Description
Intended Use
AS A TAIL-MOUNT
Using the wire-clip design, and combined with the new Bullet Lid shown in the image, the RT VHF can be mounted to one of the deck feathers of a large falcon or hawk, or using the TrackPack on birds the size of a Tiercel Peregrine as seen under the Gallery Tab.
Key Features
COLOR LED
Multi-color allows the LED use very little power and indicate more than just operation:
- GREEN = regular power and operation
- YELLOW = Low Battery Mode, time to change the battery
- RED = Bad battery, do not use
RELIABLE
“You guys are the Toyota of Telemetry” For the RT VHF, reliability is at the top of our list. Everything from the components selected and used in this stable new circuit (some with average rated life of 300 years), to the processes used in the manufacture (surface mount technology) to the mechanical design makes it the most rugged design possible.
HIGH SHOCK
The crystal-based oscillators of the past have always been vulnerable to failure through crystal breakage when used as a leg mount on hard-hitting birds. Using new generation surface-mounted high-shock oscillators, the risk of having your transmitter fail from a fractured crystal has been reduced to near zero.
FREQUENCY STABILITY
Tune in once and the signal is always there, same pitch, same sound. This transmitter circuit automatically adjusts to changes in its environment. In addition, temperature and voltage compensation handled by the circuit guarantee you always hear the same tone in extreme environmental changes.
MAGNETIC SWITCH
With the Magnetic On/Off switch, batteries can be left inside the transmitters, until they need to be changed. To turn it on, you simply hold the magnet to the lid or body of the transmitter until you hear three rapid beeps, which tells you the transmitter is on and running. You do the same thing again to turn it back off. This means transmitter can be left on the bird, such as a bird touchy to tail mounts, and then be turned on again just prior to the flight with the tap of the magnet. Tap-on just before flight; tap-off after picking bird up again. This new convenience does not add any risk to the reliability of the design, as it’s fault positive, meaning, if it should fail for any reason, the transmitter is left on. Also, if the magnet is lost, the transmitter can still be turned on and off manually as before.
BUILT IN BATTERY TESTER
No more having to ‘test batteries’ with a battery-tester before each flight to see if they are nearing the end of their useful life. The transmitter does all this for you: you get a double-beep on every fifth pulse indicating it’s time to change. And, when you first hear the low battery warning, you still have a 3-4 day reserve to look for a lost hawk.
NEW LEVEL OF EFFICIENCY
We’ve found a way to again improve on the efficiency of the circuit, giving the most power output while barely sipping power from the battery thus extending it’s life as long as possible. Using the latest generation of field effect transistors and dynamic resonance circuitry, this new design pumps more energy into the antenna without wasting as much power through internal resistance. The result is the highest efficiency circuit available anywhere.
FAQ
Why do you use a metal case for your transmitters?
The machined aluminum casing provides superior protection. The strength to weight ratio of aircraft aluminum alloys are superior to anything else, and the internal components are shielded from outside RF interferences as well. The screw on lid was designed to let you avoid having to handle the battery every time you turned it on or off and to keep water away from the battery and battery contacts. It also eliminates the risk of a lost hawk tearing off plastic tubing or electrical tape used on the older designs and removing the batteries.
I’ve heard of people having their transmitters come unscrewed during flight with a canister designs used as a leg mount. How have you solved this on the RT?
This can certainly happen if the the lid is not screwed down completely. Some people have been told by other companies not to screw down the lids too tight on other canister designs or they would void the warranty. This, and their incomplete lid assemblies, has led to a more than a few birds coming back with only the lids attached.
With the RT, we’ve made this is near impossible. Our internal gold washer spring has six small prongs that provide very strong back pressure for a lock-washer effect. The RT body and lid are machined so that you cannot over-tighten it. There is no flex or damage to the circuit board by screwing it down too tight. Simply screw it down ’till it stops, then push the lid and body together and tighten some more. It will then not come unscrewed on its own, through normal use on a bird even if it was left out for 100 years.
Another key mechanical improvement: our gold springs are made from beryllium copper that is chemically etched (not stamped) to very tight tolerances of a thousandths of an inch. These are then precision formed into the right spring shape here by us, heated-treated at very high temps for 4 hours, and then gold-plated for best possible conductivity and corrosion resistance. Also new for the RT is the direct battery connection through just the spring (not the lid). And the spring is now surfaced-mounted (machine-soldered) for maximum reliability.
Is the magnetic switch reliable?
Yes. We use a solid state Hall effect switch (a quantum magnetic device) that allows you to just hold the magnet to the transmitter for a second to turn it on and off. We’ve also perfected a way to use this neat little switch without an appreciable increase in battery drain, even if left in (and turned off) for months.
What are the best ways to mount the RT?
Works well with the TrackPack as shown in the Image Gallery.
What kind of range might I expect from the RT?
We’ve hung these transmitters up out in Wendover Nevada and received a good signal line-of-sight back in Utah at the top of Francis Peak, some 115 miles away. But the important measurements are on the ground and in actual hunting terrain where there are obstructions and other conditions that adversely affect the signal. And in every situation that you’ll encounter, the RT will readily and clearly outperform other transmitters in the US market, excepting of course, the PowerMax.
