TEU-106BK - Safe to run just one motor?

[mheald]

Hey Guys,

Potentially stupid question (as I can be quite stupid...a lot of the time). Is it safe to run a single motor on the TEU-106 twin motor esc? I know, I know, you're all screaming 'why????'.

I've just got my Avante re-re built and realised last minute that the 104bk needs BEC or an additional battery pack , but my Spektrum DX3 doesnt support that and thus it cant run with this receiver/esc combo. I needed one that didn't require additional battery power. So, in my spares box sat a brand new 106bk, which doesn't require an additional battery pack. So as its unused, it seems like the perfect candidate bar the addition of two idle motor wires.

The 106 can handle a 25T motor and the Avante 2011 re-re motor (I believe) is 25T, so I'm 'guessing' its ok? I don't want to fry/melt anything, hence the question.

Thanks in advance!

Mike.

[GregM]

It should be pretty safe, since the ESC is built to handle two motors at once. Have you tried hooking a single motor up to see if it works?

[danb1974]

It should be perfectly safe as long as the unused wires are properly insulated to avoid any electrical shorts

I strongly suspect both motors are wired in parralel (inside the esc), so the second set of motor wires is just for convenience

[dualdigger]

Perfectly fine, as stated above the esc is wired parallel, I use a teu-103bk with 1x 15t motor in my dualhunter and it's never thermalled or cut out. Been running it like that for 2 years without any problems. I cut 2nd set of wires short and heatshrunk them to clean it up a bit.

[SteveU30]

Perfectly fine, as stated above the esc is wired parallel, I use a teu-103bk with 1x 15t motor in my dualhunter and it's never thermalled or cut out.  Been running it like that for 2 years without any problems.  I cut 2nd set of wires short and heatshrunk them to clean it up a bit.

Was just about to say that you could probably run a much hotter motor as the ESC is designed to cope with the equivalent of a 12.5T motor(ish). With 'only' a 25T motor in there the ESC will be putting its feet up and chillaxing.

[mheald]

Oh fantastic, thanks chaps! I thought it'd be ok, but something was bugging me that I might be wrong and that there could be some odd power distribution issue that could occur. I have almost no electrical knowledge, so that last comment is based on nothing tangible

Thanks again!

[hammerstien]

can always open up esc and remove wire from board would look cleaner

[WillyChang]

I've just got my Avante re-re built and realised last minute that the 104bk needs BEC or an additional battery pack , but my Spektrum DX3 doesnt support that and thus it cant run with this receiver/esc combo.

the old canted-over DX3 with the SR3000?

According to Spektrum you can feed it up to 9.6V

http://www.spektrumrc.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdId=SPM1200

so we've used TEU101BK on 2s lipo without any dramas.

[XV Pilot]

Indeed. Most Spektrum ground RXes are more than happy up to 9.6V, so NiCad/NiMH stickpacks and 2S LiPo won't fry them. For this reason I have never bothered whether or not the ESC has a BEC. Most servos are also happy with the extra volt-and-a-bit, so you shouldn't have any dramas.

Out of my 18 Spektrum-equipped runners, I have only ever had one servo overheat on me due to the extra voltage, and that was an ancient, cheap JR that was due for retirement anyway.

[WillyChang]

No I think the SR3000 & SR300 have got BEC built in, just not labelled as so.

Vaguely remember measuring servo signal and it was 6.0V coming out.

The ones with the telemetry, make sure you don't plug input power into any of the telemetry-capable slots...!

I have more troubles with glitching from browning out on SR3100s more than the older models,

sometimes even a 540 & TEU105 can do it... adding a stutter stopper capacitor helps a lot.