ESC for a King Hauler ?

[costbe 0]

Hi guys & gurlz,

Almost at the end of my first Tamiya build in many years (a 1/14 KIng Hauler) - a little different to the boats I've scratch-built for the last half century or so.   Having initially run it up using a random ESC from "old stock", it occurs to me that my choice might not have been the wisest.  Which ESC would you recommend?  The motor is the stock 520 that came in the box.  Suggestions, advice, commiserations etc all welcome.

[Backlash 481]

Hi Costbe..

Welcome to Tamiyaclub..

First up, I would suggest or recommend that you upgrade your kit supplied motor to a 55turn crawler type motor which will give you more torque, and a slower, more realistic top speed when driving your truck.. The Carson Poison truck motor is a popular choice, as are the cheap RC4WD 55T motors.. The LRP 7.2Volt Truck Puller motors are also very good..

As for an ESC, your choice does not seem to be that critical for a truck.. I have fitted a HobbyKing (brushed) X-Car 45A ESC to a few of my trucks, and they seem to work just fine.. The HobbyWing Quicrun 1060 ESC is a popular choice on here for cars, and there is no reason why it wont work in your truck..

What ESC are you using now?

Also, what is your location in the world?? (eg, UK, USA, Australia etc)  It sometimes makes it easier for us to make recommendations when we know where you are located..

EDIT.. If you are planning on fitting one of the Tamiya Multi Function Units (MFC-01 or MFC-03) at a later date so that you have full lights and sounds in your rig, just be aware that the MFU has an ESC built in...

 

[MadInventor 3884]

One thing to consider might be whether or not the ESC feeds in the reverse power in a linear fashion. I have some ESCs that you can give full reverse on the stick, and they only apply full reverse power over a couple of seconds. An ESC with an instant response would be better for a truck as it needs to be more controllable for reversing up to trailers.