Traxxas 380 VXL for 18in Mono

[kartrobison]

I have a 18in Mono that I am building and had the the thought of using
the Traxxas 380 VXL motor and speed control because it would be all plug and play.
I would use a 3 cell Lipo
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXXKM2&P=ML

Any one have any thought on this being a workable setup.... One of my concerns was the speed control not being water cooled and heating up too much.

thanks for the help

[chief3452]

Just a suggestion, but if it were me, I would not run the 380vxl on 3s. I have this combo in a 1/16 scale 22" long roundnose hydro and on 2s with a 32mm prop the boat is at it's limit. I don't know the exact speed, but it's quick. Any faster and all I would be doing is retrieving an upside down boat. With 2s the temps on the motor and controller are not excessive, but they do get hot to the touch. I installed a cooling jacket for the motor and I plan on testing a 30mm prop to see if that helps the speed controller cool down a bit.

Good Luck with your project.

[kartrobison]

Just a suggestion, but if it were me, I would not run the 380vxl on 3s. I have this combo in a 1/16 scale 22" long roundnose hydro and on 2s with a 32mm prop the boat is at it's limit. I don't know the exact speed, but it's quick. Any faster and all I would be doing is retrieving an upside down boat. With 2s the temps on the motor and controller are not excessive, but they do get hot to the touch. I installed a cooling jacket for the motor and I plan on testing a 30mm prop to see if that helps the speed controller cool down a bit.

Good Luck with your project.

Ok that is very good info to know. do you have any idea of where you are sitting on hull weight just the hull iteself?
mine is about .65 lbs

[martin]

That motor is deff not 3s, i believe its a 4000kv motor that is over 44000rpm unloaded. Even if the esc was watercooled it would not last long. As been said go 2s & youll still be close to 30,000rpm.

[chief3452]

Ok that is very good info to know. do you have any idea of where you are sitting on hull weight just the hull iteself?
mine is about .65 lbs

Sorry, I don't know how much my hull weighs empty. It is constructed of balsa and 1/16 ply, so it's pretty light.

If you set it up correctly, your 18" hull will be plenty quick with the 380vxl on 2s. You'll need a good retrieval system at the ready! Could you post a picture of your hull?

[kartrobison]

Sorry, I don't know how much my hull weighs empty. It is constructed of balsa and 1/16 ply, so it's pretty light.

If you set it up correctly, your 18" hull will be plenty quick with the 380vxl on 2s. You'll need a good retrieval system at the ready! Could you post a picture of your hull?

Here is what I have done so far. I am just waiting for my hardware to come so I get started on the rest

719307193171932

[chief3452]

Nice! Is it constructed from aluminum? If so, that is some tidy metalwork.

[BHChieftain]

I have a vxl-6s marine esc up for sale in the swap shop if interested.

Chief

[kartrobison]

I have a vxl-6s marine esc up for sale in the swap shop if interested.

Chief

I found another setup that I think I am going to put in my boat but thanks anyway

[kartrobison]

Nice! Is it constructed from aluminum? If so, that is some tidy metalwork.

Thanks alot! yes it is aluminum my first mini electric prototype, cant wait to see how it goes

[Chrisg81983]

Very cool hull great work wit the metal fabrication

[kartrobison]

Good luck with your project…[/QUOTE]

Thanks for all the info for a newbie that helps alot,

I have found and purchased a motor that is 3700 KV and I found hobbywing boat ESC to match I will try it with 2S lipo and see how it goes.

but thanks for the prop website link. that is what I am looking for next. I think I will try some cheaper nylon ones till I find the right size then I will go for a sharpened Alum prop

[Pråmskepparn]

3700kv will work fine, i agree with the low kv-high voltage thinking but in Minis theres just no way you can run 4s or 6s. I have a small mono that runs a
2848 motor, 3900kv on 3s and nothing gets warm, not even the 25amp aircooled ESC

[Chrisg81983]

I agree I ran a 380 vxl system in a micro and it ran great I ran it on 2s with props I cut down I never had a problem I wish I had some footage of it running to show you

[Pråmskepparn]

The motor has one of those cooling jackets where the water comes in direct contact with the motor. Not to recommend though, because they leak easily. I would use the tradional aluminium/copper pipe coil wrapped around the motor.

Maximum propeller size was a 30mm 3-blade running surface drive. I would stick to 2s though, 4000kv is alot and theres no big difference in speed because the motor was a little weak and wouldnt reach the full RPM :)

Now saltwater killed the ESC :sad:

[brett657]

These are very nice boats and better suited and if you have a bit to ride it. For those who ride well these boats this is often faster than you think or want. It's very hard to handle at start but when It starts then it's a treat to watch. It sure looks very cool having nice features and technology.

[Southwest]

brett, you reply with the same wording in each response word for word even if it's a rigger,LOL!

[kartrobison]

Well it has been a long time but I finally got this boat up and running.. well about a week before the cold weather hit. but here is the video of it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMwS-Mxz7YI