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Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2020 5:46 pm
by LosiRacer1
So Ive come in to a large amount of older ESCs. Sadly the wiring on almost all of them is quite dismal. Is there anywhere or a person who is known for rewiring old ESCs? Does it even make sense to spend the money on them?


Thanks for all the help.
David

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2020 6:36 pm
by coxbros1
i dont want to freak you out but u have some seriously "holy grail" esc's there! some people on here will brown there trow when they spot em :lol:

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2020 6:14 am
by Mark Westerfield
As a guy that restores my own esc's...

Here's the issue, no one wants to be responsible for your old, used, rare equipment. Do the speed controls work 100% functionally to begin with? I've bought speed controls where the seller says they work (because they plugged it in and it lit up) and they don't or they only partially work. Blown brakes are common, which nobody actually tests (except me apparently), I've gotten esc's that turned on, but glitched, had burned components inside but still turned on, cracked fet's, damaged adjustment pots, etc.

Why would somebody like myself risk getting sent an esc that was damaged to begin with (whether the owner knows it or not), and then I get blamed for it being damaged, and then have the owner talk crap and expect reimbursement?

What if I did actually damage the esc myself? The owner would expect reimbursement, right?

Do it yourself. Invest in a nice soldering iron (I suggest the X-Tronic - Model 3020-XTS kit, with the desolder suction tool), a tip assortment pack, a helping hands clamps thingie, and an adjustable desk light. Replacing the wires is not really that hard once you get some practice with the desolder suction tool. Oh, and test them for full functionality beforehand, no sense wasting time on damaged units.

Good luck!

P.S. The Tekin Keypad esc's, Victor esc's and the Novak 1 esc are awesome! (the rest are pretty common).

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2020 9:29 am
by jwscab
I would add more, but Mark nailed it perfectly.

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2020 6:17 pm
by LosiRacer1
Mark Westerfield wrote: Fri Nov 13, 2020 6:14 am As a guy that restores my own esc's...

Do it yourself. Invest in a nice soldering iron (I suggest the X-Tronic - Model 3020-XTS kit, with the desolder suction tool), a tip assortment pack, a helping hands clamps thingie, and an adjustable desk light. Replacing the wires is not really that hard once you get some practice with the desolder suction tool. Oh, and test them for full functionality beforehand, no sense wasting time on damaged units.

Good luck!

P.S. The Tekin Keypad esc's, Victor esc's and the Novak 1 esc are awesome! (the rest are pretty common).
Ahhh all good points. Thanks for the info!
Guess I'll have to start looking for a how to.
Maybe I'll practice on the older Tekins and less desirable ESCs.

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2020 7:09 pm
by coxbros1
Mark spotted them....those are the ones

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Sun Nov 15, 2020 8:09 am
by TRX-1-3
coxbros1 wrote: Thu Nov 12, 2020 6:36 pm ...........some people on here will brown there trow when they spot em :lol:
:lol: X 1000

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2020 5:14 pm
by AscotConversion
I have done old Novaks and Tekins before, and one tip is to ream the hole for the wire once you have removed the old wire. Run a drill bit the size of the hole through by hand to remove any solder running over the edges. Otherwise, the wire will be hard to seat in the hole, even if you pre tin it, which I recommend. This way the wire is usually very easy to pass into the hole.

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2020 4:37 am
by Mark Westerfield
Just use a de-solder suction tool.

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2020 7:07 pm
by RC10th
Old ESC's you should be fine but beware of putting drills through multi layer PBC's as you can ruin them.

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2020 8:20 pm
by coxbros1
of u have a good soldering station ($50 or less on ebay, got two been using g for years) that goes to 480 celsius, heat the wire/board, pull the wire out, then reheat where the wire is and blow the solder area with your mouth while pulling the iron away...it will make a perfect hole to put a new wire in

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Mon Nov 30, 2020 3:50 pm
by LosiRacer1
Thanks for all the tips and tricks guys.

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Sun Jan 17, 2021 7:36 am
by Cplus
AscotConversion wrote: Mon Nov 23, 2020 5:14 pm I have done old Novaks and Tekins before, and one tip is to ream the hole for the wire once you have removed the old wire. Run a drill bit the size of the hole through by hand to remove any solder running over the edges. Otherwise, the wire will be hard to seat in the hole, even if you pre tin it, which I recommend. This way the wire is usually very easy to pass into the hole.
That can work, but wow, risky. I would not recommend it! Chance of ruining a MLPCB is very high.

Much better ways to remove solder - wick, vacuum tool, sucker etc.

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Sun Jan 17, 2021 11:04 am
by Faux4x4
Or sell the 2 Tekin keypad ESCs and buy what ever you want.

Re: Re wiring older Novak ESCs.

Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2021 4:06 am
by Cplus
Faux4x4 wrote: Sun Jan 17, 2021 11:04 am Or sell the 2 Tekin keypad ESCs and buy what ever you want.
Yup.

I’d happily repair all the others for him with vintage wires in trade for 1 of the 410Ks

Also have a mate who is GUN with repairing ESCs at a component level - he can fix anything ESC never seen him fail a job- repairs smoked brushless units that are considered irrecoverable all the time - and brushed units are a very easy for him.