Burning up motors need help

[mark in wi]

I need some help figuring out what is causing my motors to heat up. I have an A stamp 6 gear with a Novak T4 and Gens Ace 4000 40c batteries. I burned up a "black 'silver can" and tried my pole position and it got real warm after 2 minutes. I tried different gearing with no changes to temps. I took the trans apart and it was still pretty clean. The dif is gritty but nothing too bad. I'm wondering if anyone is using a lipo with a T4?? Could the lipo be too " hot" for the Novak?? I'm not connecting the 2 red wires on the speed control since I never did with my old 7 cell packs.
Sorry it's so long!

Any ideas??
Thanks
Mark

[adam lancia]

Hi Mark, the T4 is more than likely having a hard time dealing with the amperage you're trying to push through it. Reassemble the trans and see if it spins freely. If so, check the rest of the drivetrain for binding, it should spin freely with almost zero resistance. If all that is fine, the motors may just be too tired to handle the LiPo. Hope some of that helps.

[mark in wi]

Thanks The trans is pretty free. I have run it worse . Could a too loose slipper cause it to get hot fast? The speed control is only a little warmer than the outside temps. It the motors that are getting real hot real fast. Any other ideas??
Thanks again
Mark

[jwscab]

if the motors have adjustable timing, you need to make sure they are set right. Take it apart and check for broken magnets or smoked commutator. If it's not adjustable, see if you can see inside the can through the end bell or vent holes on the bottom for any damage.

check the brushes for bad pitting burning or dirtiness.

what is the gear ratio you are trying to run? ie, spur and pinion count.

be sure your esc is set up correctly. if you have the throttle slightly too high, it will apply voltage but not spin, and make the motor warm.

try to isolate the problem. power the motor by itself with jumpers directly from the battery, on the bench. does it get hot? If so, you have a problem with the motor.

IF not, put it in the car, and again power it from the battery. does it get hot just loaded with the trans and drive train? If so, you have a problem with the driveline.

IF not, test the car at low speeds, is it really sluggish or choppy? that could be poor gearing.

IF not, and you are just running it a long time(more than 6 minutes or so) remember that battery capacity back in the day is only about a quarter of the capacity you have with the lipo, and the motors weren't designed to run for long periods of time and could be overheating.

[mark in wi]

if the motors have adjustable timing, you need to make sure they are set right. Take it apart and check for broken magnets or smoked commutator. If it's not adjustable, see if you can see inside the can through the end bell or vent holes on the bottom for any damage.

check the brushes for bad pitting burning or dirtiness.

what is the gear ratio you are trying to run? ie, spur and pinion count.

be sure your esc is set up correctly. if you have the throttle slightly too high, it will apply voltage but not spin, and make the motor warm.

try to isolate the problem. power the motor by itself with jumpers directly from the battery, on the bench. does it get hot? If so, you have a problem with the motor.

IF not, put it in the car, and again power it from the battery. does it get hot just loaded with the trans and drive train? If so, you have a problem with the driveline.

IF not, test the car at low speeds, is it really sluggish or choppy? that could be poor gearing.

IF not, and you are just running it a long time(more than 6 minutes or so) remember that battery capacity back in the day is only about a quarter of the capacity you have with the lipo, and the motors weren't designed to run for long periods of time and could be overheating.

Thanks!! I'll start with these. The motor is heating up in 2 minutes or running. I'll try the battery directly and see if that heats the motor up. I have tried 3 different motors (one is new and broke in by someone more qualified then me) and still having problems. I may mess with gearing which is as low as I can go for now. I changed to B3 wheels so I might try it with the old ones and see if that changes anything.

Thanks
again
Mark