lakespinner2

I recently bought two Medusa BEC's, I bought one two or three weeks ago and just received the second one today. BOTH of them have the input and output wires labeled backwards.

If you're installing one don't assume it's labeled correctly. CHECK it somehow.

It totally destroyed a brand new gyro and a swash servo on my new t-rex 600 heli in less than two seconds. There was a loud bang with white smoke pouring from the Medusa BEC and gray smoke pouring from the swash servo housing.

I don't trust the other two servos or receiver on my new T-rex 600 after being subjected to that kind of trauma. I've already re-bought the gyro and servos, to a tune of roughly $500. I still have to get a new receiver so it'll end up being about a $600 manufacturing mistake. It's hard to believe one sticker can do this much damage. The story I got on the phone was that they had a relatively new employee involved in the manufacturing process somehow.

Medusa won't cover ANY of the damage. They did say they had sent me a new BEC to replace the mis-labeled one.

When I first spoke with the Medusa folks they seemed unaware of the problem until I called and sent them photos of my char-broiled BEC. I also called a vendor and they checked a couple of new BEC's they had in stock and they both were labeled backwards as well. I was told Medusa was calling their distributers about it.

I had hoped Medusa would help me out with at least the one totally dead servo and gyro but no dice. They first claimed I'd modified the BEC, which I guess is somewhat true; I did add connectors to both ends of the wires and I added a ferrite ring.

Then they said I should have noticed the reversed labeling since the instructions are in the package. In truth I didn't read the instructions, there's only two wires marked "Battery" and "Load." Being an electrical engineer it seemed pretty simple and I've wired up at least half a dozen in the past without any problems. In my defense, their QC didn't catch it either and they see them every day.

I was kind of surprised at their lack of sympathy and support, I've been a pretty loyal Medusa customer for the last couple of years, I have a few of their motors in my little T-rex 450's.

I know everything you buy says they're not responsible for consequential damages but this just smells bad. On so many levels.

I ran a little voltage test on the one I received today. (I ordered another BEC the same day the first one went into self destruct mode, it took me a day to find the root cause of the problem.) I'll add a pic or two.

If you made it this far, thanks, I really don't want anyone else to have to go through this. It is VERY VERY hard on the wallet. And I see that Medusa has posted a note about it too. HEED THEIR NOTE WELL !!

I wouldn't trust the wiring labels that are on the BEC itself; I wouldn't trust the the wire colors shown in the included documentation, the wire colors don't match the actual BEC, at least they don't on either of my two that have the reversed labels. The sketch showing the little servo connector does appear to be the key to figuring out the proper orientation. Unfortunately I alway add my own connectors to both ends and I trusted the labels on the device itself. []

MAKODS

I just received 2 5V ones last week and have them in planes that I have not flown yet. Exactly how do you determine which is load and which is RX buy looking at it? Thanks for the heads up.

MRI

“… they should call all vendors and issue a recall …�
A notice about the mislabeling was recently posted on various web sites and forums after we verified there was a problem with the labeling.
After an internal review we found that only a handful of 3.5A BEC’s were affected.
A recall was not necessary because the instructions clearly indicate how to properly connect the BEC.

“… I didn't read the instructions …�
The BEC has a 3 pin JR type connector on the output (to receiver)
and tinned wires on the input (to battery).
If the label fell off you could still connect it correctly, especially if you read the instructions.
If there are ever any questions or concerns, a phone call or email would answer them.

“I was kind of surprised at their lack of sympathy and support..�
Not so, we were very sympathetic for we never like hearing about crashes or damaged parts.

“I had hoped Medusa would help me … but no dice.�
Not true, that is a total fabrication for we offered several of our products, free of charge, for setting up his new TRex 600 but the offer was declined.

“I did add connectors to both ends of the wires …�
Yes, he added a JR style 3 pin connector to the tinned wires that should have been connected to the ESC connector,
which he indicated in the draft he sent to us that he said he was going to post:
“…I use small black connectors instead of the larger red connectors (Dean's)…�,
and not as reflected in any current pictures or posting.
In doing this, the BEC had identical connectors on both wires.

"... Customer Service ..."
We at Medusa stand behind our customer service.
There are lots of customers, prospective customers, and non-customers who
can testify to the great support and service that they have received from us
and that we always strive to provide. We try to help anyone who calls or emails us,
even if the questions or problems are not related directly to our products.

Regards,

MRI