Clod ESC questions

[xzaq103]

Looking to re power my clod. The current setup is from about 8-10 years ago. 17T trinity motors and a Novak Super Rooster.

I'm wanting to go to Lipo run time not power is my goal. In the old days 10 minutes on a charge was nice. It would be great to be able to run for an hour or so.

I was thinking about two Traxxas XL2.5s or an EVX-2 but I'm not sure if that would be the best approach. Also wasn't sure if these ESC are compatible with brush motors or not.

Also as you can tell from my old setup and questions I'm new to the lipo world. Whats the best charger and battery for a budget build?

Thanks
Chris

[MeanTT]

Originally Posted by xzaq103

Looking to re power my clod. The current setup is from about 8-10 years ago. 17T trinity motors and a Novak Super Rooster.

I'm wanting to go to Lipo run time not power is my goal. In the old days 10 minutes on a charge was nice. It would be great to be able to run for an hour or so.

I was thinking about two Traxxas XL2.5s or an EVX-2 but I'm not sure if that would be the best approach. Also wasn't sure if these ESC are compatible with brush motors or not.

Also as you can tell from my old setup and questions I'm new to the lipo world. Whats the best charger and battery for a budget build?

Thanks
Chris

ESC
I love the Castle ESCs. You can get a Mamba Max Pro new off of Ebay for 100 dollars. It is sensored, and can handle up to 6S. I also ahve the Sidewinder system which is cheaper than the Mamba. It is NOT sensored but I love it all the same. You can buy packages of them with a 5700 KV motor, 4600 KV motor or a 3800 KV motor. Most will recommend the 5700 or 4600. Some crazy fools like me run a 7700 KV motor (for my ground pounder). The Mamba Max Pro will run brushless or brushed motors, as will the sidewinder. You can't go wrong with either one, but if you want to go dual brushless, you will need two of the same ESCs.

Battery and Charger
It would be hard to get an hour, period. As you may know, the Mah is related to run times. The deal with lipos is that they can be configured in all sorts of shapes and sizes whereas old NiCads were in "C" sized batteries.

That means, that the real limiting factor will be how you mount your battery. If you are using the stock batter compartment you will be limited to a certain height and width. I have no idea what a stock chassis will hold, but I would think you could get a 2S sized around 4500 or 5000 to fit. If you are running an aftermarket chassis, the sky is the limit. You could go as big as 10,000 or 20,000 mah, but those batteries are huge and are heavy. Think "brick" sized.

These larger batteries are around $100 dollars. See below:
Venom LiPo Battery for Traxxas Slash 1 10 25c 7 4 10000mAh 2S with Uni Plug | eBay

Instead, I recommend 2 5,000 batteries which you can get for as little as 30 bucks. Be sure you get a hard case. Soft cases are not durable and one crash could cause them to short out and catch your rig on fire.

For chargers, I use two of them. I have a Duratrax Onyx 245. It can charge 2 batteries, NiCad, Nimh and every other chemestry. The charge rate is limited to 5 amps per battery. It DOES NOT have a storage mode which will keep the batteries charged at 3.7 volts per cell. Finally, you can ONLY CHARGE 1, 2, and 2 S batteries on this charger. I found this out the hard way which is why I had to get another charger for my MT4G3 battery.

I can't remember the other charger I have but it does have a a discharge function and has a storage function. It will also charge up to 6S and has multiple different charging modes. I always balance charge, but understand some who don't.

In sum, I recommend that buy 2 4500 to 5000 2S lipos from Ebay and pay no more than 35 bucks per battery. Then TAKE CARE of your lipos, and always balance charge them. If you upgrade your motors and ESC(s) you can run up to 6S, although 4S might be the sweet spot. You can run your batteries in series or parallel to give you either 4S or 10,000 mah capacity.

I can't recommend motors to you yet other than to tell you that most people use higher KV motors due to the 30 to 1 reduction in the Clod which is about 30% higher than most rigs.

Finally, brushless will give you much more power, reliability and more runtime. You will however need to choose the right motors, pinions, and speed control.

Hope this helps.

[xzaq103]

Thanks MeanTT

I should add that it does have a Gecko chassis

I will look into the Mamba Max Pro.

Chris

[rknaub]

Hey, just getting my first clod, been wanting one since I was a kid. Got it off eBay for less than $200 shipped, and it already has the gecko chassis, comes with 4ws setup as well. Totally excited. I'll be eventually swapping all the electronics and adding a new bright 1:6 cxt hard body. I've got a whole lot to learn about this truck as I've mainly stayed in the axial realm for my crawlers. Looking forward up being active in this forum!

[MeanTT]

Originally Posted by rknaub

Hey, just getting my first clod, been wanting one since I was a kid. Got it off eBay for less than $200 shipped, and it already has the gecko chassis, comes with 4ws setup as well. Totally excited. I'll be eventually swapping all the electronics and adding a new bright 1:6 cxt hard body. I've got a whole lot to learn about this truck as I've mainly stayed in the axial realm for my crawlers. Looking forward up being active in this forum!

I had my first clod in the late 80s. This will be my second one. IT is SUPPOSED to arrive today (I had a little problem with the ebay seller).

I have already painted up a Pro Line Apocalypse body, built the roll cage and received the Summit Bumpers and lights. I also picked up some extra nylon for a vendor to make a mount for the Summit bumpers with the integrated body mounts.

I think I am going to work on the aesthetics and links first, and then take the dive into the electronics. I think the electronics will take a full weekend to work out and to set up properly. Hopefully my two sets of 32 pitch 12-14 pinions together with the adjustable motor mounts will work well with the 2 Mamba Max Pros and SC4X 4800 KV motors.

My built Clod with "black magic scorcher modified motors", carbon fiber chassis, 4 link suspension, wheel spacers, savox servo, radio gear, batteries, savage shocks, and Swamp Dog tires cost me a whopping 187 bucks. It was the steal of the century. I have already spent 3 times that on parts to be used with this rig...

[rknaub]

Originally Posted by MeanTT

I had my first clod in the late 80s. This will be my second one. IT is SUPPOSED to arrive today (I had a little problem with the ebay seller).

I have already painted up a Pro Line Apocalypse body, built the roll cage and received the Summit Bumpers and lights. I also picked up some extra nylon for a vendor to make a mount for the Summit bumpers with the integrated body mounts.

I think I am going to work on the aesthetics and links first, and then take the dive into the electronics. I think the electronics will take a full weekend to work out and to set up properly. Hopefully my two sets of 32 pitch 12-14 pinions together with the adjustable motor mounts will work well with the 2 Mamba Max Pros and SC4X 4800 KV motors.

My built Clod with "black magic scorcher modified motors", carbon fiber chassis, 4 link suspension, wheel spacers, savox servo, radio gear, batteries, savage shocks, and Swamp Dog tires cost me a whopping 187 bucks. It was the steal of the century. I have already spent 3 times that on parts to be used with this rig...

Any pics of this rig yet?

[MeanTT]

Originally Posted by rknaub

Any pics of this rig yet?

Here are a few. I have installed the MMPs and the twin 4800 KV 550s. It is fast on 2S with the 13 tooth pinion. I am not running a sensor wires to the motors yet and even thought they are not perfectly synced I am getting temps of 125 in the rear motor after a full bash on a 4200 KV pack. Surprisingly runtime is pretty good, almost 15 minutes.

I have some amazing Integy piggy backs that I am in the process of putting on, but I had to order softer springs as the stockers eliminated all suspension travel. I also need to widen the lower links so that they don't touch the motor. As it sits, they graze the motor when the suspension articulates on way. That is why it the rig appears lopsided, the rear motor is binding ever so slightly on the lower link.

I hope to get the new springs this week and can finish up most of this stuff. I have lowered the body slightly, and need to dye or paint the nylon I used to mount the bumpers etc. I am about 75% done with it, but the pics below don't show the full brushless set up. It has a LOT of power, and even with teh punch set to 0 and the timing set at 8 degrees, it will be interesting to see how long the gears hold up. I am not optimistic. It is a lot of fun to drive. It handles in a much more realistic manner than my Ground Pounder with its racing chassis.









Here are some pics with the extended wheelbase.



Front shot of extended wheelbase (trying to get the most stability I can:



Here is a link to the shocks I bought:

http://www.integy.com/st_prod.html?p...3#.U_uXxMVdVQ0

The ones on the rig are a little too small for me, and the Integy ones look great, go with my pain scheme, and are significantly wider.

[ricardof78557]

I ran a super rooster on mine with monster trinity motors with a 2s lipo did pretty well. Got bored with it and ditched the whole set up and installed a axial wraith drivetrain and its awesome!!