bent-fender

I have recently built me a RC10T dirt oval truck, well rebuilt, and I have ran it about 12 times with little to no issues. The other day I ran it and got about a 10min run out of it before it died normal for this battery and the Tamiya connectors was hot and a lil hard to pull apart but nothing was melted or smelled or anything like that so I didnt think nothing of it. Tonight I traded the 3300 6cell off for a 3000 7 cell thinking maybe I can get 15minute run time out of it. I also traded the TQ2 out for my TQ3 so I could have my driving lights and spare body. and traded the wore out proline strikers for a set of Proline Dirt Hawgs so I could gain a lil ground clearance as well as have better tred. I knoticed the truck was running a little faster not crazy faster but faster than normal. After about 8 minutes the truck stopped going and I knotced after gettng it inside and sat down that it was smoking. I ran to get my tools and my little brother got a quick pic and pulled the body to find that the battery wires was melted as was the conectors. The battery was obviously hot, so hot it melted the connector as well, as was the esc. The fuse that is in the esc is still good with no damage I pulled the esc apart and nothing in on or around it seems to be burned or melted and the same with the battery. The only thing melted or burned is the wires on the battery and the connector. My question is What in sam hell caused this? It is about 50-55 degrees out side with medium winds. I also have the front of the truck open to allow cool air in. Also I was not running the lights I didnt have enough good charged batterys. Any info as to why this happened and what I can do to prevent it from happining again would be great.

Druss

The tamiya connectors are too high resistance. Switch to deans or traxxas plugs, they will handle 5 times more current with no effects. The ultimate are anderson power poles.

bent-fender

So thats all it was was the plug is junk dang. How much are these connector I will need about 10.

Druss

The connectors are cheap, like $2.50 a set but you don't need 10 sets. You need a bunch of females for your batteries then a couple of males for the escs and chargers.

http://www.amainhobbies.com/index.php/cPath/1_221_225

Look at the deans and traxxas connectors. Deans are more popular and if you decide to go lipo in the future then the ones that come with connectors preattached are usually deans. Traxxas is easier to solder and pull the connectors apart (from what I hear), I don't use them myself because I have too many batteries and chargers set up for deans from my helis.

bent-fender

Well he has 5 cars and 3 chargers and 2 batt's per car. But as soon as he sober up a bit ill have him go check it out he has had quite a bit of alchohol since teh near fire. Thanks and just so ya'll know I am lil brother. I'm a nitro guy.

bent-fender

Me again not lil broI want to wish every one a merry christmas and thanks for the info DRUSS I fully supposrt the LHS so, thanks for the heads up, was a bit scary seeing my truck smoking like it was but the esc was fine.

Druss

So from the list provided, you guys need 10 females and 8 males. ALWAYS put the *edit FEMALE* connectors on the battery to prevent accidental short circuits. There are also + and - signs on the deans so make sure you solder the wires on correctly (this is a standard so that guys can share batteries). When you solder make sure one connector is all done and heat shrinked before you strip the wires on the second wire, this will prevent short circuits.

skottoman

Don't you mean put the FEMALE connectors on the batteries to avoid short circuits?

Cheers,
Skottoman

Druss

Sorry, you're right of course... late on Christmas day after getting up early with the son... no nap either...

FEMALE on the battery... always.

jmcvicker

Going from 6-cells to 7-cells, you saw it running faster - that was due to the motor pulling more Amps through the wires. You could drop your pinion gear size 2 teeth when you jump from 6 to 7 cells to keep the motor from drawing as much. Definitely go with the Deans connectors and maybe thicker wire. Do you know the gauge of the wire you have between motor and ESC and ESC and battery? For a mod motor, 14 or 12ga is fine. We use 16ga for 27T stock motors for some applications. Depends on how much current your car needs to the motor.

Tamiya connectors are ok for 27T stock motor applications, but after that, Deans are really more preferred - as are the newer Traxxas connectors.

bent-fender

DRUSS & scottoman I plan on letting my LHS store do all of the soldering on my car as I always do, but, I will be sure to let him know that I want the female on the battery just in case.

jmcvicker I do not know what the gauge of the wire on this truck is. I have never had an electric untill this year and all my stuff has been 19T and up untill now. I have been in the hobby since 1996ish and always had a nitro car. The only electric one I ever owned was a stock TC3 and I did own it verry long. I was told by the P.O. that the motor is a 17T though it seems more like a 19t. The pinion gear that I have on it now is a 20 tooth and the spur gear is a 42 tooth (give or take). I have the original RC10T wheels with some proline dirt hawgs for now but I noramaly run Proline Strikers. The truck was running so good and so fast that even with the stiff foams in the rear I was still making the tires swell up. I wish I could get you guys a picture on here butthe dial up just suxs and won't let me up load.

Druss

man, i'd suggest you get a good soldering iron like the hakko 936 and doing it yourself but that's up to you.

bent-fender

I have considered it but my LHS dont charge me for soldering, how ever I usally drop him 5.00 to solder a car up for me or 10.00 depending on the job. With him Steve doing it I know it is done right and if something happens I call him and we do it over again but he don't take the money the 2nd time lol. I have been going there on and off for 6 years now lol. For instance last week I took the truck up there had no money just wanted to get his thoughts on it and he soldered the new motor up soldered the taped connection on the esc and shrink wrapped it and gave me some track time for free. Usally that is a 10.00-20.00 trip for me. But as I said I will pay him even though I dont have to, to do my electrical work. That and I am a "loyal" customer there, meaning I do NOT shop anywhere else for my parts and such I will tell him where to go to get it for me. Like on my b-day I got 5.00 track time 10.00 soldering work done and a 6.00 RC magizine on the house and a discount on my rc body that I bought was like a 3.00 discount but still. I have never gotten the wrong part, Steve has never talked crapp about my cars, like the dweeb at A-1 or anthing I have ever brought to him. The atmosphere is awsome ....................well you get the point im just rambling now. Sorry its a great place. WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY better than A-1 Hobby.

Point is I let Steve do that for me lol.

Druss

that's great that he does it for free but it's a skill that i think any hobbyist should know. completely up to you of course but being able to do anything yourself is pretty important to me. that's not to say I know it all and don't need help, just that learning how to do things is also part of the hobby from my point of view.

bent-fender

Yes and I completely agree with you on that I know how to do but I am not good at doing so insted of me doing it and having an issue during a race, I'd rater hand over a few dollars for Steve to do it right. There is alot that I can do with a rc car but then there is stuff I havn't learned like engine and motor rebuilds, custom rollcages and such. I know this isnt a great picture but it is all I have right now.

Druss

Yep, I'm really still learning on the nitro side, I know some because I also fly nitro helis but since they don't take the abuse and also don't get as much dust around them, I've never had to rebuild one yet. My nitro 1/8 buggy and truggy don't get much time on them unfortunately. There just aren't that many places to run them around me.

bent-fender

DRUSS there is always a place to run a car or truck ecspecially 1/8th, weather it be on the street or across the yard, through the ditch, in a open field, river, creek bootom, or a dried up pond and so on and so on. Now if noise is the issue, I know some neighbor hoods frown apon these, then I would suggest going wih a brushless/lipo set up.
Me personally I live on 7 acres, and I'm currently, till the holidays rolled around, in the processes of building a race track where the old garden used to be. I am also converting the old chicken pin into a work shop where if I wanted to build a frame or shock towers or what ever I could.

Druss

If I was in the same situation then I'd definitely do what you are, build my own track... and since I'm in construction I could do it pretty easily too... but unfortunately I do live in a metropolitan area and my neighbours really wouldn't like it. I mostly only runn them on the weekend out where new development is happening as that's really as far as I can go.

I am seriously considering converting my ofna buggy into a brushless set up but since I've already got 3 1/10 electric buggies and 2 eletric ST's, I just don't have the need to (even though it would be really cool). I'd pretty much have to sell one of the others just to get the motor/esc for 1/8, then another $80 for the conversion kit.

bent-fender

Sorry it has been so long since I replied, but the good thing is that the lipo stuff is getting cheaper. I still have all the cars I had befor. But when it got warm i got to work and got me a track some whatneed to smooth it out and got the majority of the shop done. Any how, I dont run the 10T no more and have been fine tuning my saturing? skills. I now have a rc10 buggy with a customworks chassis, and am trying to get enough funds to run the big race on may 02 this year.

Druss

soldering

sounds like you're having fun and learning too

bent-fender

Oh yeah definantly having fun and yeah I picked up a couple new tricks. I now am mostly consintrating on my rc10 buggy but none the less. If I make the race on may 2nd like I think I will I know I will be having a blast and more so if I win