phrobat

Just bought a Futaba 2PL. its got an s3003 servo and an R142Je receiver. I had a fully charged Epic 6 cell battery NIMH 3000 mah.

I had both servos working perfectly using the battery pack that comes with the Futaba.

I plugged in the 6 cell battery, flipped the switch and the throttle servo started smoking where the wires attached. i quickly shut it down, then reattached the futaba battery pack and now nothing moves when its all on.

I reattached the 6 cell one more time, and i heard popping noises coming out of the receiver. shut it down quickly again.

smoking servo? popping noises from the reciever? anyone have any clue? I am getting back into r/c trucks after a long hiatus and have started my first build, and im at a stand still after just testing the servos! i am not sure if i should be concerned/replacing the servo, battery or receiver.

many thanks.

JayC1968

My Feedback: (3)

Sounds like you had the throttle servo plugged in backwards. If not then how many volts is the 6 cell, 7.2? Too many volts equals cooked electronics.[&o]

phrobat

Well, I didnt touch the servo plug. It was plugged into the receiver already when I took it out of the box, into channel 1.

The battery is 7.2v: http://www.hobbyetc.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?part_id=25872

bckyrdbshr

My Feedback: (35)

Hate to tell you but the battery you are using is not a receiver battery and is not a 6.0v battery it is a 7.2v and your receiver is only for 4.8 - 6.0v So its safe to say you burned up the servo and the receiver. 4.8v = 4 cell's / 6.0v = 5 cells / 7.2v = 6cells

doubledee

My Feedback: (4)

1 cell=1.2 volts; 4 cells=4.8 volts; 5 cells=6 volts; 6 cells=fried electronics.

Chalk it up to lessons learned and buy a new receiver and servo and make sure you don't use more voltage/current than they are rated for.

doubledee

phrobat

Thanks guys. I appreciate the help. Lesson learned.

I bought a Super Clod Buster. It says the Super Clod buster requires a 7.2v battery (6 cell). The web site I bought the kit from says the Futaba 2PL is a compatible radio for the Super Clod Buster. I guess I need to scrutinize this stuff more ;-)

Does it make sense for me to get a 4 or 5 cell battery, new reciever and new servos and keep the Futaba 2PL? Or get a radio kit that will run off a 6 cell battery? Any recommendations?

bckyrdbshr

My Feedback: (35)

As far as I know your not going to find a receiver thats going to handle 6 cell. The 7.2v (6 cell) battery you have now will work fine for the clod. You'll be fine with the radio, just get you another receiver, servo and either a 4.8v (4 cell) or 6.0v (5 cell) receiver pack and you'll be back in the game.

Blake

carmatic1

i dont know if its appropriate to say this or not seeing that this is a clod buster, but why dont you get an esc , http://www.clodparts.com/catagories/escs.html , that way you dont have to juggle 2 battery packs cuz the esc can transfer some of its battery power to power the receiver, no risk of overvolting your electronics that way...

phrobat

Thanks for the recommendations guys. Sorry for my ignorance. I think I have it now. Lemme see if I do have it straight: if I am using a 7.2v battery, I DO NOT want to plug that into and power the Futaba R142JE receiver? That was my downfall. I plugged the battery into the receiver switch, then plugged the switch into the receiver. Then all hell broke loose.

If i want to use the battery pack that came with the Futaba I need to plug that into the receiver switch and use 4 AAs. Then, I just dont plug the receiver switch into the 3-step controller? That cord just hangs out in the clod? I assume thats correct, just want to confirm.

Then the 7.2v battery runs the 3-step controller, which is controlled by a different switch. This powers the motors. In this setup the servo (connected to the 4 AAs in a roundabout way) affects the 3-step switch, which runs the motor (connected to the 7.2v battery in a roundabout way).

Alright, I think I have it. I thought I had done all my research... apparently not! Its a good thing I did this at the beginning and not waited until the whole damn thing was together.

Thanks again!

phrobat

What confused me is the Cod instructions. They have TWO pictures of the battery set up, with the controller plugged into the 7.2v AND the switch leading to the receiver. But it seems as the though the instructions assume you are using an Expec GT-II. I assume the receiver that comes with that radio control kit can handle the 7.2v?

sfsjkid

phrobat, Bax and Krysta normally look for unanswered posts so they may think this question has been answered. Anyways, I didn't hear you mention an ESC, and you talk about 2 servos, which lead me to believe you plugged the 6 cell pack directly into the RX? If that is the case, I believe you need a new receiver and servos. The R142Je does not have a BEC, so whatever you plug in comes out, so essentially you connected 7.2v+ into equipment rated for 6V at most.

bckyrdbshr

My Feedback: (35)

His question has been answered by me and many others, 9 total posts I believe... But since we don't work for futaba our answers don't count and all posts where deleted just as this post will be in the next day or so.

Krysta

phrobat,

The main problem it seems is that you are not letting us know what ESC you are using with this battery. If you would like to give us more information on the ESC we may be able to help you out. Please remember that if NOT using an ESC our receivers can handle only up to 6 volts.

It seems you received many answers to this from other readers who should have PM'd you with their suggestions. If we do not see a Red Zero next to a post, we will not answer. This forum is to ask questions of Futaba Staff, if someone feels that they would like to answer a poster, please PM them so that either Bax or I can get to the customers question.

I hope you find this information helpful. You can also reach our Futaba support technical team at 217-398-8970, or via fax at 217-398-7721.

Sincerely,
Krysta Hunt
Lead Futaba Customer Service and Programming Technician
Futaba Service Center USA