Castle Ice 200 vx. Castle Hydra 240

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  • electric
    Fast Electric Addict!
    • May 2008
    • 1744

    #1

    Castle Ice 200 vx. Castle Hydra 240

    If you were picking one to use which would you buy? Thinking of getting an ICE because I am guessing it is newer technology than the hydra 240 and might hold up better.
  • scoota
    FE DOWN UNDER
    • Dec 2008
    • 409

    #2
    Hydra series i have not had a good run with them , i have read some good stuff about the ICE series , i think castle are testing a water cooled Ice esc at present . I have been running 240 swordfish in a pretty hot set up drawing over 200 AMPS & have been impressed with its performance so far ...
    UL1- 1515 castle/neu / 240 swordfish
    SV27- with UL1 running gear
    33 Delta Force - 1521-1.5D/Neu/ 240 swordfish/4S2P

    Comment

    • Steven Vaccaro
      Administrator
      • Apr 2007
      • 8721

      #3
      Originally posted by electric
      If you were picking one to use which would you buy? Thinking of getting an ICE because I am guessing it is newer technology than the hydra 240 and might hold up better.
      More than anything it depends on setup. If I was running a 4s boat, I would run a hydra 240. If I was running a 6s boat, I would run the ice. I'm on the other side of the coin, I've been using Hydra 120's and 240's since they were released and still have the same ones.
      Steven Vaccaro

      Where Racing on a Budget is a Reality!

      Comment

      • electric
        Fast Electric Addict!
        • May 2008
        • 1744

        #4
        Anyone else on this? Let me ask this another way. How are the ICE 200's esc's holding up? Are people water cooling them or using fans?? Has anyone made an ICE 200 overheat and fail yet?

        Comment

        • video200
          Senior Member
          • Feb 2008
          • 837

          #5
          if ice and hydra are your 2 options id go ice. but thats just becose i had 2 hydra`s fail on me WELL within its spec.
          never had a ice but i se one of those comming my way for christmas :D

          Comment

          • Ub Hauled
            Fast Electric Addict!
            • Aug 2007
            • 3031

            #6
            I actually held a ICE Hydra version in my hands, it should be in the market soon (I hope), it's being tested by a friend and lemme tell ya, he is REALLY putting it through the ringer... that's all I will say.
            I hear lots of good things about the ICE for the "fly boys" keep in mind we are a totally different beast, we draw SO MUCH MORE AMPS then they do... it's hard to tell if it'll be reliable or not w/o actually using it in a boat... the biggest issue I had with the Hydras is the inconsistency, sometimes they worked w/o a flaw for years and them you buy and install a new one and it blows on the bench, like it happened to many of us... but keep in mind guys, Castle was there for us when nobody else was, if you can find a little patients with these guys to see if they can get their sheit together, it's well worth staying with them, they do have good controllers (most of the time )
            just my 2cents
            :::::::::::::::. It's NEVER fast enough! .:::::::::::::::

            Comment

            • video200
              Senior Member
              • Feb 2008
              • 837

              #7
              Originally posted by Ub Hauled
              they do have good controllers (most of the time )
              just my 2cents
              thats just it. for THAT price it should be good every time.
              i can swalow that a $50 controller blows up when beeing used close to its spec. but a $250 controller shouldent blow up before it even hits the water.

              but beond that. the hydra i have now is working perfectly and have done so for years, but wil i ever have the guts to try it on 6s like it is rated for ? i realy dubt that.

              Comment

              • scoota
                FE DOWN UNDER
                • Dec 2008
                • 409

                #8
                Originally posted by video200
                thats just it. for THAT price it should be good every time.
                i can swalow that a $50 controller blows up when beeing used close to its spec. but a $250 controller shouldent blow up before it even hits the water.

                but beond that. the hydra i have now is working perfectly and have done so for years, but wil i ever have the guts to try it on 6s like it is rated for ? i realy dubt that.
                well said , the first time i ran a hydra 240 on 6s , yes the bec was disconected , the board got so hot it melted the wrapping around it , i thought ok the shrink rap might have been to tight , put the boat in the water & a few seconds later it blew to peices making a nice mess of inside of the boat...
                UL1- 1515 castle/neu / 240 swordfish
                SV27- with UL1 running gear
                33 Delta Force - 1521-1.5D/Neu/ 240 swordfish/4S2P

                Comment

                • properchopper
                  • Apr 2007
                  • 6968

                  #9
                  Originally posted by Ub Hauled
                  .................................................. ..................................I actually held a ICE Hydra version in my hands, it should be in the market soon (I hope), it's being tested by a friend and lemme tell ya, he is REALLY putting it through the ringer... that's all I will say...................
                  If it's the same Ice Hydra version that I held in my chubby little hands at the 2-lap where it was put through the ringer, it took a dump and quit the first day out.
                  2008 NAMBA P-Mono & P-Offshore Nat'l 2-Lap Record Holder; '15 P-Cat, P-Ltd Cat 2-Lap
                  2009/2010 NAMBA P-Sport Hydro Nat'l 2-Lap Record Holder, '13 SCSTA P-Ltd Cat High Points
                  '11 NAMBA [P-Ltd] : Mono, Offshore, OPC, Sport Hydro; '06 LSO, '12,'13,'14 P Ltd Cat /Mono

                  Comment

                  • Ub Hauled
                    Fast Electric Addict!
                    • Aug 2007
                    • 3031

                    #10
                    yup... that's the one Tony, but, i'd rather it happen now then when it's on the street with fools like us buying it... lol that's what testing period is for.
                    Something else we have to remember is that these guys are aaaaaaall aero guys, the ESCs are build with water coolers but it does not work as effectively as it does in the air... in my opinion, they have to redesign the "case" to allow cooling to happen more efficiently. they should not look like the air ESCs... the fins are made to have air going thru it.
                    :::::::::::::::. It's NEVER fast enough! .:::::::::::::::

                    Comment

                    • BakedMopar
                      No Mo Slipah
                      • Sep 2009
                      • 1679

                      #11
                      I have been using the Ice 100 & 200 for sometime now. The only one that crapped on me is the one that got flooded in a sunken boat. I have had only one Hydra crap on me also, although that one went for no apparent reason.

                      What I do like is castle replaced both of them for free. Can you say the same for the other guys?
                      If all of your wishes are granted, many of your dreams will be destroyed!

                      Comment

                      • v-spec
                        Banned
                        • Jun 2009
                        • 940

                        #12
                        Originally posted by BakedMopar
                        What I do like is castle replaced both of them for free. Can you say the same for the other guys?
                        How long did they take to replace yours? I sent mine in the other day but the website says 3 weeks turnaround? I picked up an ICE lite in the meantime but it's not easy to water cool since the motor wires go into the middle of the board and both sides have fet's with another board covering part of them.

                        Buddy was supposed to cnc a cooler for it but he's got some big order now so I still gotta wait a few weeks. I'm bummed wanna run my boat!

                        Comment

                        • BakedMopar
                          No Mo Slipah
                          • Sep 2009
                          • 1679

                          #13
                          The HYDRA was actually sent out the day after I contacted them and they sent a pre-paid label for me to send it back. The ICE took about 3-1/2 weeks because they were out of stock when I sent in mines.
                          If all of your wishes are granted, many of your dreams will be destroyed!

                          Comment

                          • video200
                            Senior Member
                            • Feb 2008
                            • 837

                            #14
                            Originally posted by BakedMopar
                            What I do like is castle replaced both of them for free. Can you say the same for the other guys?
                            i cant even say that for castle. and what i ended up paying to have my hydra 240 repaired after 30 secconds on the water well within it limits. i could have gotten several Turnigy 180 amp`s.

                            Comment

                            • andym
                              More Go Than Show Prop Co
                              • Apr 2007
                              • 2406

                              #15
                              Cant please all the people all the time, 120lv, 240 hv will never touch again. 240LV fantastic I abuse mine and they keep coming back for more. I think that they should make an Ice esc that can handle a true 200amps @ 160deg F. If this means making one that would handle 300 in a well ventilated plane so be it! The environment we run in, No air flow and high amps = HEAT, most guys check with an inferred thermometer but only check the outside ?? Try getting a reading of the fets and caps and you will see large numbers and this IS the problem. Ally water cooling is crap, should be copper at least so as the water flow can draw the heat better. I myself would pay the extra for an ICE esc with copper water cooled heat sinks with MORE fets and Caps.

                              Comment

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