What do you do if you just don't run it often?

[Jayfro]

I have had my wraith for 2 years. I was hoping it would just work, but was in over my head at times when it would have issues. My biggest issue has been battery life as I often would only run it once every couple months. Is there a way to keep the batteries conditioned? It seems when I charge, the car runs about 5 minutes before going dead. I have 3 batteries and 2 chargers thinking they were going bad, but even new ones don't seem to give me much run time.

Overall, thinking its time to part with this as I have used it maybe 10 times and have somewhere around $300 in extra parts thinking I didn't want to have it break and have to run back and forth to the store.. I'm now to the point I don't even get it out because it creates so much frustration when it doesn't run long.

[xsputnikx]

What kind of batteries are u using ?

[Jayfro]

I have 2 primal chargers and 3 speedpack 3300 nimh batteries.

[Johnnysplits]

Oh no wonder!! Throw that ancient shit out and get some lipo's. They are a far superior battery and you will get years out of them, especially considering how often you use your rig.

[danb1974]

A nimh that has been sitting unused for some time has to be cycled a couple of times to get it working. On the first charge it will barely last at all. After a few years the nimh will be done, use or no use.

Lipo is better, keep it in storage mode when unused, charge it when needed and it will run. Make sure your esc has lvc cutoff or use a lipo alarm. Use a decent lipo charger.

[Jayfro]

ugh. I fear putting any more money into this thing. I was just going through my stuff and realized how stupid I have been with buying parts. I put a savox DSC on for some reason, but also have another cheaper one that I have must have bought as a spare (in addition to the stock one). I also have a bunch of spare gears, and titanium (just about everything) vanquish parts. I did all of this because I was sick of little things breaking every time I used it. Not sure if that is normal or not since I literally ran it across the yard most of the time. Anyway, spending another XX$$ on batteries worries me. Guess I just need to decide if its worth sinking more or just trying to sell and eat my losses.

[Meatwad]

Battery chemistry has nothing to do with the reliability of the wraith itself, nimh has no place in rc anymore. I can get about 30mins on a 3s1800mah, depending on the trigger finger of course. Grab a charger and a single pack for now since you don't run as much.

[marcb527]

We have all been there. The stock esc is a great one in my opinion. The Ae2's are supposedly made by or modeled after a popular aftermarket esc remember which one (help me out guys) . I agree with the other post here. sounds 100% like a battery issue. sell some of the stuff you have and get a couple 2s lipos. plenty of power and reliabilty and lots of run time. good luck and dont give up

Originally Posted by Jayfro

ugh. I fear putting any more money into this thing. I was just going through my stuff and realized how stupid I have been with buying parts. I put a savox DSC on for some reason, but also have another cheaper one that I have must have bought as a spare (in addition to the stock one). I also have a bunch of spare gears, and titanium (just about everything) vanquish parts. I did all of this because I was sick of little things breaking every time I used it. Not sure if that is normal or not since I literally ran it across the yard most of the time. Anyway, spending another XX$$ on batteries worries me. Guess I just need to decide if its worth sinking more or just trying to sell and eat my losses.

[RealDeal]

You can get into Lipo's for almost nothing these days, check out HobbyKing to get started

Radio Control Planes, Helicopters, Cars, Boats, FPV and Quadcopters - Hobbyking*

[Jayfro]

ok. so If i decide to go lipo what do I need to know? I have 2 of these primal chargers which has a lipo button on it and the front has some wiring ports that say LiPo Balance. Once is marked 2s the other 3s. It says its a multichemistry peak detection balance charger.

Looking at my receipts for $300 in parts I last spent I don't want to get a lipo battery then not be able to figure out how to make it work. Can someone elaborate on what the following means:

"keep it in storage mode when unused, charge it when needed and it will run. Make sure your esc has lvc cutoff or use a lipo alarm. Use a decent lipo charger"

[Jayfro]

BTW:, I am sure I am using incorrect terminology. I was saying DSC, but what I have is a Savox server for the front stearing. I also have a Traxxas waterproof server still in the package I guess I bought as a spare. PLus the original that I think still works. So, I assume the ESC is still stock. I remember there were some thing I needed to do to program the system to know i was running nimh. I may need a dummies guide to programming it to work with lipo. (again, assuming I decide to move forward with this hobby). Thanks as always for everyone's help!

[JDIRCC]

I sony think you'll be disappointed if you spend the money and get a lipo. it honestly will probably get you back into this hobby in a hurry. the balance ports are for the second plug on the lipo batteries. Now I'm not the person that can give you an amazing explanation on how the balking works but what i do know is that when you have a lipo, lets say a 3 cell, when you balance charge them you ensure that each cell in the battery charges evenly which will in tern give you crazy battery life. i had a battery that has over 50 recharges. And from people I've talked to that is nothing. but as stated before the nimh batteries are crap. i wish i had an extra lipo i could spare right now and id ship it your way so you could experience it. Best i have is my word that you won be disappointed

[allanon1965]

one thing you will need to do is change the ESC connector from the tamiya style white connector to a better one that will handle the lipo current transfer, such as a deans connector, then buy batteries with the same connector. it is cheap to do and your local hobby shop could do it pretty inexpensively...I am betting under 20 bucks...

your charger will handle the lipo batteries just fine...

[Johnnysplits]

Originally Posted by RealDeal

You can get into Lipo's for almost nothing these days, check out HobbyKing to get started

Radio Control Planes, Helicopters, Cars, Boats, FPV and Quadcopters - Hobbyking*

And this place as well. Great high quality batteries, lighter than most all other brands, and cheap shipping costs. Value Hobby R/C Hobby Store (Addison, Illinois): Welcome to ValueHobby

[allanon1965]

Originally Posted by Johnnysplits

And this place as well. Great high quality batteries, lighter than most all other brands, and cheap shipping costs. Value Hobby R/C Hobby Store (Addison, Illinois): Welcome to ValueHobby

agreed! I have bought my last 4 batteries from Value Hobby and am very happy with them!

[Jayfro]

ok.. decided to give it another whirl. Of course, im impatient so was hoping to find a decent battery at a decent price I could ship for free with 2 day amazon prime. But, I want to make sure I get the right one. Can anyone tell me which one I want to get for a starter lipo that will get be back into the game? What about this one? Amazon.com: Thunder Power RC 2700mAh 3-Cell/3S 11.1V G8 Pro Lite+ 25C LiPo Battery with XT60 Power Lead and JST Balance Connector: Toys & Games

[Johnnysplits]

Originally Posted by Jayfro

Can anyone tell me which one I want to get for a starter lipo that will get be back into the game? What about this one? Amazon.com: Thunder Power RC 2700mAh 3-Cell/3S 11.1V G8 Pro Lite+ 25C LiPo Battery with XT60 Power Lead and JST Balance Connector: Toys & Games

Way too expensive!! I would recommend this one if you want to stay in that mah range...Value Hobby R/C Hobby Store (Addison, Illinois): GForce Elite Series 30C 2800mAh 3S 11.1V LiPO (T-Connector)

[yotapower07]

Before you plug a lipo into your wraith you will need someone with a castle link to set up your esc to be compatible with lipo batteries. If you don't then you'll likely kill that brand new battery by over discharging it. I highly recommend you spend the $25 or so and by the castle link yourself so you can tune the esc whenever you want. Otherwise you can find a friend or local hobby shop to hook you up. My settings in castle link are auto lipo set to 3.2 volts per cell.

[StomperCrawler]

You don't need to buy a Castle Link to program the stock axial ae-2 (pre-November 2014 or old vendor stock) esc:

Axial AE-2 ESC Set-up and Programming
By Axial on Aug 18, 2011

blog_ae-2_esc_500x220

Set-up tips for installing and programming Axial’s AE-2 ESC.

Set-up:

1. Mount ESC in an area that is well ventilated, and isolated from vibration and shock.

2. Connect ESC wires to the motor(s).

3. Plug the receiver wire into the throttle channel on your receiver.

4. Before plugging the battery into the ESC, make sure your transmitter is on and that the throttle trim is set to zero.

5. Double check that the battery wires on the ESC are wired correctly, red on red and black on black. **Reversing the polarity will permanently damage the ESC**

6. Plug the battery into the ESC, with the ESC switch in the “off” position.

7. Apply full throttle on the transmitter.

8. Turn the ESC on while applying full throttle.

9. The ESC will emit a series of beeps through the motor with the “Red” LED.

10. Continue applying full throttle until the ESC blinks “Green” and emits a series of beeps to finalize the full throttle endpoint.

11. Once the ESC blinks “Red”, apply full brake/reverse, and hold.

12. The ESC will emit a series of beeps while blinking “Red” to finalize the reverse/brake endpoint.

13. Return the throttle to neutral and the ESC will emit a series of beeps to finalize the neutral point.

14. The ESC will emit one last series of beeps confirming the ESC is ready to go.

15. Apply throttle to make sure motor turns in the proper direction. To reverse the direction of the motor, switch the wires going to the motor.

Notes:

1. If ESC set-up does not initialize while holding full throttle, try switching the throttle reverse switch on the transmitter. Also double check that the throttle trim is still set to zero.

2. Lipo “Cut-off” is set to “On” from the factory.

3. Use the “Castle Link” to access the advanced settings in this ESC.

Specifications:

Input Voltage – 6 cell NiCad/NiMH or 2cell lipo**

Size – 1.7″ x 1.24″

Weight – 45 Grams

Motor Limit – 19t

On-Resistance FET – .0018

Rated/Peak Current – 106A Peak

Braking Current – 106A Peak

BEC Voltage – 5.0V/2A Peak

PWM Frequency – 6KHZ

**You can run higher voltage batteries such as a 7 cell NiCad/NiMH or 3 cell lipo with the installation of a “Castle BEC”

Manually programming Axial’s AE-2 ESC

Here are a few tips for programming Axial’s AE-2 ESC, without a computer or “Castle Link”.

You can manually adjust 3 of the most important settings in the AE-2 ESC.

1. Lipo Cut-off

2. Drag Brake

3. Reverse

Manual programming

Follow these steps to change settings on your Axial AE-2 ESC without a computer.

*Remove your pinion gear before calibration and manual programming as a safety precaution!*

STEP 1: Start with the transmitter ON and the ESC switched OFF and not connected to the battery.

STEP 2: Plug a battery into the ESC. Hold full throttle on the transmitter and turn the ESC switch ON. After a few seconds you will get the four rings in a row signaling full throttle calibration. Keep on holding full throttle. After a few more seconds, you will hear another four rings in a row. After the second group of four rings, relax the throttle to neutral. If you have successfully entered programming mode, the ESC will beep twice, pause, and repeat the two beeps.

STEP 3: The programming sequence is always presented in sequential order and always starts with the first setting (None) within the first section (Voltage Cutoff). The first beep(s) signifies which section of the programming you are in and the second beep(s) signifies which setting is waiting for a “yes” or “no” answer. As you go sequentially through the options, you will need to answer “yes” by holding full throttle, or answer “no” by holding full brake until the ESC accepts your answer by beeping rapidly. Once an answer has been accepted, relax the throttle back to neutral for the next question. After a “no” answer is accepted, the ESC will then present you with the next option in that section. After a “yes” answer is accepted, the ESC knows you aren’t interested in any other option in that section, so it skips to the first option in the next section.

Settings and explanations

The following section explains all the settings available to you via manual programming and what each one does to change the reactions of the ESC in order to tune it to your specific preferences. More settings are available via “Castle Link”.

1. Cutoff Voltage

Sets the voltage at which the ESC lowers or removes power to the motor in order to either keep the battery at a safe minimum voltage (Lithium Polymer cells) or the radio system working reliably (NiCad/NiMH cells).

Setting 1: None

Does not cut off or limit the motor due to low voltage. Do not use with any Lithium Polymer packs!

Use this setting ONLY with NiCad or NiMH packs. With continued driving, the radio system may eventually cease to deliver pulses to the servo and ESC, and the vehicle will not be under control.

You will irreversibly damage Lithium Polymer packs with this setting!

Setting 2: Auto-LiPo (Default)

This setting allows you to go back and forth between 2 and 3 cell LiPo packs without having to change the cutoff voltage for each one. The ESC automatically sets the cutoff voltage correctly for a 2 or 3 cell pack when that pack is plugged in.

2. Drag Brake

Sets the amount of drag brake applied at neutral throttle to simulate the slight braking effect of a neutral brushed motor while coasting.

Setting 1: Drag Brake OFF

Vehicle will coast with almost no resistance from the motor at neutral throttle.

Setting 2: Drag Brake 15%

Very Low amount of braking effect from the motor at neutral throttle

Setting 3: Drag brake 25%

Low amount of braking effect from the motor at neutral throttle

Setting 4: Drag Brake 40%

More braking effect from the motor at neutral throttle.

Setting 5: Drag Brake 50%

Fairly high braking effect from the motor at neutral throttle.

Setting 6: Drag Brake 100% (Default)

Full braking effect from the motor at neutral throttle.

3. Brake / Reverse Type

Sets whether reverse is enabled or not, and exactly how it can be accessed.

Setting 1: Reverse Lockout

This setting allows the use of reverse only after the ESC senses two seconds of neutral throttle. Use it for race practice sessions and bashing, but check with your race director to see if this setting is allowed for actual racing.

Setting 2: Forward/Brake Only

Use this setting for actual sanctioned racing events. Reverse cannot be accessed under any circumstances with this setting.

Setting 3: Forward/Brake/Reverse (Default)

Reverse or forward is accessible at any time after the ESC brakes to zero motor RPM.

Axial Car ESC Programming Reference:

1: Voltage Cutoff

Option 1 : None

Option 2 : Auto-LiPo (D)*

2: Drag Brake

Option 1 : Disabled

Option 2 : 15%

Option 3 : 25%

Option 4 : 40%

Option 5 : 50%

Option 6: 100% (D)*

3: Brake/Reverse Type

Option 1 : Reverse Lockout

Option 2 : Forward/Brake Only

Option 3 : Forward/Brake/Reverse (D)*

(D)* = Default setting from the factory

[yotapower07]

^ good call I forgot all about that.