Jump to content
Gazzalene

Dialing down speed?

Recommended Posts

My grandson is at the age now that he wants to use the cars also! Being new to the hobby also I need a bit of advice.

If I limit the throttle travel down to say 40-50% will this harm the esc or motor?  Just trying to find the easiest way to adjust speed for him then me

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Limiting the throttle sounds reasonable.  The burden will fall on the ESC, but it should be fine.  

Electronic Speed Control cuts and connects electricity many times in a second.  Allowing the electricity to flow 10 times a second would be slower than 50 times per second.  100 times would be faster...all the way up to the top speed.  Full connection would take the least effort on the part of the ESC. At that point, it's not doing the hard work of flicking the switch on and off.   

Modern ESCs are sturdy enough, you don't really have to worry about destroying it by running it at 40-50%.  It will just create more heat.  At 0%, an ESC will generate no heat because you are not using it.  At 100%, it will generate the least heat because the electricity simply flows through it without being cut.  99% will generate the most heat because it has to connect and disconnect hundreds of times a second.  I should think 40% would run cooler than 99%. But still quite a bit more than at 100%.  

So if you are using a Hobbywing 1060 with a fast 12t motor (which is its maximum limit), I would not run it at 0-50% only.  But, if you are running a 27t silver can, even running at 99% all the time shouldn't be a problem.  If you find that the ESC is hot to the touch, get a cheap $2 ESC fan and hot glue it right in front of the ESC (it doesn't have to be right on top of it).  

As for motors, the faster they are, the greater the wear (especially for brushed motors).  So running it at 50% would mean adding 50% to its longevity.    

 

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

what @Juggular says is true...

But anything to watchout for is "AutoSetup" on modern ESCs, especially ones that immediately go into Setup mode every time it's turned on. It might recalibrate itself to think EPA50% = Full Throttle again.

The other thing is... running amongst a fleet of several similar RCs takes average kid about 2mins before he/she starts wondering why their car is going slower than the others... and they'll start pushing buttons on TX soon as your eye turns away. (None of my computer radios have a passcode-lockable Settings menu. Ain't too many simple radios I've seen with just a knob for Ch2 EPA either, or better still EPA without a knob that little kiddy fingers can access.)

 

Best gizmo IMHO is Traxxas ESCs, they've got Learner function https://traxxas.com/products/parts/escs/3018Rxl5waterprooflvd

XL5 is neat, not super cheap to buy new in box but last time I looked there's chopshops on fleaBay that strip RTRs for parts - usually less demand for the RTR ESC & servo so they resell for reasonable prices. 

YMMV!

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Imo,  the EPA is the single best way to drop the speed for new drivers (not necessarily young kids, I know lots of young kids that are better than me). 

When driving, unless you're running a high turn (slow) motor, you're not flat out for any length of time anyway, as juggular has said, they run on a pulse width now, not the old style resistors of days gone by, so if you teach them to drive, not flat out /brakes/flat out, then it'll be fine.

I dropped down to 20% for my 4yr old to learn (6.5t), and she was upto 35% by the end of the day, if I'd started swapping motors, she'd have been bored,(and so would I, it was my race car! 😂),  I told her if she made it a lap around the garden, without crashing, I'd make it faster.

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
19 hours ago, WillyChang said:

The other thing is... running amongst a fleet of several similar RCs takes average kid about 2mins before he/she starts wondering why their car is going slower than the others...

 

10 hours ago, Wooders28 said:

 I told her if she made it a lap around the garden, without crashing, I'd make it faster.

Both good points, that offset each other nicely in my experience. I reduced the speed on my nephew's first hobby grade RC with an 80t motor, and was open with him about it, saying "This is your training motor, do X without crashing and you'll earn an upgrade". (In our context, X was 5 consecutive laps of the local track.) He progressed from 80 to 35 to 27 turn motors in this manner, as well as earning other chassis and suspension upgrades, and eventually a new car.

Having a target to aim for kept him motivated to improve while ensuring that he realised that any temporary frustration he felt at being slower than the rest of the field could be alleviated through practice.

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×
×
  • Create New...