Rust inside a brand new Leopard?

[IRON-PAWW]

Hi All,

Not sure what to make of this. I pulled my Leopard 4074 2200kv out of a new boat to solder on some 5.5 bullets. While the motor was out I of course lubed the bearings and sprayed WD40 inside the motor to prevent any future nastiness. Well, the WD40 came out the other end of the motor looking very suspiciously brown. I can only assume it is rust that the WD40 has picked up from inside the motor. I've run the boat twice with hardly a drop of water getting inside. This doesn't look good does it??? Boat ran absolutely fine both time though......

[iamandrew]

Hi there
Ive actually got some bad news, of what ive heard, its VERY bad to spray WD40 inside a brushless motor. Ive been advised only to oil the bearings at the ends of the can and never get anything like that inside the motor.
I guess it might be fine if the motor dryed out before you used it though.
Surface rust is fairly common on anything that is made out of metal.
its not like the can and motor is made out of Stainless Steel.

[Make-a-Wake]

If the WD-40 is bad for it then dont tell my Castle 2028 that was submerged for a week in a murky lake due to a wreck that demolished the hull. It was emptied of all water thru the mounting holes and filled with WD-40 via the small spray tube thru the mounting holes. I let it sit overnight, then drained it by placing it upside down for a couple days. It is still running strong a year later and can still put out 10+ horsepower.

I may be wrong, but hands on, "real life" experience tells me otherwise.

[IRON-PAWW]

Hmmmmmmm. Well....... I think if you got a heap of water inside the motor then something like WD40 is about your only option. It does stand for Water Displacement 40 after all. I suppose if you ran the motor wet with WD40 you could be in trouble though. I have been squirting WD40 inside all my Brushless Motors so far without issue as well, so I'd be very interested to hear why WD40 isn't a good idea. The prcatice has actually been recommended to me by several people in the business, but I'm no expert so if it is a bad Idea then I'd like to know about it. What's everyone's take on this???

Yeah, I think I do remember reading now that some Brushless motors can have a little rust inside them out of the box. Has anyone else had experience with this??

[SweetAccord]

I had a new AMMO motor that was never used nor ever near any water. When I took it out of the package when the time came to use it, one of the bearings was rusted? I had it replaced even though I was accused of putting it in, and or near water?! Go figure.

[iamandrew]

A quick check on the net seems to show that you shouldnt use WD40 in any car motor, simply because it attracts and sticks to dirt
a boat motor might be ok, some people say that the WD40 can slow motors down though because of the amount of residue it leaves.

[SweetAccord]

A quick check on the net seems to show that you shouldnt use WD40 in any car motor, simply because it attracts and sticks to dirt
a boat motor might be ok, some people say that the WD40 can slow motors down though because of the amount of residue it leaves.

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[Fluid]

The use of WD-40 on wet motors have been proven to be non-damaging for many years. Although products like CorrosionX may be better to prevent rust, a motor has far more chance of damage from being put away wet than from spraying with WD-40 or CorrosionX. Sprays like degreasers should not be used as some will soften/dissolve the winding insulation.



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[IRON-PAWW]

Ok thanks for that clarification Fluid. I think that was the statement from someone more experienced I for one needed. Heaven forbid the forum should be filled with dumb questions though so apologies.


Back to the original question though: is it commonplace to find 'out of the box' brushless motors with any level of rust inside them? if so, then what sort of rust level is acceptable, and what's the best way to treat it? The afore-mentioned WD-40 or CorrosionX? And do I really need to pull the motor apart to clean it? ...... Get rid of all the rust - no matter how light - inside?

[iamandrew]

None of mine have,
but then again, havent botherd to take the case apart to solder wires on. which is kind of odd because Leopard "wires" actually are the wind in the can

[expresscraft]

just a shot in the dark, but there is always condensation to consider, even if the boat only took on a few drops of water each run.That might have been all it took.I would just keep maintaining your boat,And run and enjoy it.even the vender you bought it from could have hi humidity and it could have been on a shelf near a open bay door ect for who knows how long before you bought it.Anything is possible.