Motor Problems on Slash
 

I am having a bit of trouble with my sons 2wd Slash. I bought it new in August and it has gone through 6 motors since then. The truck still has all of the stock running parts, nothing has been modified other than external dress up parts. This last motor was purchased Sunday and lasted about 5 runs. It is a replacment12t brushed motor. I called Traxxas to see what was up. They pretty much told me that there was no way it could be going through motors like that under normal conditions. It hasn't been dumped in water or anything like that. The only thing I got from Traxxas support was that it wasn't broke in properly. If it isn't broke in like they said, would that cause it to go through the motor that quick? Any other advice or suggestions? I am still fairly new to the RC scene so any help would be appreciated.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

Breaking the motor in IS good for the motor, but even if you didn't there's no way it would cause you to destroy a motor. Especially that quickly. Traxxas 12t titans are know to be hit and miss junky motors. I've seen them go up in smoke after only a couple of runs. Usually, though, by the 2nd or 3rd titan, people get a decent one that lasts a while.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

The one that came with the truck lasted about a month.I then bought some different brands. I don't remember all of them, but I remember one was a Losi. I had rotten luck with those so I went back with the Traxxas. Is there a better brand out there that will last longer than what I am getting now?

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

I don't think very highly of Losi's electronics. Every piece of electronic that came in my losi mini-t died within a year.
If you want an cheap motor that should hold up pretty well, I would probably go with a HPI saturn, as it was very reliable in my HPI Wheely King.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXPZV0&P=7
Tamiya's silver can motors are also very reliable.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXPML4&P=7

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

Best thing I found is breaking in the motor first by, putting the motor halfway in the cup or water or anti freeze then running the motor for 10 minutes.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

If you use antifreeze, be sure to rinse it THOROUGHLY with water. If antifreeze is allowed to dry inside the motor it will leave a residue which will not help the motor any.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

titan 12t are awful motors. on race day it's always funny to see the line at the hobbyshop, all slash owners buying the same junk motor over and over.

seriously though if other motors are dying there may be another problem.

is the gear box smooth? does it bind at all?

i'd try a cheap tamiya 540 silver can, if that dies then you have other problems with the truck. silver cans last YEARS.
whatever you do don't buy another titan, at this point you could ahve upgraded to brushless with all the $$ you've spent on cheap motors.</p>

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

The answer is nearly always the same.

 Volt or gear or slow or load down to make a certain motor live longer.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

I talked to a guy at the hobby store on Sunday when I bought the lastmotor. He told me at first it sounded like an ESC problem and to call Traxxas and see what they say about it. When I called them, they told me that that the ESC had nothing to do with it. Even if it was shooting the whole 8.4 volts to the motor, it shouldn't hurt the motor. They recommended to break the motors in by running the motor wide open through a whole battery cycle. And look to drop the gearing from 19t to 17t on the smaller gear because it was driven in grass. I don't think the gearing should be the issue. He runs it in the yard and down the gravel road.

I am going to order a tamiya 540 silver can and see what happens with that. I might play around with the gearing too and see if that does anything. Outside of that, the only thing I haven't replaced is the ESC. I think if it comes to changing out the ESC, Iwill just order a brushless set up. I really want to make sure that this same problem doesn't happen after I go brushless.The brushless motors are more pricey than the brushed.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

You should not have a problem with brushless motors....hence the name brushless. What I have found....the primary cause of mechanical falure in Titan motors...is the brushes falling off. Happened to me as well....but mine was a different story altogether. You need to find out why your motors are failing...and a Tamiya slivercan....does last a long time...but is WAY slower.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

I don't know why they are failing. I am trying to track that down. I can tell you that I have put direct power to the failed motors and nothing is happening. No humming, buzzing or anything. I assume the same thing has happened to all of them. I just ordered the Tamiya. I am going to have my son break it in before he reallyplays with it much. HoweverI am shopping for a brushless system. Ihavealready dropped over $100 on these crappy brushedmotors that are not lasting.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

Yeah i think it's time to go brushless. Hobbypartz.com has ezrun BL systems for $100 which i bought the 60A esc/8.5T 4000kv system for the slash 2wd and love it. You can even change the settings to limit the power until your son can handle the full blast but it's not waterproof. If you want waterproof then the traxxas vxl system would be fine for bashing and i also have 2 of those sytems in my slash 4x4 and pede 4x4 and they also work great except for the soft lipo cut off which protects the batt's from going under min voltage.

Not to mention the ezrun system i mentioned above is on sale right now for $79 on hobbypartz w/ free shipping.

http://www.hobbypartz.com/car.html

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

I hope they still have that motor on sale next week. I will order it then if they do. Does anyone have any advice as far as breaking in a brushless system?

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

No need to break in a BL system , but if you'd like to then it can be run gently on the bench. It would be a waste of money to replace the esc (Traxxas is right) Gearing down will make the motor last longer.

The problem can be worse with bl system especially with a high kv motor.

RE: Motor Problems on Slash
 

I break in my brushed motors by putting the truck on a stand, and running a full battery through it with the throttle trim turned up just enough to get the wheels turning.

if you don't properly break in a motor, the brushes can and will literally break. especially if you have harsh stops and starts before the brushes seat.


another alternative is the Novak 17.5 turn brushless. it gives about the same speed as the stock Titan, and lasts longer.

no matter how you break in a brushed motor, it will die quicker than a brushless.