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FROM LEARNING ABOUT TUNING THAT BRUSHED MOTOR, TO WIRING UP A SET OF L.E.D.'S!  

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Please scroll down the page to find anything and everything I have compiled over the years on brushed motors, brushless motors, Lipo technology, balancing your lipo batteries, TAP configurations, Setting up a Twin ESC, MOTOR and Battery system (BRUSHLESS AN BRUSHED), Gearing your Pinion and Spur, and building your own L.E.D. system.

What is it that determines the turn of a motor?

Is it the lower the turn the faster and more powerful the motor?

What does the term's 8x1, 9t single, 12t double, 10x2 mean?

this is an explaination what the difference's are between these motors and their meaning's.

Shims:

These are placed on both ends of the shaft. They reduce any unwanted space between the can/endbell and the ends of the armature. They are usually made of steel or Teflon.

What does the turns mean on a electric motor?

A turn is number of times the wire inside the motor is wrapped around the armature poles. Stock motors have 27 wraps (or turns) of 22 gauge wire, that is, 22 gauge wire wrapped around the armature poles 27 times. Modified motors can have as low as 5 or 6 turns or as many as 20 to 25.o have more comm wear.

What does single, double, triple, or quadruple mean on a modified motor?A Single has one thick wire, a Double is a two thinner wires, a Triple has three thinner wires than the Double, a Quad has four thinner wires, and so on. So, an 8 Double will have TWO (Double) thin wires wrapped around the pole 8 times. A 12 Triple will have THREE (Triple) wires wrapped around the pole 12 times, and the 10 Single will have ONE (Single) thick wire wrapped around the pole 10 times.

What are the advantages of a single, double, triple, or quadruple modified motor?

A Single provides harder acceleration (torque), while a Quad will provide a much smoother power band. The 8, 12, 10, 14, or 16 turn motors will provide a lot more rpm than a stock 27 turn (less wire means less weight), but, obviously, the 8 will have the best rpm (typically).

Are there any other differences between a stock and modified motor?

A Stock motor has a set timing and has bushing in the can and the end bell. A modified motor has adjustable timing and has bearings in the can and the end bell.

What is a motor lathe?

A lathe is a machine that cuts away small amounts of the comm to restore it to a trued state. Lathing or cutting the comm can be done many times to return it to an almost new state. Having a comm that is smooth and no grooves from the brushes, helps the brushes make better contact.

Are the different kinds of lathes?

Yes, there are lathes that are for non-rebuildable (closed end bell) motors and lathes for rebuildable stock and modified motors. There are also two different kinds of bits for a lathe. A Carbide bit usually comes stock with a lathe. A carbide bit doesn't last as long a diamond bit. A Diamond bit is usually a upgrade and with proper care they should last for the duration of your racing career. Diamond bits cut the comm more accurately than a carbide bit.

What tools do I need to clean a motor?

A comm stick, motor spray, soldering iron, solder, small point Philips screwdriver, cotton swabs, bushing or bearing oil, comm drops, hobby knife, rag and possibly new brushes. If you are really lucky a motor lathe or a friend that can true the comm for you.

What is the best way to clean you motor?

Cleaning your motor can be easy by following these few simple steps.

Step #1:

Remove the motor from you vehicle.

Step #2:

Remove the springs. Note which color of spring is located on the positive (+) side of the motor. The positive side marked with a small + sign on the top of the end bell.

Step #3:

Slide the brushes out of the brush hood. If you are going to have your armature lathed then skip to step #5

Step #4:

Insert the comm stick into the slot where a brushes go in the brush hood. Give the motor a few spins in one direction and then repeat going the opposite. You can attach a pinion gear to the end to help you.

Step #5:

Unscrew the end bell from the can. Note is this is a modified motor make sure you mark the timing and position of the end bell with the can.

Step #6:

Clean the inside of the end bell with motor. Make sure there are no motor shims inside before you clean the end bell. Note: If you are planning on using the same brushes again do not get motor spray on them. Motor spray robs brushes of there lubrication.

Step #7:

Remove the armature from the can and place it aside. Note the location of a shims and washers.

Step #8:

Clean the motor can. You can use motor spray, but it is not recommended that it be sprayed on the magnets. The motor spray can eat away at the glue that holds the magnets in the can. Use a mild soap with water to clean the inside.

Step #9:

Use a cotton swab to make sure no dirt is in the bushing or bearing especially where the arm goes through. A little motor spray applied to the tip of the swab helps get rid of any debris.

Step #10:

Have someone lathe you armature. If you don't have a lathe skip to step #11. Make sure the gaps in the comm are free of any extra copper. You can do this by running a hobby knife or razor blade through the gaps. Be careful not to scratch or touch the comm.

Step #11:

Spray the armature off with motor spray and place it back in the can and screw the end bell back in place. Remember to shim it the same as before and stock rebuildable motors have a small tab on the end bell that lines up with a notch on the motor can. Screw in the two set screws.

Step #12:

Replace the brushes if they are short, show discoloration, have chips or signs of excessive wear. If not skip to step #12B. Brushes come with two different kinds of shunts, eyelets or just straight. If is recommend that you solder you brushes to top of the end bell rather than using the eyelets for better electrical contact. If you do decide to solder the brush on, then lightly tin the end of it with solder and attach it to the end bell. If the solder doesn't stick to the end bell, then use light sandpaper to rough up the surface. Make sure that you don't get to much solder on the shunt, because this will make the brush have difficultly moving in the brush hood once the springs are reattached.

Step #12B:

To reuse an existing brush clean the brushes with the comm stick to get rid of any glaze or deposits. I recommend protecting you fingers with a rag so the small pieces of fiber glass from the comm stick don't get in your fingers. Don't ever touch the end of the comm stick. Fiberglass hurts and stays in your fingers for along time.

Step #13:

If you have comm drops put a drop on the end of each brush. This help lubricate the brushes and will help the brushes properly seat against the comm. Put the brushes back inside the brush hood.

Step #14:

Re attach the springs. Remember which one goes on the positive (+) side of the end bell.

Step #15:

Apply a few drop of oil to the bushing or bearings.

You are now ready to break in your clean motor!

How do I break in a rebuilt motor?

You will need a 4 cell battery pack and a way to attach it to your motor. Attach the 4 cell pack to you motor. Make sure you note the polarity (+) and (-) on the motor is the same as the battery. The top part of the battery with the nipple is positive (+). Let the motor run for almost a minute or so. I don't recommend spraying motor spray on the comm while it is running, because motor spray is flammable and duh there are sparks being made between the brushes and the comm. Oh and make sure you lubed your bushing or bearing with oil. This will help the arm spin freer in the can.

What are capacitors?

Capacitors? help stop radio noise caused by electric motors that may interfere with your receiver and cause radio glitches. For more information on soldering capacitors see my soldering tips page.

How should I gear my motor?

This depends largely on the type of motor, track layout, track conditions, and the type of driver you are. First need to understand what a gear ratio is. Check out my RC TUNING page for a gear ratio explanation and starting point gearing chart. Before you put down your car on the track. Study the design of the track. To often people gear their cars to the straightway and not the whole track. If the track is full of turns, use a small pinion gear that will give you more acceleration or bottom end speed. The reason behind this is because before your car reached top speed, the next turn would come up and your car would have to slow down again. If the track has many straight and long paths use a larger pinion gear that will give you more top speed acceleration. The reason behind this is because a straight track will give you a longer period for your car to travel at top speed. Just remember the larger the pinion the less bottom end / take off speed you have. Always make sure you are checking to see if the motor is running hot when you take it off the track after three or four minutes. If the motor is hot go to a smaller size pinion. Every motor is different so experiment.
What do the numbers mean on a stock pro motor.

How do I know which motor is the best?

The labels on many stock pro or dyno'ed motors have the following abbreviations: RPM or revolutions per minute, Power or Wattage, Eff or Efficiency and Torq or Torque. The main number to look at would be the Power or Wattage of the motor. This represents the overall power of the motor. A motor that has a better power rating than other motors is most likely to produce faster top speeds and better acceleration. For a Trinity motor a power rating of 130.0W is really good. The Eff on the label is the motors overall efficiency. The higher this number is will result in better run times and cooler, more consistent performance. Torq and RPM are interrelated because usually the lower the RPM the more Torq a motor will have. Even if you have two of the same kind of motor you may have to gear them different depending on there Torq and RPM. For the most part picking a motor with the best power rating and then looking at the other numbers is your best bet.

How do you care for the magnets in the motor can?

The best way to care for you magnets is to avoid overheating your motor. A magnets loose magnetism, but you can slow this process down by finding a gear ratio that doesn't overheat them. Using a small pinion and a larger spur gear will help in keeping your motor cool. So let the motor cool off before you go run the next pack. Avoid trying to cool a motor down to rapidly because there is a possibility of cracking the magnets. Be especially careful when using compressed air cans, because when turned upside down they can actually freeze objects. Also avoid putting to many harsh chemicals on them while cleaning. Many chemicals can eat the glue that adheres the magnets to the can. If you have lots of money to blow then you could also get a magnetizer which gives magnets their life back.

Are there different types of springs and if so what do they do?

Springs come in a variety of different degrees. 90, 115, 135, 150, 180. Each type of spring puts a different tension on the brush. The most common of the springs are the 135 degree and 150 degree springs. The 135 degree springs will give you more RPM, less power, same torque and less comm wear than a 150 degree spring. The 150 degree spring will give you less RPM, more power, same torque, better results overall for stock and modified racing and more comm wear than a 135 degree spring. The 135 degree spring is the most common type of spring used.

What is a shunt wire?

A shunt wire is the wire that is part of a brush that you connect to the motor hood. This wire is made from very thin twisted strings of copper and are usually tin coated. The wires are very thin to make it as flexible as possible. This is done so that when a softer spring is used so it won't stick in the brush hood. Some brushes are even available with two shunt wires for increased power but often cause a disadvantage due to sticking.

What are brushes?

A brush is what makes contact with commutator and conducts electricity to the comm.

Should I use a brush with an eyelet or no eyelet?

If you are just beginning in RC the eyelet is probably the best way to go. The eyelet provides an easy way to change brushes. If you do decide to go with an eyelet type brush make sure is gold plated. This type of eyelet will have the best contact. If you can't make a good solder joint a screwed on eyelet is much better than a screwed on eyelet. When you become a more experienced racer then I would recommend soldering your brushes to the top of the motor hood. Just be careful to not over tin the end of the shunt wire. Try to use a smaller tip soldering iron when soldering your brushes to help not over tinning you shunt wire. Also once you have you brush in place, whether you solder or use the eyelet, make sure that the brush can move freely without sticking in the brush hood holder.

Are brushes made from different compounds?

Brushes are made from three different compounds (Graphite, Copper and Silver) each one has different characteristics depending what type of racing you are going to do.

What types of brushes are recommended for stock and what type are recommend for modified?

A brush made from a silver compound is recommended for stock. Silver Brushes also leave sludge behind that can only be removed by lathing the comm. Silver should be used for competitive racing where the last percentage of power is needed to win. A brush made from a copper compound is recommended for modified. Copper brushes don't leave behind sludge and works best with high RPM motors.

What are the main differences between the three types of brushes?

The graphite brushes are not really recommended for racing. They have the lowest comm wear, lowest brush wear, high lubrication and the lowest power. The copper brushes are recommended for modified racing. They have the medium comm wear, high brush wear, lowest lubrication and medium power. The silver brushes are recommend for stock racing. They have the least amount of resistance. The have the highest comm wear, medium brush wear, medium lubrication and highest power.

Are there different shapes of brushes for stock and modified?

Yes, stock brushes are a laydown brush they are wider than a standup brush. The purpose of the laydown brush is to get maximum wrap around the comm to increase the RPM and are usually thicker than a modified brush. Modified or standup brushes are taller than a laydown brush.

What is timing?

A motor's timing is the position o its brushes relative to its magnets. When brushes are perfectly centered over the magnets, the motor has zero timing. When you rotate the endbell (and the brushes) in the direction in the direction opposite the motor's rotation, the timing is "advanced". When the endbell is rotated beyond the zero-degree mark in the same direction as the motor's rotation, the timing is "retarded".

How is timing measured?

It is meaured by the degrees the brushes have been rotated away from the center position. Most motors come with a lablel that indicates the degrees and calibration marks to show where the timing is set. Eventhough timing refers to the position of the brushes in relation to the magnets, all motors have either a moldeded-in pointer or an endbell screw that measures timing at a "zero point". This is usually aligned exactly between the two mounting screws on the bottom of the motor can.

Can timing be advanced or retarded to far and what are the effects?

Yes, when the timing is advanced to far the amp draw and motor rpm increase, but overall efficiency and torque begins to suffer. When timing is retarded at all, the motor will run slower and hotter (which is why it's never really used!); zero timing is the lowest point at which a motor timing should be set. A good rule of thumb is that motors with 15 of fewer turns are best set with 0 to 15 degrees of advanced timing, and winds of 15 and above work with as high as 20 degrees of advance timing. If you are unsure how much timing to run, set it on the cautious side and run with less timing; your motor will run cooler, and your car will also run longer!

What is Ackermann? I know its named after someone but what does it do?

Ackerman has nothing to do with electric motors. It is a term used to describe a part of stearing geometry. Ackerman is the relationship between the angle your wheels and the center point of the curve you are navigating. When your R/C vehicle turns, the inside wheel and outside wheel will be at slightly different angles depending on how tight the "turn" is. However in an ideal situation, if you were to draw a straight line from the center of the arc or curve you are creating by driving around a corner to the center of your wheel (as veiwed from above), the wheels should be perpendicular to that line. This is adjustable on some cars and not on others. To the best of my knowledge on-road vehicles are primarily the most adjustable and the ones who use this setting the most.

What determines the number of the motor?
I have read most motors are 540, the motor's in the E Maxx are 550, why is this?
What determines the number that's given?

This is a metric size in (mm) which was introduced as a numbering system by a German motor company named Graupner. It is based on the size of a Ferrite. So if the ferrite measured 54mm it was simplified by adding a 0 behind it and then you had a 540. Some people think it is the measurement of the can which is not true.
However not in diameter in this instance, but by length. Simply put the larger motor produces more power. Due to the quality of materials, and number of windings, this isn't always the case with all motors due to different makings of materials to develop magnetic energy.

Is the number given the thickness of Laminations used?

No this is based on strickly the size of the can for the material used to fit.

Is it the more laminations the stronger the magnetic field?

Yes, the more material used creates a stronger field of transferable magnetic conversion.

Does this also make it heavier creating less revolutions?

To a degree while in starting motion, but the Magnetic current created and the revolutions creating the inertia will compensate for the mass.

Can you advance the timing Or are 550 motors significanly lower on rpms?

The best answer would be that it can be done, but the methods are hard to explain and sometimes have been proven to be false claims on behalf of those who have tried it. Some changes involved changing the comm and zapping the motor.

So are brushless motors by far the best?
Higher rpm.
Higher torque.
Less matenience.
Longer run times.
More adjustable.

Brushless motors are more powerful, durable, and efficient than brushed motors of the same size. Used in your radio controlled airplane, boat, or car, they can generate more power with longer run times.

What Is The Difference Between a Brushless Motor and Brushed motor?

A brushed motor uses stationary metallic contacts that 'brush' against moving metallic contacts. These 'brushes' are used to transfer electrical energy to coils on the rotating armature. A brushless motor consists of stationary coils and a rotating magnet that is connected to the output shaft. The coils are grouped together into phases, and an electronic motor controller powers up each coil in sequence, causing the magnet to rotate.

Brushed VS. Brushless explained in lamens terms.....

Brushed: Basically, when power is distributed into the motor, it is a controlled amount of power which the ESC is designed to handle and allows a steady flow of current. the motor will take that current and deliver the power according to it's design.

Brushless motors: there are sensors that detect where the position of the rotor is and when power is sent into the motors it is sent in pulses that are so fast it seems like a steady stream of power. the ESC for a brushless is only designed to read one motor so it can deliver these bursts at a specific time. thats why brushless motored cars run longer run times, They are not draining th power band as like a Brushed.

Explination of how a brushless motor works:

A brushless motor is "inside out" compared to your GWS motor. The windings are glued to the inside of the can, and the permanent magnets are bonded to the rotor. Since the wires don't move, you don't need brushes to transfer the electricity.

Take a look at the commutator on the GWS motor. It's cut into multiple sections. Depending on which two sections are in contact with the brushes at any given time, different sections of the windings are energized, creating the magnetic fields that push and/or pull against the fixed magnets in the can.

There are three wires coming from a brushless motor. Inside, all three wires are connected, and wound such that passing DC current through any two connections will create a magnetic field, making the rotor turn a partial revolution The computerized electronic speed control "commutates" a brushless motor by switching which two wires are being energized in a sequence.

Sensored and sensorless are two types of brushless motors. Sensored motors have a separate sensor, and an additional five wires, that tells the controller which direction and how fast the motor is turning. These are more complicated, more expensive, and difficult to reverse. SensorLESS motors use the fact that when a motor is coasting, it's generating electricity to see which direction and how fast the motor is turning. Knowing this information is crucial to making the motor turn in the correct direction, and knowing which two wires to pass current through at any given time to keep it turning in that direction.


What is RPM, Kv, And Current Rating?

RPM stands for the number of rotations per minute, and signifies how fast a motor spins. Brushless motors are given a Kv rating, which is RPM per volt, that lets you determine how fast that motor will rotate with a given voltage supplied to it. A 8000Kv motor powered by an 11.1V battery would spin at 8000 x 11.1 = 88800 RPM with no load. The current rating specifies the maximum continuous and/or burst current that the motor is able to handle. When selecting a battery and speed control, choose ones with continuous current ratings equal to or greater that that of the motor. Basically this hold true for the 7.2 NiMH batteries as well with a small differance due to a constant distribution of power from the battery with out a BEC to control the current.

Current Rating:

An ESC will have a power limit. It’s important to know the peak current your motor is going to pull at full throttle. This determines the current rating you should look for in an ESC. Always choose an ESC with a current rating that is higher than what you need. If the motor is going to pull 12A, a 25A-rated ESC is a much better choice than a 10A-rated one. The 10A ESC will probably overheat and cook, even if you only use half throttle. ESCs are relatively light and maintain great resale value, so this is one item in your power system where skimping isn’t worth while.
Choosing the correct type and identifying the minimum current rating are the two big steps. The next choices depend on your preferences. Here are some of the features and limits that can affect your selection.

Voltage Rating:

All ESCs have voltage limits. Some even have more than one! What is your battery voltage? Choose an ESC that is designed to work with an equal or higher voltage. Some ESCs are designed for low voltages (below 13V), some for medium voltages (below 25V), and some for high voltages (above 25V). You shouldn’t connect a high voltage battery to a low voltage ESC, but it is also wasteful to use a high voltage ESC with a low voltage battery. The second voltage rating that some ESCs have is based on their Battery Eliminator Circuit (BEC). For an ESC to provide power to your receiver and servos, it has to drop battery voltage down to 5V. This becomes difficult once battery voltage is above 13V, so usually a separate receiver battery or voltage regulator is required. Consider what is going to be powering your receiver and servos.

Low Voltage Cutoff (LVC):

To protect your lithium polymer battery pack from being discharged too much, most ESCs can shut down when they sense battery voltage has become too low. This is almost always a useful feature, as it can save your li poly battery from being permanently damaged.

Programmability:

Some ESCs simply work out of the bag, like a servo. Others can be fine-tuned and set up with exotic throttle profiles. The most advanced can be configured via a computer program and cable most common with Castle Creations Mamba.

Lipo batteries: 7.4 or 11.1?

You should check your ESC's voltage input. Many top of the line ESCs can handle 11.1 volts. The Mamba can handle 11.1 (double check)

What is 12C, 15C, 20C mean?

C is the amp draw. 20C and it relates to charge and discharge limits. Realistically all you want to know is that it's as high as you can get. That means they can take higher loads and be charged faster. but be aware, high discharge rating normally means the cell dimensions is bigger, hence heavier.

What's the differance between two cell or three cell?

Running 3-cell is the equivalent to running about 10-cells. IF the motor isn't designed to run on higher voltage (even though it can take it) it will make more heat in the motor. You will get much higher speeds, but you are starting to push limits. But some motors and controllers are designed for higher volts. Higher Volts are more efficient. Reason why your high amp AC stuff runs on 220...and 1:1 cars are switching to a 42volt system. It is important that you pay attention to incorrect gearing, prolong runs from high capacity lipos can results in excessive heat. so if ur not careful with a 3 cell, Your battery may overheat causing it to catch on fire or explode, overheating the esc itself and damaging it, or overheating the motor, causing the magnets to deteriorate in strength and effectively become useless. These things arent strictly limited to 3 cell.

What am I looking for in size. I see 1250's,2000's,2850's, ect?

physical or capacity. You buy what fits into your space! The capacity is really simple if you stack more cells in parallel you get more MAH, more run time. 2S2P will be say 2000 mill amps.. That means there are two cells in series (to get the 7.4 volts) and two in parallel to get more capacity. adding another cell in P will be 2S3P and would jump the capacity up. If you're power a car you really want the biggest capacity you can fit and afford.

RX,TX?, I see all these batteries on the market and some say TX or RX even thought they may have the same settings. figure that a 7.4 2250 TX is just the same as a 7.4 2000 RX, Yes or No?

TX and RX are difference sizes, BUT typically an RX is 2-cell (7.4) and TX is 11.1...NEVER plug 11.1 into your RX unless it calls for it. and in some cases you need to run a current limiter in an RX using a LIPO as the voltage is too high for most RX's at 7.4 (typical 5-cell RX pack is 6)

Is a charger with a balancer needed?

You should always get a pack with balancing ports, and a charger that has one. If they fall out of balance (matched) they have higher chances of failure since the packs are so sensitive to over charging. NOTE: many people who have lipo's claim they don't use a balancer and say its useless or pointless. A balancer basically keeps voltage in your cells equal, stopping one from overdischarging or overcharging. Very important especially when charging, since overcharging a cell causes it to spontaneously explode. A balancer will remove this risk factor. but as with anything lipo, human error is the most common cause for Lipo's exploding. So take caution and read the instructions to charging.

A Limiter, is this needed in Lipo applications?

The limiter is actually a voltage cut-off specific to Li-Po's, in order not to go too low (which will make the pack unusable), usually around 3.25v per cell.


Don't 3 cells take more time to maintain?

False!, it does not take more time, it takes more brains! The maintenance is exactly the same for any lipo batteries, but common sense is your greatest tool. Unfortunately people who dont take care and follow the rules are to blame for lipo related disasters due to incompetence. Example, running their motors until its 80 degrees centigrade, overheating batteries, incorrect charger setting. These issues can bring the cause and effect of a battery treated inproperly.

Lithium-Polymer battery balancing and various ways to do it.

The reason for balancing devices:

Each cell, individually, needs to be kept between about 3.2V on the low end and 4.2V on the upper end. (NOTE: these are approximate values that vary from battery to battery, especially on the lower end. What's important to realize is that these are the approximate points above/below which some sort of damage can occur.)  It is important to know that Lipo batteries unlike NiCD do not need to be discharged before charging, As long as the user does not allow the batteries to fall below the low end value to where damage can occure to the cells or leave the battery useless, The balancer's job when charging is to bring the batteries to an equaled low end value at a safe marker and prepare each cell for proper charging.  Regardless the type of cells you are using, to be safe, it is best to periodically check the voltages of the individual cells. This is best done when the packs are charged or nearly charged. If, when checked, the packs are out of balance, you need to do whatever is necessary to bring them to the point where they match closely. (within a couple of hundredths of a volt, hopefully).

Balancing your LiPolys – why?

Well, as we all know by now (or should, if we’re using them), lithium batteries are much less forgiving than nickel types when they’re operated outside of a certain voltage range. Also, when they ARE operated outside that range, bad things happen. If you’re lucky, all you do is shorten the life of the battery. But either ruining the battery itself or even those much-discussed fires are possible results of going outside each cell’s voltage limits.

But we don’t, except for our Aero Aces and other very small models (and in our cellular phones), use these cells individually. Instead we typically use them in series of anywhere from two to four, or even ten or twelve cells. So, unless the cells in the battery are perfectly matched for voltage and capacity when the battery is built and they stay that way, as long as we both charge and discharge them as a whole battery (and not individually), there is a danger that sooner or later individual cells will be driven outside their safe voltage range even if the pack, as a whole, stays within it.

It has been my experience of lithium-polymer battery use that quality packs, when used well within their rated limits (especially for discharge rates), will start out balanced and tend to stay that way. From that one could conclude that I don’t really need to worry about pack balance and that I don’t need any devices that are designed to help me balance my packs.

But things are changing now. First of all, cells are available which can deliver much higher currents, both in absolute terms and in terms of multiples of their rated capacity (so-called “C” ratings). Packs made from these cells seem to tend to drift further out of balance while being used within these higher stated limits than the older lower-current types. Second, there are less-expensive cells and packs available now, and these also seem to be a bit less consistent or vary more in capacity from cell to cell within a given battery pack. Both of these situations can set up the conditions for individual cells being driven to too high a voltage when a pack is charged with an ordinary series charger.

Regardless the type of cells you are using, to be safe, it is best to periodically check the voltages of the individual cells. This is best done when the packs are charged or nearly charged. If, when checked, the packs are out of balance, you need to do whatever is necessary to bring them to the point where they match closely (within a couple of hundredths of a volt, hopefully).

Balancer Type's

Enter balancers: devices that are intended to be connected to a pack (via the pack’s balance connector – more on that at the end of the column) to remedy or prevent an out-of-balance condition. They do this by either bringing the higher voltage cells down to the same voltage as the lowest one in the pack after it is charged, or by attempting to prevent any individual cell from going over the upper limit while the battery pack is being charged, or some combination of those two actions.

”Post-Processor” Balancers

The simplest balancer acts to bring the higher-voltage cells in the pack down to the voltage of the lowest one. It does this by measuring the voltage of each cell then slowly discharging the high cell or cells through resistors until the voltages are all within the unit’s tolerance of the lowest one. A good balancer will get the cells to within 0.005V of each other (which is closer than most of us have tools to measure). You can think of this sort of balancer as sort of a “post-processor” for charging since you typically use it by plugging it into the pack’s balance connector after charging the battery to equalize the cells’ voltages.

This type of balancer can also be used while the battery is being charged, but since it’s not between the battery and the charger, it can’t actually prevent a cell’s voltage from going too high if the charger is putting energy in faster than the resistors on board the balancer can dissipate it. That said, charging with a post-processor type balancer still is an effective way to keep your batteries balanced.

Perhaps the best example of this type is the Astro Flight “Blinky”. You connect it to the battery’s balance connector and it immediately tells you how many cells it “sees” by lighting up one LED for each cell. Then it proceeds to first bring each cell down below 4.25V (if any are that high), followed by bringing all the cells to the level of the lowest one.

The Blinky is as simple to use as such a device can be. As long as you have a compatible balance connector on your battery, all you have to do is plug the Blinky in and it does the rest. There are no controls, and all functions are indicated by the LEDs on its small board. The Blinky’s manual describes not only basic operation but also its ability to tell you if a battery has been discharged too much (and what to do then) and includes hookup diagrams for a wide variety of different brands of batteries. More about different balance plugs below.

The Blinky is set up to plug into a balance connector with 0.1inch/2.5mm pin spacing, and with no skipped pins in the plug. The balance plugs used by Apogee, CommonSense RC, the new ElectriFly Power Series from Great Planes and quite a few others are directly compatible. PolyQuest, Hyperion, and others that are “PolyQuest compatible” have the correct spacing, but skip pins, so you need an adapter or you need to reconfigure the balance plugs on the battery in order to use the Blinky.

Astro Flight also has a simple little adapter for 2.0mm spacing balance connectors such as those used by Thunderpower and the FMA CellPro line. As with PolyQuest, you’ll need to reconfigure the balance plug on 2s and 3s batteries with the Cellpro balance connector to not have any skipped pins to use the Blinky on them.

Of course, since the way this type of balancer works is to drain one or more cells of your battery to get the voltages to match, you’re always starting off with a bit less than a full charge on your next flight – but the difference in flight time is negligible, really, unless things were really out of balance when you put the balancer on the pack.

Inline Balancers

The other common balancer type is designed to be used while charging the battery and is hooked up between the battery and the charger. These also work by shunting some of the incoming energy into resistors in order to keep the cells in the pack very near to one another in voltage as the charge progresses (just like the post-processor types) but they have the added ability to prevent serious overcharge of any one cell by disconnecting the pack from the charger altogether if any cell’s voltage goes too high. This sort of balancer can also be attached to a charged pack without a charger and used as a post-processor type if you like.

Since this type of balancer also works by draining the higher-voltage cells (even while the charger is running), if it hasn’t managed to bring the pack all the way into balance by the time the charger shuts off, then when the battery IS balanced it will be a little less than fully charged. This is a bit less likely than with the post-processor type balancer, but can still happen.

A good example of an inline balancer is the Great Planes ElectriFly Equinox. This is a balancer for two to five cell packs that can be used either inline (what they term “interface mode”) or as a post-processor (what they term “quick-balance mode”). I think the Equinox has a better user interface compared to similar balancers on the market today because it clearly indicates which mode it is in and it doesn’t take off running as soon as you plug in the battery to be balanced. Instead it waits for you to tell it what you want it to do.

More information can be found here at this website. (CLICK HERE)

Thanks to RCGroups.com for this very helpfull information

Lithium-Polymer safety and handling instructions.

Lithium-polymer (LiPo) batteries offer a variety of significant advantages over NiCd and NiMH batteries for use in R/C racing. It is very important to have a good understanding of the operating characteristics of LiPo batteries – especially how to charge and care for them safely. Always read the specifications printed on the battery’s label and follow the instruction sheet in their entirety prior to use. Failure to follow the instructions can quickly result in severe, permanent damage to the batteries and its surroundings and even start a FIRE!

WARNING! LiPo batteries are ENTIRELY DIFFERENT than NiCd and NiMH batteries and must be handled differently as well!! Team3sixrc.com will not be held responsible for any and all incidental damages and bodily harm that may result from improper use of lithium-polymer batteries. In purchasing these products, the buyer/user agrees to bear all responsibilities of these risks and not hold team3sixrc.com, the maufacturer, and/or its distributors (owners and employees) responsible for any accidents, injury to persons, or property damage. If you do not agree with these conditions, please return the battery to the place of purchase. Before and after every use of your LiPo battery, inspect the pack carefully to ensure no physical damage such as swelling, cracks in the case, or loose terminals is evident. Such signs can often indicate a dangerous problem exists with the battery that could lead to failure. If any of these signs exsist before your first use, please return the battery to the place of purchase.

Battery voltages, Ratings, and Applications.

LiPo batteries can be assembled in many different configurations. Packs are most commonly found with cells assembled in series, normally denoted with an “S”. For example, 2 cells in series are often denoted as “2S” or “2S1P”. Each LiPo cell has a nominal voltage rating of 3.7V (with a minimum recommended discharge voltage of 2.75V to 3.0V, and a maximum charge voltage of 4.20V). The more cells assembled in series, the higher the total voltage of the pack.

Charging the Battery.

A LiPo compatible charger which can apply the “constant current/constant voltage” charge technique (cc/cv) and a cell balancer must be used for charging.

1. Before charging, you must know how many cells are in the battery pack, and then choose an adapter lead whichm matches your pack. For example, a 2-cell LiPo must use a balancing charge adapter which is designed for 2-cell packs and a 3-cell LiPo must use a charge adapter which is designed for 3-cell packs. Failure to choose a proper balancing adapter could result in improperly charged and improperly balanced packs.

2. Always connect the balancer to the charger first. Then connect the battery’s positive (+) terminal to the red lead from the Balancer, and the battery’s negative terminal (-) to the black lead from the Balancer.

3. Set the charger’s output voltage to match the nominal rated voltage of the entire LiPo battery pack which is generally 7.4V for most batteries as it will be marked as so on the battery. NEVER set the charger to a voltage which is greater than the nominal voltage rating of the LiPo pack or allow LiPo cells to charge to greater than 4.20V per cell at any time!! Overcharging LiPo cells usually will result in a permanent, catastrophic failure in the LiPo cells which can result in permanent damage to the battery and its surroundings, and cause personal injury!

4. Set the charger’s output current to NO GREATER than the “1C” rating of the battery. A battery’s “1C” rating equals the amount of current needed to fully charge the battery in one hour. For example, a battery rated at 5400mAh of capacity has a 1C rating of 5400mAh (or 5.4 amps) while a battery rated at 4800mAh of capacity has a 1C rating of 4800mAh (or 4.8 amps) and so on.

5. Command the charger to start the charge process.

IMPORTANT WARNINGS:  Be sure to follow these important warning statements regarding the charging of LiPo batteries:

NEVER attempt to charge a pack with a charger that is not capable of balance charging UNLESS you use a cell balance! Failure to do so could result in damage to the battery and its surroundings, and result in personal injury.

NEVER apply a trickle charge to LiPo batteries.

ALWAYS provide adequate ventilation around LiPo batteries while charging.

NEVER charge a LiPo battery while it’s inside the model. A hot pack could ignite plastic, foam, etc.

NEVER charge LiPo batteries at currents greater than the “1C” rating of the battery (“C” equals the rated capacity of the battery).

NEVER allow LiPo cells to overheat at any time! Cells which exceed 140°F [60°C] during charge can and USUALLY WILL become damaged physically and possibly catch FIRE!! If a battery becomes overheated, disconnect it from the charger immediately and do not reuse it if you suspect it has been damaged in any way.

ALWAYS discontinue charging a LiPo immediately if at any time you witness smoke or see the battery starting to swell up. This may cause the battery to rupture and/or leak, and the reaction with air may cause the chemicals to ignite, resulting in fire. Disconnect the battery and leave it in a safe fireproof location.

NEVER continue to charge LiPo batteries if the charger fails to recognize full charge. Overheating or swelling of the LiPo cells is an indication that a problem exists and the batteries should be disconnected from the charger immediately and placed in a fireproof location!!

NEVER charge LiPo batteries with a NiCd or NiMH peak charger! ONLY use a charger specifically designed for LiPo batteries which can apply the “constant current/constant voltage” charge technique (cc/cv).

Connecting to an ESC and discharging the Battery.

ALWAYS read your ESC, LiPo Balancer, or Discharger instructions completely before connecting to battery.

ALWAYS connect the battery’s positive (+) terminal to the red lead from the ESC or Balancer and the battery’s negative terminal (-) to the black lead from the ESC, LiPo Balancer, or Discharger.

NEVER discharge LiPo batteries at currents which exceed the discharge current rating of the battery as this can often cause a cell to overheat. Do not allow a LiPo cell to exceed 140°F [60°C] during discharge.

It is strongly recommended to use an ESC which is designed to handle the low voltage cutoff points for LiPo batteries (always follow the instructions provided with the ESC for proper operation). Discharging LiPo batteries below 2.75V to 3.0V per cell can cause permanent damage and limit the number of times the battery can effectively be used again.

What to do if your batteries are involved in a crash.

It is very important to remember that crash damage to LiPo batteries is much more dangerous than with NiCd or NiMH cells. Some LiPo batteries come encased in a protective plastic case to add a layer of protection for the cells in the pack. After a crash, remove the LiPo battery from the model but DO NOT immediately place it in a model, pocket, or full size automobile. Instead, inspect it thoroughly by checking for cracks in the case, loose terminals, or any other physical damage. If any physical damage is noticeable, place the battery in a fireproof location and observe it for safety concerns. If possible, leave the battery in the safe location for 24 hours. If no physical damage is apparent, it should not be assumed that no internal damaged has occurred because LiPo batteries can often have a delayed chemical reaction, and while they may appear to be safe immediately after removing them from the crash, they can suddenly begin to smolder, emit smoke, and catch fire even an hour or more after a crash. For this reason, all LiPo’s involved in a crash should be placed in a fireproof location and observed for at least 24 hours for safety concerns before they are reused.

Handeling, Storage, and Transportation of your LiPo battery.

NEVER LEAVE a LiPo battery UNATTENDED at ANY TIME while being charged or discharged!!!

NEVER put a LiPo pack in the pocket of any clothing!

ALWAYS charge and discharge LiPo batteries in a fireproof location and in a container made of metal (such as an ammunition box), ceramic tile, or a bucket of sand and provide adequate ventilation around LiPo batteries during charge, discharge, and during storage.

NEVER allow LiPo batteries to be charged or discharged on or near combustible materials, including paper, plastic, carpets, vinyl, leather, wood, inside an R/C model or full-sized automobile!

ALWAYS have a lithium approved “Class D type” fire extinguisher available at all times.

NEVER allow LiPo cells to come in contact with water or moisture at any time. If batteries do come in contact with water or moister, immediately dry the battery with a clean towel.

NEVER store batteries near an open flame or heater.

NEVER allow LiPo cells to become punctured, especially by metallic objects such as screwdrivers, hobby knives, etc.

NEVER charge or discharge a LiPo battery without having an “Class D type” lithium approved fire extinguisher readily available in case of a fire.

Do not expose battery packs to direct sunlight for extended periods of time.

For long term storage it is recommended to charge the cells fully, and then discharge them to 50% to 60% of their capacity.

Store battery at room temperature in a cool or shaded area, ideally between 40° to 80°F. Temperatures exceeding 170°F for greater than 1 hour may cause damage to battery and cause a fire.

ALWAYS make sure all plugs / connectors on the LiPo battery are covered, to prevent an accidental short.

NEVER leave LiPo batteries lying loosely anywhere in a car (in the trunk, backseat, floor, etc.) and never leave inside the vehicle indefinitely as temperatures can easily rise far in excess of 120°F which could damage the battery. When transporting LiPo batteries, ALWAYS store them in a fireproof container.

ALWAYS make sure that metallic objects, such as wristwatches, bracelets, or rings are removed from your hands when handling LiPo packs. Accidentally touching battery terminals to any such objects could create a short circuit condition and possibly cause severe personal injury.

ALWAYS store LiPo cells/packs in a fireproof container and place in a secure location away from children.

First-aid Instructions.

If the battery's outer lining is punctured or torn, DO NOT allow the battery’s internal electrolyte to get in the eyes or on skin. Wash affected areas with soap and water immediately if they come in contact with the electrolyte. If electrolyte makes contact with the eyes, flush with large amounts of water for 15 minutes and seek medical attention immediately! If a battery leaks electrolyte or gas vapors, do not inhale leaked material. Leave the area and allow the batteries to cool and the vapors to dissipate. Remove spilled liquid with absorbent and dispose.

How to properly dispose of a LiPo battery.

Unlike NiCd batteries, LiPo batteries are environmentally friendly. For safety reasons, it’s best that LiPo cells be fully discharged before disposal (however, if a pack or cell is physically damaged, it is NOT recommended to discharge LiPo cells before disposal – see below for details). The batteries must also be cool before proceeding with disposal instructions.

How to dispose of LiPo cells and packs:

1. If the case is cracked or shows signs that any of the LiPo cell's in the pack has been physically damaged, resulting in a swollen cell, a split, or tear in a cell’s foil covering, do NOT discharge the battery. Jump to step 5.

2. Place the LiPo battery in a fireproof container or bucket of sand.

3. Connect the battery to a LiPo discharger. Set the discharge cutoff voltage to the lowest possible value. Set the discharge current to a C/10 value, with “C” being the capacity rating of the pack. For example, the “1C” rating for a 1200mAh battery is 1.2A, and that battery’s C/10 current value is (1.2A / 10) 0.12A or 120mA. Or, a simple resistive type of discharge load can be used, such as a power resistor or set of light bulbs as long as the discharge current doesn’t exceed the C/10 value and cause an overheating condition. For LiPo packs rated at 7.4V and 11.1V, connect a 150 ohm resistor with a power rating of 2 watts (commonly found at Radio Shack) to the pack’s positive and negative terminals to safely discharge the battery. It’s also possible to discharge the battery by connecting it to an ESC/motor system and allowing the motor to run indefinitely until no power remains to further cause the system to function.

4. Discharge the battery until its voltage reaches 1.0V per cell or lower. For resistive load type discharges, discharge the battery for up to 24 hours.

5. Submerse the battery into bucket or tub of salt water. This container should have a lid, but it does not need to be airtight. Prepare a bucket or tub containing 3 to 5 gallons of cold water, and mix in 1/2 cup of salt per gallon of water. Drop the battery into the salt water. Allow the battery to remain in the tub of salt water for at least 2 weeks.

6. Remove the LiPo battery from the salt water and place it in the normal trash.

Novak Brushless to brushed conversion chart:

V 3.5 R or 10,500kv is = to a 5 turn brush motor
VL 3.5 L or (XXXX)kv is = to a
V 4.5 R or (XXXX)kv is = to a 6 turn brush motor
VL 4.5 L or (XXXX)kv is = to a
V 5.5 R or (XXXX)kv is = to a 7 turn brush motor
VL 5.5 L or (XXXX)kv is = to a
V 6.5 R or (XXXX)kv is = to a 8 turn brush motor
VL 6.5 L or (XXXX)kv is = to a
V 7.5 R or (XXXX)kv is = to a 9 turn brush motor
VL 7.5 L or (XXXX)kv is = to a
SS 8.5 Plus or 5800 is = to a 10 turn brush motor
SS 8.5 Pro or 5000kv is = to 15/17 turn mild-modified brush motor
SS10.5 Plus or 4300kv is = to a
SS10.5 Pro or 4200kv is = to a 19 turn brush motor
SS13.5 Pro or 3300kv is = to a 27 turn racing stock brush motor
SS 17.5 Pro or (XXXX)kv is = to a
SS18.5 Pro or (XXXX)kv is = to a

Castle creations Mamba max Brushless to brushed conversion chart:

CMs-4600 Motor (540 size, 4600Kv) beyond 12t Brushed
CMs-5700 Motor (540 size, 5700Kv) beyond 9t Brushed
CMs-6900 Motor (540 size, 6900Kv) beyond 6t Brushed
CMs-7700 Motor (540 size, 7700Kv) beyond 4t Brushed

Castle creations Mamba Brushless to brushed conversion chart:

CM-2042 Sport Motor (4200Kv) equivelent to a (N/A No motor avail.)
CM-2054 Performance Motor (5400Kv) equivelent to a (N/A No motor avail.)
CM-2068 Competition Motor (6800Kv) equivelent to a (N/A No motor avail.)
CM-2080 Competition X Motor (8000Kv) equivelent to a (N/A No motor avail.)

Reedy NEO brushless to brushed conversion chart:

1 star/8.5 or 5700kv is compared to a 13 turn brushed
2 star/7.5 or 6500kv is compared to a 11 turn brushed
3 star/6.5 or 6800kv is compared to a 9 turn brushed
4 star/5.5 or 8000kv is compared to a 7 turn brushed

LRP Vector X11 Brushless to brushed conversion chart:

3.5 Vector X11 9800kv is related to a 4 turn brush motor
4.0 Vector X11(XXXX)kv is related to a 5 turn brush motor
4.5 Vector X11 7800kv is related to a 6 turn brush motor
5.5 Vector X11 8100kv is related to a 7 turn brush motor
6.5 Vector X11 6900kv is related to a 9 turn brush motor
7.5 Vector X11 5900kv is related to a 12 turn brush motor 

BALANCE TAP CONFIGURATION GUIDE:

Special thanks to RC Accessory for compiling this list.

The following batteries all share the same plug style with the column header. Bantam, e-Station, and EAC boards have part numbers listed.

Align JST XH

EAC124

EAC134

EAC144

EAC154

 

3e Models

ABF

Air Thunder

Align

Beyonder Power

BP

Common Sense RC V1(rev Polarity)

Common Sense RC V2

DN Power (rev Polarity)

Dualsky

Dynam

EC Power

E-Flight

eFuel

Electric Power

Electrifly

Energy EC

Esky

E-Watts

Exceed RC Fusion

Fully Max

Gadex

GE Power

G-Force

Grayson Power

Hextronic

Hi Models

Hobby City

Hobby Loong

Hurricane Flight Systems

HXT

Imax

Kong Power - Old

Lightning Power 2S-5S

Loong Max

MaxForce

Mega Power

Mojo

Mystery

Nine Eagles

Park Zone

PolyNoOne

PowerEdge

PowerSource

Protek

Reedy Power

Rhino

SMC

Tenergy (Rev Polarity) -

Old

Top Racing

Tower Hobbies

Trinity

Turborix

Vampower - New

Venom

WOW RC

X-Caliber

Zippy

 

Thunderpower

EAC129

EAC139

EAC149

EAC159

 

Apex

Danlions

Desire Power

DN Power 6S - New

Flight Power / EVO

Kong Power - New

MPX

Outrage

Performance Plus

Tenergy - New

Thunder Power

Vislero

 

Kokam JST XE

EAC128

EAC138

EAC148

EAC158

 

Apogee (Rev Polarity) Clip on tap needs to be removed

Core

Graupner

Kokam

Neu

Orion Avionics

Vampower - Old

 

Polyquest

EAC123

EAC133

EAC143

EAC153

 

Enerland

Enermax

E-Tec

Extreme Power

Fliton

Hyperion

Impulse

Max Amps

Poly RC

Polyquest

True RC

Xcite

 

Not Supported

by Bantam e-Station

Connection Boards

 

CellPro Revolectrix

CellPro Revolution

DN Power 6S Lipo-Uses (2) 3S taps - Old

Flight Power - Old

Lightning Power 6STanic (with Original Tanic Tap)

 

RCA100

RC Car

7.4V Lipo

Hard Cased

 

Beyonder Power

Chargery Power

Checkpoint

Duratrax

Orion

PolyNoOne

PowerEdge

Trackpower

Tronics

 

HOW TO SET UP YOUR BALANCER / CHARGER INLINE with an LBA10 BALANCER

 

#1. Hyperion Charger Setup

#2  Basic Lipo Charger setup

WIRING SET UP FOR EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL BEC also includes Series and Parallel wiring.

 

how to make use of an external BEC and the 1,000 uF 10v CAP

An external BEC utilizes a small switching power supply which converts the battery voltage to the 6v your servo and receiver requires for them to opperate correctly. If you choose to go with an extrenal BEC  you will need to disable the ESC's built-in BEC by following one of the below dirrections. Or if your ESC does not come with a built in BEC then follow one of the methods below to install one.

Option (A): You can purchase a servo extension harness and remove the red wire from the extension, then just place this adapter from the ESC plug to the CH2 port. This will not require any modifications of the ESC throttle.

Option (B): Or remove the red wire from the harness coming from the ESC from the connector plug with an xacto blade by lifting the tab carefully as to not break it and slide the red wire out. The fold the wire over on itself and shrinkwarp over the exposed end to protect it..

For use of the optional 1,000 uF 10v (CAP). This Capacitor will help the external BEC manage the high currents that will peaks from servos when actuating. Either you can plug this into an available receiver port or you can wire it directly in parallel to the External BEC output wires. These Capacitor's can be easily pre-wired to a servo plug if you choose this option.

 

 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

THE TWIN BRUSHED SET UP.

 

THE TWIN VXL SET UP.

Thanks to SUICIDENEIL for the write up. More great information on BL, Gearing, and Lipo's from Neil can be found here http://www.robotwars.00server.com/emaxxfaq.html

 

Its actually remarkably simple really. All that is required is a pair of Traxxas VXL systems, a servo Y-harness, and 2 ounces of common sense & initiative. Bolt both motors to the transmission, and connect the escs to the receiver (rx) throttle channel via the servo Y-harness. Then, program the two escs at the same time to your radio, and that’s it. You will need to use the same size pinion on both motors, and ensure the mesh is set correctly- use a piece of paper between the spur and pinion as you mesh them together, to prevent them binding too tightly. To get the best performance from a V-twin it is vital to use good batteries, this generally means a pair of 3cell (3s) lipos. To ensure even discharging on each system, it is a nice idea to use a little something called the ‘UNSLOW harness’. It essentially is a pair of leads with male plugs at one end, and female at the other, with a wire linking the negative wire on each lead, and the positive leads in the same way. This ensures that the batteries discharge at the same rate, preventing the LVC from kicking in on either system before the other- see below:

 

The UNSLOW Harness

 

 

 

SETTING UP AN EXTERNAL BEC.

 

Some BEC's in ESC's are not capable to handle the amount of power and distribute it to the components to opperate them.

Placing an XBEC in line from you battery will fix thast issue and correct the problem eliminating any problems resulting from loss of power.

There are many XBEC's on the market but I suggest either the Castle Creations XBEC or Common Sense's XBEC. Both are very good BEC's and are switchable for voltage distributed. The chart below shows how to properly wire in an XBEC.

Scale set up where you need to run a Winch, Lights, Servo, ect.

 

In this set up it will be nessesay that you program the Castle Creations XBEC to opperate at 8.4V when using the RC4WD Bulldog winch. Also be sure to unplug the neutral wire from the winch control before plugging it into the CCBEC. Now you may replace the Common Sense XBEC for another CCBEC if you want, that should opperate at 6V which will be for the lights, servo and motor, but you will not beable to run another Common Sense XBEC in place of the CCBEC due to the switching regulator can only be placed at 6V.

Looping an antenna wire for low profile receiver.

 

OK so your not ready to go to 2.4gHz yet. but you want to opperate your radio and keep it under your shell. Easy fix!|Find a place that you can mount a piece of lexan measureing about 1 1/2 inches X 5 inches under your shell that wont be in the way and away and mount it securely to that place. Be sure it is away from electronics so you dont have interferance. Then with a hole punch zig zag several holes along both sides of the lexan piece. Now zig zag your antenna wire through the holes until you reach the end. making sure none of your wire. NONE OF YOUR WIRE! is touching or looping around itself. a piece of tape or glue will hold the end of the antenna. and your set.

ANOTHER INFORMATIVE SITE FOR R/C CALCULATIONS

Find out your speed, get the correct gearing, Electrical wizardry explained and more:

http://scriptasylum.com/rc_speed/_wiring.html

 

 

MORE Information that explain's RC Lingo. (Thanks to derfererf of BeatYourTruck.com)

 

SPEED CONTROL LINGO

FIRMWARE:

The program on a speed control or receiver that can be updated
Why it matters: Updates mean new functions and better performance

LINEAR:

Throttle and brake work in the exact same proportion as the transmitters trigger is pulled or pushed
Why it matters: Tune-ability for drivability

CURVE:

Increases or decreases linear
Why it matters: Tune-ability for drivability

DRAG BRAKE:

Speed control setting that applies an adjustable amount of braking when the trigger is in the neutral position
Why it matters: makes it quicker to lock up the wheels and rotate the rear end for tight turns

LiPo CUTOFF:

A speed control setting that automatically cuts power to the motor if the batteries drop to a certain voltage.
Why it matters: Prevent damage to your expensive LiPo's

PUNCH / TRACTION CONTROL:

Speed control setting that limits current to the motor durring acceleration
Why it matters: reduces current draw to the motor during acceleration, can result in a softer throttle responce. With most escs, it does not reduce top speed.

START POWER:

Amount or current sent to the motor to get it moving from a standstill
Why it matters: If the motor hesitates, increase setting, if it still hesitates at the highest setting, batteries with a higher C-rating may be required, if motor hesitates from a standstill, increase the amount. Useful for multi-pole motors that dont spin up as easily/ smoothly, especially outrunner types. If hesitation persists, better batts or look at pole count options in the esc software to make sure its setup for the correct type of motor.

TRIGGER DEAD BAND:

Amount of trigger travel needed before the motor responds
Why it matters: Sensored brushless systems are very responsive so the dead band may need to be increased to reduce accidental car movement

BATTERY LINGO

BATTERY DISCHARGE FORMULA:
Capacity multiplied by C-Rating
Example - 5000mAh x 25C = 125000, or 125A or 125 Amps

AMPS:

Unit of measurement for current
Why it matters: Most speed controls are rated by how many amps they can handle

C-RATING:

Capacity of a battery pack in amps
Why it matters: The higher the C-rating, the more "punch" a pack has. not only punch, but is a multiple of the mah capacity that shows at a glance how many amps the battery can output before its voltage drops too much under load- see the discharge rating formula. Some escs require a battery that can put out a certain amount of current as a minimum requirement.

Li-Ion:

Older form of lithium based batteries
Why it matters" This older pack required pressure as part of the cell construction, meaning a hard case

LiPo:

The newer form of lithium based batteries
Why it matters: LiPo's come in different formulas, but even if they come in a hard shell, the cells are made of soft "pouches"

Li-Fe:

More commonly known as "A123", made from a combination of Iron, Phosphorous, and oqygen
Why it matters: A123 batteries are known to be very durable and can sustain a high charge rate, but voltage is not as high as a LiPo. Suffers from excessive voltage drop under high loads, hecne the need to run a 2p format unless runnign a high voltage setup. also suffers from excessive voltage drop under high loads, hence the need to run a 2p format unless runing a high voltage setup (8s & upwards).

Li-MN:

Made from manganese and oxygen
Why it matters: outdated cells, generally only available in lower C rates and smaller capacity than most comparable lipos

mAh:

Milliamp output per hour
Why it matters: 5000mAh can produce 5 amps per hour when fully charged. mAh = runtime. also a measure of pack capacity, that is directly linked to runtime.

OHMS:

Measurement of how much a circuit resists voltage
Why it matters: Knowing this lets companies get maximum performance from their motors. Also can be measured when charging batts, the lower the number, the lower the internal resistance of the pack, meaning it is capable of higher discharge rates without overheating.

VOLTAGE:

Measure of potential differance of electricity between two points
Why it matters: higher voltage = faster car (Not true). Higher voltage systems can be used to reduce current draw while maintaining the same speed. Higher voltage can mean using smaller mah packs to get the same runtime. Higher voltage can mean getting more runtime out of the same sized packs. It is no-where near as straightforward as they make it sound.

MOTOR LINGO

ARMATURE:

Rotating Spindle assembly on a brushed motor assembly that contains the motor shaft, the wire-wrapped stack, and the commutator
Why it matters: An old brushed motor can be brought back to life by replacing the armature, rather than replacing the whole motor

COGGING:

The resistance felt in a motor armature as the stator or armature passes throught different segments of the magnetic field
Why it matters: This is mistaken for motor hesistaion that can occour when a battery cant output the current load needed in a brushless motor. can also be caused by excessive gearing, high kv motors used with low voltage, incorrect esc settings etc.

Kv:

Motor rating that states how many RPM it will run per volt
Why it matters: A 5700kV motor will run at 42,180 RPM at top speed on a 7.4 volt battery. 5700 x 7.4 = 42,180. but be careful, higher kV motors mean you may need more powerfull batteries and speed control.
higher kv motors pull more current, meaning a more powerful esc and lipo are often required to run the high kv motors.

STACK:

The frame that the motor windings are wrapped around
Why it matters:Brushed motors, its part of the rotating armature. not applied to BL motors.

STATOR:

The fines, non-rotating portion of a motor
Why it matters: In a brushless, its the winding structure inside the can. The structure the wires are wound around inside the motor. Slotless stators include the likes of hacker, feigao and lehner. Slotted stators include Neu, Medusa and Novak. Two very different methods of forming the windings, resulting in different perfomance and operating characteristics. Brushed, its the magnet structure.

WATTS:

Measure of electric power calculated by multiplying the colts and the amperes used in a circuit
Why it matters: Some companies rate their motors in wattage. The higher the watts, the more power the system is capable of, applies not only to the motor, but also the batts. A certain level of wattage is required to move a given truck a certain speed.

 

ROTOR:

In BL this is the shaft the pinion goes onto, it also has the cylindrical magnet attached onto the shaft inside the motor.

 

UNDERSTANDING YOUR PINION AND SPUR GEAR'S

 

 

LED Circuitry Tutorial

Special thanks to theLEDlight.com for this tutorial

LED calculator thanks to Japala: http://www.metku.net
Courtesy of LSDiodes.com

 

 

HOW TO HOOK UP L.E.D.'S

The direct url for this guide is: http://tutorial.lsdiodes.com

Below we've created a very basic guide to help people unfamiliar with circuits get their LEDs up and running without blowing them out and wasting all their money. IT IS VERY BASIC!! Current is hardly ever mentioned, not because it's not important, but because we've found it makes things confusing when trying to teach people about this sort of thing. If we've done a bad job explaining things or if you have a question this doesn't answer, use the contact form at the bottom of this page to let us know what's up.

There's two basic types of circuits: Series and Parallel.

SERIES OR HOW DO I POWER LOTS OF L.E.D.'S OFF A HIGHER VOLTAGE SOURCE.

When LEDs are placed in a series, the voltage is dispersed between the LEDs, meaning less voltage goes to each LED. This can be very useful. For example, if a 12 volt adapter were powering one LED, there'd be 12V going through that LED which is way too much for any LED to handle and would result in a rather unpleasant burning smell.

However, if you take that same 12V power source and put 4 LEDs in series, there would be 3V going to each LED and (assuming the LEDs are made to run off 3V) each would be powered and just dandy. Check out this illustration:

It's important to notice how the LEDs are positioned: (-) (+), (-) (+), etc. making sure that the end (-) connects to the (-) wire and the end (+) connects to the (+) wire, if any LEDs are backwards nothing bad will happen, they just won't turn on.

If three LEDs were in series with a 12V source, each would receive 4V, if six were in series, each would receive 2V, etc.

"But what if I have four LEDs powered from a 12V source and I want each to receive less than than 3V/ea?" This is where the little 'Resistor(s)' squiggly comes in. By adding a resistor it's possible to tone down the amount of voltage each receives. To find out what value resistor you should use, use an led calculator such as this one .Go to the middle form where it says 'LEDs in series' and simply type in your power sources' voltage, the LEDs' voltage you'd like and the LEDs current capability (use 20mA.) It then tells you what ohmage resistor to stick in the circuit.

PARALLEL OR HOW DO I POWER LOTS OF L.E.D.'S OF A LOW VOLTAGE SOURCE.

Let's say you wanted to power three of your brand new LEDs off a 3V battery pack (two 1.5V AA's in series, make sense?) you found lying around. If you were to series the three LEDs there'd be 1V going to each (3 Volts / 3 LEDs = 1V for each LED). That's not enough to power your LEDs! You want them to have the full 3V going to each. Here's how:

How this works is that while every LED receives the same amount of voltage, the current of the source is dispersed between the LEDs. What this means for you is that you have 20 LEDs paralleled off a battery, it's going to drain the battery a lot quicker than if you only had 2 LEDs in parallel. If you're paralleling off a wall adapter, for instance though, the source can constantly renew itself so you can essentially parallel as many as you'd like without fear of draining the wall ;P.

To use resistors in a parallel circuit, say if you'd like each LED above to receive 2.5V instead of 3V, use an LED calculator (make sure you're in the parallel section) to find the right ohmage and then stick it somewhere in the circuit!

"Why do the LEDs have to be the same color?" If you mix colors, say if you paralleled a red (~2.3V) and two blue (~3.5V), the blue LEDs would not light. Why's this? Because the electricity is going to take the easiest path it can to complete the circuit and in this scenario the red LED requires less energy, leaving the two blue unpowered and lonely. To fix this you would need to stick a resistor onto the leg of each LED to 'equalize' all of the LEDs. Note illustration:

To find the resistor you'd need for each LED, use the 'Single LED' portion of an LED calculator, type in the supply voltage, LED's voltage and 20mA for each LED and there you go. Now each LED will turn on and each will receive it's desired amount of power. Thanks to Mike Moorrees for pointing this out, "The resistors act like 'shocks' in a car, they give the power source some 'squish' and let each LED find its happy place (forward voltage)."