream is no problem. Going upstream requires a bit more oomph than is typical of a submarine operating at "scale" speeds. The creek is about 40' wide and something around 6' deep in the channel directly in front of our summer house, and crystal-clear so ideal for the purpose - except for the current.

Why don't you go stick your head in a tub of water for a while. You have absolutely no personally what so ever!

I can picture you sitting in the back corner of a party doing nothing but badgering every one that's enjoying them self's. You must be a real joy at a party! I bet they try to leave you home!.

My bottom footer message fits you well.

Why don't you practice what you 'screch', and learn proper engliosh, while you';re at it? You calim to be an engineer, ytet you appear to be about 15 years old.

Come on down to Florida any time you think that you're man enough to push me down the stairs, slinky boy.

Give Jamie a break...... He does fairly well for a guy who didn't get beyond the 5th grade.

When I visited a friend in Texas some years back with my R/C submarine, we managed to get it to dive (in a swimming pool) to a point well beyond the maximum spec'd radio range, and it got stuck (even though the "descent propeller" had shut off), because it didn't have enough bouyancy to rise from that depth!