Futaba T18MZ
and scroll/enter wheel at the base of the
screen. This is great for those who fly in
colder weather and need to make changes
without having to take gloves off. If that’s
not enough, you can hook up a USB keyboard and/or mouse to speed up the selection and re-naming of customizable labels.
The system menu pertains to items not
specific to a certain model, like initial date
and time, adjusting the display and sound
settings. It is also where features such as
S.Bus servo programming, music player
and camera are located.
When in the linkage menu, you select,
name and set the basic parameters of a specific model. The T18MZ lets you choose a
standard power plane, helicopter, glider
or EP glider presets. Within these, you
can further specify what type of wing or
tail the model has to further remove the
amount of user programming required. For
example, there is a selection for a 4 aile-
ron/4 flap wing—that’s eight servos in one
wing! Imagine if you had to manually program this into the radio. The manual has a
great servo connection chart that indicates
End plug-ins allow the
receiver to have a very
small footprint.
USING THE T18MZ
WITH ANDREW JESKY
Perhaps one of the nicest pilots
you will get to meet out on the pro
flying circuit is Andrew Jesky, and
Futaba is lucky to have this young
man on their team. We were lucky
enough to get a chance to talk to
Andrew about this great new radio.
Here is what he had to say about
the T18MZ
How long have you had the 18MZ and what were your first impressions of it?
I have had the 18MZ for about a month now, and my initial impressions were very good,
they took the feedback they got from the 14MZ and put that into this radio, which makes
the 18MZ a very nice radio.
What are the top two features you use the most, or like the most on the 18MZ?
One of the features I like about the 18MZ is the new touchscreen; it is absolutely amazing!
;e resolution of the screen is much better as and there is a vast improvement to the
touchscreen’s response over the 14MZ. ;e other thing I like is that the battery seems to
last much longer. I have flown for many days without having to charge the radio, which
again is a really nice feature over the 14MZ.
Which main feature do you use in that radio that helps your flying and that you think
may help other fliers?
;e advantages of the new radio may not be so much in flying aspect but much more with
the telemetry allowing people to keep a watch on their equipment. ;e telemetry is easy
to use and a very nice feature.
What do you see as a major di;erent with 18MZ as compared to the 14MZ?
;e big di;erence I see over the 14 is of course, the touchscreen, which is leaps and
bounds above the 14, the radios styling is also a bit di;erent. It is a thinner radio that
seems to fit really well in my hands. ;e radio also doesn’t have an on-o; switch instead
it has a buttons, this helps to prevent accidentally turning the radio on when putting it in
the case.
which channel controls what servo. Heli
guys have just as many choices when it
comes to selecting swash types, with multiple choices of single to quad servo setups.
Flying wings with winglets? You’re in luck
as well.
Special programming mixes are located
in the Model Menu. There are numerous
model-type specific program presets such
as butterfly mode, various control surface
mixes and pitch/throttle curves. In addi-
tion, you can create up to 10 custom pro-
gram mixes. Multiple dual rates are avail-
able for all channels, and as with all values,
changes can be made in steps of one or ten,
greatly speeding things up. Up to eight
flight conditions can be created and are
displayed on screen at all times, no matter
which menu you’re in. They can also be
custom labeled to avoid any confusion.
;e 6” touchscreen allows text and selection boxes to be large enough to avoid mixups, while the colors let your
eyes quickly see which box is being edited or out of norm.
Conclusion
The T18MZ is one of those radios that you
buy and keep for a very long time, which,
if you average out the cost over those many
years, almost makes it a bargain. It’s truly
the best thing out there right now, and if
you’re at all serious about this hobby, all
the features justify the need to get one.
Forget the “it isn’t a necessity” comment
in the intro; I’ve already started my T18MZ
savings jar. ;
