Castle Hydra Ice 240 questions.

[Troy711]

Hi guys, asked this question on the Traxxas forum but it got Nazied down (presumably due to not being Traxxas related even though if I asked the same questions in a Traxxas car forum it would be fine).

Just upgraded to the previously mentioned ESC and I have a few questions. How is it going to run with the stock Castle motor? Will the stock motor handle 8s should I decide to do something stupid (lol)? What prop should I look at using which won't overload it? Does anyone have tips for mounting it?

Thanks for looking!

[Snowride]

IMHO both the stock esc and the stock motor are rather borderline on 6S. The SF 240 is overkill for that hull but should last a very long time however a T180 would have been more than sufficient. If you want to get some more power out of the stock setup you simply cannot run this on 8s with the stock motor or you will fry on the first lap and actually could take out the Swordfish. Even with a different more powerful motor on 8s the hull will be maxed out stability wise around 60mph which has already been done and proven.

[Troy711]

Cheers for the reply. I figured it was going to be overkill for the Spartan but I'm really looking for quality. I'm could have simply bought another VXL6s but it would likely die again. I'm over the junk Traxxas feed their customers and on the last 12 months I've killed 3 different ESCs and I possibly have another 2 on the way out.

I'm still new to this RC boating stuff so for atleast the next few months I'll continue to run on just 4s until I get the hang of it. Eventually I might upgrade motors.

What sort of prop should I run with the 240 and stock motor?

[dag-nabit]

As already mentioned the Hydra 240 is more ESC than you need, but if you stay smart on battery, motor, and prop selection you should achieve a very solid setup.

For motor, I would suggest looking at something like the Leopard 4082 1600kv, Has good torque and the lower kv rating can be compensated with a slightly larger prop to get the speeds you want. Also follow TMESTER (? correct name) thread over on the Traxxas site with his Hydra 240 / Castle 1717 setup. Both components more than what is necessary for the Spartan hull, but should be a solid setup for him.

With the Hydra and stock motor I would probably suggest still staying somewhat conservative on prop sizing maybe an octura X642 or prather S220 at most. With a Leopard 4082 1600 I think you could push an Octura X645 or Prather S225 without overloading the electrics.

All this assumes nothing higher than 6S on batteries.

What you need to keep in mind is that the more prop you try to push with this hull, the more stress you put on the drive line, and the more torque roll you create and will need to compensate for. If running higher torque motors and larger props you will want to upgrade your flex shaft to either a .187 flex shaft, or a .078 wire drive to survive the extra torque.

As Snowride points out, very few have successfully pushed the Spartan hull close to, or over the 60 MPH mark and managed to keep the boat stable at high speeds. I can tell you from experience this hull does not tolerate high speed wipe outs very well. The hatch likes to pop off and crack at the pin, and it will separate at the seam where the deck attaches to the hull. Just things to keep in mind when deciding how far you want to push this hull.

Keep us up to date on your build.

Kevin

[Troy711]

Excellent reply dag-nabit, I really appreciate you takin the time to write all that! I might just stick with the Prather S215 for now and if I do upgrade motors then I'll go bigger.

I'll deffinatly keep this updated, seems how I'm not allowed to on the Traxxas forum lol.

Next step is (when the ESC arrives) working out plumbing and mounting.

I've also read about waterproofing the Hydra, what does this involve?

[detox]

The data logging of Hydra Ice LV 240 is a really fun feature. Tower club members can get $50.00 off and free shipping with coupon code.

[dag-nabit]

Excellent reply dag-nabit, I really appreciate you takin the time to write all that! I might just stick with the Prather S215 for now and if I do upgrade motors then I'll go bigger.

I'll deffinatly keep this updated, seems how I'm not allowed to on the Traxxas forum lol.

Next step is (when the ESC arrives) working out plumbing and mounting.

I've also read about waterproofing the Hydra, what does this involve?

There are several of us here at OSE Spartan Forum that no longer post over at Traxxas because of their over zealous moderators. We all understand the need to keep the forum family friendly, but they go a little overboard shutting down threads that are simply discussing known issues and problems with the Spartan.

Steven runs a great forum here at OSE, still keep it family friendly, but here we can have frank, open discussion, while seeking solutions to problems.

Kevin

[detox]

Traxxas moderators work the tails off weeding out truthful, unfriendly post. I am sure they are paid to do so.

[Troy711]

I understand they have a crap job. I moderate a car forum with 2 million posts and 100,000 members which has been around for nearly 10 years and I've had people threaten to come around to my house and flog me simply because I exercised my right to an opinion and they didn't agree with me. No one needs that. But what annoyed me is that my thread over there was shut down and I was told to ask Castle for support but every single day you see new threads asking what Mamba is suited to their car including how to mount it, what gear selection and what battery they should use.

Anyway, I'm sure everyone has heard it all before lol.

Just curious, is a stainless or copper prop better?

[dag-nabit]

Both are good both have advantages and disadvantages.
Stainless is harder and withstands nicks and dings better but are more effort to balance and sharpen.
Copper/beryllium props are softer and easier to balance and sharpen, but will nick easier AND you have be sure to wear proper personal protective gear when balancing because beryllium is a known carcinogen. Nitrile gloves, eye protection, and a dust mask is what I wear. I wear the same even when working with stainless, just because.
Kevin

[detox]

Stainless is a stronger metal. You can sharpen a stainless prop much thinner (thinner is better) without worry of it bending under load. Copper/beryllium can be hardened in oven after thinning and sharpening.

[Troy711]

I think I might go a stainless 220. Cheers again :)

[Troy711]

Well, that was quick! I received my ESC today in the post and I still can't believe how big it is!!



Next questions.. Any tips on mounting it and what would be the best plugs to use for the battery and motor?

[Fluid]

Use at least 5.5mm gold plugs, and polarize them (male+ female-, etc.) Now take off one plastic end and spray it with CorrosionX inside. That's about all that's needed for water proofing. Dips and epoxies have several well known issues, better to steer clear. As long as your hull doesn't take on a lot of water you should be golden. Keep the power wires as short as practical to help assure ESC longevity. You did get the Castle Link didn't you? If so program it as needed. If not, get it.



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[detox]

Mount with velcro.