R/C Tech Forums - Looking for advice

Hi all,

I've got a little pet project I'm working on that I'm researching what technologies are out there that can do what I need.

I need to be able to move something up and down about 20-45 degrees. The electronics that make it move need to be able to move something that is approximately 0.5-1lb. I would be putting it on some sort of timing circuit that would "engage" it automatically. There would be resistance for it moving, but not a whole lot(not sure how to quantify it).

I'm looking for low power consumption. I would want it to run for hours(remember it's on a timing circuit, so actual runtime in the hours would probably reduce to minutes), and preferably on a very portable and renewable power source (ie rechargable battery pack of an RC unit at the largest).

Would servos be the right thing? Is there anything I would be running into with respect to limitations of servos? Do they typically "burn out" if there is resistance? etc. If so, it's not a huge concern. I would just have to figure out how to detect resistance early, and disengage the servo mechanism.

I am extremely new to all electronics, but I feel I'm smart enough that if someone points me into the right direction for information, I can figure it out. So besides my above questions... in general, is there somewhere I can start learning about all these things? It's not really RC specific, but you guys are the only folks that I can think of that use/deal with this stuff on a regular basis, and you all probably have a heightened knowledge in this area, so I'm looking for help!

Thanks in advance folks!
Mike.