Tuned motor vs off-the-shelf motor
 

I always hear/read people talking about how good their tuned motor is.. but
how big different is the difference between a "normal" off-the shelf motor, compare with a tuned version from a reputatable tuner like team br00d?

I know there is no fixed answer as it depends on your skills, how you use it, how good your off-the-shelf motor are. But if someone got some real life comparison experience, like the difference in lap time, run time or anthing else that you can think of, can you share it here?

Would a well tuned motor make your normal 15 sec lap 0.5sec faster (or more)? Or would it be that it'll only give you a bit more punch but it won't make any noticable difference to the lap time when used by average racers?

Oh and please don't turn it into a XXXX brand vs XXXXX brand thread..
i just want to hear some honest comments/experirence from other racers

Well, as a general rule of thumb, anything in R/C can only benefit you as much as you are skilled to take advantage of it. That said, yes, a well-tuned motor is key to winning races, only if you can drive well enough to win in the first place. Good equipment is important, but the driver wins the race.

The motors all start out at the same place.. the big motor companies buy motors right from epic..

the differences..

1 a good motor company will only sell good motors.. So its like a guarentee.. you get what you pay for..

now you can get a really good otor off the shelf as well.. but it is possible to get one that isnt very good either.. even with rebuilding, the motor might not perform.. after a few runs the tuned motor needs to be rebuilt just like any other motor. But if the motor is good it will be on the rebuild as well..

tuned motors are good for this reason over and over the counter..

magnets zapped
bushing polished and reamed
brush hoods aligned
high preformance brushe
tuned springs
armature trued and aligned properly in magnetic feild.
broke in dyno'd
and most important the time in the motor by the person doing the building..

Precisely, the good thing about the reputable motor tuners is that they've already done the work of weeding out most(if not all) of the bad motors before they sell any to us, while when you buy just any off the shelf(or even getting a "tuned" one from the biggest companies like Trinity, Reedy, etc.), you take more of a chance that the one you got could be a dog. It's just the way all machine-wound motors are, there's a good chance of getting a dog, or of getting a real gem, but it's VERY hard to tell until you've already gotten it & ran it, rebuilt it, played around with setup, etc. But the reputable tuners already did that for us, so for me it can be worth it, & after that it just comes down to keeping it running right, definitely takes some of the work out of it & leaves me more time to work on good gearing, car setup, driving, BS'ing with my friends, etc........ :cool:

thanks for the replys/comments.
Yes i know if you give me the fastest motors + best battery in the world and i still can't beat Hara.
But what i really want to know is.. for the same driver (an average driver), how much benefit (in some sort of number)will a tuned motor give you?

Motors are only part of the equation,you have batteries,chassis set up,tire selection,radio set up and a ton of other things not to mention driving skill,really no matter how good a motor you have if you don't have these other things in combination with it it does you no good.I couldn't tell you how many times I've had the fastest car on the track,only to be outdriven.As far as if you pit two drivers with the same skill level and equipment together,the faster motor will win.

EVERY SINGLE stock motor ive bought off the shelf is slow foe some reason when i run it...i always gave it some Anonymous Motor lovin' and i got .5 a lap faster right off the bat :nod:

If You are a fairly desent driver and have had some experience driving at more than just the local parking lot...Than you would probably notice a tremendous improvement in lap times...
Ok lets say you can make it around the track without hitting a dot, rail or cars for more than five laps than you can benifit from a tuned motor...
Also when choosing a motor tuner please take the time to get them from a someone who not only builds motors but races the same motors they sell, & will help you if your at the same race and or need help with other things RC related..
I would like to say that a good tuner will also
balance the armature....
THat is one of the things missing from the list below.
To balance an armature correctly is very important.
I have tried many tuners and alot of them are very good...
I am very happy with my tuner....It has taken a year of running other people's motors before I found the one I use currently and have found the customer service and tips are free and are worth more than the great motors he sells.....
Just my two pennies...
-Shookie <><

Hi Shookie,

What are you using cureently???

Personally, I have had better luck tuning my own motor's. I have in the past bought motor's tuned by some various motor-tuners and have found that the motors that I have spent some time on were not only better performers - were more consistent ...

Nothing against some of the tuners that are out there - I have heard that DC, EA and Br00d are excellent, my experience from another "big" tuner was less-the-positive.

To echo what was said earlier in this thread - yes, the current crop of tuners will provide you with a pretty-much guaratee that the motor you are pulling from their package is going to be pretty good - however, how you maintain that motor will determine how well it will perform for its entire life.

If you're going race you will need to know how to work on your motors.I mean unless your a fully sponsored team driver,and how many of us are lucky enough to get to that point? I generally spend one night a week 3-4 hours just working on motors,it's a neccesity and also a fun part of the sport.

Or the bane of the hobby, depending on who you ask. There are those among us that find motor tuning one of the absolute most miserable things about R/C. :-\

I had good luck with EA and br00d motors. A few extra bucks to not have to mess with brush hoods and other annoyances is worth it to me, not to mention all the other benefits. It's good to see Eric out there beating people with the motors he tunes at high-profile events. Anybody can hire a gun.

It also wouldn't hurt to educate yourself about what goes into tuning motors, to see if it's something that interests you. At the very least, you'll understand more about the work that goes into them, and perhaps better appreciate the work done by tuners. It may be a little dated, but you can find a decent guide here.

If you really, really want an answer to your question, go try a slightly faster motor than the one you're using (like a 19T if you're in stock, or whatever) and see if you can turn the increased speed into consistently faster lap times. If so, the added speed of a tuned motor is probably the way to go.

<shameless id="troll">That said, viva la brushless. Down with the brushed motor and battery idiocy in this hobby. It's been long enough.</shameless>

I think where you will see motor tuners shine are handout races. Take note on whos doing the most tuning and chances are he knows something or stumbled acrossed something that the others don't. But in general stay with you smaller companies that are going to be able to give you better attention. Thats what I did. :sneaky:

Here's a great article on a tuning that was done on a stock motor. http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showth...66#post1265066

Bigger Companies tend to go for mass vlume in sales and therefore have to do mass production which always means something has to suffer = Quality. They are more into the bottom line and not customer satisfaction.

Smaller Companies are trying to make a name for themselves therefore will go the extra mile to produce more HP and take care of thier Customers.


Just my $.02