What is the difference between a potentiometer, varistor, and rheostat?
They are all the same thing, essentially. Along the way, people have come to know the various species of these components by different names. Typically, when you are using the potentiometer to pass through a large current in series with your motor/light/etc., you call it a rheostat. A varistor is simply a VARiable resISTOR. A potentiometer is a coil of resistive wire that has constant resistance between pins/lugs 1 and 3 and pin/lug 2 is a wiper that moves along the coil, thus delivering a variable-resistance functionality. Potentiometers are usually rotary, typically 1 turn, but can come in many forms. They come in multi-turn, linear, logarithmic and other forms. Potentiometers themselves can move linearly or rotationally. What equipment will I need for IFR and VFR? Here is a synopsis of what you will need, converted from hard-to-read aviation speak of the Federal Aviation Regulations into something more closely resembling English. You have three levels of equipment: VFR (daytime), VF
