i'm a moron... i need voltage regulator advice

[badhoopty]

ok, i've searched and read the posts on voltage regulators, my 1:6 toilet tuber has the problem that sometimes when you get in a tough spot and put alot of juice to the servos the rig will just stop working and make 'sqeal' noises until you lift it and 'reset' it. i'm running the servos off the super roosters b.e.c. (i know its not up to par, hence this post)

the thing runs fine and the runtimes are great so i really dont want to add a reciever pack, its just those certain times when you get a wheel stuck and try to steer/throttle out that it will stop working. from what i've read a voltage regulator is just what i need.

the only problem is i dont know which would be the best for my application...

i'm running 2 hobbico 1/4 scale servos, a super rooster, and 8 3300mah sub c cells. pretty heavy duty compared to the posts i searched where people were using 6 cells and normal sevos.

i dont know much about voltage and amps and all that voodoo electrical stuff, so if somebody could be so kind to recommend a unit that would work for me i would GREATLY appreciate it. i just really grow tired of buying something and then finding out the hard way that i needed to buy the other one....

[badhoopty]

would this work?

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...p?&I=LXJJF6&P=

i have to say, alot of my confusion is crappy (too techy) explanations from non-tower websites.

[badhoopty]

also, my 1/4 scale servos came with extra plugs installed for connecting directly to a reciever pack, its been awhile, but i remember the speed control being real glitchy when experimenting with the reciever pack plugged into those battery inputs on the servos. i tried this while having the super rooster turned off, is it that i didnt unlpug the red wire comin from the rooster to the speed control that it was glitchy?

anyway, if i were to wire this voltage regulator to my jeep, would i use those battery inputs coming off the servos?

egads, i'll stop posting. sorry... just wanna figure it out and get it put in.

thanks in advance to anyone who cares to reply. the rest of ya can just kiss my britches.

[paranoid56]

do you have any picturs of your 1/4 servos? i want to see how they are set up.
Thanks
Shane

[Grizzly4x4]

That voltage reg looks like it would do what you want.

So should the ACC139 listed here.
http://www.maxxprod.com/mpi/mpi-21.html

The only problem I see is that both are rated for up to 8.4 volts input. You are running 9.6V, so they may not werk.

The ACC234 looks like it would be the better choice. From what I understand, reading the info, it can handle the 9.6V.

[badhoopty]

Originally Posted by paranoid56

do you have any picturs of your 1/4 servos? i want to see how they are set up.
Thanks
Shane

http://pics.montypics.com/badhoopty/...6_p1310147.jpg
http://pics.montypics.com/badhoopty/...5_p1310150.jpg

[badhoopty]

Originally Posted by Grizzly4x4

That voltage reg looks like it would do what you want.

So should the ACC139 listed here.
http://www.maxxprod.com/mpi/mpi-21.html

The only problem I see is that both are rated for up to 8.4 volts input. You are running 9.6V, so they may not werk.

The ACC234 looks like it would be the better choice. From what I understand, reading the info, it can handle the 9.6V.

i look at those and i just see 2 plugs, does one go to the battery and the other directly to the servos? some i see like those only have 2 plugs and look like they go inline somewhere, others have plugs for the battery, servos, esc and look like a complete seperate component.

suppose i'll just order one and see whats up. prolly get that acc234.

[BultacoJim]

Badhoopy,

First, let me say I love the milled CJ2A? grill.
Do you have pictures of the whole body?
I love flat fenders, I own a 46 and a 48.

Here are some more discussions on voltage regulators:

New Voltage Regulator Device, No more receiver packs
New Voltage Regulator Device, No more receiver packs
An alternative to an external RX pack

Also, here are some discussion on wiring Rx packs:

u must bypass the BEC when using digital seros?
full wiring harness?

Instead of an Rx pack, you could just substitute the output from your Voltage Regulator.
Did you get special "Y" cables with your 1/4 Servos?
Draw something up in paint & let everyone demonstrate their drawing skills while we take turns “fixing” it.

[Grizzly4x4]

Originally Posted by badhoopty

i look at those and i just see 2 plugs, does one go to the battery and the other directly to the servos?

Looks that way to me. When I built my voltage reg it only had 3 wires. One leg of the reg went to the main battery +(input voltage), one was ground, and the other went to the servos (output voltage).

Originally Posted by badhoopty

i remember the speed control being real glitchy when experimenting with the reciever pack plugged into those battery inputs on the servos. i tried this while having the super rooster turned off, is it that i didnt unlpug the red wire comin from the rooster to the speed control that it was glitchy?

I know alot of guys say to unplug the red wire or leave the switch turned off but I have never turned off the esc switch or cut the red wire, or unplugged it. I have always just plugged in my RX pack or voltage regulator without any problems that I have noticed.
I know that Ace and another friend of mine have run dual 1/4 scale servos and just wired them to the main battery using those inputs on the servos, they leave the ESC switch on to power the receiver and dont have problems. Running the servos off of a RX pack should be no different. Remember, I have never run 1/4 scale servos and only know from seeing other people run them, so I could just be talkin out my ass too.

[Grizzly4x4]

Originally Posted by BultacoJim

Draw something up in paint & let everyone demonstrate their drawing skills while we take turns “fixing” it.

Yes, as bad as most people's drawing skills are that really seems to help.

[JohnRobHolmes]

i got the acc134 from MPI and it only dissapates ten watts. this means that if you want to drop the voltage from a 10 cell pack (12 volts or more) to 6 volts, you can only squeeze 1.6 amps before it will try and overheat. if you use an 8 cell pack, you can get a little under 3 amps. not as useful as i thought it would be, but on 8 cells i could power one of those hitech robot servos and let the SR do the other servo.

[badhoopty]

Originally Posted by Grizzly4x4

Yes, as bad as most people's drawing skills are that really seems to help.

heres something i VERY quickly whipped out in photoshop.

http://pics.montypics.com/badhoopty/...vo_diagram.jpg

thats how i have it right now.

[badhoopty]

Originally Posted by johnrobholmes

i got the acc134 from MPI and it only dissapates ten watts. this means that if you want to drop the voltage from a 10 cell pack (12 volts or more) to 6 volts, you can only squeeze 1.6 amps before it will try and overheat. if you use an 8 cell pack, you can get a little under 3 amps. not as useful as i thought it would be, but on 8 cells i could power one of those hitech robot servos and let the SR do the other servo.

i just dont understand this, how do you isolate the servos power so that it doesnt go thru the reciever? if i had an reciever pack tied into the direct battery inputs my servos, could i (in theory) cut the red (power wire) coming from the reciever to the servo and only have the white wire (which i believe is the signal wire) and the ground providing the servo with a signal?

like i said, i'm a moron sometimes. i really wish somebody would just tell me x brand/model is what i need. :(

[JohnRobHolmes]

to isolate the servo from the reciever juice, you can do one of two things.

1) one is to route the power around the reciever and cut the red and black wires. only the white (signal) wire would go from reciever to servo. the power would go from a reciever pack (or voltage regulator) into the servo from a y harness. make sure you still have power getting to the reciever from the ESC!

2) the other way would be to route the power in parallel to the reciever. i like this idea, as you can create one power harness that routes the juice to where it needs to go. basically all of the black wires are connected on the reciever output, and all the red wires are connected. this way the power can totally skip the reciever and go to the servo while the reciever still pulls power. a benifit is that your reciever only sees as much amperage as it draws- no servo power goes through it. a problem is that the voltage to the reciever can drop if the amp draw is more than is provided.

on my current project, my SR's BEC will power the front servo, and the voltage regulator will power the back. my reciever is a micro reciever, so it cant handle much power going through it. i am going to use a combo of method one and two. method one (bypass) for my rear servo, and method two (parallel power) for my front servo.

[JohnRobHolmes]

since you have battery inputs on your servos (or y harnesses, whatever) all you need to do is plug in a reciever pack or voltage regulator. i gotta run, but i will be back online later and i could draw up different ways to do it.

your problem will be getting enough juice to the servos. you might have to do a setup like mine where the SR powers one servo and a voltage regulator powers the other.

[badhoopty]

Originally Posted by johnrobholmes

since you have battery inputs on your servos (or y harnesses, whatever) all you need to do is plug in a reciever pack or voltage regulator. i gotta run, but i will be back online later and i could draw up different ways to do it.

your problem will be getting enough juice to the servos. you might have to do a setup like mine where the SR powers one servo and a voltage regulator powers the other.

thanks, i VERY much appreciate your posts.

[JohnRobHolmes]

heres a little mod to your drawing. the right servo is in parallel w/ the reciever and the left one is bypassing the reciever and drawing off the voltage regulator

[badhoopty]

thanks man. that little picture says alot. lol.

gonna try that, would it be better to run the front servo (that gets more usage) off the regulator or does it really matter?

[Grizzly4x4]

In my opinion the rear servo should draw more amps because when clinbing up obstacles, the weight transfers to the rear where the front becomes light. I run a stronger servo in the rear (5945mg) vs the front (5645mg). You also want the rear servo to be able to draw lots of amps so that it can hold the tires straight when they are in a bind. IMO.

I would suggest running the rear off the regulator.

[JohnRobHolmes]

Originally Posted by Grizzly4x4

In my opinion the rear servo should draw more amps because when clinbing up obstacles, the weight transfers to the rear where the front becomes light.

I would suggest running the rear off the regulator.

i concurr. rear servo should see the most work. i would also run it off the regulator, especially if it will provide more than the SR's 3 amps