dual sidewinder oooppps
 

Hi there,
I thought I would see if you could solve my problem. I have a brushed dual motor e revo and I decided to convert it to brushless. So I got two castle sidewinders. I talked to the guy at the lhs and he said I shouldn't have and problems so I proceeded. I ran each off its own battery (7.4 v lipo) and got it a ll set up and everything seemed just fine until I went to test it. I plugged one in (living the other unplugged) because I wanted to make sure that the motors were turning in the right direction. I spun the motor and..... smoked the other esc(the one that wasn't plugged in). I know now that when you turn a motor manually it creates voltage which is bad when it goes the wrong way. When I informed the guy from the hobby store he said that there is normally circuitry to prevent this and was confused as to how it happened, so, I'm asking you. I went and bought another sidewinder but before I set it up is there a way to prevent it from happening again?

The other problem I had was that I had to y connect them to the same receiver. Which causes a problem because when I turn the first esc on the other esc goes into link mode. So if you could help me with that too I would appreciate it.

Thanks

Try contacting Castle, they have great customer service. Also, I believe they have a program in place where you can buy a new ESC to replace the one you broke (when it's not their fault) for $50. I'm also pretty sure the Sidewinder is not meant for large vehicles such as the E-Revo/E-Maxx, but maybe in dual configuration it's ok.

Why would you buy 2 sidewinders?

1 Mamba Monster setup is about the same price as 2 sidewinder systems... And a LOT more power and way less headache.

Also, part of the problem may be that you need to prevent one ESC from providing power to the receiver. Try de-pinning the red wire to the receiver on one of the ESCs. You don't want both ESCs trying to power the receiver at the same time. It can cause issues.

-Eric

I already had the sidewinders. And I couldn't sell them for enough to buy a 1/8 system. The other problem is that one esc is not enough to power the dual servos.

Think what you're finding out is there are very few that have actual experience setting up a dual system like you're trying to run. The lhs guy obviously doesn't have any experieince otherwise he would've told you to pull the red wire in the esc lead from one of the escs so it wouldn't provide power to the rcvr since only one esc needs to do it.


I'd call Castle support and ask them if they've ever really done this and what the pitfalls are, that may be your best source of info. They like to help and this is unusual so I'd be surprised if you couldn't find some help.

I was wondering if anyone sees a problem with wiring both esc in parallel to the receiver. The voltage would be the same but the current would increase? I thought I might get away with this by wiring both escs to one switch that way when I turn it on both are powered at the same time so that they can't go into set up mode. I was hoping not to have to run a receiver battery but I just don't want to fry another esc.

Like others have said, you can wire both ESCs to the same channel on your receiver, but you have to disconnect the power (red) wire from one. If both are plugged in, you have a high chance of ruining your receiver with too much voltage or current (I can't remember which). Look in the manual of the ESC, I think it has a page on how to wire for multiple ESCs.

I agree it’s not a wise idea to try and fully connect both ESCs. Theoretically the current capability would double, the Voltage would not change, bbbbbbut…… One concern with having 2 ESCs attempting to power one receiver is the outputs are essentially directly connected. Any slight difference in Voltage between the 2 ESCs BEC circuits can quickly result in a lot of current between the 2. At least one of the ESC BEC circuits would most likely lose the battle and let out the Magic Smoke.

It is possible in certain very specific circumstances to connect 2 outputs to a load, but it is certainly not recommended general practice.

Like mentioned, at the very least need to pull and isolate one of the red wires. Don’t know if that solves the link issue.

To get more power for the servos, you might need to pull and isolate both red wires, then use a receiver battery or an appropriately sized external BEC. Either seems awfully complicated of course.

I think I'm gonna run a receiver battery. :( The other thought I had was that the back voltage problem threw the main motor leads only happened when the motor and esc were turned off. Don't brush less motors normally draw voltage constantly? that's why your not supposed to leave them plugged in. My thoughts then are that with both escs turned on there would never be an instance where voltage could travel the wrong way, right? Or if I turn the drag brake up that would then increase that latent voltage so that if ever one of the motor leads were to come off the esc would still be sending voltage negating the back flow?
Just a thought

The other question I had was do any of you see a problem in wiring both escs to one switch? I just want to eliminate one more place that could cause one esc to be on when the other is off.