Battery Cold, Motor and ESC HOT!
01-09-2006, 02:45 AM
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Battery Cold, Motor and ESC HOT!
I'm hoping that someone has some wisdom for me, even though I don't have a lot of details. I've got a Feigao 540Y-7L Brushless Outrunner 1050kv turning a 12 x 6 (http://www.balsapr.com/common/keywor...ductId=V121926) and a BP 40A Brushless ESC (http://www.balsapr.com/catalog/speed...ductId=V430656) being powered by a 3 Cell 2200 mAh Lipo and am baffled. I can't find any amp ratings for the motor but I can only assume that it can handle at least 25A. The ESC is rated at 40A/60A peak so there should be no problem running the motor with this ESC. Now, After I run this setup at 2/5 throttle for about 5 minutes, the ESC and motor are burning hot (the plastic coating of the ESC melted off) but the battery is pretty much room temperature. Now, my battery pack is only an 8C pack and gets warm when pushed by my 18A max Park 400 3700kv, so I know that the current is not higher than 15A. What gives? Why in the world am I having problems with the motor and ESC overheating when the current is not even close to their maximums? Do I need to program the ESC's timing or something like that? I'm so frustrated here and am hoping that someone can guide me to some answers. Thanks.
01-09-2006, 10:59 AM
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RE: Battery Cold, Motor and ESC HOT!
One thing you don't want to do is perform extended bench testing with an electric motor setup. It's amazing how much more cooling the motor and ESC receive when the plane is moving forward through the air. This is why E-helis are often equipped with heat sinks on the motor, extra cooling fans, and oversized components.
You might say, "Well, the prop is blowing all kinds of cooling air. Why doesn't that help?" Notice how much steeper the pitch of the prop is at the center? When the plane isn't moving, that steep pitch is stalled and not blowing much of anything anywhere. Most of the air is being moved by the outer 20% of the prop, but the motor is located at the center...
I found this info on the web: http://img.ebigchina.com/cdimg/85838...1109748471.jpg. Doesn't help much, unfortunately, but it's more than you had before. Their website is www.feigao.com.
Frankly, I would NEVER purchase a motor that didn't at least have the maximum current and maximum voltage listed as part of the specifications. Kv is useless without that information.
My gut instinct tells me that you've got a faulty component there. Either the motor or the ESC was bad out of the box.
You might say, "Well, the prop is blowing all kinds of cooling air. Why doesn't that help?" Notice how much steeper the pitch of the prop is at the center? When the plane isn't moving, that steep pitch is stalled and not blowing much of anything anywhere. Most of the air is being moved by the outer 20% of the prop, but the motor is located at the center...
I found this info on the web: http://img.ebigchina.com/cdimg/85838...1109748471.jpg. Doesn't help much, unfortunately, but it's more than you had before. Their website is www.feigao.com.
Frankly, I would NEVER purchase a motor that didn't at least have the maximum current and maximum voltage listed as part of the specifications. Kv is useless without that information.
My gut instinct tells me that you've got a faulty component there. Either the motor or the ESC was bad out of the box.
