Swordfish 220x info confirmed

[kfxguy]

Ose store and hifei has this esc listed as 4s to 6s. Must be a typo. I plugged mine into my computer and it identified it as a a 220a esc 2s-6s

So I tested it. It does work on 2s and 3s also. Just a heads up.

[fweasel]

Travis, does it have better throttle control than the previous version? Hoping for something significantly more linear, especially on the lower end.

[kfxguy]

Travis, does it have better throttle control than the previous version? Hoping for something significantly more linear, especially on the lower end.

So far what I can tell, no. I did use a rotary control however. If you like I can hook up a transmitter to it tonight and check but to be honest with this servo/esc tester I have, I can usually control the throttle well. Basically it feels the same as a normal swordfish. They need to get this right. Everyone else can, why can't they? Castle, seaking, turnigy, MGM, ose raider, dynamite.....they all have good throttle control and the the swordfish feels like poo compared. It does get a little better once the boat is in the water however.

[CraigP]

I thought the same thing with my Sword Fish. What I found out is that the setting on the throttle response was on the slower position. I forget the exact names for it. But there's a slow, normal and race mode. I was giving it more throttle, then the slow delay would kick off and the speed would be higher than I was expecting. Just a thought... I set it on race and it seems pretty good now, I have no complaints.

[fweasel]

What model do you have Craig?

[CraigP]

I got a SW 150a Pro HV. I think I saw the setting when using the laptop to program.

[fweasel]

I got a SW 150a Pro HV. I think I saw the setting when using the laptop to program.

Okay, I'll have to check if my programmer card has that option for my 220pro

[kfxguy]

I thought the same thing with my Sword Fish. What I found out is that the setting on the throttle response was on the slower position. I forget the exact names for it. But there's a slow, normal and race mode. I was giving it more throttle, then the slow delay would kick off and the speed would be higher than I was expecting. Just a thought... I set it on race and it seems pretty good now, I have no complaints.

I'll try it this evening

[CraigP]

The parameter is called, "Startup Type". You can set it to slow, regular or racing. I just checked...

[Bp9145]

that's good to know Craig. . .thanks

[T.S.Davis]

I hope these work because to be perfectly honest I'm completely frustrated with every controller I own for anything hotter than spec. Since the first of the year I've gone through 3 MGM280's, 3 Castle Hydra 240, and 3 Mamba XLX. Only one of my Castle 240's and one of my MGM280's are still functioning.

One of the XLX I murdered. There's only so much they can take. The other two are just not working. No idea. Joe's helping me figure those out.

The MGM runs about 40 degrees hotter on the motor wires with the same setup s we run on either Castles. I sent one back to MGM for repair. $125 shipping. They tested it and said it was fine. Went a 100 feet and died. Superrrrrr.. Send it again for another $125? So $250 in repairs and 2 months without it. Plus the initial investment of $400 or whatever it is. $640 and spend two months of the race season without it. Could have bought 3 Mamba XLX and burned one up per month.

The Raiders are absolutely perfect for spec but over that heat gets in the way. They're not interested in producing anything more.

Flier wont waterproof anything still. I could try another and con-formal coat it but why can't they do it? Had 4 of these of which only the 250 was stout. They're not exactly cheap either. Seen these die for no reason too.

The Seakings were great until the V3 came out. Even so I wont run Seaking as their' team driver's behavior is antithesis of what I feel is acceptable in our hobby. Plus the guys running the V3 on our pond can't trust them as they shut down with even a wiff of heat.

The Raiders are absolutely perfect for spec but over that heat gets in the way. They're not interested in producing anything more.

Schulze was the best thing since slice bread but they were expensive to make and expensive to export/import. Why the designs had to die with the company is a mystery. Is what it is.

Where does it end? Really frustrating. Warranties are nice and all but on race day when you're in turn 3 and it stops functioning what good is it? Notta. I need it to perform now. Not a month from now.

There's a gaping massive hole in the market with nothing to fill it right now. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for these. Expensive experimentation though. I already have a pair of SF300lite's, a SF240plus, and a SF120 in my box of useless debris.

[CraigP]

Terry, I really think the sanctioning bodies need to evaluate the use of higher voltage to get current levels back down to something manageable. I have been designing and building electronic power systems for quite some time and these current levels always bring on troubles. It's a big challenge to figure out how to regulate power levels, but battery size, given the increases in performance of the newer cells, is not the control element it used to be... That list of broken ESC's sounds real expensive, it's a shame you have to spend so much!

[srislash]

Terry, I really think the sanctioning bodies need to evaluate the use of higher voltage to get current levels back down to something manageable. I have been designing and building electronic power systems for quite some time and these current levels always bring on troubles. It's a big challenge to figure out how to regulate power levels, but battery size, given the increases in performance of the newer cells, is not the control element it used to be... That list of broken ESC's sounds real expensive, it's a shame you have to spend so much!

I agree with Craig here. It's a lot easier to carry volts than amps. That being said the racing by nature appeals to 'off the shelf' buyers in order to keep cost and attendance up.

Terry, how about YGE or the knock offs at HK? Or another I have been running is Etti.
I am praying for Castle to step up.

[watts=power]

There have been exciting developments in the open source speed control arena. The VESC6 has hit maturity and its only a matter of weeks until we have a reference design to work from. The software side was released a few weeks ago and is very solid. The VESC6 was originally developed for the eskateboard market, but does support PWM control from a radio receiver. I am hoping to build a marine ESC once the reference design comes out.

Check out http://www.vesc-project.com

It is a very promising start and I am pretty excited to dive in once the reference hardware design is released. One neat design choice was using the 'DirectFET's which have a metal packaging allowing the FET to sink heat both to the PCB and to the case, which should make water cooling very effective. Couple that with the fact they are rated at 240 Amps each and it wont take many in parallel to support some really hefty currents.
It has many bells and whistles aimed at the eskateboard market, including a 6-axis accelerometer. I picture using the accelerometer to cut power in the event you boat hits an unacceptable angle, like when your cat gets a bit loose and the nose comes up.

Anyways, I hope to take the VESC6 reference design and tweak it so that it has the features we all want in a speed control.

[srislash]

There have been exciting developments in the open source speed control arena. The VESC6 has hit maturity and its only a matter of weeks until we have a reference design to work from. The software side was released a few weeks ago and is very solid. The VESC6 was originally developed for the eskateboard market, but does support PWM control from a radio receiver. I am hoping to build a marine ESC once the reference design comes out.

Check out http://www.vesc-project.com

It is a very promising start and I am pretty excited to dive in once the reference hardware design is released. One neat design choice was using the 'DirectFET's which have a metal packaging allowing the FET to sink heat both to the PCB and to the case, which should make water cooling very effective. Couple that with the fact they are rated at 240 Amps each and it wont take many in parallel to support some really hefty currents.
It has many bells and whistles aimed at the eskateboard market, including a 6-axis accelerometer. I picture using the accelerometer to cut power in the event you boat hits an unacceptable angle, like when your cat gets a bit loose and the nose comes up.

Anyways, I hope to take the VESC6 reference design and tweak it so that it has the features we all want in a speed control.

A nice North American ESC would be nice. And should be able to be done considering the competition being MGM and Schulze let's say. When you consider shipping and wait times on any repairs there should be a market. And if one proves to be
JUST PLAIN SOLID it will sell.

There is an outfit in Toronto too whom does e-bike/skateboard ESC's. mmm I have the company name around here somewhere.
Many thanks for your input and efforts wattS=power

[T.S.Davis]

Yeah, higher voltage isn't going to happen. All the existing racers would have to gut every setup they own. Spec racing in it's various forms is the most popular power level. It's the biggest thing to happen to FE oval racing shy of the Lithium. Higher voltage would delete those boats. A boat off the shelf would have no class.

8s sounds simple but it won't be. Primarily because of the insane setups that get suggested regularly. Guys that blast down and back but don't turn recommend setups that just can not be raced. It's just a different thing entirely. "I just wanna go fast". Some guys stay in the hobby but guys that run alone don't typically stay in the hobby. (I did say some stay!) A smart 8s setup will go right out the window. What we'll get is 8s on 1600kv. The phrase "I run that all day long" will convince someone to buy another setup that's un-raceable. Fast going straight but otherwise useless. Boat takes flight, explodes on impact, we never hear from him again.

Truth is, we had some decent reliable ESC for a while.

The Seaking 180 V2 was killer. WAY under rated. You really had to abuse it to have it fail. I did and have. Beans got counted. Bring in the V3.

The Castle hydra 240 V1 was really tough. That thing would run under water. But it wasn't sexy. So they redesigned it and we got the green case version we all know. Decent but less water freindly and the cooling wasnt as good. But guys were still learning what would work. Every time someone would wreck one they wanted it replaced for free. Sometimes it would be a cold solder joint by a newbie. He didn't know. "It just died". Castle did too. Replaced a bunch of them. Eventually the bean counters asked.......ummm.... why the heck do we even make these? Today, you can't buy a Castle marine specific ESC. I have been in touch with Castle and there are plans to get back into marine but there is no defined time frame. So.....don't hold your breath. Gonna take a while.

I don't have problem with an esc dying due to abuse. It's the ones that make you ask what the hell just happened that drive me mad.

[CraigP]

I've had high current servo systems do the same thing! Run for a long time, doing the same thing, then POW... I never could find a root cause, and it drove me nuts. The best fix was to run mosfet that were 2X voltage and 3X current. That's a bunch of de-rate!

I'm a sport boater myself, but I like to run circles. Nothing is more thrilling than a full throttle turn, wondering if it will make it out of the turn! It takes so much more setup skills to hit good speed on the straights and the turns...