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View Full Version : Align 430L 3550KV gets very hot



Ferco
05-05-2006, 12:36 AM
I got the Align 430L because I heard that it virtually had no heat issues from this forum. I've ran it on sand, grass and concrete and it still gets very hot after less than 5 minutes. Can't hold my finger against it for more than 4 seconds :(

I'm using it on the stock ST with an aluminum motor mount, 16 tooth pinion and a 11.1v Hyperion (Polyquest) 1800 mAh LiPo.

I've taken the motor out and the ST rolls very smoothly without it. The pinion meshes nicely with the spur gear also. I've already burned out the Mamba 5400 and I do not want to lose this one too so any help is appreciated :)

mOOsE
05-05-2006, 02:34 AM
4 seconds is quite a long time.....I would guess that the motor is around 125 degrees F which is fine...but its just a guess. Maybe gear down a tooth since you are running an ST. I do agree though, from what I have read, that motor should be fine for even higher tooth counts.

OvaYaHead
05-05-2006, 04:51 AM
I haven't tried my 13t with the align 3550kv yet, but with the 12t the motor never even go warm. Probably try running the motor from 13t up and find out where the motor starts getting hot. I would like to know too, because the motor has nice torque with a 12t, but tops out fast.

gudis
05-05-2006, 10:41 AM
I have my H8 running with the Align 430L motor and a 13 tooth pinion gear, the motor are not hot at all. I haven't tried another pinion.

Ferco
05-05-2006, 05:54 PM
I tried again and I can only hold my finger against it a little less than 2 seconds. There is also a slight smell of burning plastic. If I keep this up I'm sure I'll burn the motor.

I have a set of pinions right now and the smallest is 16. Can anyone recommend a set with smaller pinions or single pinions that fit the Align? A set would be better though.

Will these fit:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXEX10&P=7

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXEX11&P=ML

OvaYaHead
05-06-2006, 12:03 AM
I have both of those Robinson pinions you posted. The 12t and 13t will work. Just make sure its for a 3.17 shaft

mOOsE
05-06-2006, 01:10 AM
standard 48p 540 pinions are pretty abundant. Thats one of the best things going for this motor IMO. Should be able to handle more than a 13 I would think...the AON4900 has more rpm and less torque and I ran a 13 on it.

MrUnlimited
05-06-2006, 07:44 AM
Try a lighter pinion maybe it is the rotation-mass of the pinion. Aluminium or titanium ones are lighter than steel and have less rotation-mass. I ordered a 19t and 21t for my 430L 4050KV at Titanium racing (http://www.titaniumracing.com). Also the wheels of the ST are bigger than the buggy so you should gear down to prevent burnouts of esc or motors.

janniz
05-06-2006, 10:41 AM
It's not just the pinion!! Maybe your ESC isn't set up right. You are using the Mamba, I guess? Since this ESC is designed to be used with inrunners most of the time you need to change "timing" and "starting power" settings to use it with the Align outrunner.

The reason for your Align getting hot very fast can be a wrong "starting-power" setting (also called "soft start" on some ESCs). The result is that the motor draws very much Amps while trying to accelerate and therefore gets very hot. With a "softer" (=slower) start this should not happen and the motor should stay cool.

Try to set the starting power to "high" and the timing to "normal" or "race". If the motor stays cool now, set starting power to "normal" and re-check motor temp. Don't use the Align with "low" starting power!

Brushless motors are rather complex. You will need to adjust your ESC depending on what kind of motor you are using (slow/fast motor, inrunner/outrunner, poles/holes, etc.). I'm sorry I cannot explain better in english - if you want to know whats happening "inside" an inrunner/outrunner and the ESC, try some google search or look at rc-plane forums - these terms will be explained there for sure. Do some research - if you know how these things work they usually work better/last longer ... ;)

Good luck!

Ferco
05-06-2006, 03:10 PM
I am using the Mamba 25. The starting power was high and timing was set to normal and I also just updated the ESC software to 1.5. I'll set the starting power to medium and see how it goes.

I ordered a 12t robinson aluminum pinion. I'll let you know how it goes.

bbking9
05-06-2006, 11:59 PM
I run a 17T and 20T in my Align. Can't get it hot. If you've burned up a Mamba and now an Align - you may have some drive train problems.

MrUnlimited
05-07-2006, 11:42 AM
I run a 17T and 20T in my Align. Can't get it hot. If you've burned up a Mamba and now an Align - you may have some drive train problems.
You are right: maybe they installed cheap bearings . I remember I had my XRay M18 for a couple of days, i accidently drove through some water and the bearings rusted which resulted in no movement in the drivetrain. I changed them with boca bearings ultraseries and still have them without problems.

bermbuster
05-07-2006, 01:29 PM
i was running a 23t pinion with the align 4050 and 9.6v. Outside on paved road and it was staying warm. I brought to an indoor carpeted track and with the higher traction surface the motor got warmer. With that kind of gearing indoors i was at a low speed loss. I dropped the pinion down to 17t and it works real well. The align motor is a $40 motor. Its not a Lehner but it is ok......

Ferco
05-16-2006, 11:55 PM
I finally got the 12 tooth aluminum pinion and now the Align doesn't get as hot. The can keeps coming loose shifting the shaft causing the screw that holds the pinion to get caught in the slipper gear. Thinking about getting the AON 4900 or Wraith

mOOsE
05-17-2006, 12:59 AM
WOW......im speechless.

Ferco
05-17-2006, 06:35 PM
Hehe yeah it doesn't look very pretty :D Sorry for the offensive picture Moose hehe.

First time I drove it in sand with the Align some sand got under the gear cover through the holes in the motor. That was with the 16 tooth pinion. The sand doesn't really seem to cause of problem for the motor itself just travels through it and under the gear cover. That's why the slightly damaged slipper gears.

On the previous picture the sand is just hard packed into the silicone diff fluid that that came out of the center diff (30k) so it doesn't get into the gears anymore.

Then with the 12 tooth pinion the can came loose after a little bumpy ride and almost destroyed the slipper gear. It happened pretty fast and the torque of the Align probably helped instead of locking up.

So now I have to probably get a new gear cover, slipper gear and maybe cut a piece of aluminum to put in front of the motor to keep sand out of the slipper gears.

MrUnlimited
05-17-2006, 07:30 PM
There is no question about it that your 430L gets hot. If there is sand or dirt between the magnets and poles it makes the motr more to drag the rotor in the can which results in more amp draw. The Align has an open house design since it was designed for heli's and airplanes, not to ride offroad. Clean the motor with a decent cleaner and put some foam auround it when you hit the dirt. I drove today mine with a Tianium Racing 19t pinion and I stripped my slippergear. I ordered now the Atomic slippergear of alloy