Official Novak Crawler Products Thread

[flee]

they have a fix for the glich and drag brake cant wait to get mine done. paying for shipping is a bummer but so is a major glich in comp

[Rob92k1500]

Yeah, but if you read my last post, the "fix" is really stupid.


Honestly, I feel kinda cheated at this point. I bought a product that doesn't do what it is promised to do, The stupid drag brake delay cost over 10 reverse penalties throughout the last comp we had.

For the same price I paid with the Rooster CE and shipping, I should have just bought a damn GOAT, or a Mamba Max from Castle......

At our comp, there were dozens of Rooster CEs, and lots of people said they didn't have problems with glitching, as soon as we started testing them, we found that just about everyone was glitching in the same way. Whether it was AM, FM or DSM Radios. Even Nomadio Radios were glitching.

I would like to know if Novak is going to actually do anything here, as I feel a lot of us were let down. Their Fix isn't exactely a fix. It takes away the biggest draw that the CE has, which is a Drag brake, which is now useless, sure it stops on a incline, but only after it's rolled back a few inches.

I for one, am let down and while they made a valiant effort to fix the problem, If it isn't fixed, I spent $120 of my hard earned money for a product that was released to the market with problems and the fix is to make it a product I wouldn't have bought in the first place.

[Difuser]

Rob if you are already looking at a XS then expand your search a little for a deal on a used 3PK, Helios or M8/11 I know on RCTECh in the PNW forum you can find a helios or a 3pk right now for about what you will be spending including tax. I was at Edmonds also and the only issues I saw with Novak's were less expensive radio's and Spektrum radios. One of our SIR guys is selling all of his Spek for this reason and buying the Airtronics 2.4 gear.

[Rob92k1500]

Ok, but that has nothing to do with this thread.....

[Difuser]

Sorry Rob but it has everything to do with the thread when it has been proven that the Speedo programming is fine it is the radio equipment that is causing the issue how is it not relevant??

Novak has been able to make it less sensitive to the radio equipment as you requested but your equipment is forcing the issue not theirs. Guess I can't see how this statement is relevant

I would like to know if Novak is going to actually do anything here, as I feel a lot of us were let down. Their Fix isn't exactely a fix. It takes away the biggest draw that the CE has, which is a Drag brake, which is now useless, sure it stops on a incline, but only after it's rolled back a few inches.

I for one, am let down and while they made a valiant effort to fix the problem, If it isn't fixed, I spent $120 of my hard earned money for a product that was released to the market with problems and the fix is to make it a product I wouldn't have bought in the first place.

[Rob92k1500]

Obviously you aren't paying attention.

The problem is the Rooster Crawler, NOT the radio equipment. If you read my post, EVERYONE is experiencing a glitch of one kind or another, out of the dozens of CE roosters at our comp last weekend, people thought they were just getting interferance, but we were able to reproduce the same glitch at the same throttle point almost EVERY time.

We are talking everything from crappy TQ3 Radios, up to Nomadio Radios and everything in between, M11, M8, MX-3, XS3i, Spektrum DX3, etc, etc, etc

The radios aren't the problem, there is something wrong with the ESC.

Mine went to Novak, and they adjusted the Drag Brake delay to fix the problem, but they adjusted it SO MUCH, that it takes a second for it to engage, by then, your truck is already rolling backwards.

I think Novak knows this is not a acceptable fix, thats why I HOPE they are still working on it.

If Charlie wants to chime in here, I would love to hear some answers. I know I am one of many Novak customers that are really unhappy right now.

[JohnRobHolmes]

I just tried mine out with a jr synth, a dx7, and a tq3. All make the Esc jump at minimal throttle input. I will send it in, if there is anything I can do for testing let me know.

[Rob92k1500]

Thanks for checking, I REALLY hope Novak isn't just brushing this off. The crawler community is becoming a serious part of the hobby, national events, media coverage, sponsors, etc. It's becoming a big thing.

It would be nice to see either a true fix for this problem, or at the very least, I would like to return my Rooster CE for credit towards a GOAT which apparently doesn't share the same problem, but thats just going off what I heard from a user of one at our last comp.

[todd1803]

Originally Posted by Rob92k1500

EVERYONE is experiencing a glitch ....... we were able to reproduce the same glitch at the same throttle point almost EVERY time.

Rob mine has still been 100% trouble free. If you still have one that glitches, I'd be interested to plug it into my truck and see how it reacts. Maybe I just got lucky and got a good one. Exactly what did you need to do to induce the glitch in everybody else's ESC's?

[Rob92k1500]

It's just as you're rolling onto the throttle, at the very moment the drag brake disengages (red light goes off) the vehicle acts like it's glitching.

It has to do with the signal from the radio gear, which the throttle curve is jittery (is that a word?) at just the beginning of the curve.

Charlie was saying something about most ESCs don't show the problem even though it's there because they lack the drag brake, and the fix looks like they put more delay i the drag brake so it wouldn't show up.

So TECHNICALLY, you could say it was the radio, but when it looks like better than 90% of the radios being used have the problem, it's something they should have considered when making the unit.

Charlie wasn't having the problems with his old M11 (or maybe M, but he was able to recreate the problem on just about every other radio they had at Novak.

Originally they thought it was just with the Spektrum radios, and thought they were just picking up interferance at other times.



This is what I remember from our lengthy conversations and such. I might be a little off on a few things, but thats the short and skinny of it. Charlie could chime in and make some corrections.


Todd.... I'll be busy this weekend, maybe we can meet up at RCH or something and try some things out. But I think you have a M11 or M8 if I remember right, one of the few radios that doesn't have the problem.

[Erin]

With my Futaba 3pm, I haven't experienced any glitches, and if it was doing it, I would have noticed. My only complaint is the drag brake cutoff under acceleration during descents, when the truck will free wheel instead of holding the given throttle input, unlike the Mamba

[Difuser]

Hey Rob just trying to help, hopefully when I get my anal cranial inversion cured I will see the light. Good luck with your fixes and hopefully you will find a radio or speedo that cures your ills.

On the Futaba 3PK and FASST side no issues, also JR9303 with Extremelink 2.4 no hits all comp. M11 with Spektrum did see it and Futaba with Spektrum saw it there also.

[ronbeck]

Rob have you tried a lipo with the RCE yet?

I installed a rce in Scooter's truck with a futaba 2pl (27mhz am), with a 6cell ib1400 pack and it glitched just as bad as yours did, I switched to a apogee 1000mah magnum pack and issue almost disappeared. Once I installed 3 new caps on the lathe motor it works like butter. And it works well with a 6cell ib1400 pack...but not as nice as the apogee 2cell.

-peter-

[todd1803]

Rob you're right, I'm running an M8. Torry hasn't had a problem, but he's also running an M8.

Maybe if I get bored I'll see if I can find another RX and plug it in just to see what happens.

[Rob92k1500]

Originally Posted by ronbeck

Rob have you tried a lipo with the RCE yet?

I installed a rce in Scooter's truck with a futaba 2pl (27mhz am), with a 6cell ib1400 pack and it glitched just as bad as yours did, I switched to a apogee 1000mah magnum pack and issue almost disappeared. Once I installed 3 new caps on the lathe motor it works like butter. And it works well with a 6cell ib1400 pack...but not as nice as the apogee 2cell.

-peter-

Already doing the caps, it does't help cut the interferance issues, but not the actualy ESC glitch issue. Thats how I found the problem originally, we thought it was really bad interferance due to the randomness of the glitching, then once we got rid of all the radio and electrical interferance, we isolated the throttle issue.

The problem is MORE noticable on the XS3i than it is on the MX-3.

The lame thing, is if you could make the rooster respond Further up the throttle curve, by eliminating it responding at the very beginning of the input, then the problem wouldn't be visable at all, but you would have more dead band in the neutral position. I am not sure how far it would have to be, but it wouldn't be the end of the world.

It would be a better fix than Novak came up with if it works.

Btw, tried the 2 cell Apogee Lipo I got from you Peter, same issues, same with the 1250mAh pack you gave me.

But, doing all the things mentioned before, it ONLY has the throttle issue, no other interferance problems. And the throttle issue is gone due to the Novak "Fix". But the Drag brake is now Useless...... :-(

[alanpineapple]

My rooster crawler arrived 5 days ago, I have the stock wheely king radio and receiver an its working very good, no glitches at all, even whith the transmiter antena completely folded down... I guess i was lucky.

[flomofo]

I just sent my goat off on monday as it was free wheeling as well with my nomadio. It worked great other than that problem and I missed crawling this weekend after I took work off, but in the end if I get something back thats working good I'll be happy.

Their response time with e-mails among other things that they excell at makes the process more than bareable (its spelled wrong isnt it?). I might try a mamba max later but novak will be getting a steady flow of business from me, I'm actually going to sell some new novak esc I just got for racing to get some more novak crwler goodies.

[Stormin2u]

Flomofo,
Did I understand you correctly that you sent your Goat in because of glitching and freewheeling? I was unaware that anything could be done about the freewheeling which is the only real issue I have with my Goat system. Did I miss something does Novak have a fix for the freewheeling problem? If so that would make the system perfect IMO.

[flomofo]

My friends and many people I've seen crawling can throw their goat trucks on a high angle rock and not do anything on the remote and it will slowly crawl or "hill descent" its way down, mine will just free roll down and crash unless I'm on the throttle enough to stop it.

If I use the throttle to stop it, it gets even better as it does a locked deal or something and completely lets go and really free rolls down the rocks and crashes as it doesnt accept any throttle inputs until it resets itself again.

From what I've heard theres at least one other guy in my area with the problem and one of my friends as well but he got one of the guys we crawl to fix it somehow. From what I was told by novak, the guy said the blue wire specifically coming from the motors sensor wire bundle is what controls the drag brake. Mine would lock up the wheels on occasion for about a second or two but it usually just free wheeled, no drag brakes.

[mannysouza]

I have the crawler as well with no problems at all. Both mine and my loaner rig has been trouble free since it's purchase. Novak is my ESC of choice! Thinking of trying the new motor. It's probably the same as my integy though. Any one using the new motor? Let me know of, if any difference?