[Batfish]

Update...

I got to run the MF at my local track tonight. The truck was outrageously fast and I loved every minute of driving :)
I ran the whole time with a 16-tooth pinion. I made my friend, the owner of the shop/track, try it for a few laps. He's a great driver who normally only uses 10-turn brushed motors. Lately he's been using the new revolution motors from Orion. He told me straight out that my truck was too fast for him in a few spots of the track. I was very pleased to hear that from him :)

Three things worth mentioning about the MGM 12012 and basic xl5000 combo:

1 - Accelleration. When driving in my back yard, I didn't notice much of a lag, but once I got it on the track I quickly realized that the default .63 second accelleration delay makes the system/truck feel like a dog. I changed the option to the lowest, .13 second setting and it felt much more "natural". With the default setting, it actually felt like the delay was much longer than .63.

2 - Coasting. I read somewhere (I think on this forum, and maybe elsewhere) that the first MGM controllers had a "feature" that would make them brake when slowing down. It works like this - if you are running fast and let the throttle go to neutral, the motor will coast to a stop. If you are running fast and let the throttle off, but not all the way to neutral, the motor will actually brake until it reaches the new speed. My understanding was that this "feature" was fixed for the current controllers, but my controller actually does this. On the plus side, I actually drove BETTER with it doing the auto-braking. I was very happy with it and will definitely keep it. I just wish there was a way to turn it off if I wanted it to act "normal".

3 - Temperature. At the end of a good 10-minute run, the ESC was 120F and the motor was 195F. I'm really pleased with the controller temps, but I am concerned about the motor temps since this is the setup I need to run 15-minute mains.

One more note about the setup - when I was doing a couple speed runs in the parking lot, the truck actually pulled a wheelie when it was already travelling a good 30mph or so. It was a great sight :)
I also glazed my slipper pads quite bad during my fun this afternoon. Guess I'll have to learn the right tightness for that with this new-found power.

Lastly, anyone looking for new nimh batteries should seriously consider the IB3600 cells. I got my first good taste of them side-by-side with GP3300 cells today and the difference is EXTREMELY noticeable. More punch, more runtime (obviously), and cooler temps at the end of the run.