E-Flite "Ascent" Motor Overheating
08-12-2005, 08:09 PM
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E-Flite "Ascent" Motor Overheating
I just test flew my new E-Flite Ascent motor glider this afternoon, and after landing I discovered the motor was hot... VERY hot! Bumped my finger against it and boy did it hurt! Could smell something like burning wiring also, but all else seems to be in order.
I broke the motor in last night, and all seemed fine. At the LHS owner's suggestion (based on about 4 other folks in my area doing exactly the same thing to reduce power consumption while increasing climb rate and run times) I switched to smaller Graupner 6-3 blades instead of the stock ones. Also I'm running a 3S 1800mAh Li-Po pack, just like everyone else locally is running, and they have all had excellent results with this setup.
The only thing I can personally think of is the stock spinner is a piece of crap. The outer cone actually flares out nearly 1/4" at full speed, which causes a good bit of vibration. I contacted my LHS and they are out of the good Graupner hubs/spinners until next week, and suggested I go ahead and fly it as-is (the other locals with this airplane are still flying the stock hub/spinner) until the Graupner units come in.
Has anyone else had an overheating problem with their Ascent motor? Can the vibration from that crappy spinner cause enough friction in the motor to make it overheat that bad? And yes, the cooling air ducts are all open and unobstructed...
Any thoughts, comments, suggestions, or casual observations are welcomed!
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William (Bill) Rainey
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I broke the motor in last night, and all seemed fine. At the LHS owner's suggestion (based on about 4 other folks in my area doing exactly the same thing to reduce power consumption while increasing climb rate and run times) I switched to smaller Graupner 6-3 blades instead of the stock ones. Also I'm running a 3S 1800mAh Li-Po pack, just like everyone else locally is running, and they have all had excellent results with this setup.
The only thing I can personally think of is the stock spinner is a piece of crap. The outer cone actually flares out nearly 1/4" at full speed, which causes a good bit of vibration. I contacted my LHS and they are out of the good Graupner hubs/spinners until next week, and suggested I go ahead and fly it as-is (the other locals with this airplane are still flying the stock hub/spinner) until the Graupner units come in.
Has anyone else had an overheating problem with their Ascent motor? Can the vibration from that crappy spinner cause enough friction in the motor to make it overheat that bad? And yes, the cooling air ducts are all open and unobstructed...
Any thoughts, comments, suggestions, or casual observations are welcomed!
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William (Bill) Rainey
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08-12-2005, 08:54 PM
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RE: E-Flite "Ascent" Motor Overheating
if you are using a 3S lipo with a brushed can...you MUST use throttle management... at full throttle you are pumping way too much voltage to the can..
Sure many people do it... but they replace their motors regularly or don't use much throttle
Oh and it is considered bad form to double post
Sure many people do it... but they replace their motors regularly or don't use much throttle
Oh and it is considered bad form to double post
08-12-2005, 10:20 PM
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RE: E-Flite "Ascent" Motor Overheating
ORIGINAL: exeter_acres
<<snipped>>
Oh and it is considered bad form to double post
<<snipped>>
Oh and it is considered bad form to double post
Regarding throttle management, I only used throttle for a quick climb to altitude (about 200'), then shut the motor down for some thermal searching. I only brought power back on for another climb, otherwise the motor was off.
