1/8 motor ideas?
 

Just got a Losi aftershock roller converted to electric as a "project truck". I got a mamba 1/8 esc with it, but no motor. I've never dealt with 1/8 electrics before, or castle esc's so, I have a couple of questions. My first question is what range works best with trucks this size when it comes to kv ratings? In other words, should I be looking in the 1000 to 2000 kv range, maybe 1500 to 2500 kv range? I'm looking for a motor that will give me both torque and speed. My second question is how do I program the esc to my radio and receiver once I do get a motor? I've looked the esc over thoroughly and I can't find a "program" or "set" button anywhere on it. I will be using a traxxas 2.4 ghz on it. Thanks in advance to anyone who can help.

the common 2200 would probably work, but going with a lower kv and higher voltage is always ideal... especially in large vehicles.

to program, you just hold the throttle wide open as you power up the esc, itll sound off and then settle to a steady beep, once you hear the steady beep you go full brake, once you hear the steady beep again you go neutral. youll hear it sound off and when its done and settles to no beeps, youre ready.

this thing should be a BEAST with the e conversion.

Hey thanks for the info. It will come in handy since I'm used to dealing with traxxas, and hobbywing esc's. I went to castle's website and saw this castle link page where you download a program and you buy a usb cord to program your esc with your computer? Is that just for fine tuning the esc?

yes, castle link is a very handy program that you can use to provide torque control, different throttle and braking curves, reverse motor direction, change voltage from the bec, etc, etc.

you can download and look through the program to get accustomed to it.

if you ever look into upgrading/replacing in the future (im a huge castle fan, but im not blind lol) the tekin systems are also great, and they offer the option of running sensored brushless systems as well. there are also other great budget option like the xerun/ezrun speed controls.

If your truck has the Losi conversion mount you're somewhat limited in your choices. Motor has to be 42mm or less total diameter and your basically stuck with a 25T pinion and 63t spur, due to the motor mount hitting the trans case and not much adjustment to the rear unless you elongate the slots in the chassis. The Losi mount also doesn't act like much of a heat sink, if anything it keeps heat in the motor more.

Regardless of mount Ill give you some perspective, I've setup my nephews and 2 of my own LST's with various combos so I know from experience. 2200kv on 4s equals about 40mph (a little more with tire ballooning) with the 25/63 gearing. It'll have no problem popping wheelies and riding them out quite aways, definitely not a slouch. It'll also destroy 14mm wheel hexes in short order, bodies too unless you have a wheely bar. You could go 5s or even 6s with the 2200kv, but you really need a smaller pinion and or larger spur to gear it down and keep it around 40-45mph otherwise the motor will start to heat up, more than I like anyway. And as I said, with the Losi mount gearing isn't easy to adjust.

If you want to go nuttier, something like a 4082 1600kv leopard or castle 1520 1600kv on 5s is pretty nutty. With 25/63 you'll be over 45mph and pulling the front wheels up at any speed. Rolling backflips and standing double backflips are the norm and unless you have a wheely bar be prepared to trash bodies pretty quickly. While these trucks are tough, you really need to know how to "roll" on the throttle at this power level. Just punching it and doing backflips all the time will kill driveline parts.

Kinda depends on what mount you have, but lower Kv with higher voltage is more efficient and heats up less. A longer motor also has more torque and will heat up less. But Kv should be between 1600-2200kv depending on how much voltage you want to run and gearing limitations.

So, if I'm reading what you wrote correctly, if I want to keep the truck and the motor happy I need to go with a 4s lipo and a 2200 kv motor. I'm not too worried about bodies. The guy I traded with did include a wheelie bar and a couple of bodies. As far as the motor mount goes it has fins on the sides, but not on the top and it doesn't allow much for ventilation. Here's some pix of it. The last pic shows one of the motor mount screws on the bottom of the chassis that shows how much room I have for adjustments....which ain't much.

http://i281.photobucket.com/albums/k...ftershock2.jpg

http://i281.photobucket.com/albums/k...ftershock1.jpg

http://i281.photobucket.com/albums/k...ftershock3.jpg

i have a 4s losi lst-2.real cool,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

That's the Losi mount with the blue anodizing removed. It's 43mm diameter inside leaving a gap around the motor preventing it from acting as a heat sink. I know my motors heated up quicker using that mount. With 25/63 the mount will be all the way forward. You could play around with a larger spur and see how small a pinion you can run, but I doubt it'll be much of a change in gearing to justify the cost. Simply put, a 2200kv with that mount is best run on 4s. There are Tekin motors down to 1700kv you could run on 5s for about the same top speed but with more power. Tekin 1700kv should be fine with temps in that mount, but 6s might get hot when ambient temps go back up.

Note the Castle 2200kv and the Tekins I mentioned are the same physical size. There are motors that are longer (also lower Kv) that'll make more torque (with same voltage) than the shorter ones. Leopard has 4082 (40mm diameter, 82mm length) with 1600 Kv that'll allow you to run at least 5s with the Losi mount and 25/63 gearing and not have a problem. The result will be higher speed and more power. The Castle 2200kv is the easy way out and is a great motor too. Personally I'd ditch the Losi mount, make one out of aluminum angle and run a 2200 on 5s. 4s will be alot of fun, but 5s seems to be their sweet spot (between power and temps) and with a custom mount you'll be able to tailor the gearing. Only other advice I can give is to make sure the diffs are in good shape and properly shimmed, and make sure the 14mm hexes are tight before each run.

I don't mean to advertise my for sale thread here, but I am actually selling one of my converted LST's and it has a custom mount I made. Easiest way to show a pic since I'm on my phone.
http://www.rctech.net/forum/r-c-item...baja-more.html
All it took to make was a hack saw, drill, Dremel and little ruler to measure everything. Hope I've helped, ask away if you're unclear on anything.

Yeah I was checking out your ad before I made this post. I'll probably go with a 4s lipo and 2200 kv motor until I can fabricate another motor mount for it. I live in an apt. so I don't have much of a workshop right now. Thanks for the advice

Yea, Cant go wrong with Castle 2200 on 4s!

wow... i shared an opinion and didnt get attacked for it.

BRAVO BRAVO

It's rare but it does happen on occasion! :nod: Seriously though, I thought you were informative without much "opinion". I merely elaborated with my experience with these trucks and different combos. I myself am waiting for someone who's had a different experience to chime in. Cause you know there's someone out there running 6s 2200kv with the Losi kit who never checks temps but will say its fine! :ha:

Btw, I think you'll be happy with the performance of the 2200 on 4s. I had alot of fun with it and I actually had to tone it down quite a bit for my nephews truck. I'm just one of those guys who likes overkill in my rigs though. Btw, it's kinda pricey but there is another mount for these trucks. Made by The Dude Racing (TDR), lots of adjustability and will mount just about anything in the truck. I'm cheap when it comes to stuff I know I can make or modify though, plus I love that part of the hobby. Never did get a chance to modify the Losi mount for a fan and better airflow though. If I get a chance I'll dig my other one out and post a couple pics when it's done.

in addition to what overdriven has explained, i have tried both 2200kv and 1800kv CC motor on the LST2. since the gearing (spur/pinion) is limited as explained, i notice that the Electric LST2(or AFT) with stock spur/pinion size is bested suited with a lower kv motor (i use 1800kv). The temps(at ESC and motor from my DX3S telemtery) between using a 1800kv and a 2200kv with the same gearing, the 1800kv is lower - both on 4S, same lipo.

also higher burst rate lipo will cause temps to increase slightly with the limited stock pinion/spur gearing of the LST2/AFT/XXL. just be mindful of the choice of combinations that you choose.

using smaller tires(ie a low profile 420 or smaller) will reduce heat further. using big/heavy tires - the ESC/motor will have to work extra - hence heat.

just to share what i have discovered..

It's all good guys....I really do appreciate the help....especially since I was looking into 6s lipos and....by the sounds of it..... probably would have regretted it.

you can go on 6S but you are stretching it as you have to consider a whole lot more finer detail variable to make it to run in good health.

also, lipo - go for branded, as this is what i have discovered.

1. voltage spikes in lipo introduce heat..the lower the quality of the lipo, the higher the voltage spikes are even when new compared to branded one - this causes heat in the capacitors(extra voltage spikes)..hence the CC cap banks product to reduce/limit the voltage spikes...which also limits performance

2. avoid using lipo that is already bloated..this means the voltage spikes is higher than normal..good quality lipo that has gone bad - dont use it. .

both item 1 and item 2, you can see it in the CC data logger graph..

above is what I have concluded in my E-LST2 setup.