remote starter wiring

[Dohrman Crawford]

I want to rig up a remote starter with a foot pedal for my beginning career in gas flying. I luckily swapped for an excellent foot pedal at the NFFS raffle. My only problem is figuring out how to wire it up, as when it comes to ‘tricity, I am the equivilent of a chimpanzee monkey.
I have a nice field box with a power panel. I have two starters, one for 1/2A and one for the big boys. The 1/2A is the only one currently able to be hooked up and used, but it is handheld at present.
My question is: How do you wire in the foot pedal to allow it to stop and start the starter? I will rig up a mount so that it is elevated above my field box, which will be safer and away from glow leads, etc. The 1/2A starter has a button on off switch, which I will just clamp onto a protrusion to keep the button pressed all the time.
The foot switch is a nice Treadlight II, which I am planning on mounting on a board to keep it out of the damp and mud.
I am sure this is child’s play for most of you, but not for meself. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, as having this rigged up will enable me to fly a lot more, and wait on someone to hold the starter a lot less. More flights=Happy Dohrm.

[Dean McGinnes]

OK, I am an electrical dummie as well. Sort of goes with being a Redneck Flight Instructor (Always Capitalize). However, I did successfully wire up a foot switch.

If you can visualize a line which goes from the positive side of the battery, to the starter motor, then to the negative side of the battery, you can see that if you interrupt this circuit, the motor can be switched on and off at will. Wire the switch into this circuit anywhere.

Actually, I did rig up a place where I could plug in the box via jacks in order to keep it neater. 🙂

[Dohrman Crawford]

Dean, you aren’t even in the same galaxy as I am when it comes to being an electrical dummy. I can visualize what you say, but don’t I need both a positive and negative wire running from the foot switch???? Where does the black wire go?

[Dohrman Crawford]

Forgot to mention that what I would like to do is just plug the 1/2A starter into the field box and be able to step on the switch to turn it on and off. Once I get this done, I will rig up the Sullivan starter the same way.

[DAN BERRY]

Dohrm, don’t kae it so difficult.
My box has a 1/2A and a big starter. It has a power panel for glow plugs. I did some surgery on the panel. The panel is designed to hook up to the battery, allowing starter and glowclip to plug to the front. I have cobbled it such that the starter motors are really independent of the glowplug circuitry.
Imagine a lead from the battery to to the starter. Other lead from starter goes to a female plug on the panel. The other female plug has a lead back to the battery. The switch plugs into the panel to start/stop the starter motor.
Electricity isn’t really magic. Its very logical.

[Ed Hardin]

Dohrm,
I have a Tower Delux power panel and Sullivan Micron 1/2A starter I rigged up to a foot switch. Red and black from battery to back of panel at red and black 12V starter terminals. Front of panel has red and black bananna plugs labled 12V Starter. One wire from the Sullivan starter to the red bananna plug the other wire from the Sullivan starter to one side of the foot switch the other side of the foot switch to the black bananna plug. My starter has a push switch for hand held operation that I shorted (electrical jargon) before I shorted it I used duct tape (red neck fix) to keep it closed. I learned the hard way not to use the large starter for 1/2A engines, I sheared the crank pins off two TD’s. If the starter runs backwards just reverse the wires from the starter.
Ed

[Dohrman Crawford]

Many thanks, guys! I really appreciate it. Oddly, I have trouble figuring this kind of electrical stuff out, but I knew the electrical systems of the various airplanes I have flown cold. MD11 and B777 were pretty complex. No problemo! Foot starter=Homer Simpson sounds.
I am not so hot at wire bending either.

[Dean McGinnes]

The other responders have pretty well summed up the options. I am rebuilding my field equipment (simplify and add lightness!) as we speak. Like Dan, my starter circuit is separate from the power panel. The only part of the panel I use is to light the glow plugs. I run a separate set of wires to bananna plugs (Radio Shack) which are interupted by the foot switch.

To visualize, draw a line from the + post of the battery to the + side of the starter. Draw another from the – side of the starter to one terminal of the foot switch. Finally, from the other terminal of the foot switch, connect to the – post of the battery.

It doesn’t really matter, you can put the switch in the + or – side of the circuit. The foot switch just completes the circuit.

I have my old box apart so If you wish, I can photograph the wiring. 🙂

[Dohrman Crawford]

Thanks, Dean. I have it set up and running now. I am building the setup that will clamp to my box so I can run these suckers without too much trouble.

[Dohrman Crawford]

Here is the finished product. I had a nice piece of oak that wasn’t doing anything so I used it. It works very well. Thanks for all the help, guys.

[Timer Guy]

You may need a way to keep the box from sliding around on the grass. The push against the starter cone can do it. For sure on larger than 1/2A.

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