Motor/ESC upgrade questions

[Nutbar]

Hello, everyone! This is my first post on OSE. Thanks for having me. I'm still pretty newbish, so bare with me please. I have a used stock castle Spartan, and I have upgraded to a dual pickup rudder, aluminum water jacket, and x640 prop. Anyway, my motor overheats on 6s after about 5mins of 70%+ throttle. I want to upgrade to the Leopard 4082 1600kv/Seaking 180A ESC combo, but it is out of stock on OSE, unless I buy the motor/esc separately, which is fine with me. In fact, it appears to be $40 cheaper that way (Why is that by the way?).

1. However, if I buy them separate, what, if any, other parts will I need to install the new motor/esc?

2. Will it be ok to still use Traxxas connectors with the new motor/esc?

3. My stock castle ESC seems fine. Would I be able to just use the 4082 with the stock ESC, or do I have to get the 180A ESC also?

4. What is a good prop for the new motor/esc?

[dag-nabit]

The x640 prop is maybe a bit more pitch than you want to run on the stock electrics, although it is smaller diameter so that will help offset the extra load on your electronics. Running that prop may be at least partially responsible for the extra heat you are seeing.

Also, part throttle is actually harder on the ESC than full, or close to full throttle. If conditions allow you want to open it up several times during a run.

If you upgrade, the motor should come with the connectors to hook up to the ESC. You will need a new cooling jacket, the 4082 is larger diameter.

Traxxas connectors will work, but if upgrading, you may want to consider going to something like ec5 connectors, they will handle more amp draw.

You could try the 4082 with the stock ESC, but it is a bigger motor and will likely pull more amps than stock, even though it is lower kv. The stock ESC has a history of failure, if you can afford it, I would suggest changing both ESC and motor. If the stock ESC fries it can damage the boat, and it definitely will leave behind a smelly residue on the inside of the hull. If you try running the stock ESC go to a smaller prop, Prather 215 or octura x442 as a suggestion.

In the owners manual, Traxxas recommends changing motor and ESC if upgrading.

Prather 220 or octura x 642 with the 180 and 4082 1600

If you are running larger props, also consider upgrading to a .187 flex cable or .078 wire drive. You can get these for the spartan from Jeff Wohlt at rcraceboat.com, or Steven may have some offerings right here on OSE.

You will need a new coupler if you upgrade the drive line, and Jeff's driveshafts use a 10/32 prop nut instead of the stock 4 mm nut.

Kevin

[marksp]

As mentioned, simply switching to either Prather 215 or octura x442 will probably result in lower temps. Cheers.

[Nutbar]

Thx for the responses, guys. Apparently, the p215 or x442 seem to be the safest choices for stock Spartans, but does the p215 really run any cooler than the x640? The x640 and p215 have almost the exact same diameter and pitch, am I right? What is the difference between the x640 and p215 that makes the p215 run cooler than the x640?

Also, how are temps comparing the p215 and the x442? Which one runs the coolest?