ImTheJoker4U2

Hey guys Im hoping someone can help. I just bought this truck off ebay (Traxxas Sledgehammer/Stampede/Rustler). Had it out in the back yard tearin it up. Runs great. Came inside and charged it. Later on I was just messing around in the house and it stopped running, then ESC started smoking and it took off on its own (slowly). Im guessing that is not normal operation I unplugged the battery and let it cool down. I plugged it back in and it wasn't running on its own, but there was no reverse, and after a few seconds I saw more smoke


Heres the specs:
Motor: Titan 12T (12 turn 540)
ESC: Dynamite Tazer 15T

From what I read on the ESC it requires at least a 15 turn motor?

My last RC was a Lunch Box with a mechanical speed control, the only thing that could burn out was the resistor.

So heres the questions:
1) is the ESC repairable?
2) should I replace the motor to match a new (or my rebuilt) ESC?
3) did using a 12t motor on a 15t ESC screw it up because I was just tooling around the house?
4) my motor is NOT brushless, correct?


Thanks in advance guys[8D]

Captain Rusty

Esc is not repairable, just replace it.
If the motor still works then just replace the esc, the titan's can burn out but are generally not that bad of a motor. When it burns out go brushless for more durability.
If you were rippin around in the house on carpet then the extra grip might have had something to do with extra strain on the components, but I'm not sure.
And lastly no, you're motor is definitely not brushless.

ImTheJoker4U2

Thanks for the reply
OK well what kind of ESC should I get? Aren't they different for regular and brushless motors?
Keep in mind this thing is a beater, just for thrashing. I dont really want to spend a fortune on in. I just got it, RTR + charger extra tires ect for $150, so matching that for the ESC seems crazy[8D]

GotNoRice

I'd personally use it as an excuse to go brushless.  It really is night and day, and there is less maintenance involved with a brushless system.

You can get really awesome combos, like the Castle SCT/3800kv combo for about $100.  There are probably cheaper combos out there also.

ImTheJoker4U2

My wife would KILL me if I spent another $100 on this lol
I dont mind maintenance. Its part of the hobby.

I guess Im just going to replace this with what was in it ($35), and stay in open spaces

Captain Rusty

Keep your maintenance down to replacing the broken parts with RPM and go brushless. You can get away with cheap chinese stuff as well though. I went with a $100 castle sidewinder esc when my burnt out my Velineon VXL-3s and I love it but I had the money to throw down on it at the time that the wife didn't know about, tha'ts what the hobby is about haha. I've heard lots of good things about the chinese stuff but there is always going to be the people out there who hate it cause it's cheap and chinese and they believe in always getting the expensive stuff. If you're just into bashing and want to stay cheap then this might the way to go for you.

ESC and brushless combo:
www.hobbypartz.com/26p-blcombo-60a-10r-3930kv.html

Brushless motor:
www.hobbypartz.com/96m24-car-3650-3500.html

ESC:
www.hobbypartz.com/hobbywing-ezrun-35a-brushless-esc.html

Just some things to keep in mind rather then going straight back to brushed cause its cheap. You'll have way more fun on a brushless setup, the speed and power is night and day from brushed.

The Mad Modder

Would it be possible to post some more pics? To me, it looks like a Traxxas Sledgehammer(I own one) with Stampede arms on it. I can see the white plastic under the black paint(the Sledgehammer was originally molded in white plastic) If that's the case, you may want to sell it and buy a Stampede or another truck that's good for bashing. The reason I say this is because the Sledgehammer is no longer made, so getting replacement parts, if something breaks, is hard. Ebay is about the only place to buy parts now.

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

Sidewinder SCT would eat that transmission.

ImTheJoker4U2

Haha - You're right!

Traxxas Sledgehammer / Stampede / Rustler HYBRID

My local shop has most of these parts still on the shelves

The Mad Modder

Really? They wouldn't happen to have the aluminum skid plates for the Sledgehammer, would they? The rear skid plate of mine has been damaged and I can't find replacement ones.

markfos73

If you go with the brushless combo, put some silicon where the wires go into the motor. I now have a brushless motor filled with sand..

acexxxoasis

My Feedback: (4)

you had to hot a motor in it less turns = bigger motor you need a esc capable of 10 turn...

ImTheJoker4U2

Well Im going to replace it with a Traxxas XL-5, which is matched to the motor, and not too expensive.
This is just a beater until I get something else.

FahrtAutoRC

The lesson learned here? Never, EVER NEVER EVER let the magic smoke out. Sheesh.

ImTheJoker4U2

OK, well I felt I should update this thread a bit. I ended up getting a Traxxas XL-5 for it. Hooked it up, programmed it, and off I went. So Im out in the yard, and a guy from across the street comes over and hands me a Duratrax Evader roller.



I had a remote in the closet, so I threw in some batteries, swapped some crystals, and I was rompin in 15 minutes
So now I got two

Got a few questions. I bought a bunch of race motors and a race ESC online I plan on putting in the evader. A few of them have capacitors and diodes. I noticed that my truck has the capacitors, but not the diode. After some digging I found that the diode can ONLY be used with a race ESC (Non reverse), which is fine, but what are the capacitors for? Some of the motors have none, some have three and the diode?? The stocker has two. After some digging I found the size to be 0.1uf, but how many should I use, and what are they for? Is bigger/more better here? Whats the best way to wire it?

Sorry for all the newb questions[&:]

FahrtAutoRC

Post pics of the ESC's and we will better be able to help you, OR look up the make and/or model and do some reading yourself! I got knowledgable so quick in this hobby because of self-teaching and learning, might be fun to figure it out on your own

ImTheJoker4U2

You're right - I found it:



The diode is there to protect the ESC - and in many cases can be left off
The capacitors are fitted to the motor terminals to prevent radio interference caused by the electrical 'noise' generated by a ( brushed ) motor.

ImTheJoker4U2

Well the shop I had in mind went out of business

Have you tried tower hobbies?

FahrtAutoRC

And the road to more fun begins. Ill admit, it is a breath of fresh air on here to see someone researching instead of just asking. The best way to learn is to teach yourself! Now Im not saying dont ask questions, but I usually research first before I do that!

The Mad Modder

Tower has next to nothing now, only some of the original spring body posts and the stinger(if you consider that oem).
I found the skid plates at buytraxxas.com, but of course they sent me a pair of gold skids for my blue/black truck.[:@] Now I'm looking for gold motor plates to match(gold/black doesn't look bad) and there are none to be found. I was hoping to restore it since it was my first hobby grade truck, but now it looks like that ain't happening.[:@]

ImTheJoker4U2

OK So I did some research on my XL-5 ESC...

Input voltage: 4-8 Cells (4.8 to 9.6 Volts DC)
Motor Limit: 15-turns** (540 Size)
: 12-turns** (550 Size)
**Properly geared
Im using the battery I got with the buggy. A 7 cell 5000nimh

My gears are 20/90
ESC Programmed to "Sport mode" full foward, full reverse

Like I said, I got some "racing motors" off Ebay, so I popped one in that said 15.1 on the can in magic marker. I ran it last night in the buggy, which uses a Duratrax Sprint ESC, and it seemed a good upgrade for the truck. So I did the motor swap in the truck from the stock Titan 12 turn motor to this 15 turn. and everything was running great, for about 10 minutes. I had been just running it around the yard, pulling wheelies, and generally banging on it. I got it going at a pretty good clip and it started down a hill into the street, so I "hit the brakes" (Meaning I went full reverse, is that right to do??) I heard a pop and it coasted out into the street. Luckily there were no cars coming
I thought maybe I broke a gear, but that all seemed fine, and I didnt hear the motor spinning.
So I hit the trigger and got nothing. The light just flickers green. I thought maybe it over heated, so I unplugged it and let it cool down. Plugged it in, same thing. The green light just flickers and turns off when I pull the trigger. I cant find any trouble shooting articles. Did I just blow another ESC???[:@]

ImTheJoker4U2

UPDATE:

The motor is fine. spins in both directions fine.


So after messing with it some more I got reverse to work. So I reprogrammed it backwards, and hooked up the motor backwards....Seems to work, but now I have no reverse (Forward)


I figure if they can work on them, I can too. This one didnt nearly catch fire, so I have better hopes for it. But.......
TBH though I dont think it ever worked right. It was always "jumpy" or "twitchy". Like Id pin the throttle and it would lurch a few times before taking off. The old one never did that.

Should I just send it in?

ImTheJoker4U2

OK - Well I sent it in, got a new one, and was back to rompin it hard[8D]

So Me n a buddy took it and the buggy (now with a Novak Atom ESC and 15x2 mod motor, body and custom wing)




...........down to the lake and romped around on the trails and what not. After getting a bit over zealous near the waters edge, well it (the truck) went for a short swim[X(]
I know that my XL-5 ESC is waterproof, so I wasn't too worried.

After fishing it out it seemed ok, and he wheeled it for a while after that. So I charged the battery but now its glitching
I tried a different remote, but still the same thing. So it would seem that my receiver fried at some point.

I've noticed that 2ch BEC receivers are hard to find, while 3ch are a dime a dozen. All 3 of my radios are 2ch, so could I just use one of those and not utilize the third channel, or do I need to dig up a 2ch?

The one Im trying to replace is an old Duratrax RX-100, which seems to be made of pure unobtainium
Anyone know of a cheap, comparable receiver??

Whats so sad is that this is all so new to me, and its already been outdated by a decade lol


.....OOORRRRRRRRRRRRRR Do I sneak in a whole new FM set-up for the buggy past the wife, and put that receiver in the truck[>:]


Im lookin for cheap options here really. Like >$50

FahrtAutoRC

Go to hobbypartz.com

Buy the Fly Sky FS-GT3B Transmitter/reciever combo for $35 shipped. Buy a spare reciever (or two) for $8 each.

Follow videos online to figure out the bind process

It is 2.4Ghz, 3 channel (but you can use only two just fine) and you will NOT be disapointed.

It has ten model memory so with the other reciever you can run either model from one Tx


Edit: Even linking it for ya: http://www.hobbypartz.com/79p-gt3b-carradio-lcd.html


Dont be scared because its a "cheap chinese radio", its more than adequate

ImTheJoker4U2

Thanks for the link man - Thats exactly what Im looking for